“Don’t get upset, Professor. That’s just my legal training talking. At least we didn’t commit a crime in this country, but I’ll bet Liu is going to be royally pissed.”
“I guess it’s not a good idea to have a Chinese magician assassin pissed at you.”
“Not very. I’m glad I didn’t tell Chan more about us. I wonder if they know that Seymour took the artifacts to Portland.”
“I don’t have any way to know the answer to that, but I haven’t finished my story yet.”
“Well get on with it then, Professor.”
“I didn’t steal anything else from Liu’s desk, but I did steal a couple of glasses from his wet bar.”
“Why the hell did you steal glasses?”
“Oh, it wasn’t the glasses themselves that were worth stealing. It was the fingerprints I put on them.”
“You printed Liu?”
“Liu and Chan both.”
“Fantastic! Now you’re thinking like an investigator. I’m proud of you, Professor.”
I was pretty proud of myself, but hearing it from Rachel made my day—my whole week, actually.
“Where are the glasses?”
“They’re wrapped in paper towels in the kitchen.”
“Now we just have to persuade Jack to dust them and compare them to the prints on the murder weapon.”
“I thought you were waiting for an apology from Avery.”
“Well he better hurry up. This case won’t solve itself.”
Rachel’s cell phone rang; she looked at the caller ID; pressed ‘Answer’ and put the phone to her ear.
“Hi Jack,” she said. “…Uh huh…Yeah…Is that an apology?…Sure…OK, I’ll meet you there…OK, bye,” and she hung up.
“What was that all about?” I asked.
“That was Jack apologizing in his own terse way, and inviting me out to dinner.”
“Tonight?”
“Yes.”
“Are you going?”
“Yes. I’d better go get ready. Take care of those glasses. I’ll see if I can get Jack to process them.” And with that, Rachel went to her apartment to get ready for her date with Portland Police Detective Jack Avery.
Damn that Avery! What kind of hold does he have on Rachel. What does she see in that guy anyway. First he insults her, then he calls her up with some lame apology, and she goes out to dinner with him. How does that happen? Rachel deserves better. She deserves somebody who respects her for the amazing woman she is. I’m going to have to step up my game, that is if I even have game.
I thought I might as well do something useful that evening, so I decided to cleanse/reset Wei Liu’s Snoozer. I got my magic bag and took out my small aluminum tripod and the Coriolis. Using a charcoal pencil, I wrote the symbol on it that activated it as a detector of magical devices. I hung the Coriolis from the tripod so that the pendulum’s tip was about three inches above the kitchen table, and I slid Wei Liu’s Snoozer under the pendulum. Then I started the Coriolis swinging in a counter-clockwise circle above the Snoozer. Immediately, the Coriolis changed from swinging in a circle to swinging back and forth, about five inches, along the length of the Snoozer. This, indeed, was a magic wand.
I had reset my own Snoozer using the ‘belt and suspenders’ method of holding it under running water for twelve minutes and also putting it in direct sunlight for another twelve minutes. Although the sun hadn’t set yet—it doesn’t get dark until around 10:00 PM in Portland in July—it was low enough in the sky that I didn’t think I would have sufficient direct sunlight to reset the wand. I would have to try using only running water. I went to the kitchen sink and, using my kitchen timer, held the wand under running cold water for twelve minutes.
To test the reset, I slid Liu’s wand back under the Coriolis and started the pendulum swinging in a counter-clockwise circle. Gradually, the pendulum’s path changed to swinging back and forth along the wand in a two-inch path. This was exactly what had happened when I had reset my own Snoozer. Liu’s wand had magical potential, but it was no longer activated to be used as a Snoozer. Running water had done the trick.
