by Geof Johnson
Jamie studied the screen with one fingernail between his teeth. “Eric, if you can’t get an agent close to his fortresses to get any photos, have you managed to get any shots from the air?”
“Satellite photos only. We sent a plane over his monastery four months ago, but it was shot down. He has surface-to-air missiles and radar.”
“This is a satellite photo of the monastery.” Terry pressed a couple of keys on the laptop and a new image appeared on the monitor, showing a sprawling stone structure. There was a long, narrow clearing next to it, and a single road on the other side that led away from it.
“Have you tried using drones?” Rollie said.
“Two. They were also shot down.”
Jamie held his arms out like wings. “What if I were to fly over it while using my invisibility shield and took a camera with me?”
“Can you even manage all three at once?” Bryce asked. “Flying, shield, and camera?”
“I don’t know. Maybe I could carry one of you on my back and you could operate the camera.”
“Jamie!” Fred glared at him. “Don’t even think about it. You are not going someplace where you could get shot at by missiles.”
“I think my shield can take the hit.”
Her voice became sharp and she widened her eyes. “You think?”
“Well, yeah. It’s not as strong when I use it with the invisibility spell, but it’s still pretty tough.”
“How tough is it when you use it normally?” Terry asked. “Can it stop a bullet?”
“Oh, sure.” Jamie nodded confidently. “You got a gun? We probably should go in the backyard, though, in case it ricochets.”
“No, Jamie,” Fred said evenly.
Jamie frowned at her, then turned back to Terry. “Well, I know my new and improved shield is strong enough to take a direct blast from a wizard as powerful as Renn.”
“A blast, like lasers from your fingertips?” Terry said.
“I’m not sure what it is, exactly.”
“What is the blast capable of?” Eric said. “Could it take out an army tank?”
“Easily. Renn’s blast might’ve taken nine or ten seconds to do that, but mine can do it quicker.” He snapped his fingers. “Like that. Mine’s more powerful because I incorporated plasma into it. Did the same with my shield.” He nodded again and grinned. “It can withstand just about anything. I think I can walk on the sun with it.”
“Don’t feel like you have to prove it,” Fred said.
“The gravity would crush you, anyway.” Melanie said.
“How did you figure out how to use plasma with it?” Terry asked. “Was that something you knew from the old sorcerer’s memories?”
“No, physics class. Mr. Watson, eleventh grade.”
“Is that why you like science so much?”
“Yeah. The more I know, the more I can do. But I think I might be able to fly over one of his bases and get some photos.”
Eric shook his head. “His radar would probably still detect you, and even if you could take the hit from a missile, Cage would be alerted to you. We don’t want to show our hand that you have that capability unless we have to, because he might be able to work out counter measures to your magic, especially if he’s using magic, too.”
“Hmm.” Melanie scrutinized the photo of the monastery again. “What about the people who live nearby? What do they think of Cage?”
“They like him,” Terry said. “He provides good-paying jobs for many of them. Somebody has to do the cooking and cleaning for twenty men, and take care of the building and the grounds. Cage spreads money around freely. He recently paid to have the school at the nearest town rebuilt after they had a bad fire.”
“Built a school.” Bryce said. “Sounds like you, Jamie.”
“He’s not a bit like Jamie,” Terry said. “Cage is a cold-blooded killer.”
“But the local people like him.”
“They do, but it’s difficult to get any intel from them. They know that he’d kill them if they talked.”
“Gee,” Rollie said. “Sounds like Renn the Sorcerer.”
“At least Renn had an excuse for being the way he was,” Jamie said. “His family died from a plague that Eddan could’ve stopped.”
“Has Cage always been like this?” Fred said.
Eric shook his head again. “He was a normal guy until the end of his career in the Delta Force. Something happened then that changed him, but we don’t know what it was.”
“If we ever catch this guy,” Terry said, “it probably won’t be at one of his strongholds. They’re too well protected and he seems to be able to see us coming every time. For all we know, he could have a witch at all three of them, and they’re using some kind of voodoo or crystal ball to stay one step ahead of us.”
