Legally Red

by A. A. Albright

  ‘Anyway,’ she began, looking at us both. ‘We already know what I’m going to say to the judge tomorrow. Melissa, you’ll pick me up and take me there, so you can help me look my best. And then once I’m emancipated, we can all get to work on putting Nemo together. I’ve brought the files for the first few people I’d like to join.’

  ‘Nemo?’

  Candace gave Miles a confused look. ‘Melissa is supposed to be your assistant. Why doesn’t she know about Nemo?’

  ‘Melissa’s only been my assistant for two days, Candace. We don’t know if it’s going to last. She might have nothing to do with the running of Nemo. And if you don’t win tomorrow, then neither will you. So why don’t we put all of this stuff away and talk about your emancipation instead.’

  Candace narrowed her eyes. ‘I’m going to win tomorrow. And I’m going to form Nemo. And be its leader. I want to choose the first members. Now.’

  ‘Oh, dear goddess!’ I glared at them both. ‘Will you two stop bickering and just tell me – what in Hecate’s name is Nemo?’

  Candace smiled. It was a little less smug than usual. There seemed to be some genuine light and excitement in her eyes – but maybe she was simply hyper from all the cake she’d eaten. ‘Nemo is the coven I’m starting up when I’m emancipated,’ she said a little breathlessly. ‘I chose the name because Nemo means no one in Latin. The coven is for people like me, who feel unhappy in their own covens, people who feel like they don’t have a family name or a coven name that feels like it’s really their own. People who want to be a part of something better. Nemo is the reason why I’ve been working so hard on all my businesses. The money from my Head it Like a Boss courses alone should be enough to buy the building I have in mind for our headquarters.’

  I looked at Miles, but he was conveniently not meeting my eyes.

  Over the next hour I learned all about Nemo. Mostly from Candace. Once she started telling me about it, Miles seemed eager to get me to leave, but I was not going anywhere. Even if I did have a date I would have cancelled it.

  Although the coven hadn’t even been registered yet, Candace had already picked out some choice candidates. They ranged in ages. Some, like Candace, were young witches. But there were teenagers too, and even some adults.

  Hating their coven wasn’t the only thing these candidates had in common, though. Each and every one of them was incredibly gifted. There was a thirteen-year-old who’d mastered walk through walls spells to such a degree that she could escape the notice of any security system, a ten-year-old boy who was an expert at shrinking himself, a nineteen-year-old girl who was a master at manipulating magical documents, and an older man whose glamour skills were astounding. He could meet someone for the briefest time and match their appearance and mannerisms exactly. And that was just the first few I read. I almost dreaded to imagine what the others could do.

  ‘This one isn’t a witch.’ I pointed to a picture of a young werewolf from the Lupin Lane pack. I only knew of him because he’d been in and out of courts more times than I’d had hot dinners. The kid was a notorious shoplifter, and he mostly seemed to get caught in department stores in the human enclaves.

  Wayfarers had arrangements with some of the higher-ups in the Irish gardaí, and they usually passed people they suspected to be supernatural our way. Did I say our way? I must have been imagining I was a Wayfarer again (but working for Miles probably made most people wish for a different career).

  ‘That’s Patter Gaunt,’ Candace told me, her cheeks flushing slightly as she looked at the photo of the boy. ‘I met him at a reading club I set up in his enclave.’

  Good goddess, did Candace have more hours in the day than the rest of us? I’d lost count of the amount of groups and clubs she’d set up. And now another?

  ‘See, I was impressed by the new route the Wayfarers are taking,’ she went on. ‘They hire everyone now – well, everyone deserving. They have lots of different supernaturals on the force. So I thought – wouldn’t it be nice to have a coven that included more than just witches?’ She grinned at me. ‘I’m trying to be the best witch I can be. And that means helping everyone I can.’

  She really did look like a sweet and innocent young miss at the moment, but there were one or two issues making me wonder if she was nearly as sweet as she seemed.