Although Liu’s wand looked a lot like my wand, they weren’t exactly the same. They both had the same symbols engraved in the same places, and Liu’s wand was almost the same length, but it was a little lighter in color. I didn’t want to get the wands mixed up, so I decided to somehow mark Liu’s wand to make it easily recognizable. I didn’t want to do anything permanent to it, in case my identifying mark affected the wand’s magical ability. I used a paper punch to punch out a circle from piece of red vinyl tape. This adhesive red dot was smaller than the diameter of the wand. Although the wand had a pointed tip, the back end of the handle was a flat circle, a perfect place to affix the big red dot. Now it would be easy to distinguish between my Snoozer and Liu’s.
Liu wouldn’t be able to use the Snoozer now, because I had cleansed it. But what was the point of having a deactivated Snoozer lying around. I could activate it for myself and Liu still wouldn’t be able to use it. I might as well go ahead and activate it. I got out my lancet and used a drop of blood to bind Liu’s Snoozer to me. I tested it, and the Coriolis showed me that it was indeed activated.
Wait a minute, why wasn’t my Spell Bell chiming? Oh, it was still on its side behind the couch. I picked it up and put it on my coffee table, but it still wasn’t chiming. I had just used magic to reactivate the Snoozer, but the Spell Bell wasn’t chiming. I had immunized the Spell Bell to my Snoozer, but this was a different Snoozer, or was it? Both Snoozers were now bonded to me, so my Spell Bell must consider them to be equivalent. The Spell Bell would ignore any Snoozer bonded to me. I put Liu’s Snoozer in a desk drawer.
With nothing else useful to do that evening, I made myself a dinner of popcorn chicken, potato puffs and beer, and watched an episode of Game of Thrones on my DVR before going to bed early.
Chapter 23
I awoke at six o’clock the next morning; it was Thursday. I had first breakfast consisting of one egg and cheese on toast with Sumatran coffee while I watched the business news on CNBC. At eight o’clock, I got a call from Rachel.
“Good morning, Rachel.”
“Morning, Professor. Have you had breakfast yet?”
“I had first breakfast a couple of hours ago.”
“Mind if I come up for coffee? I have news.”
“Sure, come on up. The door’s unlocked.”
“I’ll be right up. Bye.”
While I was putting some Breakfast Blend in the coffee maker, Rachel knocked once and let herself in.
“How was your date with Avery last night?”
“Good. He agreed to process the fingerprints on the glasses from Wei Liu’s office.”
“How did you talk him into that?”
“I told him we had fingerprints from two potential suspects in the Martingale case. He didn’t argue with my use of the term ‘suspects’ this time.”
“He’s learning,” I said.
“He asked me how I got them, and I told him it was probably better that he didn’t know at this time. He said that he wouldn’t be able to use the fingerprints as evidence or as the basis for a search warrant. I said that was OK. We just wanted to know if our investigation was going in the right direction. If one of these prints matches a print on the murder weapon, we’ll get more evidence for him.”
“That was a good job of persuasion. What did you have to do to get him to agree?”
“Just what do you mean by that?”
“I know you’re a smooth talker, but Avery is a by-the-book tight ass. He wouldn’t process those prints for me, no matter what I said.”
“OK, you’re right. I told him I’d come alone to bring him the glasses and have lunch with him.”
“So I’m excluded.”
“You have to admit that you and Jack don’t get along all that well together. I didn’t think you’d mind.”
“But I’m your partner, and I really like to be kept in the loop.”<
br />
“Just this once, Professor. I’ll tell you all about it this afternoon.”
This guy Avery was really starting to get on my nerves. “OK, then,” I said. “Here are a few Oreos to go along with our coffee.”
“The coffee is good. What kind is it?”
“Starbucks Breakfast Blend.”
“How many kinds of coffee do you have?”
“At any one time, about three. When I run out of one, I usually buy something different.”
“How do you keep them fresh?”
“First of all, I only buy whole beans and grind them each time I make coffee. I also store all three bags of beans in a larger Tupperware container that I keep in the cabinet.”
“Why not in the refrigerator?”
“That’s bad for the coffee. It promotes moisture. The beans need to be cool, not cold, dark and dry. Sort of like your sense of humor.”
“Very funny, Professor.”