“Crystal balls don’t work,” Nova said, “according to Momma Sue, though my mom seems to think so.”
“I don’t think it’s voodoo,” Fred said, “because Momma Sue would know, and she’s a voodoo queen.”
“Really?” Terry raised her eyebrows.
“Yes, and it’s a good thing she’s on our side, or we’d really be in trouble.”
“You’re sure she’s on our side?”
“No doubt about it.”
Melanie stared at the photo of the monastery again and shook her head. “I don’t understand how Cage can afford all of this. Three strongholds, plus security and household staff, and a helicopter and a plane. That’s a lot of expenses.”
“Well,” Eric said, “he bought the strongholds during his arms dealing phase, so now he only has to pay for his employees and upkeep.”
“Still, that’s not cheap.”
“No, but Cage makes a lot of money as a hit man. We don’t have access to his financial records, but we’re pretty sure that’s he’s the highest paid assassin in the world, and he probably makes several million dollars per assignment. There are a few top-flight professionals who can kill just about anybody, but that can be messy, politically and otherwise. Cage is the only one that we know of who can totally incapacitate a target without killing them, and make it look like it could be from natural causes. Unusual circumstances, yes, but still possible. Killing can lead to unexpected consequences from various parties, but what Cage is doing just causes confusion. Is it natural or not?” He tapped his chest with one hand. “We know, thanks to you, but nobody else does.”
Terry scrolled back to the close up picture of Cage getting out of the airplane. “So he’s carrying his magic potions in a utility belt. I’m glad you guys figured that out. That may be helpful to know.”
“It’s not just a utility belt,” Rollie said. “It’s a Commander Hawk Action Belt.”
Fred groaned while Nova wrinkled her nose at him.
“Hey,” Bryce said, “don’t laugh. Those are handy things to have. Maybe we should all wear one and put potions in them for emergencies and stuff.”
Terry grinned as if considering it, and said, “I’m beginning to think we ought to wear one of those Stupeyin’ pendants that Fred makes.”
“I’ll make you one as soon as I can,” Fred said, to Jamie’s surprise. I guess she’s getting over her jealousy of Terry.
Jamie closed the doorway behind them after they returned to Fred and Melanie’s room.
“Well,” Bryce said, “that was an interesting meeting.”
Fred’s expression was gloomy. “It looks like helping them catch Phillip Cage is going to be a lot harder than we thought.”
“It’s obvious that they need our help, though,” Nova said.
“Nova?” Jamie said. “Why do you give Eric such a hard time?”
“’Cause he’s such a vanilla-straight-laced guy. I’m just trying to shake him up a little, to see if I can get a reaction out of him.”
“You’re not having much luck. He seems to be good at ignoring it.”
“Maybe he had training for it at secret agent school,” Fred said. “Like when they train them to resist
torture.”
“I doubt it,” Nova said. “I think he was born that way. Born to be bland.”
“Isn’t that a song?” Rollie started wagging his head and singing, “Born to be bla-a-a-a-and.”
“That’s Born to be Wild.” Nova grabbed his hand and pulled on it. “Come on, big boy. That’s enough. Walk me home before it gets any later.”
“It’s raining,” Jamie said. “Want me to make a doorway for you?”
“You can’t, remember? My roommate doesn’t know about the magic.”
“Well, at least somebody around here doesn’t.”
Chapter 9
Terry sat beside Jamie the next day during their Environmental Science class, but it wasn’t as awkward as before because she wasn’t spying on him.
When the lecture was over, all of the students stood to leave, but Jamie motioned for Terry to wait. He glanced around to make sure no one was looking and handed her a slip of paper. “Sammi called first thing this morning,” he said in quietly. “She heard this right after she woke up.”
Terry read it and her forehead creased. “Hotel Amira? That’s it?”
