So much evil.
Annie rested her elbows on her thighs and her chin in her hands to keep from fidgeting. Suddenly, Shiloh’s eyes popped open. They were so much like her own, and they darted back and forth as the memories returned, and he attempted to make sense of where he was. He settled his gaze on Annie, a face so familiar, and yet he had no idea why. Frightened, he scampered backwards on the bed, away from her.
“It’s okay, Shiloh. You’re safe here,” Annie said.
“Where’s Mom?” he asked. His voice was soft and weak. Annie pointed to the bed beside his. Shiloh stared at his mother, vulnerable beside him. “What’s wrong with her?”
“She’s been through a lot. I’m sure you have too.” Annie looked at her mom. “She just needs to rest.” She smiled at him. It felt fake on her lips.
Shiloh stared at Annie carefully. “You look familiar,” he said.
“I’m Annie.”
He shuddered at her name. “I’ve heard of you. How do you know my mom?”
Annie frowned. I don’t really, she thought. “I knew her a long time ago. I haven’t seen her in a while.”
Annie dug inside the drawer on the bedside table and pulled out several comic books, handing them to Shiloh. “We had these lying around. If you’re interested.”
Shiloh glanced at the covers, which featured Captain America, Spider Man, the Avengers. He reached for them. “Thanks.” He glanced at her cautiously before leaning against the wall and reading.
Annie shifted to Emily’s bed. She had been given a powerful sleeping pill to help her rest, yet she still slept fitfully, her arms and legs jerking. Annie touched her arm and Emily calmed for a moment.
“Uncle Melichi warned me about you. He said I shouldn’t trust you,” Shiloh said in a matter-of-fact tone.
Annie glanced at her half-brother. He seemed to stiffen. His eyes grew black; his demeanor, fearless. Annie’s stomach felt queasy.
“I’ve only met your ‘uncle’ once, when I returned something that belonged to him.” Annie returned to Shiloh’s bed. “I’m not sure why he wouldn’t trust me. I’m actually kind of nice.” Annie smiled at him. “I can get you some food if you’re hungry.”
Shiloh nodded. “Do you have chips?” Annie turned to the cupboard in the room and perused the snacks, pulling down a bag of chips and offering them to Shiloh.
“Uncle Melichi say anything else about me?” She returned to the metal chair, keeping her distance from him.
“He said a lot of people died because you let a vampire loose. Did you really do that?” Shiloh looked at her expectantly, as if he wanted his uncle to be lying.
Annie took a deep breath and held it before releasing it, as if that could cleanse away the guilt she still felt. She knew she wasn’t responsible, but sometimes she felt as though everything had been her fault. “No, I didn’t. I have a dangerous job and sometimes people get hurt. But the stuff Uncle Melichi’s talking about was a series of events created by other people. It was the entire magical community, not just me alone. We saved a lot of people.”
Shiloh thought about what she said and dug into the potato chips. Crumbs fell against his shirt and on the bed. He glanced up at her, his face wide with realization. “You’re Mom’s daughter?”
They told him a lot!
“Yes. Emily’s my mom too.” She refrained from wiping the crumbs from the bed. He took another handful of chips. Annie held her palm out and summoned a can of pop from the mini fridge. “Here.”
Shiloh popped the lid and took a large draw. When he finished, he burped loudly. “Excuse me,” he said.
Annie chuckled. “Do you need anything else?” She turned and looked at Emily, who was stirring, finally coming out of the sleeping draught.
“When will it be lunch?”
“Soon. Mom’s finally waking. I’ll get something for you to eat.”
“You’re really Annie?” Shiloh relaxed and scooted to the edge of the bed. Annie observed him carefully, unsure if she could trust the young boy, afraid the Fraternitatem might have plans for him. She jumped up when his eyes flashed orange. “Melichi said it would be easy to get to you,” Shiloh said in a voice several octaves lower. While his smile was familiar, it lost its warmth. Annie shuddered.
“How’s that?” Annie asked. It felt as though she were now speaking to another person.
