Witch on a Roll

by Evelyn Snow

  “When do you start?”

  “I don’t know. Devi rushed off in a hurry because of some big MBI emergency. Sullivan said he’d be in touch and then disappeared, and by disappeared, I mean he went poof and vanished. I hate it when he does that. At least Devi left on foot.”

  “I don’t know why it bothers you. Lots of folks can translocate.” Holden said. “Sullivan can only do it over here. It doesn’t work on the other side of the Pale.”

  For someone who’d crossed the bridge for the first time only a few years ago, Holden had a surprisingly vast knowledge of the magical realm. I chalked it up to all the stories he’d heard from his father’s travels in the Nightingale Lands as a merchant.

  “And I hate to break it to you,” he added, “but MBI agents are not and never have been ordinary.”

  “Oh, and like you know anything about being ordinary?” Because he’d always lived in the Greater World, it was easy for me to forget he wasn’t human. “I’m going on the record here to say I want to learn how to translocate. At the same time, I’ll admit it’s a really bad idea. So much could go wrong.”

  “I’d only want to learn if it was possible in the Greater World,” Holden said. “Here, it’s no big deal. Nobody thinks anything of it.”

  “It would be amazing if we could do it at home. Do you think there’s a way?”

  He laughed. “If there is, I want to be there the first time you vanish in front of your Aunt Phoebe. I would pay good money to see her face when you disappear.”

  “Sure thing. I’ll do it right after you shift in front of her and go all howling at the moon.”

  “Can you imagine?” He clapped a hand over his heart in mock astonishment. “Your aunt would have a heart attack. Then your uncle would hunt me down and shoot to kill. How’s his aim?”

  “Killer,” I said, grinning. “It’d be worse for me, though.”

  “Worse than dead? How do you figure?”

  “I’d have to explain to your dad why your hairy pelt was hanging in the garden shed. Talk about an awkward conversation.”

  “Yeah, that wouldn’t be any fun. Then my dad would hunt your uncle for revenge. Shifters on the warpath. Civil war. Blood in the streets. Where would it end? You’re right,” he said with a sigh. “It’s probably better to leave translocating alone.”

  “You think?”

  “Bad ideas aside,” Holden said, “you will have to tell your aunt and uncle something about today.”

  We’d discussed how my uncle had forbidden testing for the MBI, but never come to any conclusion. Becoming an agent had seemed like a distant possibility. Now that it was a reality, I needed to figure out what to say. So far, I had nothing.

  I picked up the pitcher and filled a mug. The liquid had a distinctive pink tint that made me think it might be cider instead of beer. When I passed the mug under my nose, Holden said, “Fresh Smooch.”

  I lifted a brow.

  “It’s the Horn’s latest brew,” he answered. “A pale lager with a hint of berries and lemon. I think it’s why they decorated with pink tea lights.”

  “Dang, I thought they were for me.” I took a sip and let the flavors roll across my tongue before swallowing. It was exactly what I liked—a lighter beer with a kick of sweetness. Since Holden preferred stouts and black lagers, he’d ordered it on my account.

  He smiled mischievously. The dimple he had on one side that only showed up when he was truly happy appeared. “I knew you’d like it.”

  “Thanks, it’s nice.”

  The front door swung open. I squinted into the streak of sunlight that momentarily brightened the dark corner where we were sitting. Two silhouettes strode through the opening. One was taller and almost concealed the shorter person who’d entered behind the first. The tall figure walked with an angry clomp that was all too familiar. Was she following me?

  I turned my chair away from the aisle to hide my face partially. “Think you can spare some of your winnings for bail money?” I was only half kidding. Whoever had entered behind Cassandra was too short to be Sheriff Crowe.

  “I thought you and Cassie would be best buds now you’re both MBI agents.” Then his eyes narrowed as he followed the passage of the newcomers. “Or not.”

  Chapter 9

  Pausing at our table, Cassandra sneered down at me from her height. “Celebrate while you can, Jinx. This isn’t over, not by a long shot.”

  “Knock yourself out,” I said, feigning unconcern.

  Her fingers clenched. “You’re a menace.”

