Wizard Hall Chronicles Box Set

by Sheryl Steines

  Samantha refused to look at Annie, keeping her focus on the television. John stared at the magic as it trailed behind Annie’s movements. His jaw floated open in surprise.

  Annie waited impatiently for Samantha to soften, to look at her. John stood.

  “This isn’t easy for us either,” he said.

  “I never said it was.” Annie’s hands flew up in exasperation. She opened the large glass doors and stepped on to the narrow balcony. From there she could observe the courtyard filled with young families enjoying the warm summer day. Her eyes darted across the grass where children ran and dogs chased balls. A young boy of four learned to ride a two-wheel bicycle as his younger sister chased him and laughed.

  Annie focused on the adult women, searching for the only thing she remembered of her mother: the dark red hair. She searched for bandanas or hats that would hide it. She tensed at the sight of a woman in a wide-brimmed hat, who was sitting on a blanket with a thick book. Though the woman held the book close to her face, it was low enough to peer over the top edge. Annie gripped the handrail as she stared at her.

  Cham saw her tense and joined her on the balcony, slipping an arm around her waist. “See something?” Cham asked. He followed Annie’s gaze and looked away after spotting the slim woman on the blanket. “She’s not really reading. She’s looking up here,” he said.

  “I noticed that too.” Annie leaned against the handrail and placed her chin in her hand staying as casual as she could, though for a moment, she felt nauseated. She continued to scan the crowd, periodically stopping on the woman not reading, in order to assess her features. Delicate, petite hands held the book tightly; short, thin legs were tucked beneath her. Annie turned her focus on the dog still chasing a ball across the courtyard.

  The woman finally placed her book in a tote bag, folded her blanket, and stuffed it inside. She stood and casually glanced at Samantha and John’s townhouse before she limped through the courtyard, stopping at a corner townhouse. She typed a code on the keypad on the gate and entered the small front yard before entering the house.

  “Maybe she’s nothing,” Annie said.

  “Maybe.” Cham took out his phone and texted Bucky. Annie peered over his shoulder. He was asking for the ownership of all the homes at this location.

  “What are you doing out there?” Samantha finally turned to Annie, who frowned.

  “Just looking outside. Paying attention to my surroundings. For instance, I thought that corner townhouse had been empty for a while,” Annie said.

  “The sign was taken down about two months ago. We never saw anyone move in though,” John said. “Did you see someone enter?”

  “Yeah. A woman. Short, slim. Couldn’t see much else.” Annie continued to watch the crowd.

  “You don’t think it’s her, do you?” Samantha asked.

  “No. I just watched a woman enter a house I thought was empty. Just curious.” Annie pulled herself from the railing and walked through the living room to the kitchen. She filled the tea kettle with water and set it on the fire.

  “You just got back. If it’s been two months, the timeline’s wrong,” Samantha said. It sounded like she was trying to convince herself that her growing fear was irrational and unfounded.

  “No. Sturtagaard told them when I was going to the past. They’ve been preparing for years. Besides, she was reading a book, and just because she glanced up here doesn’t mean anything other than she thought Cham was hot,” Annie said. She gathered mugs and tea and set them on the counter.

  “I can’t live here. I can’t stay here!” Samantha sounded nearly hysterical. John put his arms around her.

  The tea kettle whistled. Annie poured the boiling water into mugs, placed them on a tray with tea and sugar, and brought them to her sister.

  “First of all, we didn’t say it was her. She glanced up here casually. While she was smallish, I didn’t see her face or her hair. The point is, that she was looking up here, and you need to be careful. Watchful. She can’t get in here. If you teleport from the roof, you’ll be fine. Otherwise, stay with Don and Marina at the farm.”

  Annie returned to the large window and stared at the corner townhouse. The drapes in the upper window slid closed.

  Weird.

  Annie refused to back down as she watched the window where she knew the woman was watching her back.

  Samantha picked up a mug and looked at Annie still leaning against the balcony. She walked over.

  “What are you looking at?” Samantha asked.

