Changeling Hunter

by Frank Hurt

  “I’m sure Mrs. Cowie would be delighted. We would all be delighted for him.”

  “Honestly, Emberly, there’s no need for you take such a hostile tone. I’m only concerned about your future.”

  “You needn’t be, Mum. I’m focused on my career.” Though she was alone in the reception area, Ember stood in a corner and faced the window. The streets of downtown Minot would normally be bustling with mid-morning traffic, but the road construction crews had moved in and taken over. Asphalt was being torn up and dumped into trucks with front-end loaders. The back-up alarms of the equipment beeped loud enough to pierce the tinted glass. “I don’t have time to be concerned with dating anyone, truly.”

  “You can’t blame a mother for being concerned about her daughter’s future. You know, by your age, Cynthia already blessed us with two beautiful granddaughters. Two! Most Malvern couples these days are fortunate to have just one child, but your sister has always been an overachiever.”

  Ember pinched the bridge of her nose. “Yes, Mum, Cyn is the bee’s knees. We all wish I could be more like her.”

  “You know that’s not what I mean, Emberly. It’s each our duty as Druws to continue the bloodlines. You can’t hope to do that by ‘focusing on your career’ in some backwater.”

  “The Magic City colony has the second largest Druw population on the planet, Mum. I’m doing important work here.” Ember glanced at the clock again and frowned. She walked over to the receptionist. “Ami, would you please call up to the Sixth Floor and ask if Dr. Rout has left yet? I was expecting her a half hour ago, so she must have forgotten.”

  The mocha-skinned girl smiled and adjusted her headset. “I’ll call right away. I haven’t met her yet. Is she nice?”

  Ember blinked at the young woman. “Ami, you did meet her. Last week, Monday, when I met her right here, on this very spot.”

  Ami raised her eyebrows and shrugged. “I don’t think so, Ember. Sorry. Oh, hi, yes, this is Ami from downstairs…”

  “Doctor Rout?” Benedette’s voice emerged from the Tracphone. “Doctor Gloria Rout? What are you doing associating with that woman?”

  Ember stepped away from Ami’s desk and lowered her voice. The beeping alarm pierced her thoughts as a white-and-orange Bobcat skid-steer loader maneuvered next to the building. “Work, Mum. She’s here to fill in for some Healers at the Department of Wellness who’ve gone on holiday for the month. You know her?”

  “Certainly, I know her. There aren’t that many of us Fifth Level Healers in the world, after all. You be careful around that woman, Emberly.”

  “Why? She’s just a little old lady.”

  Benedette guffawed. “She’d like you to think that. I won’t speak ill of my peers.”

  “You opened the window, Mum.”

  “Right, right. I’ll just say that I’m not very fond of her penchant for bending the rules. She walks a fine line at times. Just be careful if you have any dealings with that woman.”

  Ami called out from her desk. “Ember? They said she’s not coming down. Dr. Rout has too much work to do in the office today.”

  “They? Who said that?”

  Ami shrugged. “Doctor Rout, apparently. The floor desk receptionist directed the call to her, and she told me to tell you that she hasn’t the time today. She sounded tired.”

  Ember’s frown deepened. “Mum, I need to ring off now. Thank you for your…advice.”

  The old elevator climbed the floors of Parker Building, ticking the ascending digits as Ember mentally steeled herself. She purposely avoided the Sixth Floor, which is why she made a point of meeting Gloria in the lobby. Maybe I’ll be lucky, and he won’t be in today. I’ll just have the floor receptionist get Gloria for me. I’ll fetch her and we’ll leave. Simple.

  She didn’t know the old woman well, but she had the impression Dr. Rout didn’t have a habit of running late or forgetting appointments—especially not an appointment to check on her patients.

  When the elevator chimed and opened its maw to the Sixth Floor, Ember stepped out to find the front desk unattended. Bloody hell, was that too much to hope for?

  She glanced down the hallway to the left and right. The layout of the Department of Wellness seemed to mirror that of the Department of Investigation on the Third Floor. That would mean the Director’s office would be in the far rear corner. She guessed Gloria would not have accepted a supply closet as her temporary office like Ember was assigned. She just needed to find someone to point her in the right direction, while avoiding Elton Higginbotham.

