Midnight Reynolds and the Agency of Spectral Protection

by Catherine Holt

  The floor was covered in tiny tiles, and on the ceiling was a mural of the Berry founding fathers. There were three sets of old-fashioned glass doors that all led out to the wide concrete stairs.

  What a surprise. It was still raining. Midnight took one look at the gunmetal sky and texted her mom to ask for a ride. Her mom quickly replied that she’d be there in five minutes. Midnight walked over to one of the chairs scattered around the foyer and sat down. She was about to go over her notes again when something flickered in the corner of her eye. She blinked as a tiny fleck of spectral energy drifted past her. And another.

  She looked around the foyer in awe as hundreds of the snowflake-like particles danced lazily through the air. Her face softened, and she stretched out her arm.

  The tiny fragments darted around her wrist. Midnight had been so busy worrying about releasing the trapped spectral energy and trying to prevent it from being misused that she’d almost forgotten how beautiful it could be in its natural state.

  She lifted up her other arm as it flickered with colors. Pearl, pink, pale blue, yellow. A shimmering rainbow of goodness. And someone was hurting it. Causing it to become something it wasn’t.

  “Hey, Midnight.”

  Logan?

  Midnight dropped her arms to her sides and the spectral energy darted off, as if feeling the panic radiating from her.

  Logan was wearing another Sherlock hoodie, and his dark eyes were bright with curiosity. She gulped, suddenly glad that Tabitha had convinced her to start wearing nicer clothes. After what had happened with Sav and Lucy, Midnight had almost been too scared to let herself enjoy picking out clothes. But now she was starting to reclaim her identity.

  She glanced down at her blue-and-white-striped jeans and favorite apple-green jean jacket. Sav and Lucy would hate the color clash, but it made Midnight smile.

  “Hey,” she said when Logan reached her. “What are you doing here on a Saturday?”

  “Just getting a few books to read. Mrs. Crown refuses to let me take more than three at a time,” he said as he nodded to the large book bag hanging from his shoulder. “I haven’t seen you around much at school.”

  “I’ve been kind of busy,” she said, not bothering to mention that she’d been avoiding him. “Just with my mom’s wedding and everything.”

  “Oh yeah. It’s going to be a Viking thing. That’s so cool.”

  “Not if you have to wear one of the outfits,” Midnight said in a light voice. “Plus, tonight I have to learn to dance like a Viking. And before you ask…no, I don’t have a clue what that means.”

  “Well, I’m sure you’ll be great at it,” he said, giving her a shy smile. “So, did you hear there was another robbery yesterday?”

  She slowly nodded her head. “Yeah. At the jewelry store.”

  “Crazy, right?” he said before frowning. “But you know what I think is the weirdest part about it? All the rain and earthquakes only started when the robberies did.”

  “A-are you sure?” Midnight forced herself to stay calm, while she frantically crossed her fingers. The fact that Logan had made the connection proved two things. One, that he was brilliant. And two, that if she spent any more time with him, she might accidentally blurt out the truth and get kicked out of ASP for good.

  “Yeah, I’ve even been correlating old weather reports,” he said as he pulled out his cell phone. “Do you want to see?”

  “Er, sure.” She forced herself to stay calm as he held it up. It was impossible not to admire his style. “Wow. That’s pretty crazy. So, what do you think it means?”

  He gave a rueful smile, making him look cuter than ever. “That’s the part I don’t get. I mean, I know that they can’t be connected, yet I can’t stop thinking about it. Still, I guess I’ll eventually figure it out.”

  Midnight sighed. If only. She and Tabitha knew loads more about the case than he did, and they hadn’t even come close.

  “Logan, this is going to sound weird. But when you’re working on a case and you can’t find any clues, no matter how hard you try, what do you do?”

  “Well, that’s easy,” he said as he put his cell phone back in his jacket and they resumed walking. “I stop thinking about it and let it come to me. You’d be amazed how often the answer is actually sitting right under my nose.”

  “Thanks,” she said as her mom’s car pulled up outside the library. Midnight got to her feet and struggled into her raincoat, flipping her hood to stop the ever-present rain from soaking her.

