Halo Effect

by Annabel Chase

  The ogre nodded. “Once he’s a pile of ash, we’ll have to wait for him to reform before we can continue.”

  “Any idea how long that might take?” I asked.

  Ansell looked thoughtful. “His regeneration power is pretty strong. I’d say twenty minutes, tops.”

  Once the flames subsided, we crawled out from under the table.

  The judge returned to her chair and glanced warily at the pile of ash on the witness stand. “Why don’t we take a fifteen-minute recess?”

  “Come on, Ansell,” I said. “Let’s get some fresh air.”

  The ogre and I left the Great Hall and walked around the perimeter of the building.

  “I wouldn’t have punched that shifter in the parking lot,” Ansell said. “I was revved up about something else that night, but I wouldn’t have touched him, I swear.”

  “I believe you.” I hesitated before asking my next question. “What were you revved up about, as you put it?”

  Ansell looked away. “Nothing.”

  “It was obviously something.”

  “Don had been causing trouble that day at work. I was in a foul mood when I met up with Finnegan.”

  “Why would your friend testify against you?” I asked.

  “You were already hitting the nail on the head,” Ansell said. “He’s desperate for money.”

  “And you think Don paid him off?”

  “Yates has no scruples. I think he offered money to make sure I got put away and Finn is weak enough to take it.”

  I studied his solemn expression. “You don’t seem angry at Finnegan.”

  “I’m disappointed but not angry.”

  I smiled. “Now you sound like my grandmother.” That had been one of her favorite phrases when I was in trouble as a kid.

  “Why does your boss have it in for you?” I asked. “There has to be a reason.” This case seemed to be far more than a personality clash.

  “He hates me because I’m an ogre.”

  No. There was more to it than that. I knew it in my gut. His boss had been giving him a hard time, probably for months, and Ansell finally snapped.

  “Why did you punch your boss?” I asked. “What was the final straw?”

  “I told you.”

  “I don’t believe you. Ansell, I want to help you, but you have to tell me the real reason.”

  When his gaze dropped to the ground, I knew I was on the right track.

  “Ansell, please. You don’t want to go to prison if you can help it, not because of that awful centaur.”

  “It won’t be because of the centaur,” a soft voice said. “It will be because of me.”

  I turned to see Violet behind us. She lowered her hood and her cheeks were tinged with pink.

  “Why because of you?” I asked.

  “Violet, don’t,” Ansell warned.

  The elf squeezed his arm. “You don’t have to protect me anymore, Ansell. As much as I appreciate it, I can’t let you go to prison because of me.”

  “What’s he protecting you from, Violet?”

  “Getting fired, for starters,” the elf said. “Ansell knows how much I need this job.”

  “She has two little ones,” Ansell said.

  “I lost my husband last year,” Violet said. “I took the job to support my family. Everything was fine at first, but then…” She trailed off. “Ansell and I sometimes work late on designs and that’s when Don likes to corner me.”

  I cut a quick glance at Ansell. “You’ve been protecting Violet from Don.”

  The ogre nodded. “He harassed her from early on. I ignored it at first because I couldn’t afford to lose my job and neither could she.”

  I looked at Violet. “Is that why you didn’t report him?”

  She nodded. “I knew it would be my word against his and even with Ansell supporting me…”

  “Don knew about my criminal record,” Ansell said. “He was confident that everyone would believe him and that Violet would be too scared of losing her job to make an allegation.”

  “And you decided you couldn’t take it anymore?” I asked.

  Ansell shook his head. “It wasn’t even that. I’d gone to the bathroom and when I came back, he had Violet pinned against the wall. She tried to push him off and he raised his hand to hit her. I came at him from the side and punched him to get him off of her.”

  “He wasn’t concerned he’d get in trouble?”

  “No way,” Ansell said. “He actually smirked after I hit him because he knew he could get rid of me now and it would be open season on Violet once I was gone.”

