Unofficial Detective

by Kathryn Wells

  The man wiped his eyes with the end of his beard, but the tears kept on coming. The Inspector pressed him for details, asking if he had known anything about the plot, but the man simply shook his head, unable to speak. The Inspector sighed and got up, signalling for the constables on guard to take the wizard upstairs. He caught sight of Thordric and came out to see him.

  'I thought you were dealing with Rarn, boy,' he said, pulling at his moustache. More of it had come out since last time and it no longer seemed to have its own persona.

  'I am, Inspector. He didn't co-operate at first, but I told him you'd lock him up for life if he didn't start talking.'

  The Inspector chuckled. 'You're starting to show some promise, boy. So, what did he say when you loosened his tongue?'

  'He told me he was Kalljard's personal chamber cleaner. Supposedly Kalljard picked him out personally for the job.'

  'He was a chambermaid?' The Inspector laughed so hard that his eyes watered.

  'There's more, Inspector. Rarn said he saw the mirror in Kalljard's chambers, but he said it had been taken out and replaced with a wardrobe a few days before the incident.'

  'Oh did he now? Where was he when this happened?'

  'He claims he was unwell that day and stayed in the dormitories. I just sent a constable there to check with the other wizards to confirm his alibi.'

  'That's good work, boy. Keep at it and let me know what else the slimy git says.' He turned to go back in. 'Oh, by the way, boy. You've got some whiskers growing; it'll be time for your first shave soon, I think.' He pointed at Thordric's stubbly chin.

  Thordric's cheeks started to redden again, but the Inspector had gone before he could notice.

  He walked back to the interview room where Rarn still sat, and looked through the window to make sure he wasn't up to anything. Rarn saw Thordric and gave him a long, flat stare. Thordric turned his back on him and went upstairs to wait for the constable to come back.

  He made himself some tea and even dared to take a few of the Inspector's Jaffa cakes. Sitting down at an empty desk, he looked out the window. It was dark now, and it was snowing again. He hoped the constable he had sent came back soon, for otherwise Thordric would be working into the night trying to get more information out of Rarn.

  Noticing the wizards in the office all staring at him, he asked the constable to dismiss them. There was no point in keeping them here if they really did know nothing. High Wizard Vey would have to stay the night though, as he would be the last to be interrogated. Thordric yawned loudly and drained his tea cup, just in time for the constable to walk in the door. He looked as though he would freeze at any second. Thordric poured him some tea and he took it gratefully.

  'T-they a-all c-confirmed i-it,' he said, his teeth chattering.

  Thordric cursed silently. 'Thank you, constable,' he said, and directed him towards the single fireplace. He watched as the poor man took off his wet jacket and huddled up as close to the flames as possible without burning himself. Thordric gave a nod and then descended the steps back down to the interview room.

  Rarn was grinning smugly and had turned his previously red robe to a dark blue. It made his pale face look unwell. Thordric found that he loathed the man. He picked up his chair and moved it right next to where Rarn was sitting, close enough to throttle him if need be.

  'Wizard Rarn, when the Inspector first went to pay his respects to High Wizard Kalljard, I believe you told him your theory on how he died. Remind me what it was,' he said coolly.

  Rarn straightened himself. 'I said that I believed he had stopped taking his everlasting youth potion,' he said, levelling with Thordric's gaze.

  'Then what if I were to tell you that we found potion in High Wizard Kalljard's stomach, and it matched the potion he had been ever so careful to hide inside one of his bed posts. If he had truly stopped taking it, then there would have been none left in his body.'

  'And who is to say that the one you found in his room was indeed his everlasting youth potion?' Rarn said, licking his lips. 'I bet the potion you found was bright pink, wasn't it?'

  Thordric frowned. 'What makes you say that?'

  Rarn laughed. 'It was no secret what colour his youth potion was; he drank it in the dining halls several times.' He turned to Thordric slyly. 'Do you know how many potions there are that happen to be bright pink? I know of at least five, each with very different properties,' he said, his voice oozing with venom.

  Thordric had had enough. He banged his fist down on the table, resisting the urge to levitate Rarn into the wall. No, he thought, I need him conscious.

