by Logan Byrne
The kitsune were brought onto the track, wearing leashes, the absolute look of fear in their eyes as they cowered as if to avoid a beating. I only wished I had my wand, I’d take all of these people out and free them so fast even my head would spin.
The kitsune were taken to a starting dock. Each kitsune was separated by a wooden panel, and a number was written on the front of every gate. “We should move closer,” I said. Charlie and I walked up to the front of the fence, waiting, before the man over the speaker said the race would be commencing.
People stopped their chattering, instead now paying attention as a fake rabbit was placed atop a motor on the edge of the track. They needed to trick the kitsune into running and chasing something.
“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to tonight’s betting entertainment, the racing of the kitsune!” the man said over the speakers as the crowd cheered, their booze sloshing around in their cups. “Now, get ready for the action. Handlers, please release those kitsune!”
A light up front turned red, then yellow, and finally green. The doors shot open, the kitsune seeing the fake rabbit and starting to run after it, their eyes glowing orange as they picked up pace. I watched with everybody else, though I wasn’t cheerful or excited. I felt sick. One of them, number five, hobbled a little, not running normally. What was happening behind the scenes? I only wished I could go find out.
Within twenty seconds, the race was over. Our fox, number two, won. “Damn!” a man yelled, throwing his ticket to the ground and stomping on it.
“We should get out of here,” I whispered to Charlie. We pushed through the thick of the crowd, a few others exiting in front of us. When we stepped back into the casino we saw Xelia playing a game, and then I froze in my tracks. There he was, the man with the soul patch from the old man’s memories. He was talking to a card dealer and it looked like he was scolding him.
“What’s wrong?” Charlie asked.
“That’s the man from that baker’s memories. That’s the man who forced him to let them set up the casino. He’s right there,” I said, in shock.
“Just be cool, Lexa. We can’t get him,” Charlie said.
“We can, we can get him right here and now. We have enough evidence to take him down,” I said.
“And what about the kitsune?” he asked.
“What?” I asked, shocked, looking at him.
“He might go down, and this place will vanish. All the kitsune and the other magical creatures they’re smuggling will disappear with them and we’ll never be able to find them. You have to play this smart, like a game of chess. We have to make our turns carefully and methodically,” Charlie said.
I let go, my anger starting to fade as I remembered that hobbling kitsune. Taking this man down right now wouldn’t help that creature, and it wouldn’t help the others, just like Charlie said. It was worth it to think of the bigger picture here.
“I’ve gotten some good stuff, are you guys ready to leave?” Xelia asked, coming up to us.
“I just have to cash this in. Might as well get some more chips for next time,” I said, holding up my ticket. I cashed them in, getting one hundred and fifty back and stashed them in my bag before we walked towards the exit.
“Good evening folks, and how are we tonight?” It was the man, the one with the soul patch. He stopped us right before we took the portal out.
“Good evening, we’ve had such a wonderful time here tonight. I promise you I’m going to get better at blackjack and come back!” Xelia said, laughing with a huge smile.
“How about you two?” he asked, looking disinterested in Xelia and her jokes.
“We just saw the kitsune racing, it was awesome,” Charlie said, nodding.
“I can’t wait to come back,” I said, smiling.
He stared at me before snapping out of it and smiling again. “I’m so glad to hear you three had a great time, and we welcome you back again soon,” he said before stepping out of the way.
He stared at me as I walked past, as if he were sizing me up. Did he know who I was? Did he know I was a mage, a cop, or worse yet, that I had the mark? Maybe he knew I’d gone into that man’s memories. I was going to have to make sure to stay away from him when we came back here, and I definitely planned on coming back. I wanted to take that scumbag in myself.
“How did it go? Your sting operation,” Britta asked, sitting up in bed and putting down her book as I walked into our room.
“It’s bad, Britta. These people are the worst of the worst,” I said, defeated.
“You’re going to arrest them and bring them in, I’m sure of it. You just have to stay positive and look at the bigger picture,” she said.
“I’m starting to wish I had your case, or any other case, so that I didn’t have to deal with this. I hate it,” I said, taking off my necklace and shoes.
“I’m here if you ever need to vent. Might be better than talking to Charlie or Xelia,” she said.
“I know, and I appreciate it. I’m going to change and get ready for bed,” I said, grabbing some pajamas and my toiletry kit.
I washed my makeup off, seeing the muddied black water drain in the sink, before gripping the sides of the sink and looking at myself in the mirror. “You can do this,” I whispered, trying to motivate myself.
I just hoped that future cases weren’t as trying as this one. I guess it really was hard to be a cop.
17
I’d gotten my first real rest during the weekend. It was Saturday, and my hard work throughout the week was being handsomely rewarded. We’d gone to the casino on Thursday, only two days ago, but Xelia said she didn’t want to go back so soon, and we would wait until Monday before going again. I guess she didn’t want to become too well known there. She didn’t want us to become recognizable.
