Upheaval!

by Deborah Martin

  “That doesn’t make sense,” I said.

  “Yes. I don’t know any other way to describe it. It’s another one of those things you’ll have to figure out for yourself.”

  Tony came out of the bedroom and without a word, poured himself a cup of coffee. “Are you two going to talk about magic the whole time?”

  “Sorry,” Gregory told him. “But the faster she learns about herself, the easier it will be on all of us – especially you. Never had sex with an out-of-control witch, have you?”

  “What?” Tony choked on his coffee.

  Gregory grinned. “Remember me saying she had to get control of her emotions? Earthquakes don’t only happen when Earth witches are angry and you should see what happens with an out-of-control Air witch.”

  “Holy shit,” I said. “This is so not a conversation I want to be having with the two of you right now. Can we change the subject, please?”

  Both men chuckled. “I don’t know. I’d kind of like to hear about Gregory’s wild sexual encounters,” Tony teased. But rather than pursue the subject, he sat down and opened his laptop.

  My phone rang at a very opportune moment. It wasn’t even seven-thirty his time and yet Martin was at his desk. “Write down this name and address,” he told me. After I did so and repeated it back, he said, “Be very, very nice when you go to pick up the money. I called in a lot of favors and now I owe one to him, which I don’t like. He’s expecting you at ten sharp. Oh, and dress like you’re going to the office. He doesn’t like what he considers low class attire.”

  After I hung up, I told the guys what Martin had said and added, “I didn’t think to bring a suit with me so I hope my slacks and blouse will do.”

  “They won’t,” Gregory replied. “I know about him. You thought the people Ev deals with are snobbish? He has them beat hands down. Tony, look up that address, will you? We need to know how long it will take us to get there. Amy, which suit out of your closet do you want?”

  Shit. A guy-not-my-boyfriend looking into my closet. At least I had underwear so he didn’t have to go magically snooping through my drawers, too! I heaved a sigh and described what I called my “banker’s suit” to him: navy blue, severe cut, skirt a little longer than I normally wear them. I usually only wore it when I met with Ev’s bankers or attorneys.

  Gregory closed his eyes and a few seconds later the suit, still on its hanger, landed on the couch next to me. A small smile crossed his face and then he rose and looked over Tony’s shoulder. “It looks like it will take us about twenty minutes. Are you coming with or staying here?”

  Tony replied, “Unless you think something will go haywire and you’ll need me, I’ll stay here. I have emails to answer and I’m still waiting on Jarvis to call back. It’ll be easier here if I have to take notes.”

  “I can’t see where anything could go wrong. We’re just picking up a satchel as far as I know and unless I miss my guess, we will be in the very best part of town. What do you want for breakfast?”

  While I showered, Gregory ordered breakfast. I stepped out of the shower to the yummy smell of bacon and eggs. My stomach growled even louder than it had before and I decided to dry my hair and dress after I’d eaten.

  About an hour later Gregory and I were in a limo, being whisked to the home of our loan shark. At least that’s the way I thought of him. The guy was getting twenty percent interest when, if there had been time, I could have gotten five percent from the bank.

  I’ll admit: I was thoroughly impressed when we pulled into the guy’s driveway. The home of a business associate, vampire and agent-to-the-stars John Minton, had nothing on this. The two-block-long driveway wound its way through what appeared to be an old pine forest peppered with blooming azaleas and dogwoods. At the top of the hill sat a castle. Well, it looked like a castle. The whole thing was granite blocks, from the main house to the large garage – with a granite porte-cochere between.

  Gregory told the driver to wait. We walked up the wide flagstone steps to an oversized front door and when Gregory rang the bell, we could hear chimes echoing inside. In just a few moments, a fully-liveried butler opened the door, inquired after our needs, then ushered us through the entryway and into the library but not before I got a good look at a wide reception hall with a double staircase up to the second floor landing.

  Trying to kill time, we both looked at the bookshelves lining the walls. No paperbacks for this guy or even everyday hardbound books. Everything in sight was leather-bound with gilt titles on the spines. I heard a throat clear behind me and turned...