  Instead, he left the room quickly, and sprinted through the station and out the door. He sped towards the morgue, hoping that his mother and Lizzie were still there. They were.

  As he approached them, he saw they were deep in conversation, but they stopped abruptly as they caught the look of contempt on his face.

  'Thordric?' his mother began. 'Is everything alright?

  He shook his head and put his hands up, knowing that if he spoke he would say something he would regret. Instead, he rushed over to his mother's desk, rummaging through all the vials until he found what he was looking for. There! He picked up the bottle of pink liquid they had found in Kalljard's bedpost and then ran back out faster than any gale-storm wind could blow.

  On his way back, he ran straight into the Inspector.

  'Inspector,' Thordric said, trying not to let his anger affect his speech. 'I think you might want to come with me.'

  The Inspector opened his mouth to protest, but he caught the urgency in Thordric's eyes. 'Very well then, boy,' he said and let Thordric take him into the interview room that Rarn was in.

  Thordric thrust the potion at Rarn. 'Drink it,' he spat. 'Drink it and we'll find out what it does.'

  Rarn stood up and backed his way into the wall. He was looking at the potion as though it were poison. 'Now, there's no need to be hasty,' he said, holding up his hands. 'It was just a theory, after all; you asked what I thought…'

  'What's this all about, boy?' the Inspector said, rounding on Thordric.

  'This slippery slime-ball suggested that someone had switched Kalljard's youth potion with a different one of the same colour. I wanted to test that theory.'

  'Oh,' the Inspector said, glancing from Thordric to Rarn. 'Well, I suppose we don't really have another way of testing it.' He looked at Rarn, the corners of his mouth sliding upwards.

  'I'm terribly sorry, my dear Wizard Rarn,' the Inspector said sarcastically. 'But I'm afraid you'll have to do as the boy says.' He stepped to the side, becoming a spectator, and let Thordric carry on.

  Thordric forcibly put the bottle into Rarn's hand. Rarn didn't move. 'I didn't want you to find out so soon, but you leave me no choice,' Thordric said. He poured his magic into Rarn's hands, making him undo the bottle and pour its contents down his throat.

  As Rarn drank, he looked at Thordric with a mix of terror and surprise in his eyes, and a puddle of yellow liquid appeared around his feet.

  'Looks like you'll need clean robes, too,' the Inspector chuckled.

  Thordric crossed his arms and waited. He waited for half an hour, then an hour. Nothing happened. Rarn still stood, in perfect health, just staring at Thordric.

  'It seems you're in luck, Wizard Rarn,' the Inspector said, the sound of the clock upstairs striking midnight rousing him from his doze. 'Your theory seems to have been wrong.'

  Rarn let out a whimper of relief. The Inspector beckoned Thordric over and whispered in his ear. Thordric turned back to Rarn, a satisfied grimace on his face and levitated him out of the room and back along the corridor to the holding cells.

  As he passed, High Wizard Vey raised an eyebrow at him, but didn't look overly surprised. Thordric put Rarn in the now empty cell next to him.

  'Don't think I'm done with you yet,' he said. Rarn whimpered again and scrambled as far away from Thordric as he could.

  'I'm afraid we can't interview you until tomorrow, Vey,' he sa
id, turning to him. 'I'm very sorry to have to tell you that you will have to stay here for the night. Are you warm enough? Would like some extra blankets or something to eat or drink?'

  'I'm fine, thank you, Thordric. There's no need to apologise, I'm sure you've had a long day.' Thordric nodded and said goodbye, walking up the cold steps back to the main station room. He met his mother coming out of the morgue, and they walked home together. This time Thordric made no secret of his powers and melted all the snow in the street so they could walk along more easily.

  Chapter Eighteen: Identity Revealed

  Thordric's sleep was restless that night, and there were times when he wasn't sure if he was really awake or not. He felt terribly warm despite the coolness of the house, and arose two hours earlier than normal.

  He stood in front of his wash basin, wide awake. The stubble on his chin really had grown and with a slight grimace he picked up the razor that his mother had given him for his birthday the previous year. It looked menacingly sharp and it made his Adam's apple quiver just to look at it.