  Annie kept her focus on the corner townhouse. “I’m just looking out the window. It’s a nice day out.”

  “You think it’s her?” Samantha took a sip.

  “I think you have a new neighbor who was enjoying the lovely day. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m less trusting than you and the thought popped in my head. I reacted badly.” Annie eyed the curtains fluttering across the way.

  “I wish I were brave like you,” Samantha admitted. “I still hate your job.”

  “Take a number.”

  *

  It was never really dark in the heart of the city. While the stars shined above her, she stepped across the empty courtyard, across the damp grass. She had been to the place countless times, sharing life’s experiences with Samantha, and never had cause to fear it. Even in sleep, as she neared the corner townhouse and as her feet grew wet from dew, Annie felt, at least in a sense, fear. She stopped at the gate and turned to look at Samantha’s empty townhouse with its darkened windows and no lights at the front door. She sighed and turned back to the corner home.

  The gate was cool and slippery with a layer of dew. It yielded easily when she pushed it open and strolled along the short sidewalk to the door. Shuddering at the thought of being watched, Annie glanced at the second-floor window and saw Emily Pearce staring down at her. She swallowed the lump in her throat; it was the first time mother and daughter had eyes on each other in twenty years.

  But I’m not really here.

  She studied her mother’s face. While Emily retained a youthful appearance, she had aged in twenty years. Though Annie didn’t remember her, she knew her face from the many pictures stored away in the basement.

  Annie pulled her gaze from her mother and glanced at the flowers that lined the narrow sidewalk to the front stoop. At the door, terracotta pots were filled with bright summer flowers in purple and dark pink. They smelled sweet as Annie passed. She held the door handle, took a deep breath, and let herself inside.

  She recognized the floor plan, the same as Samantha and John’s, and bypassed the small den, taking the stairs to the right. It led to a single large room that encompassed a family room, kitchen, and dining room.

  Curiosity overwhelmed her and pulled her toward the fireplace. The mantle was lined with pictures. She scanned her mother’s life through the images. The first was of Emily with a baby, whose lips were smooth and curved like Annie’s. In the next picture, he was a young boy; his mother hugged him and smiled brightly for the camera. Annie moved to the next, a picture of Emily in a thin, strapped summer dress, carrying a bouquet of flowers in one hand, a man casually draping his arm around her shoulder.

  Who is he?

  Annie’s heart ached. She felt a ping of jealousy as she perused their lives in pictures, as she watched Emily’s face age, as the wrinkles appeared at the corner of her eyes, at her mouth as her hair grayed throughout. Annie scanned them as if she would find someone familiar to her. She stopped when she came to a photo nearly hidden. Pulling it from its spot, Annie stared at her three-year-old self, standing in front of the porch outside the house she now shared with Cham. The old front door she recently replaced had just been painted bright red by her mother, hours before the picture was taken.

  Though the picture was unfamiliar to her, the lopsided ponytails springing from both sides of her head were all too familiar, as was the one sock at her ankle and the other at her knee.

  Annie touched the image of her mother,
who was smiling warmly, her arm protectively holding her youngest daughter. Samantha stood beside Annie, almost her twin, wearing the same white dress. Her long, curly hair was pulled into a single ponytail springing out from behind her head. She was neatly combed and both socks stayed at her knees. She was held by her father, who was smiling proudly.

  She shuttered and took the picture with her as she turned toward the stairs to the third floor. Absently she climbed, her right hand grazing the handrail as she reached the bedrooms. She turned toward the front room and entered, finally looking up to see Emily glancing out the window. Hearing her daughter, Emily turned. Her light-pink lips curved slightly upwards.

  “I’ve been waiting for you.”

  *

  Annie flew up. Her heart pounded violently and her stomach roiled. She glanced around the den. The light was low, the television on mute. She could hear two male voices in the back hallway, their footsteps crossing the kitchen to the den.

  “Hey, you’re awake,” Cham said as he entered with Bucky Hart, who carried a case folder with him.

