Wizard Hall Chronicles Box Set

by Sheryl Steines

  “Did they?” Brite asked.

  Annie nodded and opened the tome. “I looked up how I could focus the portal on where I want to go. And sure enough, according to the notes, all I have to do is focus and think of where I want to go.”

  To demonstrate, she thought of a safe location. She imagined the size and smell of the courtyard at Wizard Hall: the green grass, children laughing in the park. She jammed her knife inside the portal and looked inside, clenching her muscles as the wind whipped against her. She beamed broadly. “It works. Amazing.”

  The rest of the team took their turn looking into Wizard Hall courtyard, each astounded by the power of the portal.

  Annie closed the portal and reopened it immediately, after deciding she wanted to view the market she was no longer allowed to enter. She pictured the dust and stench, the dragons that hopped across the silky dirt, the smell of burnt dung and flesh. She plunged her knife inside, pushed her hair from her face, and stared inside the portal. People, animals, and elves walked past; it was right where she had been aiming. She took a deep breath and closed the portal.

  “Think about where you want to go.” Annie handed Spencer the knife.

  Spencer said, “Witches Brew,” and plunged the knife inside. Through the portal, the backyard to their favorite magical bar. He closed the portal. “That’s definitely helpful.”

  They each took turns, even opening a portal back to the side alley beside the Snake Head Letters and one outside the wizard hospital. Each opened portal was met with “Damn,” “Amazing,” and “No way!” Annie closed the portal again.

  “Mortimer wants you to win,” Cham said.

  Wherever he is.

  “I suppose that’s true. I suddenly have a soft spot for the man.” Annie glanced back up the stairs. “Can we put a blood lock on the door up there before we tell the Middle Eastern group about this? I don’t want the portal to be abused.”

  “Who do you want allowed in?” Cham asked as he held Annie’s hand.

  She gave him the knife. “Me, and since I’m usually either with Spencer or Brite, make the others Lial and Shiff.”

  If Cham was upset she didn’t choose him, he didn’t show it. It was Annie’s property, her choice to make.

  Cham collected blood from her, Shiff, and Lial and set out to create the lock.

  “Do we care how this was created?” Annie asked.

  “I don’t think it matters unless the magic can hurt someone,” Spencer said. “You’re sure you were in the Cave of Ages?”

  Annie nodded. She touched the portal again and shivered at its chill. “I wonder if this can get me to the past.”

  “If you go back, you can count me out,” Brite said.

  “I’d go,” Lial said. “Think of the answers we could learn, like who Jack the Ripper really was or who shot JFK.”

  “Maybe I was wrong about giving you access,” Annie said with raised eyebrows and a smile.

  Lial raised his hands. “I’m over it.”

  “Okay. The blood lock is done,” Cham said. “I think, if it’s okay with Annie since she’s the new store owner, we should put a blood lock on the building until she decides what she’s going to do with the place. This portal could be dangerous.”

  “I’m good with that. I trust everyone here for that lock.” She held out her hand.

  With that, they left the sub-basement. Annie closed the hidden door, now only accessible to a few people. She touched the latch as they made their way to create one more lock.

  Chapter 32

  Annie strolled through the aisles. The store was deafeningly quiet.

  My store.

  The thought that she now owned the Snake Head Letters made her chuckle and then made her sad. While she wasn’t a fan of Archibald Mortimer, he had proved over the last year that he was capable of compassion.

  As she walked the stack of books, she grazed the book spines with her fingertips, feeling the bumps and cuts across the leather bindings. She shined a flashlight along the walls, the shelves, the floor, searching for wards that might hide the magic.

  The door rattled open as she glanced through the books, and the wizard guards from the Middle East followed Cham inside.

  “Annie!” Cham called out.

  She exited the aisle, her stomach roiling. She knew she was sharing the biggest secret she had. “Hi. I was just looking around. Welcome to the Snake Head Letters.”

  “Annie. Hello. Thank you. We hear you have a secret entrance into the Cave of Ages,” Avraham said.

