“No, that’s all we have,” Arthur said before switching off the phone.
*
“Why are they so intent on tying our hands?” Annie asked Ryan. Though he controlled the Wizard Council, it was a still a democracy, and that was their final decision. Annie paced around the room to burn off energy.
“It’s complicated, Annie. You know there are secret societies all over the world. They have their own laws and govern themselves. Unfortunately, this is one of them. Out of respect for their role in the world society, we can’t interfere,” he said.
I’m not convinced.
“He’s right, you are truly a wizard guard.” She offered a smile and stopped pacing.
“And the genie?” Milo inquired.
“I don’t get that one either.” Ryan leaned back in his chair and swirled to view the Chicago River. “It’s a beautiful day today.”
“You’re changing the subject,” Annie said.
“When are you leaving for the Middle East Wizard Guard?”
“Tonight. We should arrive in the morning their time. Do you think the Council is hiding something about dad’s death, and that’s why we can’t go after the Fraternitatem?” Her question was blunt. Had she been able to see Ryan through his thick desk chair, she would have seen him jump.
Beyond the window, traffic was heavy at ten in the morning. Five floors up, they heard engines revving and cars honking. Ryan sighed. “The Fraternitatem killed one of their own to deal with a problem. I think the Wizard Council fears them, regardless of any connection to Jason.”
Since Annie was packed and prepared for the trip, the ring was hidden in a difficult-to-access pocket of Annie’s cargo pants. It vibrated against her leg.
Tonight and it’s gone. Good riddance!
“Be careful when you’re with them. I don’t trust them. The fact that the Middle East Wizard Guard has virtually no intel on them gives me a lot of concern.” Ryan finally turned the chair to face her.
“We know enough about them. About their willingness to kill for the ring. We’ll be careful, I promise.” She tried to reassure him, but he did not look convinced.
“I think the connection to your dad is deeper than we think. I joined the council after Jason died, but I bet someone on the council knows something about his death.”
Annie couldn’t hide her surprise. Her eyebrows went up, and her forehead crinkled with deep lines.
I didn’t expect that!
“Do you have proof?” Milo asked.
Ryan offered a drawn smile. “It’s my guess, and I think the missing file is the key.”
“So if I find the file, you’re okay with me pursuing it?” Annie asked.
“I want to know too, Annie. I miss Jason every day. And this…” Tears welled in his eyes. “This is the closest we’ve come to understanding what happened. I need closure too. I’m sure you’ll get the support of Milo. Yes?” Ryan twirled around to face them.
“Annie,” Milo said, “you find that file and prove the Fraternitatem of Solomon was responsible and I will defy the order to go after them.”
*
The map of the Cave of Ages lay at the center of a large conference table in the Middle East Wizard Guard office, a structure hidden in an abandoned cave system. Annie huddled inside a large sweatshirt, chilled by the cool air as their newly met Wizard Guard colleagues gleefully examined the map.
Arriving in the dry heat of the desert, they walked half a mile through thick sand until they reached the Wizard Hall, or in this case, a cave system that housed all governmental operations. They were directed through a main tunnel that ran the entire length of the cave system with perpendicular branches bisecting the main tunnel, each heading in different directions leading to different caverns.
By the time they reached the conference room, Annie’s fingers were frozen. Though she sat huddled in her chair, the design couldn’t have been better had the wizard guards created the caves on their own. The main conference room was a large cavern directly at the center with several doors breaking into additional tunnels.
They had done much work to make this cave system habitable with ventilation that expelled stale air and fans that circulated the clean air inside. However, the heating system was less than impressive; Annie sat in her chair blowing on her fingers and hands.
She arrived with Lial, Gibbs, Spencer, and Milo, and they were welcomed hospitably by the Wizard Guard department manager, named Avraham. So grateful to be assisted by the American Wizard Guard, he proudly gave a tour of the offices and introduced them to the rest of his wizard guards. And now they sat in the chilly conference room joined by Sari, Michael, and Steven.