  “Yeah. Hey, Bucky. It could’ve waited until tomorrow,” Annie said as she pulled her hair into a ponytail.

  Bucky sat in the chair beside the sliding window. “Actually Annie, it couldn’t wait. To be perfectly honest, when Cham asked me to look into the townhouses, singularly based on a woman looking up at you, I was curious. I’m glad I looked today,” he said.

  She exchanged concerned glances with Cham and returned her attention to Bucky.

  “I reviewed each house in the complex. Every one checked out except for the corner lot. It was purchased two months ago, cash, a quick move in.” He handed them the list.

  Annie read the owners’ names: Emily King-Solomon and Levi King-Solomon.

  “This is a joke,” she said. “Could they be more obvious?” She was incensed, as if they were purposely baiting her.

  “That’s why I’m here. It’s too much of a coincidence. And it’s brazen,” Bucky said. “So I assumed it’s her, and with a name, comes everything else.” He handed her the folder.

  Annie looked at the first document, a marriage license between Emily Worthington Pearce and Levi King-Solomon. She read the document carefully and frowned at the date of the marriage. “She married him after Dad died at least,” she spat. “Is it a real marriage license or fake like we create?”

  “The document was recorded in Tel Aviv the day after your dad died. As far as I can tell, it was a legal wedding. Though I’ve been trying to determine if this Levi had a different name at some point.”

  “Obviously, they knew when he died. I’m surprised they didn’t just change her name and marry her off earlier,” Annie said.

  Annie perused the other documents. “You were right. She graduated from college with a degree in archaeology from Tel Aviv University.” She pulled out the next page and held her breath.

  “What’s the matter?” Cham asked. Her hands shook when she handed him the printout. “Oh,” he said, looking at it. “You have a half-brother named Shiloh.”

  “You have a what?” Jason asked.

  Annie glanced at her dad and shook her head. “You don’t have to know this.” She closed the items in the folder.

  “You found her,” he said and reached for the folder, slowly opening the cover. “The house is owned by Emily King-Solomon. She remarried…” he shuffled through the rest of the documents, reviewing the marriage license and then the birth certificate. “I didn’t remarry because I loved her and couldn’t find anyone else. I couldn’t…” Jason sat on the sofa.

  “She remarried after you died, if that helps,” Annie said. She knew it didn’t make Jason any less emotional. “She was brainwashed, probably threatened, and most likely lied to. She’s not the woman you fell in love with as much as she’s not the woman who gave birth to me. My mom died that day. This is a woman with the same name; she’s not my mom.” Annie took the folder from Jason and set it on the ottoman. She looked at Bucky.

  “I’m sorry, Annie. You needed to know the Fraternitatem has been watching you for years.”

  “It’s not your fault. I appreciate knowing. It will just make it easier to do what I need to do,” she admitted.

  “Do you want me to broadcast their names? Especially to the Middle Eastern Guard. They might know more,” Bucky suggested.

  Annie frowned. “Go ahead and send them the list. I wouldn’t expect a whole lot, though. They didn’t have much about the Fraternitatem when the black market fell, and that group is small and responsible for the entire region. Hopefully, they have outside contacts who can help.”

  “Yeah, I wondered about that. I’ll send it anyway and keep you posted.” Bucky took his leave, his expression grim and apologetic.

  “Are you okay?” Annie asked Jason after the door slammed shut.

  “I know she wasn’t the woman I married when I saw her at the Cave of Ages. I knew I would never get her back. But seeing her move on this way…” he glanced at the folder.

  “It’ll be easier knowing this,” Annie said as she held back the tears that threatened to fall.

  Chapter 9

  Annie sat at the picnic table near the employee entrance of Wizard Hall, letting the sun warm her as she perused her notes. She glanced up, peered inside the entrance as the security day manager, Manny, trained a new security guard.

  “Afraid of the new security officer?” Cham chuckled.

  “No. Just enjoying the sunshine,” Annie said. She put her notes back inside her field pack and slung it across her shoulder.

  “Everything okay?”

  “Yeah. I had a thought.” Annie didn’t elaborate as she and Cham entered the hall.