  The memory of the spar with Debra in the abandoned garage flashed through her mind. This wasn’t a combat situation, but Ember could consider this unfriendly territory, so long as the threat of Higginbotham existed. She would need to practice situational awareness, to proceed cautiously.

  Ember leaned around a corner and saw two people conversing outside an office. Neither of them was Gloria, but neither of them was Elton, either. Assuming the break room was in the middle like on the Third Floor, that would place the staff meeting room to the right. Both were likely places for Higginbotham to be if he wasn’t in his office. She chose the other hallway, away from both public areas.

  The first two offices were empty. Ember stepped up to a third office. The door was halfway open, the light was on, and she heard papers rustling. Ember slowly peered around the corner and saw a brunette woman with a Malvern aura seated at a desk. Ember glanced at the door to read the nameplate: “Dr. Elizabeth McMahon.” She rapped her knuckle on the door.

  The woman looked up from her reading. “Yes? What is it?”

  “I’m so sorry to interrupt you, Dr. McMahon,” Ember touched the door and swung it open. “Nobody was at the front desk, so—”

  “That girl. She’s so unreliable.”

  “Maybe she just stepped out. In any case, I’m looking for Dr. Rout.”

  “Oh, the new locum tenens. Yes, she’s in Jason’s office for now. Down that hall, three offices from Elton’s.” The woman looked back at her papers. “Close the door behind you.”

  “I really don’t mean to be a bother, but—”

  Elizabeth rolled her eyes and looked back at Ember. “Too late for that. What now?”

  “Would you mind just calling her extension for me, please?” Ember gestured back at the front desk. “I’d have the—”

  “Look, I’m really busy here, alright? I’ve told you where her office is, and you clearly must have clearance to be wandering around up here or your key card wouldn’t have opened the doors to the elevator. Walking is excellent exercise—”

  “Right, of course.” Ember nodded. “I only just thought it would be a simple matter for you—”

  “Not so simple a matter as you walking yourself over there. In the time you’ve been annoying me, you could have already been there. No doubt annoying her instead.”

  “Brilliant.” Ember feigned a smile. She looked over her shoulder as she started walking. “You’ve been so helpful.”

  Elizabeth shouted. “Close the damn door!”

  “What was that? I’m sorry, my hearing is dreadful. I should probably see a doctor about it.” This time her smile wasn’t feigned. Her humor was to be short-lived. She only advanced a few paces before she heard heavy footsteps ahead. Her smile melted when she saw whose feet were making the sound.

  A tall, tanned man in a pale business suit emerged from one of the offices. His fluorescent white teeth flashed wide into a shark’s grin. “Ms. Wright! What a pleasant surprise, you coming to visit us. I wondered what the commotion was. To what do I owe the pleasure of seeing your pretty face?”

  “Director Higginbotham. How nice to see you again.” Ember felt her stomach churn as she pronounced his name. The Deference Spell he had cast on her left an impression she wouldn’t soon forget. He was a powerful Level Six Healer who had used black magic in an attempt to wield control over her. She had been able to expel the magic, to literally vomit the spell from her body before it took hold permanently. S
he had gotten lucky and was avoiding him since.

  The man extended his hand and waved her forward. “Come here, Ms. Wright. Let’s chat, shall we?”

  Her shoes were made of cement. From this distance, it was possible he wouldn’t be able to see that his spell was absent from her. The safe thing to do would be to run for the elevator, to flee. Someone like Higginbotham—someone willing to use magic so obscure the Druw High Council did not even acknowledge it as existing, much less as legal—what lengths would he go to, to keep his secret?

  This man’s seen Duncan since I lifted the spell on him, though. Duncan has been able to pretend he’s still under Higginbotham’s influence. If he can do it, then I can, too.

  She swallowed hard. Ember willed her feet to take her to the Director. Even more effort was summoned to turn her lips upward into something resembling a smile.