  Nearly half an hour later, with spots of tissue paper covering his face where he'd nicked the skin, he stood clean shaven. Unfortunately, he had been so nervous doing it that he was now drenched in sweat and had to have a bath. He went outside to the bathhouse, wincing as the chill wind bit at him and pulled down the tin bath off the wall. He placed it in the middle of the small room and then he grabbed the buckets to fetch the water with. Going back and forth to the kitchen, he filled the bath until it was a full as he could get it. It was quicker than usual, for he no longer had to heat it up on the stove first. He used his magic, as he had done at Lizzie's house and laughed at the trouble he'd had with it back then.

  He jumped in, relaxing as the wonderfully warm water lapped at his skin. By the time he got out, it was time for him to dress in his uniform and leave for the station, with just enough time to bolt down the porridge his mother had made.

  When he got to the station, he found all the constables looking wearier than he'd ever felt and when the Inspector walked out of his office, he had to struggle to control his face. The remainder of the Inspector's moustache had fallen out and his eyes were so dark it looked as though he had borrowed Thordric's mother's eye kohl and smudged it all around them.

  'Morning, boy,' he grumbled, letting out an involuntary yawn. 'Rarn's waiting in the interview room for you. He's still just as terrified as he was once you'd finished with him last night. Shouldn't be any trouble today. Come and get me once you're finished and we'll speak to Vey together.'

  'I will, Inspector,' he said. Then, as an afterthought, he leant in to the Inspector's ear, keeping his voice low so that none of the constables would be able to hear. 'Er, Inspector, I can…er…grow your moustache back for you if you want.'

  The Inspector leaned back in surprise. 'Really?' he whispered. 'You can actually do that? In that case, boy, you'd better step into my office for a few moments.' He looked around at the constables, but they seemed too tired to have taken any interest.

  Thordric followed him into the office and closed the door behind them. 'How long do you want it, Inspector?' he asked.

  The Inspector shrugged. 'As long as it was before it started falling out, and just as thick too.'

  'Alright, then,' Thordric said. 'Pardon me, Inspector.' He put his fingers under the Inspector's nose, pouring his magic into his hand and miming pulling the hair forth from the skin. It appeared slowly, sparse at first, but once Thordric found the balance of magic he had to use, it grew fuller. Hardly a minute had passed and the Inspector had his moustache back, just as bushy and emotionally responsive as before.

  'That's very impressive, boy,' the Inspector said, running his fingers through it. 'I believe that's cause to give you a raise.'

  Thordric grinned and left the Inspector grooming his moustache with his comb. He went downstairs, past the cells where he saw Vey eating some freshly baked bread and cheese for breakfast, then into the interview room. Rarn was crouching miserably in one corner, ignoring the table and chairs completely. Thordric decided to help him, levitating him into the chair and forcing him to sit up straight.

  'Good morning, Rarn,' Thordric said, sitting down himself. Rarn tried to push his chair further back, but Thordric held it in place.

  'What…what are you?' Rarn managed. His robes started changing colour, going from blue to purple to red and through the rest of the colours of the rainbow. He didn't seem to realise he was doing it.

  'I'm a half-wizard,' Thordric replied calmly. Rarn looked sceptical.

  'But you're able to use magic without causing damage. You can't be a half-wizard. They're not strong enough.'

  'I am a half-wizard, Rarn. I've just had training in magic like you have.'

  'From whom? Who would dare share our secrets with one of your kind?'

  'That is none of your concern. Now, let me ask you a question. Have you ever seen this?' he pushed the copy of Kalljard's plot over to him. Rarn glanced at it and shrugged.

  'I may have. It looks like all the other documents High Wizard Kalljard had on his desk,' he sniffed.

  'Read it, Rarn,' Thordric said, tilting Rarn forwards so that he had no choice but to look at the paper properly. Rarn read it and shrugged again. 'You knew about it, didn't you?' Thordric accused.

  'Yes, I knew. But what concern of mine was it if that's what High Wizard Kalljard was planning?'