  ‘Hmm. Here’s the thing, Candace,’ I said. ‘I can’t help but notice that everyone you’re planning on asking to join is gifted. Each and every one of them has mad skills in one area or another. Even Patter is a shoplifter – albeit slightly less skilled in his chosen area than your other candidates. But you must see why I’m not really buying your I’m trying to be the best witch I can be excuse. Because when I look at these candidates, this is seeming less like a coven and more like some kind of mastermind group. Honestly, if you told me you were forming this coven just so that you could carry out some complicated heists, I’d have a much easier time swallowing the story.’

  Candace shook her head. ‘Heists!’ She waved a hand, laughing. ‘As if. But yes, the chosen ones are incredibly skilled. Even Patter, as a matter of fact. He seems like a bumbling shoplifter, but he gets arrested on purpose. Every time he’s taken to a Wayfarer station he uses channelled magic and disables the security system. Just to prove he can. He might have used his magic to nick one or two things while he was there, too. Like some disempowerment devices and truncheons. But I’ve told him to give them back, and I’m sure he will.’

  My eyes lit up. ‘He uses channelled magic. So he’s a werewolf who wants to be a wizard?’

  Being a wizard was altogether different than being a witch. Wizards didn’t have innate magic. Instead, they channelled it from whatever magical objects and sources they could. They were many wizards who became more powerful than witches, and the brooms they made were far more popular than witch brooms. But the biggest advantage to being a wizard over a witch was that you could be a wizard and whatever other supernatural you happened to be. An unempowered witch could study wizardry and gain magic that way. Even a werewolf like Patter could technically become a wizard, as long as they put in the hard work.

  ‘Exactly,’ Candace confirmed. ‘He’s wanted to study wizardry his whole life. But his pack don’t want him to be a wizard, so he does the best he can on his own. He’s twelve now. Why should he have to wait until he’s an adult before he gets to live his dream? But if he were to get emancipated, like I’m going to, then he’d be able to leave his pack and join Nemo. I have the funding to send him to Wentforth’s College. I have the funding to make sure that Patter and anyone else who joins lives up to their potential, like everyone should. Because at the moment, none of them are getting the educations they deserve.’

  She turned to smile at Miles. ‘Miles is helping me with all of it, aren’t you Miles? He’s not charging me any fees at all. Not for setting up the legal side of the coven. Not for trying to get the others emancipated. Without him, none of this would be possible’

  I glanced at Miles. ‘And you’re doing all of this why?’

  He stood up. ‘Personal reasons.’ He patted Candace on the head. ‘I think it’s well past your bed time, young lady. Will you be all right to get yourself home?’

  She narrowed her eyes. ‘I’ve told you not to touch my hair, Miles. But yes. I do need my sleep for tomorrow.’ She gathered up her papers and shut them back inside her little pink briefcase, and Kitty hopped into her arms. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon at two, Melissa. Don’t be late.’

  11. The Perfect Couple

  Wanda and Max were curled up on the couch when I got home, watching a horror movie. Wolfie was laid out on the rug in front of the fireplace, chewing on a familiar looking stick, while Dizzy sat on Wanda’s lap chewing on a mango slice, laughing as a horde of zombies shuffled into an unsuspecting town.

  ‘That’s not how zombies behave!’ cried the little bat. ‘Hah! Who writes this stuff?’

  Wanda paused the movie and looked at me with concern. ‘It still seems fairly ear
ly,’ she said. ‘I thought you were seeing Mack after your dinner. Is everything okay?’

  ‘Me and Mack are fine. Wonderful, in fact. I just have an early start, that’s all, so I asked him for a rain check.’

  ‘Wanna join us for a little while?’ She patted the seat next to her. ‘I was just about to make some more popcorn.’

  ‘Yeah.’ Max grinned at me. ‘There are some leftovers from dinner if you want some of that, too. We had fajitas.’

  Leftovers and popcorn sounded like a great idea right now. But maybe I’d ignore my hunger, just for a while. Wanda and Max looked so comfortable and perfect together that I didn’t want to butt in. I just wished that they knew how perfect they were together.

  Wanda was convinced she was in love with a gorgeous but dodgy guy called Will Berry, and Max was going out with a girl called Emily, who I was pretty sure was also seeing the Call of the Wild’s bass player on the side. It all sounded incredibly complicated, but it didn’t have to be. Just as soon as Max and Wanda realised that they were head over heels in love with each other, their lives would be very, very simple.

