by Jaye Wells
She shook her head. “Should I be?”
“Danny wasn’t old enough to learn to cook dirty when we left,” I snapped. “His training has all been clean.”
“That was never in question,” she said. “Although it would have been fine if he had. Magic is magic. What makes it clean, dirty, good, or bad is mostly based on the intentions of the Adept.”
The fact her philosophy so closely resembled my own brought me up short. She was slowly chiseling away at the chip on my shoulder, but I wasn’t sure yet it that was a good thing or if she’d been briefed by Volos on how to handle me.
She opened the door to her office. I’d been expecting something bordering on corporate neutrality. Beige everything and a polite picture of her family on her desk.
Instead, the room had a huge window looking out on the river. But the excellent view competed with the loud décor inside. She’d painted the walls brilliant lime green. Along one wall, shelving held a display of arcane texts and magical implements and totems. Her desk was a large wooden slab varnished to a blond shine with a natural edge. And the pictures on display were mostly her in exotic locations with various shaman, priestesses, and other magic practitioners.
Lisa Hidalgo wasn’t just a school principal. She was a well-traveled and clearly well-educated magic instructor.
“Please sit.” She indicated two brightly painted wooden chairs and took her own seat. Instead of a proper desk chair, she had one of those yoga balls.
“So, as I understand it, Danny was somewhat…creative about his application process.”
I frowned at her, but to Danny I said, “Can you give us a second?”
He shot me a suspicious look. Considering the last time I’d said it, I’d been about to chew Pen a new one, I couldn’t blame him for being worried. Still, I wasn’t about to let him sit there while I had some real talk with the good doctor.
Hidalgo watched him go with a neutral expression, and once he was gone, she simply looked at me with her brows raised.
“Who told you that?” I said.
“Detective Prospero, may I be frank?”
“I’d prefer that.”
She opened her hands. “Mayor Volos is a donor, and he did advocate for Danny. But I’ll tell you what I told him—I’ll take his donations, but I’m no one’s bitch.”
A slow smile spread across my face. “Oh, I bet he liked that.”
“Let’s say that the call ended rather quickly after that.” She grinned. “Anyway, my point is that I assure you that I’m confident Danny is a good fit here. Kichiri’s recommendation holds a lot more weight for me than the mayor’s.”
It took me a second to remember that Kichiri was Mez’s real name. “That’s good to hear. Thank you for your candor.” I sat forward. “Everything I’ve read about and seen here today looks good.”
“But?”
“It’s almost too good,” I admitted. “You mentioned my background before. I’m sure you can understand I might have reservations about encouraging Danny to follow the path of magic.”
She nodded and thought this over. “I can see that, I suppose. But if I may—I’ve been in education for a long time. Denying an eager student access to knowledge can make them more determined to learn it, not less.
“And let’s face it—the economy is evolving. Our society has become so addicted to the convenience of magic that the balance of power is shifting. It won’t be long until Adepts have a large portion of the economic and political clout in this country. Refusing to accept that fact out of pride or fear could leave Danny in the dust down the road.”
I sighed. She wasn’t wrong, but I didn’t like it.
“I have an idea that I think might make everyone happy.”
I crossed my arms. “All right.”
“After school’s over in a couple of weeks, we’re offering a summer camp for Adepts. It’s our way of orienting the new students to the Conservatory style of learning and allowing them to bond with each other so they have friends when school starts in the fall. Why not let Danny come? If he enjoys himself and does well on the exercises and classes at camp, then he can join us in the fall. If not?” She shrugged. “You can keep him in his current school.”
I thought it over for a moment. “Where’s the camp?”
“At Ohio University for the Arcane Arts. Only a couple of hours away. The students will live in the dorms. They’ll have workshops and team-building things during the day and time for socializing and some outings at night. It’s two weeks long.”
It sounded like something Danny would love. “How much does it cost?”
She smiled. “Free—everything’s included, too. He’ll just need some spending money.”