“This is amazing!” Avraham stated. The jovial man smiled broadly, thrilled with the existence of the map. His large, brown eyes examined the paper intently, and he pushed his floppy brown hair from his eyes as he tried to figure out the map’s true location.
His fingers grazed the landmarks, and yet he couldn’t place the location. “We’ve had eyes on the Fraternitatem for fifty years and never got this close to them. How did you find this?” he asked.
“My dad had a run-in with them about eight years ago while chasing Chintamani Stones that had found their way into the black market. From what I can tell, he was summoned to the Cave of Ages and drew the map from memory, hiding it in our Book of Shadows. I just happened upon it in the course of this investigation,” Annie explained.
Avraham’s eyes grew wide. “He was there? With them?”
“Yeah. He met them in a market in Morocco. I’m not sure why he was at the cave. But he was. What he didn’t give us was the starting point—the exact location for the cave. Without the names or the coordinates, we weren’t sure where to start.”
“Yes, of course. I think I recognize these landmarks. It looks like it’s the southwest corner of Israel. But you’re right: this map isn’t to scale, and we wouldn’t know where to begin,” said Avraham.
“But you know now, don’t you?” inquired Steve. It was his turn to review the map. A smile crossed his lips. “I agree; it looks like the southwest portion of the state.”
“Yeah. Several pots of coffee and a night in the library. We finally found the key,” Lial said.
He had worked with Mrs. Cuttlebrink in the library, figuring out the true location of the Cave of Ages. And in the early morning hours, they had found the clue they needed. When he called at 5 a.m., Annie had been wide awake, anxiously waiting.
Taking control of the map, Lial pointed to a small circle, hidden within a landmark. It contained a five-pointed star at the center. “Here. This is the key right here.”
While they all took a turn to note the symbol, Lial opened an atlas to a page reserved by a sticky note. The map was expertly folded, so thin that it appeared to be a single sheet of paper.
Magic.
He unfolded the many layers, revealing a large map of Israel with another sticky note pointing to something. “Okay. Here is the symbol. We knew we were correct, but the problem is the maps are drawn in different scales. And then this.” He shrunk the map that Jason Pearce had drawn until it matched the scale of the map in the book. He overlaid it on top of the larger map, lining up the two symbols. “And here is the Cave of Ages,” he said with a smile.
*
Wizard Guard training was difficult and incorporated years of book study, daily physical training, and more than one survival training camping trip in the heat, cold, and rain. The training was designed that way for a reason, on the off chance that the wizard guards might hike through a southern desert in the Middle East at four o’clock in the morning during a particularly warm spring day.
Knowing the Fraternitatem would have means to detect their presence, they teleported three miles from their destination. And though they were in a low valley, below the Fraternitatem’s location high in the mountains, they were far enough away to avoid detection.
They trekked through the sand without the help of lights, making the walk difficult at best. To a
void detection, they refrained from speaking. The only sound that followed them through the desert was the sound of the boots scratching through the rough sand.
At the base of the mountain trail, they stopped to gather themselves. Annie took a long drag of water, grabbing a little to eat. Beside her, Lial anxiously glanced at the map. The low light glowing from his crystal was barely discernible. The crystal shook in his hand.
“You okay?” Annie asked.
“It’s one thing to find the cave, another thing to lead us to our deaths,” he hissed.
“We have the best bargaining chip. You’re doing fine,” Annie reminded him with a forceful whisper. His hands still trembled as he folded the map and shoved it in his pocket.
“It doesn’t hurt to be prepared,” he said defensively, above a whisper. Annie touched his arm and placed her finger at her lips.
“You did well, and we’re going to be fine.” She was up against him with a firm grip on his arms. There was just enough moonlight for him to see her with the most serious expression she could muster. His face cracked into a smile. “Better? We’ll be fine,” she said.
Annie could feel his heavy sigh against her cheek. “Easy for you to say,” he muttered. “You’re not leading us into danger.”