  “You’re welcome. And have fun tonight. I bet you’ll make the cutest Viking ever,” he said as he waved goodbye to her. Despite everything that was going on, Midnight couldn’t help but smile.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  “You should’ve invited Logan.” Her mom adjusted Midnight’s helmet. Her neck was already starting to ache from the weight. But at the mention of Logan’s name, heat prickled Midnight’s cheeks. Slim chance she’d let Logan see her wearing a shield maiden dress while holding hands with a bunch of Vikings doing the equivalent of “Ring around the Rosie.”

  “It’s okay.” Midnight peered around the room.

  The Berry Community Hall had been transformed, and everywhere Midnight looked, there were long wooden oars hanging from the walls, along with animal skulls, fur rugs, and large pots covered in fine leather. Midnight had no idea if they were for cooking or for making music. Or both.

  Her mom had said that after the dancing, the Sons of a Gunnar would be doing a Viking fight reenactment. But that was still an hour off, and the band—that consisted of flutes, weird lyres, and even weirder-looking bagpipes—was taking a break.

  Outside, the rain thundered on, pounding against the steel roof. Her mom flinched. “I don’t think this weather is ever going to get better. I can’t help but think it’s a sign.”

  A wave of guilt washed over Midnight. It wasn’t a sign. It was just a terrible person doing terrible things. Terrible things that she hadn’t been able to stop.

  “Mom. No. You love Phil, and you were the one who told me that we all had to compromise. So perhaps this is how you compromise. If the rain doesn’t stop, you could always have your wedding in here. I know it’s not the side of a hill in a sea of spring flowers, but we could still buy loads of daffodils. I’m sure it would look amazing.”

  Her mom, who was wearing a full-length purple gown with heavy leather armor over the top, suddenly dragged Midnight into a fierce hug. “Thank you, honey. I needed to hear that.”

  “It’s going to be okay,” Midnight promised just as Jerry walked over, closely followed by Ruth, who was almost unrecognizable with her dark hair in braids and her body covered in chain mail.

  “Maggie, thank you so much for inviting me,” Ruth said as Midnight’s mom hugged her.

  “You’re welcome. Phil and I are so pleased you could come.”

  Ruth grinned and looked at Jerry. “Me too. To think that last week I was almost going to join the croquet club in the hope of meeting people.”

  “Croquet club?” Jerry looked outraged as he slipped an arm around Ruth’s waist. “You would’ve hated it. Vikings are so much more fun.”

  “I’ll say,” Ruth said before seeming to remember that Midnight and her mom were standing there. “Anyway, I’m pleased to be here. And Midnight, you look so adorable in your costume.”

  “Er, thanks.”

  “That’s what I keep trying to tell her, Ruth,” Midnight’s mom beamed with pride. “Still, at least she’s wearing it. My other daughter, Taylor, has a gorgeous beet-dyed dress but two weeks ago suddenly refused to put it on.”

  “I’m sure she’ll come around,” Ruth said in a warm voice. “I remember being the same when I was that age. Especially since she has a boyfriend.”

  “Yes, fancy that she’s dating my boss’s son.” Jerry looked over to where Taylor and Dylan were huddled in the corner, having an intense conversation.

  Midnight stiffened. “Dylan’s father works at the museum? I didn’t know t
hat.”

  “From what I can gather, Dylan and his dad have a bit of a strained relationship at the moment. I think they have different views on college. You probably met him when you did the class trip. Alan Staunton.”

  “Alan’s his father?” Midnight blinked, recalling the smiling museum director. There wasn’t much resemblance.

  “That’s right,” Midnight’s mom confirmed. “I thought you knew. Now I feel bad that I didn’t tell you. Perhaps it would’ve helped with your article.”

  Not to mention solving an unsolvable crime. “Perhaps,” Midnight agreed, her mind racing.

  “Speaking of your article, how’s it going?” Ruth asked, her eyes dancing with curiosity.

  “Oh, um…it’s going well. Almost finished.” Midnight made a mental note to actually write one when this was finally over.