  And that was why, whenever and wherever I could, I made sure that they had some time alone. I had to be patient about things, though. If I constantly threw them together, then Wanda would cop on to what I was doing and run like the wind (probably screaming, ‘I don’t love Max, honest I don’t!’ as she went – but who was she trying to kid?). And Max, well, he’d just get so awkward about the whole thing and probably spend every evening anywhere but home.

  I’d long come to realise that the best way to go about things was to treat Wanda and Max like the overgrown children they were. And that meant handling them. So I’d devised a little chart in my mind, making sure I left them alone just enough not to seem suspicious. By my calculation, it was safe to leave them to it tonight.

  I put a hand to my mouth, pretending to yawn. ‘Oh, I’d love to, but I’m so tired. Have a good night, guys!’

  ≈

  I wasn’t tired. In fact, I was full of nervous energy. Thinking about what a perfect couple Wanda and Max would be made me yearn for the relationship I’d left behind. I know, I know – I was already yearning for it, pretty much from the moment I ended it. But now … now it felt all the worse.

  As I paced the room, Princess grumbled. ‘What’s with you? You keep looking at your phone. Just call him again.’

  I sank onto my bed. ‘If I call him one more time he might just block my number altogether. I know I had valid reasons for breaking up with him, Princess. If he left the Call of the Wild for me, he might wind up hating me for it. But I just miss him so much.’

  ‘I know you do.’ She jumped onto my lap and began to knead her claws against my legs. ‘If it wasn’t for your many problems, you would have been the perfect couple. But problems have solutions. Maybe you should give up trying to call him and just go and see him instead. Once the two of you are face to face, you can talk about other ways you can make it work.’

  I stroked her soft fur, sighing. I’d already been thinking about other ways Mack and I could make things work – ways that didn’t mean he had to leave the band – but was I just wasting my time?

  I felt my eyes begin to sting. ‘I can’t go and see him, Princess. If he wanted anything to do with me the he would have answered the million calls and messages I’ve left. I think it’s too late. I think I’ve driven him well and truly away.’

  She nuzzled my face with her head. ‘Well, I think if you don’t go and see him then I’m going to drive you away. And probably drive you off the edge of a cliff, too.’ She purred. ‘I’m joking, obviously. Well, mostly. Look, why don’t you just call him one more time? If he doesn’t answer, you can head to sleep and think about your next move when you’re a bit less wired.’

  She was wise – snarky, sure, but still wise. ‘Okay,’ I said with determination. ‘I’ll call him one more time.’

  As the phone began to ring, she snuggled closer. Finally the ringing stopped, and Mack picked up the call.

  ‘Who is this? Why do I keep getting calls and messages from you?’

  I blinked at the phone. ‘I … you know who it is. It’s Melissa.’

  There was a beat of silence. ‘That’s the name that comes up on my screen when you call, but I don’t know anyone called Melissa.’

  ‘What? Mack, stop messing around. It’s me. Look, I get why you’re upset enough to pretend I don’t exist. But I think we need to talk about this. Even if you want to stay broken up, shouldn’t we at least be civil?’

  I heard a very faint growl, the one he made when he was trying to stop himself from growling a lot louder. Clearly he was angrier with me than I’d thought. ‘Yeah, I think I’m being more than civil,’ he said eventually. ‘Especially considering the fact that you’re harassing me. I mean, listen to yourself. Why would I be upset with some woman I don’t even know?’

  I opened my mouth to say something more, but the line had gone dead.

  Princess nuzzled me with her head once again, making her purrs loud and strong. ‘I’m sorry. Maybe I could talk to him on your behalf. For a werewolf, he sure does seem fond of cats.’

  It was a tempting idea. But this was my mess, and it was up to me to clean it up. For now, though, I was going to have to give Mack some time to be angry with me.

