Legally Red

by A. A. Albright

  16. Not the Master of Me

  By the time we filed out, Candace still hadn’t said a word. Wanda was waiting outside, a plate of apple tart in her hands. Candace rushed straight for her, enveloping her in a teary hug, while I saved the apple tart from disaster.

  While Candace sobbed into Wanda’s chest, Miles turned to me, his face bemused. ‘That’s the first time I’ve seen that little girl behave like, well, a little girl. She really seems to like your friend.’

  I wiped away a tear. ‘Wanda and Candace have a chequered history. But in the end, they love each other. They’ve both got the same delightfully stubborn streak.’

  ‘Hmm,’ he said. ‘Indeed.’

  I shuddered. Indeed. Did I actually forget that I wasn’t communicating with a normal person for a moment? I glanced at his chest, wondering if he had a heart or clockwork in there. Surely he was some sort of automaton. Had to be. In fact, he was probably the automaton that the other automatons had exiled for being too emotionless even for them.

  Finally, Candace broke away from Wanda. ‘Y’know, I really did want to start my own coven,’ she said. ‘But if I had to choose between all the other covens in the world … well then, I wish I could be a Wayfair.’

  ‘I wish you could too,’ said Wanda, materializing a handkerchief and using it to dry the little girl’s tears. ‘But my mam did say that you’re welcome at Wayfarers’ Rest any time. She baked you that apple tart Melissa is holding.’

  Candace took the hanky and finished wiping her eyes. ‘Thanks, Wanda. I owe you some thanks as well, Melissa.’ She gave me what almost seemed like a grateful grin. ‘You were great today. Really. Especially when you stood up to my mother like that. And Miles … well, you were a little disappointing to be honest, but I guess you were out of your comfort zone.’ She glanced at Wanda. ‘I guess your mam knew I wasn’t going to get my way, then? Seeing as she baked me the apple tart.’

  Wanda shrugged. ‘She hoped it’d go your way, but she was afraid that it wouldn’t. She’s only been the new Minister for Magical Law for a few months. She’s doing her best to make sure all the laws are up to scratch, but it’ll probably take her longer than her current term. I do know that children’s rights are on the very top of her list, and that she’s trying to push a referendum through as quickly as possible.’

  Candace sniffed. ‘Yeah, well, if anyone deserves to win a second term, it’s your mam. I guess I’d better get back to my much less awesome parent, then.’

  ‘You don’t have to do that just yet.’ Miles reached out and tousled her hair. ‘I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty sure that after what Judge Blasket said to him, your dad wont dare boss you around again. So how about you come out for some pizza with Melissa and I?’

  Candace removed his hand from her head. ‘Melissa and me. And I’ve told you about the hair, Miles. I’m beginning to think you’re constantly ruffling and tousling it on purpose. But pizza would be great. Will you come too, Wanda?’

  ‘I wish I could,’ she said sadly. ‘But I’m in the middle of a murder investigation. I just took a break so that I could see how your hearing went. I promise we’ll catch up soon, though.’ She glanced at me. ‘Actually, Melissa, could we have a word before you head off for pizza?’

  Candace picked up her little briefcase. ‘Miles and I will be at the Hungry Hippy, Melissa. And yes, Miles – it is and I in that sentence. I can explain the rule to you over our meal.’

  He tousled her hair again, moving away and laughing when she reacted. Laughing? Really? I must have imagined it, because when he glanced back at me his face was all business. ‘I’ll order you a large vegetarian, Melissa. And don’t be long – I detest tardiness.’

  ≈

  ‘Nails has gone missing,’ said Wanda once we were alone. ‘And she left this note behind in Moony’s.’ She opened up an image on her phone, enlarging it so I could read:

  Goldie and I killed Decon together. I can no longer live with such guilt. I have gone to end my life. When you find me, you will find the proof of my evil deeds alongside my body.

  Farewell,

  Nails.

  I shook my head. ‘This sounds nothing like Nails. Are there any prints on the note? Any other evidence?’