  “Wonderful. You must bring around a copy for Elsie. And for me. After all, if it wasn’t for your article, I might never have reconnected with Jerry.” Ruth once again looked at Jerry like she’d just won the lottery. Midnight decided it was a good time to slip away.

  She scanned the room to try to find Dylan. To the left, the band was returning to their instruments. She cringed. The first set they’d played had sounded more like a construction site than music. She had the feeling that Vikings made better warriors than composers.

  Taylor was sitting by herself at one of the tables in far corner of the hall. Midnight hurried over, just as the low drone of the untuned pipe filtered out through the hall.

  “Hey, Taylor. Where’s Dylan?” Midnight asked, hoping to keep her voice casual.

  “He had to go. Not that I can blame him,” Taylor’s mouth was pursed together in annoyance. “I mean, is this not the lamest thing in history?”

  “Well, yeah,” Midnight said. “It’s Viking dancing. Of course it’s lame, but it’s for mom’s wedding. Besides, it’s not like you’re wearing a costume. You should be grateful.”

  “I’d be more grateful if she’d let me go to the party tomorrow night,” Taylor snapped before seeming to catch herself. As if realizing that it wasn’t like Midnight could fix anything. “Anyway, I don’t want to talk about it. Where’s your partner in crime tonight? You two are normally joined at the hip.”

  “She had to go to the country club with her parents.”

  “Ugh. I hate that place. Dylan says when he used to work there, the staff weren’t even allowed to keep their tips.”

  Midnight’s mouth went dry. “Dylan worked at the country club? Since when?”

  “He was a bellhop, but he quit three months ago. Why are you so interested?”

  “No reason.” Midnight tried to sound calm.

  If he quit three months ago, that explained why he hadn’t been on the list of employees that they’d studied.

  Her head began to spin as the pipe player was joined by a roaring wail of guitar strings competing to be overheard. Dylan had means and opportunity for at least two of the crimes. And while she didn’t know if he had a motive, the rest was too much of a coincidence to ignore.

  “No reason. Taylor, do you have a photograph of Dylan on your cell phone?”

  “Has anyone told you that you’re weird?” Taylor snapped before letting out a disgruntled sigh and flicking through her photo album. “Fine. Here you go.”

  “Thanks,” Midnight looked at the first photograph. However, there were so many filters on it that it was impossible to see for certain if the black smudge was there. And she had no way of knowing how long ago it was taken. She swiped the screen, but the next photo was just as bad. Dylan with rainbows tattoos on his face. She swiped again. Dylan with a donkey nose.

  She was about to ask Taylor for an untouched one when her mom walked toward them. Taylor immediately turned her shoulder and stared in the other direction. Their mom let out a soft sigh.

  “I’ve just come to remind you both to say hello to Phil’s uncle. He’s traveled from California to be here. He’s actually a lovely man. He even agreed to be in yesterday’s vlog. It’s already had one hundred likes.”

  “Sure.” Midnight nodded while Taylor made a grunting noise. Not that Midnight cared. All that mattered was trying to get a photograph of Dylan.

  She stiffened.

  Her mom had reshot yesterday’s clip because the footage had been ruined. The footage that Taylor and Dylan had been in.

  “M-mom, do you still have the ruined footage on your phone?” Midnight asked urgently.

  “No, I was filming with Phil’s camera.” Her mom shook her head, then stopped. “Though I did set up my own phone to see if we could get some fun out-takes. Why?”

  Trust me, you don’t want to know.

  “Er, I just wanted to see it,” Midnight said, trying to keep her voice calm as her mom extracted her phone from the depths of her Viking costume and flicked from screen to screen before finally nodding.

  “Yes, here it is.”

  “Thanks.” Midnight took the phone and studied the clip. At first, it was only her mom on the screen—her blond curls sitting like a halo around her face—as she talked about what ingredients she was using. Then the camera finally panned out to include Taylor and Dylan.

  Well, Midnight could only assume it was Dylan, because his entire face was covered by a black smudge. Planodiume.

  Logan was right. The answer had been under her nose the entire time.

  Taylor finally turned around and gave them an icy glare. “Oh God. I thought you were going to delete this thing. I mean, look at Dylan. He’s totally covered by a black smudge. I swear she’s only keeping it to embarrass me.”