  “We believe we do.” She glanced at Cham before leading them to the hidden door. She poked her finger in the lock, triggering it open, and pulled the door away. “We recently learned of this. It should help.”

  The group followed Annie down the short staircase and stopped at the portal. Her flashlight illuminated the hazy anomaly for Avraham, Sari, and Michael to see. Avraham touched the portal magic. “This portal goes to the Cave of Ages?”

  “It’s a little better than that,” Annie said. She murmured, “Wizard Hall,” plunged her athame into the portal, and watched her guests’ expressions as they stared inside the portal to the courtyard of the U.S. Wizard Hall.

  “Isn’t that the courtyard at Wizard Hall?” Michael asked.

  “Yes, it is. we’re not exactly sure how it works. All we know is, you think about where you want to go, and the portal opens there.” Annie plunged the knife inside; the portal closed and the tornado stopped. “Windmere School,” she murmured. Again, she pierced the portal, and they found themselves staring at the teleportation area for the wizarding school. After another moment, Annie cut the portal with the athame, closing it and reopening again to the Cave of Ages.

  “Oh, my,” Avraham said.

  Quickly, Annie closed the portal, not wanting to show their hand and draw the attention of the Fraternitatem.

  “How did you come by this?” Sari asked questioningly.

  “It’s a complicated story, but it was left to me by the previous owner of this store. While we have no idea how it works, we do know this will be our advantage,” Annie said.

  “It looks like the start of a plan,” Avraham said.

  *

  While the Wizard Guards were in a good place with a powerful magic on their side and nine Fraternitatem members locked in Tartarus Prison, Annie found herself anxious and unsure of the portal.

  What if they have the same portal? Or can use the portal energy we created when we opened a portal to the Cave of Ages?

  She walked through the passageways of Wizard Hall, climbing down the stairs to the second floor. She swallowed the lump in her throat and knocked on Graham Lightner’s cubicle wall.

  “Annie, hi. Come in. How can I help you?” He pushed aside his paperwork and offered her a seat.

  She sat, her thoughts jumbled as she tried to order them and ask her question. “You know about the portal?”

  Graham smiled patiently. “Department manager meetings keep me up to date. Though Cham’s been giving me more than what he gives in those meetings.” He turned and shot a spell at the cabinet behind him, pulled a thick folder from the top drawer, and touched the cubicle wall, sending a muffle spell around his office. Once they were safely ensconced inside the magic, he passed his folder to Annie.

  After reading the file, she looked at him.

  “Annie, I’m the cleanup. The information is passed to my employees on a need-to-know basis. They only have the details that will affect them,” he said.

  “Have you ever seen a portal that could do what that one can do?”

  Graham shook his head. “Having only heard about it, I can’t say I’ve seen anything like that before. Cham told me about the magic. It’s an unbelievably complex spell that I’m hoping is only possible because of the hallowed magic in that basement. But you’re worried about something.”

  Annie nodded. Traceable portal energy. “We have a lot of Fraternitatem operatives in the prison, I fear the Fraternitatem could reach them—reach Emily�
�to come after me.”

  Graham nodded and pulled out a map of the island on which Tartarus was built. The island was three miles by five miles, hidden in the northern part of Lake Superior. “There are several locations in the United States that have a high concentration of magical energy. This you know,” Graham said.

  Annie nodded. “Wizard Hall was built on magical land. Windmere, Hayden, Spring Brook, and Mount Circle Schools of Wizardry were built over magical energy. I get the desire to build over the magical energy; it’s easier on all magicals to draw energy from magical locations. We learned that in school.” Graham nodded patiently, waiting for her to get to her question. “My concern is Tartarus though,” Annie finally said.

  “There’s magic in the prison that doesn’t allow for teleportation or portals. It’s been that way for centuries.”

  “Are we sure? What about the magic in the Snake Head Letters? It’s old and strong. We inadvertently opened several portals to the Cave of Ages as we figured out what it did. What if the Fraternitatem can draw from that magical energy and reverse it, then use it to get to where they want to go. Like Tartarus?” Annie asked.