  ‘Only Nails’s own prints. And it’s her handwriting too. But you’re right – I’m having trouble believing she would have willingly written that note. From everything I’ve heard about her, she’s pretty informal. So my guess is she was trying to make it obvious she was being forced to leave the note. The only problem is … who could have forced her to do it? There’ve been so many werewolves all over Moony’s the last few days, mourning for Decon, so it’s not like we’re going to find any other viable prints in the place. It’s going to be impossible to find out who could have taken her, if anyone. And as for finding out who was drinking the Rabid Wolf beer with Decon when he was poisoned? No luck on that front, either. We’ve tested dozens of pack members, but I know there are hundreds more keeping themselves off our radar.’

  ‘So you probably have no idea who would have been next in line to become alpha after Decon, then.’

  ‘Actually, we do,’ she told me. ‘Nails is next in line. As his mate, she automatically becomes pack leader when he dies. After that there were probably half a dozen others fighting to be top dog. Or top wolf. You know what I mean. We’ve asked around about who was Decon’s beta, but they’re all keeping schtum on that one.’ She raked her hands through her hair. ‘I hate not being able to solve a case, Melissa. This is gonna eat me alive.’ She forced a smile on her face. ‘Anyway, you get off and enjoy your pizza. See you at home tonight?’

  ‘Yeah,’ I said with a sigh, feeling just as helpless as her. ‘See you later.’

  ≈

  When I arrived at the Hungry Hippy, Candace and Miles were hard at work. The list of Nemo candidates was laid out on the table, and they were calling and texting the hopefuls to let them know of the hearing’s outcome.

  ‘I hate this,’ said Candace, sipping daintily at a glass of apple juice and crossing another name off the list. ‘I was so sure we’d win today. Look at this text I got back from Patter.’

  I peered at the message on her phone:

  Worst news ever. I think I might break into my dad’s supply of Jinx.

  I gasped.

  ‘I know,’ said Candace. ‘It sounds bad. But he doesn’t mean it. Patter says stuff like that all the time. He hates his dad and he’s pretty dramatic about that hatred. He was hoping his emancipation case would go straight after mine, and we could both be the first members of the Nemo coven.’ She looked fiercely at Miles. ‘But we still could be. Why don’t I start it up anyway? Just because I can’t legally join a coven without my parents’ say-so doesn’t mean I can’t go ahead and form one, does it?’

  Miles looked thoughtful. ‘It does, actually,’ he said. ‘But there might be a way around the law. I’d have to be careful about how I word your coven’s terms and conditions when I draw up your contract. Perhaps call it a junior coven or a coven in waiting – something that wouldn’t make it illegal.’

  ‘Brilliant,’ Candace said, but then she suddenly hung her head. ‘Actually, not brilliant. It is impossible. I’ve just remembered – my money’s being held in trust until I’m an adult. All the hard work I’ve put into funding Nemo will just have to wait.’ She sighed, picking up a slice of pizza and cramming it into her mouth.

  Messy eating was totally unlike Candace, so I knew that the poor kid must be feeling incredibly bad. As for me … my stomach was crying out for more food, sure. But my mind was too busy to let me eat. The murder case was beginning to make sense to me, finally. And it was all because of the text message Candace had received.

  ‘Patter’s dad,’ I said. ‘You told me he’s a member of the Lupin Lane pack. There’s no one with the surname of Gaunt registered, but then I wouldn’t expect there to be. No one seems to be able to tell the Wayfarers who Decon Phelan’s beta might have been. It couldn’t have bee
n Patter’s dad, could it?’

  Candace wiped her mouth. ‘Y’know, it’s possible. Patter always said he couldn’t talk about the stuff his dad got up to. But he did once hint at his dad’s position. He said the beta was never registered, because it’s their job to do all the seriously illegal stuff for the alpha. And if they don’t officially exist, then they can’t get caught.’

  A surge of nervous excitement took over. This was it. This was the moment that would crack the case. ‘Candace,’ I said breathlessly. ‘Do you have Patter’s address on that list of candidates?’

  Her eyes lit up. ‘Because you think …? Yes. Yes, I have it.’ She started to leaf through the pages, but Miles lifted his hand of interruption, and dropped it on Candace’s open file.