  “Annie, Cham,” Manny said as they cast their magic spells into the security box and headed inside.

  They took the stairs from the back hallway and walked in silence, Annie mostly lost in her jumbled thoughts.

  “You going to elaborate any time soon?” Cham asked as they entered the fifth floor. The Wizard Guard department was relatively quiet. Since many guards had been out late investigating markets the previous night, they wouldn’t be coming to work until afternoon.

  She smirked at Cham and entered her cubicle. “I need to make a phone call first.” While her computer loaded, she scanned her phone for Jack Ramsey’s number and paced until he answered.

  “Hi, Annie. How are you holding up?” While he was sufficiently solemn in regards to Gibbs’s recent death, he still sounded far more jovial than normal. Usually a call from her rendered him grumpy with thoughts of magical investigations that could potentially result in the end of the world.

  “I’m okay. Work continues and keeps me busy. Which is why I’m calling you. I have a bit of a dilemma I’m hoping you can help me with,” Annie said.

  There was a moment of silence on Jack’s end. Annie didn’t rush him; she knew calls from her made him anxious.

  “Princess Amelie isn’t alive again, is she?” Jack joked.

  Annie laughed. “Seriously, are you drunk?”

  “No. But since you’ve asked, Amanda and I are engaged.” She could almost see him beaming through the phone.

  “Congratulations! I’m happy for you. That explains your dopey demeanor,” Annie said. She glanced at her ring finger. Her diamond gleamed in the artificial light.

  “Thanks. How’s the fiancé?” he asked.

  “He’s good. We’re dealing.” Jack had witnessed Gibbs’s funeral, so he knew how hard it had hit Annie and the rest of the team.

  “You sound preoccupied. What’s up?” Jack asked.

  “I am. It’s just… another case revolving around my dad’s murder.”

  Jack was silent for a moment as he gathered his thoughts. “Does that mean the Fraternitatem of Solomon is back in the picture?” His manner changed, not completely all business, but she sensed his concern.

  “Good guess. I’ll be dealing with them in time. I was hoping you could get me in to see Wolfgange Rathbone.”

/>   She could hear Jack typing on his keyboard. He soon said, “Yes, with the caveat you tell me what’s going on. I’ll help if I can.”

  “Deal. Let me know when,” Annie said.

  They said quick goodbyes. Annie glanced at Cham standing in her cubicle door. “What?” she asked.

  “We should have asked Rathbone sooner,” he said.

  “We’ve been busy,” Annie pointed out.

  Cham took a seat across from her. “You okay to face him?”

  Annie chuckled. “I should bring my dad with me.”

  “That would definitely be a sight to see.” He smiled lightly. “I ask again, you okay to meet with him, knowing what we know?”

  “I’ll do what I have to if it helps stop the Fraternitatem,” Annie said as she pulled down the first folder in her inbox.

  *

  When the elevator doors slid open, Annie jumped at the sight of her father. It was still a surprise whenever he appeared around a corner. She wondered if she’d get used it before he had to leave again.

  “Hey, Dad,” she said as she stepped inside.

  “Where are you off to?” he asked. He stood against the door, keeping it from closing.

  “Mrs. Cuttlebrink has something for me about that symbol in the market. If you’re not busy, wanna come?” If work was the only way Annie could include him in her life, she decided she would make any attempt to do so. She sensed his happiness when he re-entered the elevator.

  “Sure. I have no place in particular to go and I’m not getting paid,” he said.

  “We should remedy that. You should get paid something,” Annie said as she pressed the basement button.

  “For what purpose? I’m here to protect you. It’s not like I’m buying a new car.” He leaned against the shiny metal walls.

  Annie chuckled. “You’re okay with your daughters giving you spending money?”

  Jason shrugged. “I gave you money for years. We’ll call it even. Besides, I can’t go out, so what’s there to spend?”

  They exited at the basement; Annie glanced at her phone. It was 8:59. “She is definitely punctual,” Annie said of Mrs. Cuttlebrink.