The only problem was that I wasn’t sure I could stop myself from meddling with the case. My dreams and thoughts had been plagued with the image of that kitsune hobbling around the track. The worst parts of my mind came forward as I thought of it being kicked around and mistreated. I wanted to rescue it, to rescue them all, but I knew Xelia would never go for it. I needed to do something myself, to get my own intel and maybe do something that would help us out in the long run.
“Where are you going?” Britta asked as I got dressed in black later that night.
“Out,” I said.
“Back on the case?” she asked.
“I guess you could say that,” I said, pulling out a facemask.
“Lexa, what are you doing? They don’t know, do they?” she asked, sitting up in bed.
“And they won’t find out, at least not from you. Promise me, Britta,” I said.
“You’re going to get in such trouble! We’re still recruits in the eyes of the precinct,” she said.
“I’m not doing anything harmful or that will jeopardize our case, I promise,” I said.
“I won’t tell, but you’ll be the one to live with the consequences if something happens,” she said.
I sheathed my wand, leaving our room and walking out the front doors of the precinct. I made sure to take a route Xelia and Charlie wouldn’t be on and started my long walk towards the bakery. The old man should’ve still been there; it was almost closing time, according to the hours on the front window. I wanted to talk to him, not hurt him, and find out anything I could about the man, or men, who were using him and threatening him. I couldn’t do it as a cop, though, at least not as myself. Going into the casino compromised that. That was why I had the facemask.
When I arrived I stood in the darkness across the street, seeing the man just finishing packing up his things. His shirt was covered in flour, and this time he had a small bag in his hands. When he locked the door and started on his way I left the shadows and crossed the street, my hood up and mask on, only my eyes sticking out.
“Why did you do it?” I asked. He stopped, freezing a little.
“Please don’t hurt me, I’m just an old man,” he said, turning around with his hand
s up.
“I’m not going to hurt you, I have no desire to cause you harm. I need to know your intentions, though,” I said.
“With what?” he asked, looking seemingly confused.
“That man, the one with the dark hair and soul patch under his lip. Why did you let him use your bakery for illegal activity?” I asked.
The old man looked shocked, his eyes wide, like he couldn’t believe I knew that. How would I, a random person on the street, after all? He cleared his throat. “I didn’t have a choice. I knew my wife and I would be harmed if I rejected his offer,” he said.
“But why your shop, particularly? There are tons of buildings around here, around the city, so why yours? It’s nothing special, to be honest,” I said.
“It wasn’t random, if that’s what you’re wondering. I owed him a favor, the man he works for, and it was time to pay for that favor,” he said.
“What was the favor?” I asked.
“A few years ago, I was losing money because of a bad distributor who was extorting me. These men straightened it out, and now that distributor is gone and I’m able to bake again,” he said.
“So they murdered him for you?” I asked.
“No, well, I don’t know, all I know is the rates went back down and I was able to afford them again. Please, I’m not a bad man, I’m really not. Please believe me,” he said, his knees almost on the ground as he started to beg.
I could see the sincerity in his eyes, a man tarnished by misfortune and hard choices made only to save his livelihood. Still, he had a connection with these men, and I thought they chose his shop because they thought he wouldn’t squeal to the cops. So far, he hadn’t.
“I need to access your shop, to see it for myself,” I said.
“You won’t find anything there,” he said.
“They’re using your shop, so I think I will,” I said.
“What you’ll seek isn’t found in traditional spaces. I’ve said too much, I must go. They’re always listening,” he said, turning around and hobbling off. He didn’t say I couldn’t go in, just that I wouldn’t find it. I begged to differ.
I walked around to the back of the building, a dog barking in the background as a dim light bulb flickered above me. I unsheathed my wand, unlocking the door before closing it behind me and walking inside. There was a narrow staircase leading down to the basement. The back room was empty aside from stacks of flour and sugar.
The old wooden stairs creaked as I walked down, my wand at the ready in case anybody came to say hello. I wished I’d convinced Charlie to come with me. His shifting would really be helpful right now. The basement was dark, the lights coming on as I flicked the switch. There were wooden boxes all over, old furniture, barrels, and antiques that the old man must’ve been storing here. Nothing screamed magical portal, and quite frankly I wasn’t sure why I was here or what I was looking for. Maybe the room was here, or a way into it, and we could use it to move the casino. That was the problem with a room enchantment spell: you could easily fit that casino into a space the size of a matchbox, but anybody could find it, pick it up, and move it without the people inside even realizing. We could take all of them into custody, into the station, and force them all out into cells.
I spurted out spell after spell, anything I knew that would help me find what I was searching for, but I had no luck. I overturned boxes, lifted up anything suspicious, and even searched through an old barrel filled with sugar, but nothing was there. Then I stopped. How could I be so stupid? I had a better way to find it. I put away my wand, taking my gloves off my hands before holding them out and closing my eyes. I imagined them glowing, the mark imbuing me with its power, helping far more than any wand could.