  To find the ugliest dwarf I’d ever seen dressed in what was obviously a custom-made suit. Admittedly, I’d never seen an attractive dwarf but this guy took the cake. Instead of just a gnarled countenance, his was gnarled and horribly scarred, like someone had stuck his head into a vat of boiling oil. The scarring covered not only his face but his whole head so he only had tufts of hair growing here and there. But shrewd, sharp blue eyes peered at us out of the disfigurement.

  “Good morning. I presume you are Amy and Gregory?” Ugly asked.

  Gregory answered that we were and asked if the man had something for us. “Of course,” the dwarf replied. “I assume Martin made the terms of the loan clear?”

  I nodded, desperately not wanting to look him directly in the face so soon after I’d eaten, yet I knew I had to. “Yes, he did. The principal will be repaid one week from today together with the agreed-upon interest.”

  The blue eyes looked at me with curiosity. “Good. Then here is your money. Martin has the information to wire the repayment to my account. I wish you well.” He dropped a small leather bag on the floor, abruptly turned and left us alone in the library.

  I turned to Gregory. “What…”

  He shushed me. “At the hotel and no earlier,” he quietly said as the butler arrived to escort us out. We heard, “I bid you good day” as the door silently shut behind us.

  Since I couldn’t voice the question I was dying to ask, the ride back to the hotel and up to the room was quiet. Once our door closed, I started.

  “He’s the ugliest being I’ve ever seen. What in the hell happened to him?”

  Gregory grimaced. “I don’t know him personally so don’t know all the details but the rumor is when he was young, he was working at a fast food restaurant and someone threw a full fryer of hot oil onto him. He received millions in a lawsuit and parlayed that into ownership of a group of fast food franchises that made him even more millions. He’s not on Forbes’ Top 100 list of millionaires but close to it.”

  “Did you see that house?” I asked. “And a butler in tails? That’s a little over the top, if you ask me.”

  “Everyone has their foibles. Tony, have you heard from Jarvis?”

  Tony nodded. “He called about a half hour ago. One of his guys knows a guy who knows a guy who knows of three abandoned mines within fifteen miles of where we were yesterday and a half dozen more within fifty. It cost me but a couple of Jarvis’ lieutenants are checking those places out tonight. I should know something by nine or ten o’clock.”

  “Ev will reimburse you whatever it cost,” I said.

  “I know. I’m not worried about that at all,” he said, yet he frowned while speaking.

  “So what’s on your mind? You look upset about something,” Gregory commented.

  “I’m supposed to be back in LA tomorrow for some meetings. I’ve spoken with my boss and told him I’ve got a personal issue to deal with but he’s not happy with me.”

  “So, go,” Gregory said. “Introduce me to Jarvis and I can take it from here.”

  “I can’t do that and you know I can’t,” Tony retorted. “It’s bad enough that I’m not part of Jarvis’ clan but all the help would disappear if I wasn’t here to facilitate things.”

  Gregory sighed. “Oh, I know. I just hoped maybe weres had decided to cease being so insular. You’re not going to lose your job, are you?”

  “No. Hal will rant and rave for about
a week, probably call me all sorts of names but in the end, he’d be hard-pressed to replace me. Besides, I already rescheduled those meetings for Friday, figuring we’d be here at least another day or two. A slight inconvenience that’s happened before.”

  “Whoever these jokers are, they’re screwing up a bunch of lives,” I fumed. “While I’m glad for your help, I’m sorry this is causing you so much trouble, Tony. Oh, shit. I’d better call Sally and check in. I haven’t talked with her since Friday morning. Ev will kill me if the company goes to pot while he’s sitting in some dank cave getting beaten up.”

  I was getting really mad again. I started shaking and all of a sudden, Fudge came running out of the bedroom and literally leapt into my arms, purring as loudly as I’d ever heard him.

  “Fudge has the right of it,” Gregory said soothingly. “Get hold of your emotions. We don’t need another earthquake.”