“That was all she heard, apparently, and she only heard it once.” He lowered his voice even more. “But it’s the same voice she heard before, so it must be you-know-who.”
Terry studied the little slip of paper in her hand. “No date mentioned, or what’s happening at this place?”
“Not as far as I know.”
“Any idea where this hotel is?”
“I did a quick search on my phone and found at least five with that name, and they’re scattered all over the world.”
She continued to stare at the short message, working her mouth from side to side. “I’ll show this to Eric and see what he can make of it.”
Jamie was putting on his running clothes in his dorm room on Saturday morning when his phone chimed with a message. He read it quickly and called, “Hey, Bryce. Terry just texted. She and Eric want to hang out, and she used all caps again.”
Bryce poked his head into Jamie’s open doorway. “They want to see us right now?”
“Looks like it.”
“We gotta be in the gym in less than thirty minutes.”
Jamie rubbed the back of his head with one hand and stared at the floor. “I know. Coach is gonna kill me if I miss practice.”
“We haven’t run in almost a week ’cause of the rain, and this is the only time we can use the gym.”
“You don’t have to remind me.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I’ve got to go see what they want. Maybe it’ll only take a minute.”
“What if it takes longer? What do you want me to tell Coach?”
“Tell him, uh…no, don’t tell him anything. I don’t want you to have to lie. Just say you don’t know why I missed practice.”
“He’s gonna be ticked off.”
“I’ll just have to deal with it.”
Jamie stepped into Eric and Terry’s house and closed the glowing doorway. “This better be good. I’m in trouble with my track coach.”
“I think I figured out which Hotel Amira this is,” Eric said, “and why it matters. It’s the one in Istanbul, more than likely. It took me a while to check everything out, but it’s the only hotel with anything going on right now of any significance. There’s a meeting of four lower-level OPEC oil ministers today, which starts in a little over an hour.”
“At ten o’clock in the morning on a Saturday?”
“It’ll be five in the afternoon in Istanbul. But we need to go and warn their security. Can you make a doorway for us?”
“Uh…now?”
“As soon as possible. And can you or Fred come with us, maybe both?”
“That’s pretty short notice. She’s busy this morning, working on a class project.”
“Do you think we could borrow her Stupefyin’ pendant?” Terry said. “That would be some help, at least.”
“I can ask.”
“Will you come?” Eric said. “Maybe we can surprise Cage and apprehend him today. But I think we’ll need as much magical help as we can get.”
I can kiss track practice goodbye. “I guess I can come.”
“We’ll have to do something about your appearance. You need to dress like an agent. Do you have a black suit?”
“Back home in Hendersonville, in my closet.”
“Can you get it?”
“Maybe, if I make a doorway to my bedroom and sneak in and out real fast so my parents don’t know. My mom might not like it if she knew what I was up to.”
“We’ll also have to do something to disguise you a little bit,” Terry said. “We need to keep your identity a secret, especially from Cage. Do you have a spell you can use?”
“Not really. I can change my hair color, but I have to maintain the spell constantly and won’t be able to do much else.”
“I’ve got a dark wig you can wear,” Eric said, “and some tinted glasses that’ll make your eyes look less blue.”
“Just follow my lead, Jamie,” Eric said as they headed to the stairs that went to the conference rooms of the Hotel Amira in Istanbul, Turkey. The lobby they had just passed was luxurious, with a bubbling fountain in the center and guests and liveried staff going in every direction. Terry walked beside Jamie, and she and Eric both had handguns in shoulder holsters under their dark coats. Terry’s expression was as serious as Eric’s — all business.
Jamie felt uncomfortably warm in his black suit and tie, and his scalp itched under the brown wig. He caught a glimpse of his reflection in a mirror in the foyer and frowned to himself. I look funny with these glasses and hairpiece on. He held Fred’s Stupefyin’ necklace in his left fist, the end of the thin silver chain looped around his index finger so that he could spin it at a moment’s notice. All three of them wore the cheap woven bracelets that served as counter charms to the pendant’s hex, though Eric was skeptical when he put his on. “Not government approved equipment, that’s for sure.”