  ‘Maybe we’ll leave it a few days before we go down that road,’ I said. ‘But for now, I think I’m still too wired to go to sleep. I’m too upset about Mack and too angry with Miles.’ At the thought of Miles, I gritted my teeth. ‘You know what? I know exactly what I need to do to keep my mind off my break up. I need to do what I was born to do. I need to solve the case, no matter what stupid Miles Master has to say about it.’ I lifted her from my lap and stood up. ‘I’m heading to the Phoenix Park, Princess. Want to come along?’

  She sprang down from the bed and wrapped her way around my legs. ‘You bet I do. Can I go hunting while we’re there?’

  ‘Oh, we’ll both be doing some hunting,’ I said. ‘But while you’re sniffing out mice, I’ll be looking for something else.’

  ‘Can I go, too?’ I turned my head to the door. Wolfie was standing there, giving me his most enthusiastic (and drooly) face. ‘Can I, Melissa? Pretty please,’ he said. ‘Wanda and Max fell asleep, and Dizzy is trying to make me watch a film where a bat bites a dog and then the dog goes bad and scares everyone. I don’t want to watch a film where a dog goes bad and scares everyone. It sounds scarier than zombies.’

  ‘It does sound scarier than zombies,’ I agreed. ‘And I could really do with your nose. But the park might be scary too, Wolfie. Even scarier than a movie about a dog that bites a bat and goes bad. Are you sure you’re up for it?’

  His mouth opened into a smile. ‘Do you need my nose to smell things? I like smelling things.’

  12. A Walk in the Park

  The expression a walk in the park is supposed to mean something is easy. But a walk in the park at night time with a wolfhound and a cat … maybe not so much. I didn’t have anything for Wolfie to use in order to get a scent, and while the Phoenix Park might be in a human enclave, there was always a lot of full moon activity going on.

  Seeing as it was only a few days after the last full moon, there were werewolf and weredog smells everywhere. Wolfie seemed up for the challenge, though, running around with his nose to the ground and his tail going wild.

  The park was the likeliest place for the murder to have happened. Deer roamed in places other than here, but the park also happened to be one of the areas that supernatural packs frequented – as well as the place where Goldie and Nails got together.

  I’d tried to get in touch with Nails to ask her where exactly their spot was, but she hadn’t replied yet, which seemed a little odd. If she was as concerned as she said about Goldie, then surely she’d want to give me as much help as she could.

  I couldn’t afford to wait for her to answer, so I directed the search as best as I could.

  ‘We nee
d super strong smells, guys,’ I reminded them. ‘Smells of fighting. Smells of mating. Smells of beer, too. And maybe smells of Jinx.’

  While Wolfie and Princess continued their hunt, I took off into the air, flying my broom and keeping an eye out from above. After an hour had passed and I was cold, wet and (finally) tired, I started to wonder if this might be a good time to use one of my Ádh Stones.

  Just as I bent down to grasp one of the stones, I heard Wolfie bark. He was quite the distance away, at a heavily thicketed area in the middle of the woods. I glanced around for Princess, and saw that she was headed in his direction. I put my head down and flew fast towards them.

  Wolfie’s nose was to the ground when I arrived, twitching madly. ‘There’s mating smells near here, Melissa. And beer. And anger.’

  ‘And Jinx,’ added Princess proudly. ‘Wolfie taught me how to smell Jinx. If it makes your nostrils want to retreat inside your brain, then it’s Jinx. Oh, and there’s deer pats, too.’

  I swung off my broom carefully, because there were a lot of deer droppings to avoid. ‘I see the deer poop,’ I said. ‘You’re telling me you can smell all of the rest near here?’

  Wolfie lifted a paw, pointing into the thicket. ‘Everything except the deer poop is in there. Far, far in there. Really far. Very far. I have to pee.’

  While Wolfie watered the bramble, I looked at the seemingly impenetrable branches, groaning. There was a possibility that I could find the spot where all those smells converged on my inner map and finger-click my way there. But it was a huge section of growth, so it was more likely that I’d land with a thorn up my behind than at the right place.

  ‘You can get in this way,’ said Princess, pointing to a hole near the bottom. ‘You might just have to stoop a bit, seeing as the hole is at animal height. Can you do a shrinking spell?’