  “I can’t let you go to prison because of me,” Violet said. “It isn’t right.”

  “It won’t be because of you,” Ansell said. “It’ll be because of him and what he did. You didn’t do anything, Violet.”

  “No, I didn’t,” she said quietly. “But I am now.” She turned to face me. “Put me on the stand, Ms. Hart. I want to testify as a witness. It might not get him off the hook completely, but you said yourself it could reduce his sentence.”

  “No, you can’t,” Ansell said. “I won’t let you.”

  “You don’t deserve this,” Violet insisted. “I’m not your responsibility. I should never have let things get this far.”

  Ansell gave me a pleading look. “Don’t let her testify. She’ll end up homeless.”

  “I won’t,” Violet said. “I’m not as helpless as I look and I need to stop acting like I am.”

  I empathized with her situation, but my duty was to my client, not Violet. “Now that I know, I have an obligation to use this information, Ansell. I’m sorry.”

  Don had abused his power and weaponized their fear to use it against them. He was the lowest of the low and I had no intention of letting him get away with this.

  “Come back inside and let me speak to opposing counsel,” I said.

  Violet started to follow me.

  “Maybe you should put your hood back up,” Ansell said. “Just in case it doesn’t work out.”

  Violet shook her head. “I’m done hiding from this. I have two children. I should be setting a good example for them and letting you go to prison to save my job isn’t what I consider a good example, do you?”

  Ansell fell silent as we entered the building. I surged ahead and went in search of Rochester. The wizard and I had a healthy respect for each other. I hoped it was enough.

  I returned to the courtroom and motioned to Rochester until I caught his eye. He ambled across the courtroom to see me.

  “That was quite a show, huh?” he said.

  “I need to speak with you in private,” I said.

  He glanced around the room. “I think all the rooms are taken right now.”

  “I can take care of that.” I forged a path to the corridor and opened the door to the ladies’ restroom. “Everyone out! They’re about to test the fire alarm and it echoes horribly in here. You don’t want to burst an eardrum.”

  I heard a toilet flush and another woman washed her hands at the sink. Once the room was clear, I ushered in Rochester and locked the door behind us.

  Rochester looked warily at the stalls. “Unorthodox but what else is new where you’re concerned?”

  I quickly relayed the story of Ansell and Violet.

  “I see the dilemma,” Rochester said. “If Violet testifies, it will help your client, but it will likely mean retaliation.” He scratched his head. “But your client still punched him. That’s the bottom line.”

  “Only to separate him from Violet,” I said. “Physical force seemed the only reasonable option. They were both convinced that Don was going to hurt her this time, so Ansell hit him hard enough to make sure that didn’t happen.”

  “Either way, they can’t keep working there,” Rochester said. “Even if we handle it the way I think you’re suggesting, they’re going to lose their jobs anyway. Don wins.”

  “Not if we make sure that Don gets replaced,” I said, eyeing him closely.

  Und
erstanding illuminated the wizard’s features under the harsh glare of the artificial lights. “If Don faces criminal charges for his own transgressions, the board will have to fire him.”

  “It sounds like that should have happened a long time ago.” But better late than never. “I’m thinking false imprisonment, bullying, stalking.” I ticked off the list of charges. They all fell under the criminal code, not the civil one.

  “Do you think Violet is willing to tell us everything?”

  “I think she will now,” I said. “She seemed to realize that Ansell was in real trouble and it didn’t sit well with her.”

  I admired both of them for doing what they could to protect each other—for doing what was right even with so much at stake. They were only co-workers, not lovers or even close friends. They owed each other nothing, yet they still felt compelled to step up when the situation demanded it.

  “Thank you. I know Ansell’s record looks bad, but he’s not that ogre anymore and hasn’t been for a long time. He’s demonstrated integrity and good character.”

  Paranormals could change for the better. I’d seen that a lot recently.

  Rochester clapped me on the back. “I have a feeling everything will work out for the best, Emma. Let’s get this case in the books so we can move on. Something tells me I’m going to really enjoy my next case.”