“Really? Like I’ve never done that before.” She handed Lial a thermos of water.
“Thanks.” He took a swig, patted her arm. She passed the motion back through the line, alerting everyone they were heading up the mountain on a narrow trail only three feet wide.
Annie’s fingers grazed the mountain face as she balanced herself away from the swift edge that dropped downward.
As much as she tried to retain her focus on the trek upwards and away from potential death, she couldn’t help but replay their ultimate goal, as determined by the Wizard Council. They were only to return the ring to the Fraternitatem and leave. Regardless of the reason why Benaiah stole the ring to sell, regardless of knowing who killed him, he deserved a certain amount of justice.
It won’t come.
Annie most often followed her gut and made decisions on the fly when necessary, with the goal always to put justice first. But as a potion master, she had become a member of the Wizard Council and made an oath as a wizard guard to follow the directives of the majority.
They haven’t convinced me this is the right way.
Voices whispered excitedly. The Middle East Wizard Council had never been so close to the Fraternitatem. As a result, they were jumpy and twitchy, like the ring stored in Annie’s hidden pocket, which continued to hum and vibrate against her leg. They all felt the magic.
Their footsteps, heavy against the hard rock revealed their presence. Annie pulled on Lial’s sleeve and held her hand out behind her, signaling the group to stop.
“What’s the matter?” Milo grunted.
“We’re loud,” she whispered.
“Ugh.” Milo waved a palm from Lial to himself in the back of the line. “Try this, girl,” he suggested.
The muffling spell he cast did a fair job, lowering the sound decibel as they continued up the trail.
Jason Pearce had described the Cave of Ages as a large cavern build in side the rock with walls that radiated a blue, shimmering light; the haze could be seen for miles in the desert after dark. Annie glanced up and saw that the blue light was indeed brilliant.
What is that made from?
Annie wiped her brow and took a sip from her thermos before putting it back in her field pack. The air was warming quickly, even as they ascended the mountain.
Lial stopped them against the wall, seemingly out of the line of sight from the cave.
“There’s someone up there,” he whispered to Annie as a jinx landed above their heads and slammed into the rock. Bits of mountain broke apart, cascading around them. Feverishly, the group whipped the rocks, tossing them off the side of the trail and down the cliff. Rocks tumbled and clinked, breaking the silence of the desert.
They waited against the wall, barely breathing as another jinx collided with the cliff. More earth slid down. Everyone’s arms flayed as they pushed the falling debris away, which was rough and difficult to do in the darkness.
After a minute, Gibbs cried out, “Fuck! Been hit!”
The jinxes stopped for a moment.
“They’re trying to frighten us,” Annie said and looked up.
“Everyone mostly okay?” Milo asked.
“Bleeding,” Gibbs grumbled. As Annie carefully trekked down the line, Gibbs moved his palm deftly against the cut, cleaning up and restoring his flesh. Even in the minimal light, Annie could see his spell hadn’t worked.
“You need stitches.”
Never one for nonmagical options, Gibbs grumbled loudly.
“I’ll give you stitches later. Okay for now?” she asked.
“Just head up.”
As Annie cautiously maneuvered back to her location in line, a third jinx hit above them. It was not as strong, so less rock tumbled down and dusted them.
“I have your ring. Keep attacking, and I’ll teleport it to where you’ll never see it again!” Annie’s voice carried, and bounced across the hard stone. She had no doubt they had heard her.
Harsh whispers wafted down the mountain, though they couldn’t make out the conversation.
The ring.
“Prove you have the ring,” demanded a disembodied voice. It was deep and calm as if it could assert authority over them.
“You killed Benaiah. One of your own. You either let us pass safely, or we leave and you never see your precious ring again.”
“Hard-ass,” Gibbs grumbled. He shuddered and leaned against the wall. Blood soaked through his sleeve, more blood loss than Annie had expected.
“You okay?” she asked.
“Fine, girl.”