  “It’s a dirty job, but someone’s got to do it. You couldn’t.” Low-hanging fruit, I know, taking a jab at her magical failure this afternoon. I couldn’t resist.

  “Take a picture of that badge for your diary, because I’m coming for you. When I’m done, that’s all you’ll have left.” She flounced off, joining the other bad news witches at their table.

  I kept my peripheral vision on them long enough to catch a few dirty looks. Despite my shiny new badge, I doubted I’d ever be completely accepted in Serenity Point. At least I was dealing with the same old stuff and not making new enemies.

  Holden let out a low whistle. “That was harsh. What haven’t you told me?”

  Before I could answer, Kerrigan Shade dropped into the seat next to mine. Kerri was one of the few people in my life who made me feel tall. She topped five feet by a whisker and made up for her short stature with an attitude and a half. She wore her black hair cut in a sharp, geometrical bob with bangs framing her features. Pure glee filled her brown eyes.

  “I don’t know all the details,” she said with a giggle, “but I wouldn’t be surprised if Cassandra puts out a contract on your life, Evie. Holy banana crackers is she ever mad. We’re talking next level stuff. Good times.”

  “The most powerful witch of our generation wants me dead and you find that funny?” I demanded.

  “The way I hear it, she-who-can-do-no-wrong had her butt handed to her today by none other than Sullivan Shield.” Kerri smirked triumphantly. “Which proves I’ve been right all along regarding the Storm and Shield hypothesis.” She pumped the air with her fist.

  Holden filled a mug and pushed it over to Kerri. “That’s not true. There’s nothing between Cassie and Sullivan.” If the day ever dawned when Kerri and Holden agreed on something, it should be declared a holiday.

  “You don’t want it to be true. Nevertheless, the facts are inescapable.” Kerri leaned back in her chair and sighed. “I love confirmation. One of these days, you guys will finally accept my intellectual superiority in all things. Never fear, I promise to be gracious and not hold it over you.”

  “That’s so comforting…not.” I took a swig of beer.

  “Wait.” Holden lifted a hand. “Evie beats the odds, passes her test, and joins the ranks of the legendary MBI—all while drastically improving my personal bottom line—thank you very much. I can see how three out of four would make Cassie mad. She’s had it in for Evie since the unfortunate incident with the rosebush. How do you figure she has a thing for Sullivan Shield?”

  No matter how Kerri responded, I could almost see Holden preparing his rebuttal. He might never admit it, but he had a thing for Cassandra Storm. The possibility she might date someone else didn’t enter his worldview. At the same time, he’d never let my attitude toward her strain our relationship. He had a flexibility of mind I lacked and sometimes admired.

  This was not one of those times.

  Kerri smirked. “Other than the fact that Sullivan Shield is tall, dark, and gorgeous? Evie, why don’t you explain it to Wolfie.”

  “Nope, I am not going there.”

  “Sure, you can,” Kerri insisted. “Start with the easy bits. How did the golden one treat Sullivan today?”

  “Well, there were plenty of snippy comments and even more disdainful stares,” I admitted. “For a while, it was a good thing because it meant Cassandra wasn’t paying me much attention. In the end, she and Devi were split on the outcome. Cassandra want
ed Sullivan to come down on her side and have me banned for a year. He didn’t. I passed. End of story.”

  “There you go. Case closed.”

  Holden’s head tennis-matched between us. “So what? Shield was a judge. Deciding about Evie was part of his job.” Typical guy attitude, but Holden wasn’t wrong.

  “Disdain and snippiness,” I added, “are Cassandra being Cassandra.”

  My peripheral vision betrayed me by focusing on the table where the golden one herself was sitting. Professor Ashmore had joined them. Instead of wearing a long, dumpy robe like most of the university staff, he had on a trim sport coat in a dark blue houndstooth. The corner of a silk square peeked from the pocket. It looked like consulting in the Greater World was working out for him.

  Bending her head toward Ashmore, Cassandra took part in a quiet conversation. Three guesses what they were talking about. Just then, Ashmore turned his head, catching my gaze and breaking my fixation. I looked down while a wave of guilt and fear swelled in my throat.