  Crap. I couldn’t even get good and mad anymore. I took several deep breaths to calm myself. “Thanks,” I said as a burrowed my face into Fudge’s fur.

  “Call Sally. I’m sure everything is fine or she would have called you but it will make you feel better. We don’t have anything else to do until the next note shows up. Me? I’m going to change into some more comfortable clothing and go for a walk.” Gregory went into his bedroom and closed the door.

  “Are you sure you can stay?” I asked Tony.

  Tony crossed the room, took Fudge from me and after putting him on the floor, took me into his arms. “Yes, Doll. I’m fine. Face time is good but I really can handle most everything by email and telephone. I’m more concerned about you. You’re dealing with an awful lot right now, what with finding out you’re a witch right in the middle of dealing with your boss being kidnapped.”

  I sniffled a little. “I’ve dealt with a lot of stressful things in my life but I must admit this is probably the worst. I have faith in you and Gregory that we’ll get Ev back but the money part is worrying me and I definitely have no idea how to handle this witch thing.”

  He kissed the top of my head. “Trust me, I know how difficult it is to deal with a new self and you don’t have quite the change to adjust to that I did. You’re lucky that the best person to help you adapt is also your best friend who knows you well. Right now just try to keep a check on your red-haired temper. We’ll get Ev back and if I have anything to say about it, we’ll get the money back, too.”

  He hugged me and pushed me toward the bedroom. “Change into something more comfortable than that suit and call Sally. You’ll feel better. I have some more emails to send.”

  Chapter 8

  Under Fudge’s close supervision, I changed back into jeans and a T-shirt, then sat on the bed and called Sally.

  “Hey, how’s it going?” she asked after recognizing my voice.

  “We’re still, um, negotiating with the kidnappers. I’m more concerned with what’s happening back there.”

  “Oh, everything is fine. The weekend reports had nothing unusual in them and I’ve started processing payroll for you. Omar came in a little while ago to see Ev. When I told him Ev was out of touch, he just shrugged his shoulders and left a message for Ev to call when he got back. Truth be told, I’m a little bored. I’ll bet things are a lot more exciting down there. I heard there was a minor earthquake on Saturday.”

  She had no idea but I wasn’t about to relate the past three days on the telephone. “We’ll hopefully be back tomorrow or Wednesday. Keep the home fires burning, huh?”

  “Will do. Call if there’s anything I can do on this end.”

  I ended the call feeling a little better. I had faith that Sally could handle almost anything but nonetheless, I wasn’t accustomed to not having my finger on the pulse of the business. Fudge followed me out into the living room. As I sat on the couch and reached for the television remote, another note landed on the coffee table with a “poof”.

  We assume you have the additional funds by this time. Check into the Days Inn in Dahlonega by five. We will let you know the exchange arrangements this evening.

  Shit. Jarvis’ boys weren’t supposed to check out the possible locations until nightfall. If the kidnappers wanted the exchange to happen before we knew which cave they were using, there was a good possibility we wouldn’t be able to rescue Ev and keep the money.

  “So now what?” I asked Tony.

  “First, call Gregory and get him back here. It sounds like they want the exchange to happen tonight, which means we have to either move up our own timetable or change plans. I have to talk to Jarvis.”

  I called Gregory as instructed and in less than ten minutes he was back in the suite, reading the note.

  “They’re getting sloppy in their eagerness. This one has a hint of a signature on it,” he said with a smile. “One more like this and I will be able to go to the Councils to get a name.”

  “And that does us good because…?” I said.

  “Once I know who it is, I will know what their element is and quite possibly how strong they are. That will let me formulate a plan to counteract whatever spells they’ve managed to bind Ev with.”

  “Oh.” Strangely, I, a writer, was at a loss for words. Once again, I was way out of my element.

  “Jarvis says there’s nothing they can do until nightfall,” Tony said after closing his phone. “Most of the guys have jobs and besides, it’s not like we can transform and roam around during daylight without drawing attention.”