After relaxing my mind, I opened my eyes. My hands were glowing blue. I started incanting the retrieval spell. The light from my hands pulsed outwards in all directions, and a brick in the wall started to glow faintly. I walked over and saw the mortar around it was a little crumbly. The brick wasn’t fully glued into the wall. I put on my gloves again before I pulled it out, seeing nothing inside. When I turned it, about to put it back in, a small box was now in plain sight.
The brick was hollowed out. The small box inside held the entire casino. I smiled, put the brick back, and pulled my gloves back on, the mark fading away. I slipped out of the bakery and into the precinct. It was too late now for Xelia or Charlie to be awake, but I knew I had to tell them what I’d found—as long as she didn’t kill me first.
Xelia always worked, never taking a day off. Something about crime never sleeping. I ran to her office the next morning, knocking on the door and smiling as she looked up at me. “Somebody’s happy,” she said.
“Can I talk to you about something? It has to do with the case,” I said.
“Sure,” she said, looking concerned. I closed the door behind me.
“I found something. What they’re using, what they enchanted, for the casino,” I said, smiling.
“You think you know it, or you found it?” she asked.
“I found it,” I said.
“How would you do that? I don’t remember finding anything like that,” she said.
“Well, okay, don’t get mad, but I went to the bakery last night,” I said, scratching the back of my head and trying to play it cool. She let out a deep breath through her nose, visibly upset, while I tapped my foot on the floor.
“Lexa, you can’t do those sorts of things. You could’ve compromised the entire case,” she said.
“I didn’t, I was completely covered and my identity was obscured,” I said.
“How did you even find it?” she asked.
“That old man, the baker, I confronted him outside,” I said.
“Lexa,” she said, putting her hand to her head and shaking it.
“He told me why he’s helping them. Well, it’s not really by choice, but then he told me what I wanted wouldn’t be easy to find, or something like that. The point is, I found it, we can go get the box and start making arrests,” I said, smiling and happy.
“It’s not that easy, Lexa. There’s a process to everything, there are laws, there’s order. Taking that thing isn’t a part of it. We need a warrant. Even breaking into that place could jeopardize the case if anybody else finds out. You didn’t tell anybody, did you?” she asked.
“No, just you. I’m confused, though. I thought I found something great,” I said.
“You did, finding that is awesome, even if I don’t like your methods, but you still have a lot to learn about what it means to be a cop. You can’t just do or take anything you want. You went into the bakery illegally, and you searched around illegally. I’m just happy you didn’t take the box. Wait, you didn’t take it, right?” she asked, looking horrified.
“No, I left it there,” I said.
“Thank god,” she said, letting out a sigh of relief. “Where was it?”
“In the wall in the basement. There’s a brick on the back side that’s hollowed out. They stuffed it in there,” I said.
“How did you find something like that? It sounds obscure,” she said.
“I just got lucky, I guess,” I said, playing dumb. My mark needed to stay a secret. I knew Mirian wouldn’t be too thrilled if I told her, even if she was a part of the resistance.
“If it really is there as you say, I’ll put in a search warrant request with a judge I’m friendly with. We’ll go back tonight, get the box, and go from there,” Xelia said.
“So I’m off the hook?” I asked, smiling, hoping for a yes.
“For now you are, but if you ever pull anything like this again without going through the proper channels, I will make sure you’re properly punished for your insubordination. Do I make myself clear?” she asked sternly.
“Yes,” I said.
I walked out of her office, making myself cheerful instead of upset for getting yelled at. Maybe I did do it the wrong way, but I got results, and that was all that mattered, at least to me. We were going to go ba
ck, get the box, and be done with it all. The case would be over, the kitsune saved, and men like the guy with the soul patch would go away for a long, long time. Nothing could go wrong.
“Has he left yet?” Charlie asked, perched in his former spot atop the rear building later that night.
“He is now,” I said, watching the old man lock up his shop for the night. We didn’t want him to see us delivering the warrant because of what it could mean for our identities. We couldn’t have him describe us to the men he was working with, or worse yet, if they happened to swing by and see us here. We had the legal authority to go in even if it was empty, and we decided to go that route. We had to be stealthy.
“He’s down the street,” I said, running from behind our car to the alleyway where his back door was.
“Do the honors,” Xelia said to me.
I took out my wand, unlocking the door, and pointed down the stairs as we walked in. “Candelae,” I said, the tip of my wand glowing and giving us just enough light to work with. We walked down the stairs and I flipped on the lights. The room looked the same as it did the night before.
“Where is it?” Charlie asked.
“Over here,” I said, walking over to the rear wall. I found the crumbly mortar again, but it looked a little different, like more of it had fallen out. Maybe I was a little more careless than I thought last night. I took the brick out slowly, turning it around with a smile on my face.
“What are we looking at?” Xelia asked.
My eyebrows furled. I turned it around again. The inside of the hollow brick was empty. “No, it was here, I swear!” I said, looking around for any sign of the tiny box. It was gone. I even put my wand up to the hole, wondering if it had slipped out when I put the brick back in last night, but there was nothing there. It was like it vanished in thin air.