  What was that about? Sheesh. I was becoming as paranoid as my aunt.

  Kerri sighed dramatically, pulling my attention back to our table. “Do I have to spell everything out for you guys?”

  As if on cue, Holden and I adopted twin blank expressions. Around Kerri, we’d had a lot of practice.

  “Have it your way. Here’s the key: There’s a conference over in Montemar coming up soon. All the magical law firms, entrepreneurs, and investors of both worlds will be in attendance.” She inclined her head. “I’ll bet anything that’s what Cassandra and the professor are discussing. He’s been talking to my parents about it, too. It’s a big deal for anyone trying to get a foothold with business deals between the Greater World and the Nightingale Lands. There will be a lot of money in play and contracts up for grabs.”

  I shot Holden a look. “My invitation must have gotten lost in the mail.”

  “Mine, too,” he said.

  “The Mobot is going. She wants me to attend so she can introduce me around,” Kerri said, indicating her older sister, Morrigan, who ran the branch of the family law firm in Montemar. “But I don’t want to stay with her.”

  “Let me guess,” I said, “Mo has picked out what she wants you to wear to the party, and it’s heinous.”

  “It’s a perfectly lovely suit,” Kerri deadpanned, “if I was a foot taller and sixty.”

  “Of course, you can stay. Aunt Phoebe will be excited.” Kerri’s normal-seeming relatives in the Greater World made her a favorite with my aunt and uncle. They overlooked the details where she lived in a gloomy castle in another world and attended magical law school. Perspective was everything.

  “Business between the realms works fine the way it is,” Holden offered. “It has worked for a long time, even before Disclosure. What’s the point of lawyers and complicated contracts? All they do is get in the way, no offense. Lawyers need to make money the same as everyone else. I get it. I just wish they didn’t ruin everything they touch.”

  He stared over the rim of his mug at Cassandra’s table looking morose. I felt like slapping him out of it and had to stifle the urge.

  “So, trashing attorneys aside,” Kerri said with exaggerated patience, “the conference is not exclusively about money. It’s about status and connections. Cassandra expected Sullivan to ask her to go with him. He didn’t. Word is he acted like he couldn’t get away from her fast enough.”

  “That’s it?” I didn’t bother to hide my disbelief. “She turned one of my wands into mulch because she didn’t get a date? And they call me a menace? Talk about immature.”

  “Conferences like this aren’t all meetings and contracts,” Kerri said with a shrug. “They’re social occasions, too. That’s how business gets done in the Greater World. Trade will open between the realms in the next few years. Everyone who is anyone is positioning themselves and their companies. As a stormbringer, Cassandra has a huge family legacy to live up to. Getting her butt kicked by Sullivan didn’t help.”

  “How do you know so much?” I asked.

  “You know this town.” Kerri traced a line in the icy mug with her thumb. “News travels fast. People forget I’m around, and I’m a good listener.”

  “What are they saying,” I asked, suddenly uncomfortable. I could tell myself all day long I’d developed new calluses and didn’t care what people in Serenity Point thought of me. Who was I kidding? The magical half of my heritage was the one I cared about the most.

  The possibility of a permanent ban from the Nightingale Lands wasn’t merely a threat and holding an MBI badge didn’t guarantee I’d never face exile. Potentially, being an agent could put my actions in a spotlight. Before I’d applied, Devi had warned me I could face that eventuality. I’d decided the risk was worth it if I could find answers and prove my father wasn’t the monster Ballard Kepler blamed for his sister’s death in the bridge collapse.

  In some respects, I wasn’t alone. Other newish MBI agents had fallen afoul of the Wheel. There were rumors about the agent Sullivan had sent to Ecuador. He’d made grave errors during his first few missions in the field, earning the ire of the director.

  “The word is that something unusual happened during your test today,” Kerri said in answer to my question. “I haven’t been able to nail down the specifics yet, although it’s not for a lack of trying. Everyone is talking about it as if they wished they could have been there to see for themselves. No one offered specific details, though, which is unusual all by itself.”