“Melichi said you would come after us. He said we should just let it happen and we’d have you where we wanted you,” he said confidently. The quick change in Shiloh’s manner frightened Annie. She wondered if he had been brainwashed, too. She waved her palm across his head, freezing him. His body stiffened with a smile plastered to his face like a puppet. Annie observed his motionless body. She blinked and searched his face.
He’s still breathing! Is he possessed? Is that’s what inside of him?
Her eyes widened.
“That’s creepy,” Cham said as he entered the apartment.
“Yeah, it is. He’s good, but I’m better,” Annie commented. “I can see you breathing,” she told Shiloh. “Did they give you an amulet to protect you from magic?”
“You’re really good, too,” Shiloh said.
Annie shuddered. “They’re tracking you with the amulet then?” she asked.
He smiled broadly. “Yep.”
Annie thought carefully before she moved to the bed and sat beside him. “That explains how they tracked you to the safe house.”
“You’re not afraid of me,” Shiloh said.
His statement made her chuckle. “Why should I be. You’re what, thirteen? I have power you can only imagine. Besides, you’re not the one who’s going to kill me. That’ll be who, Melichi, maybe?” Annie said.
Shiloh smiled again. His calm and confident demeanor unnerved her. She believed he had been groomed for this; he was convinced she was evil.
Annie reached for the amulet hanging from his neck. Shiloh looked on in horror and grabbed her hand, trying to release her hold on the chain. But Annie was stronger. Her fingers gripped the necklace as he kicked out at her. She pulled away and stared at the charm dangling from the chain; it was the six-pointed star, surrounded by four dots, forming a square.
Shiloh no longer appeared confident. As he watched Annie summon a fireball, his mouth opened. The fire floated above her palm and she dropped the amulet into the flames. As it melted away the metal, it consumed the magic inside.
“No!” Shiloh shrieked.
Annie caught his glare. As the magic diminished, his eyes grew dimmer. When there was nothing left of the amulet, Shiloh slumped against the wall, tears in his eyes, his hands shaking.
Emily murmured softly as the sleeping draught finally wore off. “Where am I?”
“You’re safe, Emily. The Fraternitatem can’t reach you here,” Annie said.
Shiloh grimaced. “Do you know what you did? Dad will kill her if we don’t go back home.” He could barely speak.
“Shiloh, love?” Emily turned. She smiled and reached out for her son.
“Mom.” He slipped from his bed and sat beside her.
“I’ve been so worried. Are you okay?” She rolled to her side, still weak. Shiloh let her take hold of him. He lay beside her in a safe and warm embrace.
Annie turned away to look for food, a heaviness filling her heart.
Chapter 20
Shiff and Brite teleported to the roof of the King-Solomon townhouse. “We have four hours,” Shiff said as they entered through the roof door.
“That should give us time to find any Fraternitatem plans or rosters or maps,” Brite said as they entered Shiloh’s bedroom.
Brite looked under the bed and felt for holes in the mattress while Shiff began to look through his desk.
“Huh?” Brite said as he pulled out a thick envelope. Brite opened it and looked inside. The pile included a thick notebook and several folded maps. “Looks like we have…” he trailed off as he opened the notebook. It was listed with names, dates, and locations. He unfolded the f
irst map, which showed the cliff that housed the Cave of Ages.
“Anything useful?” Shiff asked as he closed the first drawer and opened the second, moving around baseball cards, bits of paper, packs of gum, and candy wrappers.
“Not sure. It could be outdated or it could be fake to throw us off.” Brite put the items back in the envelope and dug through the laundry basket.
Shiff closed the last drawer. “He appears to be a stereotypical boy,” he said. He found an overnight bag in the closet and tossed it on the bed, returning to the dresser drawers to pull items for the boy.
They slipped inside Emily and Levi’s bedroom, a bare room with white walls, basic beige curtains on the windows and the floor, and a simple white bedspread.
“No romance here,” Shiff said as he stared at his partner.
Brite felt his stare and returned his gaze. “How did they get her to marry him?” he finally wondered aloud as they repeated their process, examining under the bed, through the drawers, and in the walk-in closet.