  Violet would be thrilled to learn that Don’s days of harassment and abuse of power were over. Hopefully, she and Ansell could continue in the jobs they seemed to love as well as need.

  Rochester glanced uncomfortably at the toilet stalls. “We’re finished talking, right? We can go back to the courtroom now?”

  “You go ahead,” I said. “I need to pee first.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  I hovered outside an office I never thought I’d enter. Before I made any major decisions, I wanted to have a conversation with an expert. My own legal education was grounded in the human world and, even though I’d thrown myself into my job as a defense attorney, I was unfamiliar with the intricacies of trusts and estates law in the paranormal world. If I was going to put provisions in a will that impacted my daughter’s future, I wanted it done right. As much as I disliked Josie, she was sharp and I knew she’d be able to handle the matter.

  The door jerked open and Professor Wallis burst out like the room was on fire, nearly knocking me off my feet. He didn’t seem to notice me. He was too busy staring intently at a sheet of paper in his hand as he hobbled away. Maybe he’d finally gotten the signatures he needed for his petition. Another bright spot in an otherwise unfortunate day.

  “Come in, Emma,” Josie called from the interior of the office. “Welcome to my new digs.”

  I entered her office and was immediately struck by the chic decor. It was a far cry from the barebones style of the office I shared with Althea. Jewel-toned throw pillows lined a modern settee and lush drapes framed the windows. No mahogany for Josie. The wererat sat behind a high-gloss white lacquer desk. Josie had opted for maximum glamour.

  “This is quite a space,” I said.

  “I wanted to make it my home away from home since I figure I’ll be spending most of my time here.” She swung her stiletto-clad feet to rest on the edge of the desk. “What do you think?”

  “I can think of worse places to spend most of my time,” I said.

  She examined her manicured nails. “I figure I’m young and single and I want to make an impression on my clients, so why not go all out?”

  My gaze took in the gold-trimmed mirror in the shape of a star hanging on the wall behind her. “You certainly did, although I have a feeling Professor Wallis didn’t notice. You’d need a giant poster of a tangi on the wall to get his attention.”

  Josie rolled her eyes. “That weirdo is not a client.”

  “He’s eccentric, but he seems like a nice guy.”

  Josie shook her head. “Too intense. He reminds me of an ex-boyfriend who was obsessed with his bug collection. Everything had to be handled just so, and if he thought I looked at their cases the wrong way, he freaked out.” She groaned and returned her feet to the floor. “Way too much interest in critters for my taste. The professor droned on and on about these creatures and their rainbows and, to be honest, I completely tuned out.”

  “He’s pretty obsessed with his petition to save the tangi.” Dedication to a cause wasn’t something I expected Josie to understand.

  “His obsession has gone beyond a harmless petition. He wanted me to draft an irrevocable land trust to protect the habitat for that creature.”

  “He’s been stalking at least one in Spellbound. I’m surprised the tangi hasn’t taken out a restraining order.” I laughed at my own joke.

  “I told him I didn’t think a land trust is the way to go, given that he’d need the permission of the current landowners—apparently there’s a house involved—but he was adamant that he wanted me to do it right here and now. He mumbled something about his window of opportunity closing.”

  “I guess he needs to leave town soon.” I remembered from the literature that his organization wasn’t based in Spellbound. Presumably he couldn’t stay here indefinitely.

  “Well, just because he’s obsessed with this tangi doesn’t mean someone else will voluntarily place their land in his hands to control. I told him I need time to research alternatives, but he was insistent that it be done immediately and if I couldn’t, he’d take care of it himself.”

  I frowned. “He’ll never get permission for the area where the tangi is. It’s owned by the Minors.” The harpies had been there forever and were very territorial. They’d never agree to sign over control to someone else and certainly not for the benefit of the tangi.

  Josie grimaced. “Even more of a reason not to represent him. I don’t need to be on Octavia Minor’s bad side. I value my life.”