“What will we do if one of the fingerprints on the glasses matches a print on the murder weapon?”
“The real question is what will we do if none of the prints match. We’ve exhausted our leads. What did you do with Wei Liu’s Snoozer?”
“I reset it so Liu can’t use it anymore. It’s in my desk drawer.” I didn’t mention that I bound Liu’s Snoozer to me.
“I’m still not sure what to do about that Snoozer. I don’t feel right about stealing it from Wei Liu.”
“Technically, I stole it. You weren’t even conscious.”
“Technically, we’re partners, and we’re both in this together. We’re a team, and we rise or fall together.”
“All for one and one for all.”
“Right. Maybe we should talk to Gabriel about it.”
“If that’s what you want to do, we can do it right now.”
“OK then. Let’s do it.”
I went into my office, got my magic bag and took out the shallow square box that contained Gabriel’s magic mirror. I returned to the kitchen, opened the box and unwrapped the red velvet cloth from around the magic mirror. I set it on the cloth with its concave side up.
“Are you ready?” I asked.
“I’m ready.”
I leaned over the shallow bowl and stared into its black depths. “Gabriel,” I called as I had been instructed. “Gabriel.”
In less than a minute, Gabriel’s head appeared as a full-color image in the depths of the bowl. The bowl vibrated with the sound of his voice.
“Greetings, Robert. What can I do for you?”
“We have a bit of a dilemma,” I said as Rachel leaned over the device.
“Greetings, Rachel. It is good to see you, too.”
“Hi, Gabriel.”
“Gabriel, we have an ethical question for you. We’re investigating the murder of a man who was probably importing artifacts from China in violation of an agreement between China and the United States. We suspect that a Chinese magician was involved in the murder. That magician, named Wei Liu, kidnapped Rachel and took her to China. I followed them using the Spell of Translocation, and surprised Wei Liu and an accomplice. I put them both to sleep using my Wand of Somnolence. Before returning to Portland with Rachel, I looked in Wei Liu’s desk and discovered that he, too, had a Wand of Somnolence which we believe was used during the murder. I took his wand and brought it back to Portland. We have some mixed feelings about taking his wand.”
“I see. What are the reasons that you took the wand?”
“We believe that Wei Liu is involved in the murder, and although the actual murder weapon was a wakizashi, the wand was used to put the victim’s wife to sleep and frame her for the murder. Also, the wand could be used against us when we apprehend the murderer.”
“I see. And why do you have ethical questions about your actions?”
“The wand is valuable, especially to a magician. If Wei Liu is part of your League of Light, we wouldn’t want to steal from him. If he is part of the Dark Forces, we don’t know the rules of conflict.”
“I see your dilemma. I know of Wei Liu. He is not in the League of Light, but I do not consider him to be part of the Dark Forces. He is an independent magician, a rogue you might say. He has a very small coterie of assistants. He also has a long history of working with the government of China. Many of his actions I do not consider ethical, but he considers himself to be a soldier for his country. He tries to avoid open conflict with the League, but we have thwarted his actions on a few occasions.”
“So what should we do?”
“I have confidence in both of you to make good decisions. I am sure that whatever you decide to do will be the right thing. You are both good people, and I am proud to have you in the League of Light. This mission of yours is not yet complete. It is too early for you to reach a final decision in this matter. I have told you what you need to know about Wei Liu, and I am confident in your abilities.”
“So that’s it? That’s your advice?” Rachel asked.
“Yes, Rachel. That is it. You will see that this is sufficient for the circumstances.”
“Thank you, Gabriel,” I said. “We respect your advice, and we thank you for your assistance.”
“Be well, love each other, and may peace be with you,” Gabriel said as his image faded from the bowl.
“Well that was a cop-out,” Rachel said.
“Even when Gabriel gives us a job to do for him, he doesn’t tell us how to do it. He seems to want us to figure out the right things to do,” I said as I wrapped the magic mirror in its cloth and put it back in its box.
“He talks more like a therapist than a leader,” Rachel complained.