Shiff felt his way between the mattresses and finally found a journal on Levi’s side. He opened the book and perused the notes.
“What did you find?” Brite asked.
Shiff held up the book. “It’s notes on their surveillance. They’ve watched Annie, Samantha, Dr. Blakely, and get this: they’ve been watching the Snake Head Letters.”
“That makes sense. Mortimer knows people and things. They probably want to know who’s coming and going, or maybe they’re waiting for Annie,” Brite said.
Shiff shook his head. “No. They have the store name circled. Notes like ‘magical energy,’ ‘a magical vortex of some kind.’ Question mark, question mark.” Shiff showed him the book. Brite continued to peruse the pages.
“They also think there’s a source of magical energy in Chicago. They’re trying to tap into it to help them with the market. It looks like they’re mapping magical hot spots,” Brite said.
“Can they tap into the magic to gain power?”
“With black magic they just might.” Brite put the book inside an envelope as they moved to the closet. They searched under sweaters, in drawers, behind shoes, and between the clothes on hangers.
Brite stepped to his left. The floor felt spongy and crackled. He knelt at sound and found the edge of the carpet and pulled up. Below was a hole in the wood, so he pulled that up and looked inside. “They’ve got a lot of hiding spots,” he commented.
Brite dug inside the hole and discovered that Levi and Emily had hidden potions, amulets and two athames there. Shiff held his crystal inside and ran it over the items. His crystal glowed a black light.
“We’ll have to send the VAU in after we get Levi and have them scan for additional hiding spots,” Shiff said as he pulled the items from the floor and put them inside his field pack. “We have three hours.”
They reentered the bedroom and took one last look for anything that seemed out of place or odd. The dresser held several family pictures; Brite found one of Shiloh with Emily when he was a toddler.
“Shiloh looks like Annie,” he noted. “I think I’ll pack a bag for Emily.” He found a bag and took what he could without invading her privacy. When he was finished, they made their way down the stairs.
“They weren’t meant to live here for any length of time,” Shiff said.
They closed the door, made their way down the staircase, and entered the living room, repeating their search procedures inside drawers and baskets and behind pictures.
Shiff pulled away the picture above fireplace. “Here’s the actual safe,” he said. He whipped up his magic, spinning the lock until the door sprung open. “Jackpot!” The safe contained several bottles of prescribed medicines for Emily and Shiloh. “They were both drugged,” Shiff said.
Shiff dug inside the safe, finding several envelopes and opened the first. “Passports, marriage licenses, driver’s licenses, bank accounts. Different last names, same first names. Looks like the cache of fake IDs.”
Shiff placed the documents back in their envelopes and stuffed all of their finds in their field packs as they waited for Levi to return.
*
Levi closed the front door and dropped his keys on the glass-top table, placed against the wall. He ran up the stairs, unaware Emily and Shiloh had been taken into protective custody, away from him and the Fraternitatem.
He was still working at the prison; his job hadn’t ended with the death of inmate 9100083, Wolfgange Rathbone. He still had to maintain appearances, still had to clean up the magical mess to ensure his death wouldn’t lead the Wizard Guard to the Fraternitatem.
It had been easy for Levi King-Solomon to get a job at the prison. His magically created documents were flawless; his fake resume and the magical spells on his contacts allowed him to get the cushy job and therefore watch over the man who could upset all of their carefully laid plans. Levi had watched the prisoner visitation requests, listened in on any phone calls to Rathbone, and searched carefully for any mail. In the year since Rathbone had been incarcerated, the prisoner received no calls, no mail, and no visitors. Levi was surprised it had taken the bitch daughter, Annie Pearce, such a long time to make contact with Rathbone. How she didn’t know the Fraternitatem would be back made her seem even more stupid than he originally thought.
For the first time all day, he finally checked his phone. He grimaced as he finally realized that Emily had never made it to Antique Symposium that da, and Shiloh had never made it home.
He glanced up. A man he had never seen before stood in his front room. “Who are you?” Levi barked. He didn’t see what hit him from behind as he was knocked unconscious with a magical hex.