“If you don’t have it on when I twirl this necklace, you’ll get stunned, too,” Jamie replied.
They started up the stairs and Terry said. “Does the pendant work anything like a Taser?”
“You don’t feel a thing. You just get really stupid and unaware of things. Fred used it on me once, just so I could see what it’s like.”
“How long does the effect last?”
“Until I stop twirling it.”
“Well, get ready to twirl it now,” Eric said as they reached the second floor, where a powerfully built man waited, stiff and challenging. “I think this guy is head of their security.”
The man they approached was big, like a refrigerator with legs, and he wore a black suit and a hard expression. “ID, please,” he said, not a request but a demand.
Eric and Terry showed their CIA badges, and Eric gestured toward Jamie. “This is our intern, Grant Harris.” He nudged Jamie with his elbow. “Show him your ID.”
Jamie released the Stupefyin’ necklace so that it dangled from his finger. He pulled out his wallet, flipped it open and offered it to the man, even though there was no identification in it but his driver’s license. He began spinning the pendant in a slow circle, and the man’s eyes glazed over immediately. Eric said, “See? His credentials are in order.”
“Yes,” the man mumbled.
They walked past the stunned man and Jamie put the necklace in his pants pocket. Terry whispered, “I’ve got to get one of those.”
The upper landing opened to a beautifully paneled lobby with tall gilded doors spaced at wide intervals. Standing at the entrance to the first conference room were two more beefy men in dark suits, and several others were stationed down the hall. Jamie waited with Terry while Eric spoke with the one of the guards.
Jamie leaned closer to Terry and whispered, “What are we looking for, exactly?”
“Anything out of the ordinary. Eric is telling that guy that we’re expecting trouble, a
nd he’ll probably alert the rest of their team.”
Eric rejoined them and said, “The meeting is about to start inside, and they have six armed guards with them. There’s only one other entrance to the room and it’s got two men on it, too. They have a security camera monitoring the space above the ceiling, and I suggested that they station someone in the adjoining rooms.”
“So what do we do?” Jamie asked.
“We wait here and keep our eyes peeled.” He lowered his voice and said, “And if you have any special ways of looking, this would be a good time for that.”
“What do you mean by special?”
“Infrared vision or X-ray, or whatever it is you wizards can do.”
“I can’t do either of those, but I have super-hearing, and sometimes I can see in slow-motion. How about that?”
“Anything you can do that might give us an edge is helpful.”
“We didn’t have time to get much of a plan together,” Terry said, “or get any other agents here, for that matter.”
A blue-uniformed man appeared from around the corner, holding a German shepherd on a leash. When they passed by, Jamie said, “What’s that for?”
“Bomb-sniffing dog,” Eric said.
“I thought this was a low-level meeting.”
“It is. You should see what it’s like for a meeting of the top ministers of OPEC. A gnat couldn’t get in without proper clearance.”
“I’m beginning to think that Cage could,” Terry said. “Speaking of whom, we need to pay attention.”
The two agents moved near the closed double doors of the conference room, squared their shoulders and crossed their arms behind their backs. Their eyes glanced about, searching the hall to their left and the stairs to their right. Jamie tried to adopt their stiff professional pose, standing next to Terry. He checked his watch. It was already five o’clock, Istanbul time. If anything’s going to happen, it should be soon.
He began contemplating what course of action he would take if they encountered the mysterious Phillip Cage. If he tries to blow a powder at us or fling it, I can throw my shield around him. That’ll contain it. If he has a pendant like Fred’s, I can translocate it somewhere out of reach. Jamie knitted his brow. What else? He tried to remember the countless spells that Fred had discussed with him over the last year. There are so many. I wonder if my shield would protect me from a pendant’s magic. I’ve never checked, for some reason. That would be a good experiment.