  He closed the file, shut it in his own briefcase and turned to me with a no-nonsense look in his eyes. ‘I will not stand for this sort of subordination, Melissa. This is about the Goldie thing, isn’t it? I told you, you’re off that case. In fact, seeing as Goldie has informed me that you went to visit him in Witchfield at silly o’clock this morning, the only job you’ll be doing between now and your LOL examination is answering my phone. And by the way, I’ve advised him to keep his guilty plea. It’s still the best chance he has.’

  My jaw grew tense. This man might well be the worst witch I had ever had the displeasure to meet. I didn’t care how famous he was in the world of Magical Law. He was an idiot. ‘I think you’re being short-sighted here, Miles. Even if Goldie doesn’t change his plea – and I think he will, no matter what you say – there’s no way he’s going to be convicted of this. You’re going to seem like a right idiot when it turns out Patter’s dad was the murderer. And you’re also going to seem like a terrible defence lawyer. It’s your job to stick up for your client, Miles. Not to take the easy way out. I’m leaving now, and I’m going to tell the Wayfarers what I suspect.’

  He gave me an icy stare. ‘You will stay seated, Melissa Wayfair, until we have finished our meal. And if you want me to give you the credits you need to help pass that exam, then I will hear no more of this nonsense from you. Is that clear?’

  I pushed back my chair, stood up, and glared down at him. ‘Y’know what? You’re not the master of me, Miles. I’m calling the Wayfarers right now. Because unlike you, they actually give a crap about solving this case.’

  17. Moonlight Meadows

  Well, the Wayfarers might have given a crap – if I was able to get in touch and tell them what I believed. Wanda’s phone rang out, as did Finn’s. I couldn’t even get my own mother on the phone. The phone at the desk of their station rang out, too.

  I clicked my fingers and had a word with Todge – the guy on the desk at the station. He was busy eating a jam sandwich, but he promised he’d pass on my suspicions about Patter’s dad as soon as he could.

  I wasn’t angry that I couldn’t reach any of them. I knew they were all out doing their job – a job that I wanted to do more and more with each moment. But the longer it took for them to find Patter’s dad, the more risk there was to Nails – if she wasn’t already dead.

  I thought about using a locator spell to find Wanda, but that could take too much time. Wanda was a Wayfarer, after all. It wasn’t like you could use the usual sorts of spells to find her. She was hardly going to make it easy for her many criminal enemies to track her down.

  After a lot of toe tapping, phone checking, and rash thinking, I took myself to Lupin Lane. But I wasn’t going to do anything more than that. Honest. I was just going to check things out, that’s all.

  I stood outside a hardware shop, looking up at the tall block of flats where Patter lived. The building was called Moonlight Meadows – the Development Where Your Neighbours Become Your Friends. There was a meadow just beyond the building, but the flats themselves looked a little grim, and not at all friendly.

  I’d be remiss in my duty as a responsible supernatural citizen if I didn’t go up there and at least check on the kid, wouldn’t I? He was a troubled young werewolf, after all. He needed someone to care if he was all right.

  I was taking my first, tentative step in that direction, when Candace appeared beside me.

  ‘I’m going up there with you,’ she said. ‘Stuff Miles, anyway. I don’t know what’s wrong with him lately. Ever since you became his assistant it’s like he’s had a personality change.’

  ‘He used to have a personality?’ I quipped. ‘Look, Candace, we should leave the Wayfarers to handle this. I’ve filled them in on what we suspect, so they should turn up and save the day any minute now.’

  She arched a glossy dark eyebrow. Yip, even her eyebrows were perfect. ‘And any minute now Patter could do something stupid. He doesn’t have a minute, Melissa. There are other people to think about, too. That woman called Nails. Just because she has a terrible name doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to help her. If you’re going to be just as cowardly as Miles and hope that the Wayfarers will sort this out, well then I’m going up there without you. But frankly, Melissa, I’m disappointed in your lack of bravery.’