  “The magic in the bookstore is old, proprietary of the coven. I don’t expect the Fraternitatem will know how to use that energy before you are able to use the portal to get to them. The question really is then, could a portal open in Tartarus, built from somewhere magical?”

  Annie shuddered.

  “A prison break isn’t unheard of as strategy goes,” Graham continued. “Like you said, several of their operatives are locked away. My guess is that it would be an unnecessary use of their time to break them out. We assume there are hundreds if not thousands of operatives out there who do need our attention.”

  “Wishful thinking for us,” Annie said.

  “Go to the portal and see if you can get into the prison. If not, don’t worry about it. Any of it. If you can get into the prison, a new plan will need to be drawn up. We can’t have people getting in and out of Tartarus.” He smiled at her.

  “Thanks. I’ll do that. Not sure if it helps, but I can’t get rid of the nagging feeling in my gut,” Annie said.

  “Good news. We’re close to closing three of the market portals.”

  “Which one are you keeping open?” Annie asked.

  “Louisiana. It’s the hardest one to get at.”

  “Remember the days when the demons opened portals willy-nilly because it was convenient for them?” Annie tried to joke, but there was a heavy feeling in her chest. The itching grew stronger throughout her body. She began to scratch.

  “You okay?” Graham asked concerned.

  “It’s the stress and extra magic.” She held up her hand. Graham stared in awe as the magic seeped from her palms. “If I don’t expel it, I get dizzy,” Annie explained. “I need to get rid of the energy.”

  “I heard you had a way to reduce the magic interaction,” Graham said.

  “Yeah. It’s the best I could hope for until this is over,” she said.

  “I think you’re correct about that,” he agreed.

  *

  Annie sat on a metal folding chair and stared at the hazy anomaly. In her beam of light, the portal was a soft, shimmering, hazy bit of magic. The more she looked at it, the more it seemed to beat with her heart.

  She studied it closely. It felt as though she and the magic were becoming one; that the magic of the portal was the same as the magic that coursed through her. Sitting in the room beside the portal lessened the itching and made Annie feel strong and powerful. She ignored the fact that to feel this at peace, she had to sit in the basement of the Snake Head Letters. Regardless, it was hers now.

  Annie thought of the teleportation area on the island where Tartarus Prison was housed. She pictured the lane that led there, the clearing, the field of dead grass, the picnic table. She jammed the knife inside the portal and looked past the tornado-like wind to the clearing. It was empty. The lone tree in the grasses had been downed, split in two by a perfect lightning strike. Annie closed the portal, feeling uneasy that a portal could be opened to the island.

  The athame was cool and smooth in her hand. She turned the hilt several times as she walked around the portal, staring at the unevenness of the magical outline, at the pulse and energy it created. She thought of the inside of the prison, of the cell block in which Levi was being held, and then plunged the knife inside. She fully expected a windstorm, lightning, and a full view of his cell. But when the knife blade touched the magic, the haze pulsated as if it were trying to honor her request, but nothing happened. Annie removed the athame and breathed a sigh of relief. Tartarus was still secure.

  The long weeks and the constant lack of sleep made Annie’s hands shake as she closed up the hidden room. She walked the dark aisles of the store and stared at the dilapidated walls and floor. The windows were now boarded up and magically enhanced. The bookstore and the portal were as safe as possible.

  “Well?” Spencer asked as he came down from the upstairs apartment.

  “The portal couldn’t connect to the inside of the prison. Just the teleportation area,” she said.

  She opened a random basket on the middle shelf and grimaced at the dingy artifacts inside. She touched a mason jar filled with poisonous leaves and another with a bouquet of herbs. There was a cursed statue inside. It buzzed against her skin, causing her to shudder.

  “What am I going to do with this?” Annie waved her arms around as she spoke. Magic flew from her palms and knocked a ceiling tile to the floor.