  “I understand. We may have to delay the exchange,” Gregory answered. “In the meantime, I suggest we all pack up. Whatever happens from here will take place up in the mountains so we no longer need this hotel as a base.” He picked up the phone and made arrangements for us to check out.

  Since all I could do was what I was told, I went into the bedroom and packed my bag, then took care of Fudge’s things. I felt bad using the wastebasket to put his litter in but there was nothing else to do with it. I consoled myself with the fact that the housekeeping staff had probably seen and smelled worse. At least the bin had a liner that I knotted closed.

  Gregory came into the bedroom. “All packed up? Good.” With a wave of his hands, Fudge’s now-empty litter box, bag of litter, food dish and food container disappeared.

  “They’re back at your apartment,” he said after seeing my inquiring look. “It’s much easier than carrying it all with us, don’t you think? I will retrieve them once we’re settled in the new hotel.”

  “So if you can just whisk things through the ether, why do I have to empty the litter box? Can’t you just make that go somewhere, too?”

  “To where?” he replied. “I have to know where I’m taking something from or sending something to. I have no idea where garbage dumps are and even if I did, there’s the issue of packaging. I could move the box with the litter in it but then we’d need another box. Or I could move each clump of used litter, each piece of feces and each kernel of unused litter individually. Time- and energy-consuming, to say the least.”

  Another “Oh” escaped my lips.

  “Shall we?” Gregory asked with a sweep of his arm. I put my jacket on and as before, zipped it partway to make a pouch for Fudge who settled himself against my stomach. While not uncomfortable, the added weight made me feel awkward. I had a notion that this might be how a pregnant woman felt. Thankfully, the thought was fleeting. That wasn’t something I wanted to dwell on.

  We stopped for lunch on the way and pulled into the parking lot of the Dahlonega Days Inn just after three o’clock. Opening the door to our room, I realized that I had been terribly spoiled the last few days.

  “Someone must have an interest in this business,” Tony grimaced. “I haven’t stayed in a place this small in years.”

  “I have but it wasn’t quite this basic,” I countered. “At least it’s clean.”

  Fudge jumped out of his jacket-pouch and proceeded to investigate every corner of the room. It didn’t take long and when he was done, he trotted over to me with his head
held high and tail erect. I gathered him back into my arms as a knock sounded at our door.

  Tony admitted Gregory, who had the room next to ours. Gregory closed his eyes, waved his hand and Fudge’s accoutrements appeared under the sink next to the bathroom. He looked at me. “Amy, I’m going to do something to you you’re not going to like.”

  My eyes popped. “You’re what?”

  “We need to delay the exchange. Whoever is spearheading this, David most likely, has keyed everything to you. If you’re sick, you can’t make the exchange, which is what I think they want. Hopefully, that will buy us enough time for Jarvis’ people to do their scouting.”

  “How will they know? Apart from hangovers, I don’t get sick. And how can you make me sick?” I so did not like where this was heading.

  “Remember, all the notes have appeared in the room where you happen to be. Therefore, we know their witch or wizard is able to keep tabs on you.” Gregory’s voice was calm and I could tell he was trying to keep me that way. “It will be nothing serious, I promise. But it’s springtime down here. I can pull enough pollen out of the air to give anyone an allergic reaction. You’ll just have the standard head cold symptoms until late tonight when I banish the pollen from your system.”

  “But, but,” I stuttered.

  “That’s brilliant!” Tony cried.

  “I’m sorry, Amy, but it was the best solution I could think of. We need the delay if we’re going to have any chance of thwarting the kidnappers’ plans.”

  “But I’ve never been sick.”

  “That’s due to your witch’s immune system. Like other long-lived beings, we seem to be very resistant to bacteria, viruses and the like that generally affect the human population. It’s probably one of the reasons that, while human in most other respects, we live much longer lives.

  “Notice I said resistant, not impervious. We can get sick. It just takes a lot more of whatever - it - is to affect us. I will wager the only time you get a hangover is when you really go overboard on the alcohol, right?”