It all sounded too good to be true. Free magic camp, free top-notch training in clean magic, a kid excited about school. It was getting harder and harder to ignore the fact that the only cost here was to my own pride.
But the truth was, there wasn’t a price I wouldn’t pay for him to be happy. I just had to pray that a good start would ensure he had an easier time on the arcane path than I had.
“All right,” I said finally, “we can try the camp.”
“If you want, I’d be happy to meet with you again afterward to discuss how he did on the projects.”
“That would be great.” For some reason, there was a lump in my throat. Part of me wanted to believe it was just that Danny was growing up too fast making me emotional. But deep down, I knew it was something more fundamental. Somehow, I had managed to give Danny advantages I couldn’t have dreamed of as a kid. Advantages that my mother wouldn’t have been able to give him.
“You okay?” she asked. The empathy in her tone almost undid me, but I managed to keep it together.
“I really appreciate your understanding about all of this.”
“I can only imagine how angry you must have been when you discovered his deception, but between you and me, it shows an incredible amount of drive on his part. We’ll just have to make sure we give him an opportunity to focus that energy in a positive direction moving forward.”
Something about her use of we made me feel enormously better. It also shifted something in my perspective.
For so long, all of the decisions for Danny’s welfare had been on me. Now I had a whole crew of friends and coworkers to rely on. It had taken me a while to realize that I didn’t have to do everything on my own, and to drop my defensiveness about needing help. Based on what I’d seen so far of Hidalgo, I was impressed by her ability to stand up to Volos and her obvious commitment to educating Adept kids.
She excused herself to go get the forms for the summer camp, and a moment later, Danny slinked through the door slowly. His head bowed in submission, as if preparing to hear the worst sort of news.
“You can relax,” I said. “How do you feel about going to a summer camp hosted by the school?”
His face crumpled into a scowl. “Summer camp? Like for little kids?”
I shook my head. “It won’t be like that. You’ll stay in college dorms and take magic courses, and you’ll also get to hang out with other students going here.”
His face cleared. “That sounds pretty cool, I guess.”
“Assuming that goes well”—I took a deep breath and dove off the cliff—“you’ll be starting the Conservatory in the fall.”
He let out a loud whoop and pumped a fist in the air. “This is going to be so lit.”
“Yeah, well, you ever lie like that to me again, and I’m sending you to military school, so watch yourself.”
His chest puffed out and his chin went up. “You won’t regret this. I swear.”
I wanted to hug him. To reassure myself that I could believe his oath. Instead, I smiled and nodded and tried to ignore the realization that when my two greatest adversaries—Uncle Abe and John Volos—each found out, they’d be ecstatic.
Chapter Twenty-Two
I was on my way back to the gym after dropping an elated Danny off at home when my cell ra
ng. I didn’t recognize the number.
“Prospero,” I said.
“Peewee told me I had to call.”
“Hey, Sweet Ray, what’s up?”
“Chinese guy just showed up.”
I hesitated. “And?”
An annoyed sigh came through the receiver. “And he went to the mayor’s office.”
I chose my words carefully. “Did Peewee tell you that?”
“No, dummy, the mayor was with him.”
“Hold on, the mayor showed up with a Chinese guy? Did you see the car they got out of?”
“Mercedes, black.”
“How long they been inside?”
“Five minutes. I can see the car from the pay phone down the street. It’s still there.”
“That’s good, Sweet Ray. Real good. You keep an eye on it and call me back immediately if the Chinese guy comes back out.”
“Did I earn it?”
I tucked the phone under my chin and took a turn to head toward City Hall. “Huh?”
“You said if I did good, you’d get me a cell-a-phone.”
“Oh, uh, yeah, I think so. I’m gonna hang up now, but I should be there in about five minutes.” I hit the button to end the call and punch another to ring Morales directly.
“Yo.”
“Meet me at City Hall.”
A beat of silence. “Why?”