  Spencer pulled her away. “Well, we can’t let anyone get a hold of that portal.” He wiped dust from her shoulders.

  “Yeah. I found out what I wanted to know. I guess it’s time,” Annie said as she and Spencer finished securing the building before teleporting away.

  *

  Annie stared at Levi King-Solomon while he lay sleeping on the cot in his cell. In the week he’d been there, he had been generally belligerent and unhelpful.

  Not surprising.

  She knocked on the cell. The lump of a man remained on his side, facing the wall. His leg twitched.

  “If we let you out, what will they do to you?” Annie asked.

  Levi didn’t acknowledge her. She summoned a stake and ran it across the metal bars, the pinging sound reverberating off the stone walls. She continued the annoying motions until he turned and glared at her.

  “Well?” she asked again. “Will they kill you if you’re released, or will they come and break you out?”

  “I’m safer in here,” Levi grumbled.

  “Then, why protect them?”

  He turned over and stared at the grayish-brown stone that surrounded him. “Will you let me out of prison if I speak?”

  With evidence mounting against him, Annie knew he would never see the light of day. As a Fraternitatem of Solomon member, Levi had killed at least one person of which they knew. His future would be limited to spending the rest of his life either in Tartarus or in a nonmagical prison.

  “You won’t be leaving the prison. But if you speak, we have more comfortable cells—bigger, warmer, with better food, and possibly a window,” she said.

  Levi sat up. Any movement on the thin cot caused it to squeak. He frowned at Annie. “I clean up their messes. I killed Rathbone. There was one more I had to kill and then I was out of here. I was going to be set up for life away from all of them.”

  She trembled at his admission as he smiled coldly at her.

  He was going to kill me.

  “Were you really married to Emily?”

  “Are you really that blubbering fool’s daughter?” His voice was bitter, angry. There was clearly no love for Emily. In that instant, Annie felt sorry for her mother.

  “You’re obviously not Shiloh’s father,” she said. “But you married her for the plan. My guess it’s you who kept her drugged and compliant.”

  He continued to smile a disturbing, empty smile. “Now you know,” he said.

 
; “No. What I have is confirmation that you’re an ass who didn’t care whose life you ruined.” She kept her voice emotionless. Another piece of the puzzle fit into place. She was so angry at how many people had a hand in pulling her family apart.

  Chapter 33

  “This might be the last time I see you,” Jason said to Annie.

  She had been unable to sleep or eat as she waited for morning to come. She had curled up on her window seat and stared into the darkened backyard. When he spoke, his familiar voice broke her heart just a little more. She motioned for him to sit on the bed, in the room that was once his.

  “You’ve done an amazing job with the house. It’s warm and cozy,” he said.

  Annie faced him. He had changed in the weeks since he returned. It wasn’t just the gray in his hair or the wrinkles around his eyes and mouth. He was more hunched over and had put on weight around his belly. He was clearly alive and Annie knew he would die if he went to battle for her. Her eyes welled with tears.

  “That’s not what you want to talk about,” she managed to say.

  “No. I wanted to properly say goodbye.”

  She hiccoughed, then held her breath. He didn’t belong here. It wasn’t his time, and yet, he had come when she called, to protect her. She wiped her cheek, not ashamed to cry about him leaving.

  “I know you’ve been very cautious with me here and I’d expect nothing less of you.” Jason held Annie’s hands. “Sami doesn’t think like you. She accepted me a lot easier than you did. I expect this will be harder for her.”

  Annie knew he’d ask her to look after Samantha like he had done so many years earlier, as if Annie were better suited to caring for Samantha than Samantha was for her.

  “I always protect her,” she said through her tears.

  “Coming back was not something I would have wished for. It’s been so hard watching you with Kathy and Ryan and knowing I don’t belong here.” He stared at the ring on her finger. Even in the moonlight, it sparkled. “You are my strong, brilliant, beautiful daughter. I am so incredibly proud of—” His lips quivered as he held back his own tears. “It is truly a privilege to have known you.”