“Seriously, why did they make this so easy?” Brite asked. He knelt down and checked Levi’s pulse.
“Don’t know. Let’s get him back. We can ask him later,” Shiff said. He pulled Levi up and threw him over the shoulder as he followed his partner to the roof to teleport away.
With the added security around the prison island, the trip to Tartarus was uneventful. When they entered through the reception area, Shiff and Brite were directed to the wizard wing, where Shiff unceremoniously dumped Levi on the cot in the maximum-security wizard cell.
“I’ll stay,” Brite said as he set up a metal chair in the hallway.
“You don’t have to save Annie all by yourself. You know that, right?” Shiff asked.
Brite stared at him. “I know. I’ll do what I can to help though.” He slid the cell bars shut, locking Levi inside.
Brite pulled out Levi’s notebook and stared at the pages, but he couldn’t stay focused. He glanced at Levi over the top of the book and watched as he stirred on the cot.
One spell and it would be over.
He refrained from attacking Levi and stared with contempt when the man groaned to wakefulness.
“That took a while,” Shiff said.
“Good spell,” Brite said.
“Where am I?” Levi demanded to know.
“As an agent for the Fraternitatem of Solomon, you are being held in contempt of an agreement made with the U.S. Wizard Council. We have a few questions for you,” Brite said.
Between the strong magic and the restraints, Levi staggered up and made his way to the cell bars. “I don’t know who or what this Fraternitatem is. I demand to speak to a lawyer.”
Brite raised his eyebrows. “Then a lawyer shall be provided.” He wasn’t in a hurry to oblige and thought it would be prudent to make Levi sweat for the moment.
Brite cast a spell at the door. It flew opened and crashed into the wall; the sound reverberated against the stone. The security guard outside glanced down the hall with a confused expression on his face.
“Mr. King-Solomon requested a lawyer,” Brite said. “Can you call John Chamsky? If you can’t find him, try his wife, Samantha Pearce Chamsky.”
The security guard’s confused look deepened, John Chamsky’s specialty wasn’t criminal law; another lawyer would have to be called. B
ut the mention of Samantha made Levi squirm and that pleased Brite.
Shiff and Brite sat outside the cell, their feet on the bars, as the security guard took the clues and called for a lawyer. Shiff glanced down the hallway impatiently and Brite glared at Levi with a smug expression.
“Why am I here?” Levi grunted.
“You know why. I suggest you wait for your lawyer. He should be here soon,” Shiff said.
Levi’s hands had been tied behind his back, his palms facing together, rendering him incapable of shooting off a spell. “I already told you. I don’t know this Fraternitatem!” he said as he fought against the strong rope.
Instead of responding, Shiff read something on his phone while Brite split his attention between the end of the hallway and Levi. When John Chamsky eventually entered the cell block, he brought with him an actual criminal lawyer, Annie’s best friend, Janie. They strolled down the hallway and stopped at the cell bars.
“So that’s him?” John asked.
“That’s him.” Brite handed them the case file including all of the aliases attached to Levi. John and Janie shared a look into the folder.
“Okay, Levi King-Solomon—or, as I see here, Levi Worchester. I assume they explained why you’re here?” John asked Levi, who jumped at the mention of his legal name.
“No, they didn’t,” Levi growled.
“He lawyered up after telling him we had questions for him concerning the Fraternitatem of Solomon. He got as far as denying he knows who they are,” Shiff said.
Brite turned on his crystal and held it for John. “We need to rule him out as a suspect in the murder of Wolfgange Rathbone. As it turns out, he is working as a prison guard by the name of David Stein.”
“Open the cell for me, please,” John said.
Brite obliged and slid the door open for John and Janie. Brite and Shiff stood with their palms up, ready for Levi should he try to run. John undid the rope and pulled Levi’s hand out. Levi, realizing what was happening, pulled against John’s grip.
“Levi. I suggest you cast a spell into this crystal. If you do not know who the Fraternitatem of Solomon is, then your magical signature won’t be tied to any crime tied to them,” Janie said smoothly. She held the crystal for him.
Wizard Hall Chronicles Box Set Page 159