  Actually, the fact that she’d kept it probably had saved Taylor’s life.

  “I have to make a call.” Midnight handed the phone back and tried to keep her hands from shaking.

  “Of course you do.” Taylor folded her arms. “Don’t mind me. I’m a virtual prisoner.”

  But Midnight didn’t bother to answer as she hurried outside so that she could call Tabitha without being overheard. Finally, they had the breakthrough they were looking for. But the fact that the villain was her sister’s boyfriend made it hard to feel happy. Still, the main thing that mattered was that it would soon be over and her life could return to normal.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  The wind howled down the street, sending eddies of leaves and rain flying in all directions. Next to her, Tabitha nervously shifted from foot to foot. Not that Midnight could blame her. The last time they’d snuck into a house, they’d almost been killed. It didn’t exactly bring back great memories. But, after speaking to Peter Gallagher on the phone last night, it had been decided that the best thing to do was find the particle realigner and deactivate it before Dylan could use it again. Especially since the measurements Midnight had collected had shown the Black Stream was almost at its breaking point.

  Another gust of rain blew against them as they waited for Dylan’s mom to climb into her bright-yellow car and drive away.

  “Finally.” Tabitha lowered her umbrella and stepped out from behind the tree. They’d been there for half an hour and had watched Dylan drive out, closely followed by his father. And now that his mom had gone, the house would be empty.

  “Let’s just hope they’re like every other family in America and have a spare key hidden under the doormat.” Midnight checked no one was looking. At least that was one thing the violent weather was good for. After she was satisfied, they jogged across the street and slipped around the side of the house to the back door.

  “My heart’s pounding,” Tabitha admitted as she reached under the mat and then triumphantly held up a key. “And looks like you were right.”

  The only thing scarier than sneaking into the house was the idea of Dylan using the particle realigner again. Midnight gulped as they carefully shrugged out of their wet jackets and turned the key in the lock.

  With a burst of resolve, she pushed open the door and they stepped inside.

  The house was modern and neat, with the kitchen
and living area on the ground floor. A cat sleeping on a nearby chair looked up at them with interest before closing its eyes. Dylan had once mentioned his basement bedroom, so they quickly searched for the way down. It was just off the laundry room, and the stairs creaked as they descended.

  The light flickered, and the cool air made Midnight’s skin pucker as they reached the bottom. The room was a mess, with dirty laundry scattered all over the floor, while the wall was covered with writing. One word scribbled over and over: Dominus.

  “Okay, creepy much?” Tabitha shuddered. “What does ‘dominus’ mean?”

  “I don’t know,” Midnight whispered as an all-too-familiar buzzing noise hit her ears. “But there’s something very wrong. There’s spectral energy here. I can feel it and hear it, but why can’t I see it?”

  “Welcome to my world,” Tabitha said before frowning. “And why didn’t our ghost apps go off?”

  “I don’t know—”

  A finger of spectral energy burst out of the wall.

  Midnight jumped in shock. Since when did spectral energy do that?

  The energy slithered to the ceiling before suddenly transforming into a dagger. It hung in the air, rocking from side to side before flying toward them.

  The buzzing in her ears increased to a high-pitched screech.

  Midnight grabbed Tabitha’s arm and pulled her out of the way as the energy dagger struck the far wall, then clattered to the ground.

  “W-what just happened?” Tabitha’s face drained of color. “I could feel something brush past me. Almost like it was cutting my skin.”

  “I don’t know.” Midnight jumped to the left as another dagger swayed from side to side and then came hurtling at them. The air whistled as it flew past. “This spectral energy is…different. It’s like a weapon. Duck!” she yelled as a third dagger flew toward them. They both fell to the floor.

  “We have to get out of here.” Tabitha panted, wildly looking around despite the fact she couldn’t see anything. “He’s created some kind of booby trap.”

  “It also explains the daggers that were stolen. Somehow he’s managed to combine them with spectral energy,” Midnight said as another black, misty dagger appeared. It swayed side to side before slicing through the air so fast it was difficult to see. She reached for a nearby baseball bat and managed to knock it to one side.