  ‘Dear goddess!’ I grasped her by the shoulder. ‘I was going to go up before you got here. Of course I’m not just going to wait for the Wayfarers. But Candace, you can’t come with me. This is grown-up stuff.’

  She shook her head. ‘Patter’s not a grown-up, though, is he? He’s a kid. And I know I said he says things like that all the time – about breaking in to his dad’s Jinx supply, I mean. But I’m supposed to be his friend. And when you’re somebody’s friend, that means you’re supposed to look out for them. So I’m going with you, because who knows? This time he might not have said something like that just to be dramatic. This time he might have meant it. So you can try to stop me going with you – but you won’t succeed.’

  Well, well, well. I was just on the verge of tousling that girl’s hair. ‘Come on then,’ I said, beginning to walk towards the flats.

  She let out a derisive snigger. ‘Melissa, he’s on the twentieth floor, you idiot. If he’s actually in danger, then we ought to click our way there. Even you should have figured that much out.’

  ≈

  A few seconds later, and I somehow hadn’t sent Candace home in the form of a frog. Her heart was in the right place – even if her smart little mouth was in the wrong place most of the time.

  We stood on the twentieth floor, banging on Patter’s door. The next-door neighbour poked her head out. She was wearing baby blue pyjamas and pink fluffy slippers. ‘They’re not there, so can you please stop banging. I’ve already had to listen to an hour’s worth of screaming and snarling coming from inside that flat before they took off. And I work the night shift, so I’m really not in the mood to lose even more time in bed before I have to go to work again.’

  ‘Sorry,’ I said. So much for friendly neighbours. ‘Do you know where they’ve gone? We need to find them as soon as possible. It really is important.’

  ‘A matter of life and death,’ added Candace.

  ‘Even if I did I wouldn’t tell you. Werewolf business is werewolf business. And neither of you smell like werewolves to me, so get lost. Before I make you disappear.’

  Candace squared up to the woman. ‘Considering we’ve told you that this could be a matter of life and death, I don’t think you’re being a very responsible person. It’s up to each of us to be the best version of ourselves we can possibly be, at any given time. I think–’

  She never did get to say what she thought, seeing as the door was slammed in her face.

  Candace glared at the closed door for a few seconds, and I honestly feared she might be about to force it open and hex the woman. Instead, she pointed at the door to Patter’s flat, and unlocked it with a wordless spell. Wanda had told me this kid was talented, but I don’t think I appreciated just how talented until now. Breaking in to supernatural buildings was no easy task, but she’d done it without breaking a sweat.

  They say that every child needs a decent role model in their life. I was not such a role
model. Instead of telling Candace that breaking and entering was a no-no, I followed her into the empty flat.

  We spent the next few minutes searching for clues as to where Patter and his dad might have gone. Unfortunately this wasn’t the movies, so there was no notepad with the imprint of the address remaining. I could see that Candace had been hoping for something like that, though, seeing as she had a pencil at the ready.

  We did find a small box with bottles of Jinx behind a pile of towels in the airing cupboard. Half the bottles were missing. When I began taking pictures, Candace shook her head.

  ‘Don’t take photos, you silly sausage. That’s evidence that we’re here without a warrant. And without being Wayfarers too.’

  ‘Ah, but I know the law, little one,’ I said, giving her a smile even more smug than her own. ‘A concerned supernatural citizen may, in extenuating circumstances, use force to enter the home of another supernatural. One of those extenuating circumstances is the belief that the homeowner may be hurt or be in danger of being hurt. And the neighbour heard fighting, plus you got that concerning text message from Patter. So we have every right to be here – and whatever evidence we happen to find while we’re inside is admissible in the Wyrd Court.’

  Candace scowled. ‘Has anyone ever told you you’re a bit of a know-it-all?’ She flopped down onto the leather couch. ‘We’re wasting time here, and I’m starting to get a bad feeling. I think Patter might be in real danger, Melissa. Nails too.’

  I thought the same. As we left the flat and closed the door behind us, I hoped that someone had received my million messages, and they hadn’t got back to me purely because they were busy tracking down Mr Gaunt. It was a very dim hope, though.