  His aura was bright and strong over his toned, unblemished skin. Though he was an older man, Elton bore no wrinkles, no spots of any sort. Aside from his mostly grey, receding hair, there was nothing to suggest he wasn’t a fit, young man. His voice was cheerful and high. “What did you want to see me about?”

  “I’m here, actually, to see Dr. Rout.” Ember thought about how she might be expected to act, were she still under the influence of his Deference Spell. She quickly added, “Though it’s a treat to see you again, sir.”

  “Hmmm, is it?” Before she knew what he was doing, Elton reached out and brushed the back of his hand against her cheek.

  She blinked, felt repulsed by his touch, but she couldn’t let him know. Ember stood her ground and forced her smile wider. Where his knuckles touched her skin, she felt tingling followed by numbness. It was such a simple gesture, uninvited and unexpected. She rushed to put up mental defenses, but she needed to be subtle. She couldn’t let him know what she was doing. He’s reinforcing his Deference Spell, strengthening what he thinks is already there. I hadn’t expected this.

  An ashen cloud pulsed into her mind. She was aware of its presence. Ember was determined to keep it from coating her aura, from probing into her brain, but its master’s mana was just too powerful. She imagined walls going up to protect her mind. Billows of the imagined smoke penetrated past her unprepared defenses, rolling into her mental inner sanctum. The invasion forced its way over and into her. His spell had been too fast. She had been too slow.

  “Why don’t you step in here, Ms. Wright. I was just having a conversation with Dr. Rout, as it so happens.” He stepped aside and waved his hand forward.

  Ember’s legs moved, though they didn’t feel like her own. She felt like she was watching herself from inside, as though she was riding along within the husk of a body made to look like her.

  Within the office was a small couch. Seated on the couch was Dr. Rout. The old woman looked somewhat dazed, sitting with her cane at the side. Her brows were furrowed in concentration and her gold-wire spectacles dangled from a chain around her neck. She watched Ember sit down next to her, but said nothing.

  Something’s changed. Ember studied the old woman, struggling to remember what she looked like last time she saw her, out at the Schmitt farm. Her curly, grey hair was the same. She wore a different floral dress with a pale blue sweater over her shoulders, but that wasn’t it. No, it was her aura that had changed. It’s smudged now. Like she’s wearing a shadow.

  A chill went down Ember’s spine as recognition arrived. He’s cast a Deference Spell over Gloria.

  Elton wheeled the high-back office chair from behind Gloria’s desk. The wheels squeaked, somewhat muffled by the low-pile carpet. The chair stopped in front of the couch, and Elton settled into it. His knees were close enough to touch Ember’s. He leaned forward.

  His hand came to rest on her shoulder. Elton looked down at her, his unsmiling, icy blue eyes probing. His lips moved, and she had to focus to hear what he was saying. His words sounded distant and slurred. “I’ve noticed that you have been spending time with the new doctor, Ms. Wright. A trip to the countryside, to check on the health of some changelings, she says. What are you two really up to? What is it you aren’t telling me?”

  She wanted to tell him the truth, wanted to admit that she was aware of his cover-up. She opened her mouth and felt the words start to form on her lips. “Director Higginbotham…”

  “Yes, Ms. Wright?”

  Ember felt her lips move as though they belonged to someone else. “I have to tell you something.”

  16

  Push it Back with Light

  His voice was cheerful and light, but his hand felt heavy on her shoulder.

  Elton’s ice-blue gaze locked with hers, and Ember felt that she would sway if it wasn’t for his support. He only wanted what was best for her, she saw that now. He was the charming man everyone said he was. How could a Sixth-Level Healer and Director of Wellness be anything but compassionate, after all?

  “You know you can tell me what’s on your mind, don’t you, Ms. Wright?” His thumb moved reassuringly against her neck.

  Ember dipped her chin slightly and tried to close her eyes, but they wouldn’t cooperate. Input in the form of a cloud coated over her vision, made her lightheaded.

  No, not a cloud. A shadow.