“I’ll stay with him. You head upwards,” Spencer volunteered and flashed a light on Gibbs’s arm.
Harried whispering from the cave carried in the wind.
They’ve never had anyone pressing up against them, threatening them, or ordering them. They’ve lived in the cave too long.
“You may pass. Alone,” the voice ordered.
Annie chuckled. They thought they could scare her, that they had all the power.
I can teleport whenever I need to.
“No! I’m bringing my team. And if you harm any of us, the Wizard Guard in these parts will come after you.”
Again, angry voices discussed her demands—or maybe it was fear in those short, terse discussions.
“Pass,” the voice agreed.
Lial led Milo and Annie up the mountain, followed closely by Avraham and Sari, leaving Steven and Michael to back them up should the Fraternitatem reverse this tentative agreement.
They stopped at a bend in the trail and peered around the rock face. The iridescent light from the cave was unreal and mesmerizing.
“Unbelievable,” Avraham whispered.
They stepped into the open and approached the cave entrance, positioning themselves in full view. Avraham gulped and Sari chirped; the view inside the cave was awesome, brilliant, beautiful.
The floor and walls appeared to be coated in a layer of water or maybe oil. They shone. Annie couldn’t help but touch the edge of the rock. They weren’t wet, just hard, cold, and smooth.
They glow! What makes them glow like this?
“Amazing.” Milo was just as impressed as Annie by the magic.
Beyond the blue walls, the room was sparsely furnished with only a heavy, wooden throne against the back wall. Modestly built, it contained only one cushion that in the low light might be sewn of simple cotton.
“Where’s the ring?” a voice accused.
It belonged to a man who materialized near the back of the cavern. Annie hadn’t been sure what to expect from the Fraternitatem, but he wasn’t it.
“Where’s the ring?” the man demanded. He was dressed in ancient robes of multicolored stripes that in the blue haze looked more like varying degree
s of gray. She hadn’t expected a costume or his long, white straw-like beard. She had expected a group more like their own.
The man stood perfectly still, allowing her a chance to take in his full regalia with the Solomon’s knot at the center of his smock—the symbol of the Fraternitatem. It was the same design Benaiah had worn and gave Annie confirmation that they were in the correct place.
She summoned the ring and slipped it on her finger. The three remaining rocks shimmered in the light as if they were meant to be there. She held her hand above her head as she faced the man. Light sparkled across the cavern, and he stroked a very long beard.
“Give it to me,” he commanded with his hand open wide. Reluctantly, Annie stepped inside.
Dad may have been the last non-member to have been here.
“Why did you kill Benaiah?” she asked. Fabric rustled behind her when Milo and Lial raised their palms in a protective stance.
“We handled a situation amongst ourselves as we’ve done for many millennia. Now please give me my ring.”
“Not until I have your word we will have safe passage from the Cave of Ages. No spells, hexes, jinxes. Just a safe journey down the mountain,” Annie ordered.
The man smiled at her. It was neither warm, nor welcoming. She found it more of a sneer. She closed her fist and shoved her hand in her pocket.
“You are a tough negotiator. I will honor you, and you will have safe travels.”
Annie held her hand out as if to shake his; she’d prefer a magically binding contract.
I don’t think I trust this man at all.
“I’m Anne Pearce,” she offered.
His eyes widen in surprise before he could gather his reserve. “Melichi,” he volunteered. His handshake was limp, only offering his fingertips. Annie grabbed his whole hand.
“You’re Jason Pearce’s daughter, yes?”
“He met you eight years ago. You ordered him to stop searching and collecting the Chintamani Stones,” she said in an accusatory tone. In her heart, Annie knew they had ordered the hit on her father. It was all that Annie could do to keep her hands from shaking.
“Your dad was a good man,” he stated.
Annie gazed at him suspiciously, arching her eyebrows. “I never want to see the Fraternitatem on U.S. soil again. For any reason. Do I make myself clear?”
Black Market (The Wizard Hall Chronicles Book 2) Page 34