  “I passed.” Two pairs of expectant eyes settled on me. I leaned back and lifted my hands in surrender. “What else matters?”

  “Holden, what do you think?” Kerri drummed her fingers. “Match sticks under the fingernails or should we opt for the tried-and-true and go with waterboarding?”

  “There’s a simpler way,” he suggested. “With the bridge closing for the eclipse, I won’t take Evie along when I leave. Then she’ll be stuck here until it opens again. You’ll have time to stick her in your dungeon until you’ve pried the truth out of her.”

  “For your information,” I groused, “I’m perfectly capable of crossing the bridge by myself. The Shade family estate includes a real dungeon. Finally, torture jokes are not funny.”

  “Your own dungeon?” Holden’s eyes widened and fixed on Kerri. “That’s so cool. Whenever you mentioned it before, I always thought you were joking.”

  “We almost never use it on account of too many ancestors down there who won’t stay dead.” The magical disease, spectral disorder, ran in her family although it hadn’t afflicted anyone in recent generations.

  Kerri pinned me with a no-nonsense gaze. “If you won’t talk, Holden’s right. You’ll force me to break open the dungeon. Don’t worry, there aren’t any rats down there like in Sheriff Crowe’s jail. Just Callum. He won’t bother you … much.”

  “Callum?” I asked.

  “Callum Shade. My…” She counted on her fingers then gave up. “I don’t know how far back, but he’s my umpty-ump great-grandfather. When his spectral disorder got out of control, they locked him in the dungeon. As far as anyone knows, he’s still down there.”

  Holden had gone pale. “That’s barbaric, putting someone who’s ill in a dungeon.”

  That was an interesting switch. I knew something about this realm that Holden didn’t.

  Kerri shrugged. “End-stage spectral disorder comes with uncontrollable seizures. With the seizures, magic flares, sometimes in a big way, that can hurt others or damage anything that’s nearby. Putting them in a dungeon isn’t cruelty. It’s the best solution to a bad situation.”

  “This relative of yours is still locked up after hundreds of years?” Holden asked, still incredulous. “How is he still alive?”

  “No one knows,” Kerri said. “That’s why Professor Ashmore has been researching spectral disorder.”

  She turned back to me. “Don’t worry. You’ll be perfectly safe at Shade castle. There hasn’t been a spark of magic-gon
e-wrong since before I was born. No one’s heard a peep from Callum in years. If he’s still lurking down there, I’m sure he’ll be more fun than the rat family in the city dungeon.” Kerri smiled as if she were planning a picnic in the park with rainbows and dancing unicorns. “Or you can tell us what happened this afternoon and never have to meet Callum. Your choice.”

  There was a reason she was near the top of her class in law school. Clearly, she had a bright future as a master of evil. I caved and quickly filled them in.

  “Now it makes sense why Cassandra was talking to the sheriff.” Kerri blew out a breath. “Breaking the security wards near the bridge is an actual crime.”

  “Thanks for pointing that out,” I said with a glare.

  “Stormbringers hate that kind of thing,” she mused as if I hadn’t spoken. “They’re so possessive of the Pale, you’d think they created it.”

  “Maybe that’s because—I don’t know—they actually did create it.”

  Kerri waved a hand. “Like anyone cares what a bunch of overachievers did a bazillion years ago. What else did Devi and Sullivan say?”

  “About what? Me being some kind of magical freak or Cassandra wanting me banned from the universe?”

  “Any or all of the above.”

  I sighed. “Devi seems to think my ability to get around magical wards is a skill instead of a crime, so I’m okay for now. I think.”

  Hitting both of us with an appraising look, Holden said, “Cassandra might have been talking to the sheriff about another matter. Did you think of that?”

  Kerri groaned. “Oh, stop. Get over her, will you?”

  “Just because I make it a point to see the best in people doesn’t mean I have a thing for her.” He met Kerri’s gaze with a challenge of his own. “And so what if I did? Cassandra Storm is hot.”

  “Oh. My. God.” Kerri didn’t give him an inch. “You can’t even say her name without going all aquiver.”

  “I am not … aquiver,” Holden countered.