  “Well, if you take care of it now like he asked, you won’t be on her bad side because she no longer seems to have one. Her personality has been totally…” I stopped abruptly.

  How could someone make such a drastic change in attitude and behavior without some kind of divine intervention? I wasn’t sure it was possible.

  Those words had been in reference to my father, but they seemed apt for this situation as well—the difference being the intervention hadn’t been divine, it had been magical.

  “Totally what?” Josie prompted.

  “Transformed,” I finished quietly. I had a sinking feeling I knew exactly why the Minors had been targeted and how.

  “Emma, what’s wrong?”

  I rose to my feet, my legs wobbling slightly. “I need to go. Do me a favor and ask Sheriff Astrid to meet me at the Minors’ house.”

  Although Octavia wasn’t there, I knew exactly who would be.

  I barged into the house without knocking and stopped short when I saw Ember in the foyer.

  “What are you doing here? You’re supposed to be at my house,” I said, alarmed.

  “I was, but we’re packing. Marley left her book upstairs here and asked me to get it.” Her gaze was riveted to something in the sunroom.

  “What’s going on?” I asked. I craned my neck for a better view.

  “Something’s wrong with Professor Wallis,” Ember whispered.

  Uh oh.

  I clasped Ember’s hand and tugged her into the sunroom with me. Professor Wallis stood at the far end of the room, his body rigid and his face drained of color. Callie and Darcy were seated on the settee, their backs ramrod straight.

  “What happened?” I asked.

  Callie turned toward me, her brown eyes wide with fear. “We’re not sure. He rushed in here with a document he insisted we sign—something about our deed to the property.”

  Darcy jumped in next. “I told him as much as we want to help the tangi, we can’t sign anything because we’re committed to using the purusha tree bark on our land to help the werewolves.”

  “He hasn’t uttered a word since,” Callie added. “He’s been stuck just l
ike that.”

  “Where’s everyone else?” I asked.

  “They went to visit our grandmother,” Darcy said. “Mom baked cookies for her and wanted to deliver them fresh.”

  The professor recovered from his shock. “This is my life’s work. These creatures are endangered, don’t you understand? We need to protect their land by whatever means possible.”

  “It’s not their land,” Callie said. “It’s our land.”

  Professor Wallis threw his hat on the floor and tore at his hair. “This is unacceptable!”

  Darcy and Callie turned to me with matching baffled expressions.

  I drew a deep breath. “You’ve thwarted his plan to take over your property and designate the area as protected. Once he met you, he quickly realized you—well, Octavia and Phoebe—would require magical intervention so they’d sign the necessary paperwork.” I shifted my gaze. “Did I miss anything, Professor?”

  “Magic?” Darcy looked from me to the professor. “How?”

  “The red roses from the festival,” I said. “I’m guessing he spelled a dozen of them, except all twelve of them didn’t make it here.”

  Roses were the common link between the Minors and the other spelled women, specifically red ones. Dr. Hall said she’d found two roses and at least one of them could’ve been red. Rue Halloran had two red roses in her arrangement that she’d ‘scrounged.’ I couldn’t remember whether there were any red roses in Stefany’s pig vase, only that there were autumnal colors, but there was a good chance there was at least one.

  Darcy’s mouth dropped open. “Yes, the professor is the one who gave us the flowers to take home. He called to us when we passed by his stall at the festival and offered them as an apology for skulking around our woods. I thought it was such a sweet gesture.”

  Callie darted into the kitchen and returned with a vase of roses. “There are eight red ones.”

  “I might’ve dropped a few at the festival,” he admitted. “I had too much to carry.”

  And he was a bit clumsy. That was the reason Dr. Hall, Rue, and Stefany were also under the influence of the spell. They’d inadvertently ended up with the remaining roses. They weren’t targeted because they were mouthy women. They weren’t targeted at all. Only the harpies had been the intended recipients of the spelled roses.