“Hung is there, meeting with Volos right now.”
The sound of his chair squeaking came through the phone, indicating he was on the move. “Be there in a sec. Be careful.”
* * *
On my way to City Hall, I ran two red lights and almost hit a hexhead who was jaywalking across Reunion Boulevard. Luckily, I managed not to commit vehicular manslaughter and slid into a spot across the street from the municipal complex four minutes after I’d hung up with Morales.
Two minutes after I parked, Morales’s SUV pulled up behind me. I jumped out and ran around to get in with him. The surge of excitement had my heart thundering.
He turned his back to the street to watch me. “What’s going on?”
Before I could open my mouth to explain, Morales went for his weapon. “What the f—”
Something banged into the window behind me. I spun, reaching for my gun, too.
I wasn’t sure what I’d been expecting to see, but it wasn’t Sweet Ray’s green face pressed into the tinted window. His turban was askew and his eyes were wild.
“Jesus Christ.” I rolled down the window. “You scared the shit out me, Sweet Ray.”
He threw up his hands. “Sorry,” he hissed. “I tried to call to you before you got in the car, but you didn’t hear me.”
“Um, Prospero?” Morales said from behind me. “Who is that?”
I’d forgotten that I’d never told Morales about my new informant. “Shit, sorry. Sweet Ray, this is my partner, Morales.” To Morales, I said, “Sweet Ray has been keeping an eye on the mayor’s office for me.”
Morales eyes went wide but he managed to say, “Hey, man.”
“Charmed, I’m sure.” Sweet Ray tipped his chin at my partner. To me, he said, “Where’s my cell-a-phone?”
I tamped down my impatience. “You’ll get it once I have confirmation Hung’s really in there.”
“Who’s Hung?” he said.
“Great hire there, Cupcake.”
“Hush,” I hissed at him. “Where’s the Mercedes?” I asked Sweet Ray.
He pointed farther up the road. Once the traffic cleared enough, I spotted the black Mercedes gleaming in the afternoon sunlight. I nodded and turned to Morales. “Sweet Ray said they’ve been in there about”—I paused to check the clock—“fifteen minutes now.”
“Who’s they?” Morales asked.
“Mr. Mayor and the Chinaman,” Sweet Ray said. “Peewee said they’re trying to call Liberace.”
I closed my eyes and waited.
“Liberace?” Morales shot me a level look as he spoke.
Sweet Ray made a disgusted noise. “Hello? Liberace had the voice of an angel.”
“Got it—thanks,” he said, his tone strangled. “And who exactly is Peewee?”
I opened my eyes. Sweet Ray stared at my partner like he’d just insulted his mama. Morales was watching me like I’d lost every damned one of my marbles. “Peewee is Sweet Ray’s friend,” I answered evasively.
Sweet Ray snorted. “That’s an understatement.”
Morales nodded as if he understood, even though he was nowhere close to comprehending what the hexhead actually meant. “Okeydoke,” he said, “so we wait until Hung comes out and take him in for questioning.”
“All right, Sweet Ray,” I said, “you can go back to your step.”
“When do I get my cell-a-phone?” His tone bordered on petulant.
“I promise I’ll bring it by tomorrow, okay?”
He shook his head. “But Peewee said the eclipse is bringing death for you.”
All of the air got sucked out of the car.
“Step the fuck away from the vehicle.” Morales had his weapon in hand and pointed at Sweet Ray before I could blink.
“No!” I yelled. “That’s not—”
Before I could explain that Sweet Ray hadn’t been threatening me, the hexhead took off. His turban flew off his head as he ran right into traffic.
“Shit!” I started to open the door, but Morales grabbed me.
“Kate, don’t—”
Blaring horns interrupted him. We both looked up in time to see a car squeal to a stop mere inches from Sweet Ray. He executed a spin and jumped out of the way of another car before safely making it to the curb.
“Damn, he’s got more moves than Frogger,” Morales breathed.