  Thordric lost his temper again. 'What concern was it of yours?' he bellowed. 'You would have let him kill innocent people?'

  'But he didn't believe they were innocent. He wouldn't have believed you were innocent either. I would not have dared to say otherwise.'

  'You should have told your brethren. They would have been brave enough to do so, had they have known.'

  'Oh no, I don't believe they would have. You see, High Wizard Kalljard had them all drinking that same potion your Inspector is so fond of. They wouldn't have been able to say anything against him even if they had wanted to.'

  'You better not be lying, Rarn,' Thordric said, gritting his teeth.

  'Why should I lie?' Rarn smirked. 'Ask his reverence if you don't believe me. He used to make it all for them.'

  Thordric toyed with the idea of making all of Rarn's hair fall out, but he couldn't bear to hear the man whimper pathetically again. 'One more question, Rarn. Who killed Kalljard and how was it done?'

  Rarn made a face, as though Thordric had just dealt him a nasty insult. 'I assure you, I have absolutely no idea.'

  'Fine,' Thordric said. He got up and let the constables take Rarn back to the cells, and went to find the Inspector again.

  When he got upstairs, he found that the Inspector had left a note for him saying to go and find him at the morgue. He made his way there, wondering if it was purely for instructions or whether his mother had discovered something else.

  Lizzie was with them when he got there; they were deep in discussion while huddled around a large, weathered looking, book.

  'Inspector, you wished to see me?'

  'Ah, there you are boy,' he said turning around. 'Come here and take a look at this.'

  Thordric went over to them and lent over the book. It was on a page called 'Minerals for overall health'. The Inspector tapped at an entry called Ink Eye Pyrite.

  'Ink eye pyrite?' Thordric asked, puzzled.

  'Yes,' his mother said. 'Do you remember when I told you about the potion Kalljard had been taking and that there was a mineral in it that I didn't recognise? Well, that's it.'

  'Er, great,' he said, unsure of why they thought this was significant.

  'It's more than great, Thordric,' she continued. 'I knew Lizzie here had some of her husband's old books, and as well as being capable of serious magic like you, he was also something of a geologist. I asked her if she could bring some here to help me identify what it was and here it is.'

  'I still don't…'

  'Read what it says, boy,' Lizzie chided. He did.

  Ink Eye Pyrit
e. Commonly found in mountainous regions and near volcanoes. Deep red with silver and blue flecks, it is a soft mineral with many healing properties, including increased energy and overall well-being. Note: if used with certain herbs, it can prove to be fatal.

  'If used with certain herbs it can be fatal?' he asked, looking up.

  'Indeed,' his mother said. 'But none of the herbs used in the potion have that effect. However…'

  'The Winsome Sunbeam did, didn't it?'Thordric asked, suddenly catching on.

  'Correct,' she said.

  'So, if we find out who injected him with that, we have our killer?'

  'Precisely, boy,' the Inspector said. 'Now, what did Rarn have to say for himself?'

  Thordric blinked. He had completely forgotten about Rarn. 'He knew about the plot, Inspector,' he said.

  The Inspector's newly grown moustache curled.

  'There's more,' Thordric continued. 'He told me that Kalljard was making the other wizards drink the same potion he gave you. Even if they had known about the plot, they wouldn't have attempted to try and stop him.'

  'He really was a monster, wasn't he?' his mother said. Thordric, Lizzie and the Inspector all nodded.

  'Did he say anything else?' the Inspector asked.

  'Well, he said he didn't know who the killer was…and he also said to ask High Wizard Vey about the potion they were all taking. He said Vey was the one that brewed it for them.'

  'I think we should go and have a talk with him then, after all we've kept him waiting long enough,' the Inspector said. 'Would you care to join us ladies? It may prove to be a rather interesting conversation.'

  Lizzie and Thordric's mother waited in the Inspector's office while High Wizard Vey was transferred to the larger interview room. Thordric stayed with them and made them some tea while they waited, telling them all about the other wizards he had spoken too and how they had reacted to the news of Kalljard's plot. Lizzie laughed when he told them about how he had dealt with Wizard Rarn and complimented him on his use of levitation.