“Well, it is what it is. We aren’t going to get any more direction from Gabriel in this matter. At least we know a little more about Wei Liu.”
“Yeah, it’s good to know that Liu isn’t aligned with the Dark Forces, but it seems like he’ll do anything the Chinese government wants him to do, no matter what.”
“I know thee well—a serviceable villain, as duteous to the vices of thy mistress as badness would desire,” I quoted.
“Is that Shakespeare?”
“Yep—it’s from King Lear.”
“I have to admit, it’s appropriate in this case, but you’re still a nerd.”
“Guilty as charged.”
“I guess we put the question of Liu’s Snoozer on hold for now,” Rachel said. “Let’s get those glasses packed up to take to Jack.”
I found a small cardboard box from an Amazon delivery, and I put the two glasses, wrapped in paper towels, in the box along with a few more paper towels for cushioning.
“Thanks for the coffee and cookies,” Rachel said as she left. “I’ll see you this afternoon.”
I decided to go out for lunch and run an errand at the same time. It seemed like we were always translocating into darkened rooms, and the lack of light was always a handicap. Nothing with iron in it would make it through the translocation, so we couldn’t bring flashlights, and torches didn’t seem very safe. We had been relying on candles, which we had to light at our destination. This took time, and the candles didn’t provide very much light. I had put a lot of thought into the problem, and the only solution I had come up with was glow sticks.
Glow sticks don’t provide a lot of light, but it’s more light than a candle puts out. Glow sticks are also more reliable than candles. They won’t get blown out, and you can easily and safely hold them in your hand. I knew where I could buy some glow sticks, so I left the Goose and drove downtown. I purchased a bunch of the brightest glow sticks that I could find. They only glow for five minutes, but they are pretty bright. After I returned to the Goose, I tested one of them translocating to my basement. It worked perfectly.
Of course we would have to hold the glow sticks. It would be nice if we had our hands free but still had light. We needed a way to stick a glow stick to the wall, and I knew just how to do it. I had some museum putty which is used like chewing gum to stick objects to a shelf so they won�
��t get knocked over. Museum putty has the advantage of not drying out.
“Why,” you may ask, “do I have museum putty?” I’m glad you asked. Every two weeks, a cleaning service comes in to clean my apartment, and every time, the pictures on the wall would be crooked when they left. I got museum putty to stick the bottoms of the pictures to the walls so that they couldn’t be knocked askew. Call me anal, but there you have it. I put some museum putty in my magic bag.
Chapter 24
At two thirty that afternoon, I got a call from Rachel on my cell phone.
“That was a long lunch,” I remarked.
“Professor, I’m at my office, and there’s been a break-in.”
“Are you OK?”
“Yeah, I’m OK. The break-in happened sometime earlier.”
“I’ll come right over. I’ll be there in less than fifteen minutes.”
“Why don’t you just translocate over here; it’ll save time.”
“OK. I’ll be there in a minute.”
We had prepared for the need to translocate between Rachel’s office and the Goose. I had signed the back of one of her business cards, torn it in half, and taped one half under her office desk above the center drawer. I taped the other half underneath the coffee table in my living room. I set up a SmartCar magic circle in my living room, used the torn business card as a homing beacon, and shimmer, flash, shimmer, I was in Rachel’s office.
“Ta da!” I said, and I picked up the half business card and all the translocation paraphernalia.
“Look at my office,” Rachel said.
Rachel’s office had been ransacked. The contents of her filing cabinet were scattered on the floor. All of her desk drawers were open and much of the contents were on the top of the desk.
“When did this happen?”
“The last time I was here was yesterday morning. Everything was fine then. The break-in must have been last night. They even searched the cabinets and refrigerator out in the waiting room,” Rachel said.
“Did they break down your outer door?” I asked.
“No, the door is intact. It was locked when I got here, and I didn’t see any evidence of it having been picked. There’s no sign of forced entry, and I’m the only person with a key.”
Crimes of Magic: The Yard Sale Wand Page 16