I slapped him on the arm. “Why did you pull a gun on him?” My fear was making me surly.
He shoved his gun back into his shoulder rig. “He threatened you—or his buddy did, anyway.”
I blew out a breath to get my temper under control. “You misunderstood. Peewee isn’t his friend.”
“But he said—”
“Shit, listen.” I slashed a hand through the air. “Peewee is a pigeon, okay?”
Morales went so still, I worried he’d seen another threat outside the car. I looked around but didn’t see any immediate danger. When I looked at him again, I said, “What?”
“Kate, have you been drinking?” He ran a hand through his hair. “It’s fine if you have. I just need to know.”
“No, jackass, although I will need one pretty fucking soon.” He didn’t speak, just waited for me to explain. “All right. Sweet Ray sits on the front steps of City Hall every day. He thinks he’s a medium for a pigeon named Peewee.” I didn’t mention that Peewee wasn’t just a single pigeon but the collective pigeon consciousness. There was only so much ammunition I was willing to provide for the eventual mental health review his look was promising.
“Let me get this straight. You hired a cross-dressing hexhead who believes he can communicate with a bird to be your informant?”
“When you put it like that, it sounds crazy.” I crossed my arms and sank down in my seat. “It made sense at the time, though.”
He scrubbed a hand across his face. “I’m not sure how to respond to any of this.”
While he thought it over, I looked past him to make sure Sweet Ray made it back to his spot. Sure enough, he sat on his normal step with the flock. He looked vulnerable without his turban.
“Maybe we need to knock off for the day,” Morales said. “It’s been a crazy couple of— Son of a bitch!”
I jerked out of my contemplation of Sweet Ray’s existence. “What?”
“Hung and Volos just got into the car.” He pointed at the Mercedes zooming away from the curb. We both watched, open-mouthed, as the car rolled past on the opposite side of the road. Sure enough, Hung was driving and Volos was in the seat.
“Crap, what should we do?” I asked, looking over my shoulder to track the car’s progress.
“It’s
going to be a clusterfuck if we pull that car over without an arrest warrant.”
“Let’s just follow them, then. See what they’re up to.”
He nodded resolutely. “All right. Call Gardner and tell her what’s going on. That way, if shit gets messy, she’s already in the loop.”
While I pulled out my phone, he executed an illegal U-turn. I quickly filled Gardner in on the situation.
“Stay out of sight. Do not pull that car over with the mayor inside. You understand?”
“Got it.”
“If they stop somewhere and you witness illegal activity, you call in backup. I can’t have it being their word against yours.”
“Got it,” I said. “I’ll be in touch soon.”
“And, Prospero?”
“Yep.”
“No fuckups.”
“10-4.” I hung up and filled Morales in on the plan. His only response was a tightening of his jaw and the engine of the SUV revving as he sped up.
Four blocks ahead, the Mercedes turned toward the river.
“Are they headed toward the docks?” Morales said, almost to himself.
I didn’t answer because the car was already making another turn, away from the lake and toward the Bessemer Bridge. It smoothly merged into the late-afternoon traffic as downtown’s Mundane worker bees fled to their safe suburban hives.
I leaned back in my seat and watched the sun ooze into Lake Erie through the side mirror. “Did you ever think of quitting?” I asked.
From the corner of my eye, I saw his head turn as if I’d shocked him. “What do you mean?”
“The MEA.”
“Why in the hell would I quit?”
I turned to look at him. “Well, Los Angeles, for example—based on what you’ve said, it was pretty fucked up.”
“Like Babylon isn’t?”
He was trying to deflect with sarcasm. Since I’d practically invented that maneuver, I wasn’t about to let him get away with it. “I’m serious. After the Fangshi killed that dirty cop, it didn’t occur to you that maybe it was time to cut and run?”
His chest heaved with a massive sigh. “Why are you asking me about this?”
I toyed with a loose string on the hem of my jeans. “Just making conversation.”