  Even here in Gloria’s office six stories above ground, the din of construction equipment working on the street found its way to Ember’s ears. She focused on the piercing back-up alarm of the skid-steer. She glanced at the window pane and said in a morose voice, “so much noise.”

  Elton looked at the window, too. His sapphire tie pin reflected the light. “Yes, yes. Focus, Ms. Wright. You were about to tell me something.”

  The distraction was just enough. She latched onto the thread of consciousness, coupled the beeping noise with the momentary epiphany. It’s a shadow, not a cloud. Absence of light.

  She focused her attention on the battle raging within. The Deference Spell was supplied with reinforcements of mana from Elton’s contact with her skin. His spell was too powerful for her to repulse without him noticing, without a physical reaction giving it away. But she could try another tactic.

  The last of her mental walls were wavering. She’d soon be overwhelmed by the darkness. The shadow pushed forward, willed on by reinforcements from its master, stronger than before. The brightest recesses of her mind were being probed by the shadow. The walls she had erected were too slow, too weak to mount a credible defense.

  You don’t build a wall to protect against darkness. You push it back with light. She imagined her synapses firing, sending subatomic charges of energy to form a desperate, bright light against the shadowy spell.

  The spell recoiled, and she felt heartened, stronger. She felt assured now that she could counter this spell, but she couldn’t simply repel it. Elton would know if his mana was sent reeling back to him while he was so near.

  Instead, she felt the source of the spell, where it had broken through her outer defenses. There, she concentrated her will and closed the breach. She circled the shadowy darkness with enough light to keep it in check, to hold it without destroying it. It took great effort to find such a balance, but she held it in her grip.

  Bile rushed into her esophagus. Ember kept it there, not swallowing it down, not spitting it out. Her voice was weak, but it was hers. “Director Higginbotham, I have been taking Doctor Rout to check on the health of changelings. Poor people, who live far out in the country and are too weak, unable to make it to the Magic City for proper healing.”

  He frowned. “Why you? That’s not your department. And why her?”

  “No sir,” Ember shook her head. The acid in her throat burned, tickled her. She fought the reflex to cough. “My job is the census audit. During the course of my efforts, I found these sick people, these changelings. Most of them are elderly, and I thought they would be more comfortable being treated by an older Healer, such as Doctor Rout.”

  Elton leaned back, his gaze narrowing for a moment. He released his grip on her shoulder and shook his head. He app
eared disappointed. “Very well, Ms. Wright. As you visit these people, I want both of you to keep an eye out for anything unusual. Report back to me anything you find. To me, and nobody else. Understood?”

  Gloria answered first. “As you wish, Director Higginbotham.”

  Ember nodded, taking her cue from the doctor. “Yes, sir, as you wish.”

  Elton patted Ember’s knee and gave her a wink. “Nice to see you again.” He got up and left the room.

  When his footsteps faded in the hall, Ember closed her eyes and exhaled. She bent over the trash can to spit, then changed her mind. Rather, she sat upright and swallowed the burning bile down. She closed her eyes and concentrated on the roiling ball of shadowy mana she held trapped within her. She could release it, as she had before. Or I can destroy it.

  The roiling wisps of Deference Spell sensed its host’s intention. It emitted a silent scream and fought against the trap of light she had formed around it. Ember closed the shell of light tighter around the darkness until it narrowed to a pinpoint.

  And then it was gone.

  A bead of sweat dripped down the small of her back. Ember combed her fingers through her hair and found her scalp damp from perspiration. She shut the door and sat back on the couch, next to Gloria.

  “Doctor Rout, your patients await. Shall we be on our way?”

  Gloria’s frown deepened. She shook her head slowly. “No…no, I don’t think I will.”

  “Why not, Dr. Rout?”

  “I would rather stay here. Yes, I feel like staying here. I don’t think I will see those patients anymore.” The old woman straightened her floral dress and nodded.

  “That’s fine. Let’s both just sit here for a while, shall we?” Ember called on her mana, felt the contours of her own energy as it circulated around her. She needed to focus on Gloria without calling attention to her actions. “I was wondering, you know my Mum. Doctor Benedette Wright.”