by John O'Riley
“That’s a shame. They’re all cursed with immortality, right?” Helen asked.
“That’s one of the perks of being a member of the Valituras,” Alice interjected.
“Of course we all know the side effect is becoming a vampire,” Josephine pointed out.
“There is that.”
“I thought I read that one of the members is an incubus by the name of Lucifer Paddock,” Helen remarked.
“His name is Lucius Padovani. He’s Italian,” Josephine said.
“If someone’s cursed with immortality, they always become a vampire unless they have hardly any darkness in their soul. So it sounds like he was a good person. Maybe he was forced to work for the Valituras.”
“You’re right, he was taken against his will. He’s been spying on Frederic to gather secrets about the Valituras. Unfortunately, it doesn’t help us because of the amnesia enchantment,” Josephine explained.
“Didn’t he tell you anything useful before he forgot everything?” Helen asked.
“I’m afraid not. Lucius developed amnesia several moments after he was captured.”
“I thought it took an hour or two before that happened.”
“Apparently, it kicks in right away for some people. Lucius and another member of their team, Ruby, both suffered from amnesia almost immediately.”
“Too bad that spell can’t be reversed yet.”
“Believe me, we’ve tried. I spent all day yesterday at the prison trying to restore their memories. I just don’t see any way it can be done.”
“If anyone can do it, I’m sure it will be you.” Helen leveled an encouraging look at her friend.
Josephine’s lips twitched in an appreciative smile. “Thanks for the vote of confidence.”
After finishing an enjoyable breakfast, she reported for work at the police station. Josephine, Alex, and Jake were assigned as a team to help research the Valituras before the trail went cold. She feared it was too late for that. The three of them poured over reports and continued researching the backgrounds of the Valituras prisoners they had in custody. After a couple of painstaking hours, Josephine looked up from her computer.
“I think we need to visit Lucius’s home and check it out again,” she said.
“What good would that do?” Alex frowned with puzzlement.
“For one thing, it’ll get us out of the station for awhile.”
“All right. Let’s do it,” Alex said.
Josephine and Jake headed for exit. When they reached the lobby, they realized Alex was missing. They exchanged puzzled looks and headed back toward their work station. Alex turned the corner of the hallway carrying a cake donut with vanilla frosting and sprinkles.
“You can drive, Jake,” Alex advised.
Jake grinned with amusement as they turned to leave. Soon, the three of them arrived at Lucius’s residence which was a modest white house with a small yard. Pineapple plants lined both sides of the driveway and there were a couple clusters of palm trees in the front yard. Josephine entered the house first and opened her senses to the subtle energies inside. The walls were painted white and the floors were terrazzo with an entertainment center against one wall and a couple of sofas and a couch angled towards it. There wasn’t much to read but she was determined to find something. In the living room, she made a beeline for the sofa facing the television and rested her hands on top of it. Josephine’s brows furrowed with concentration as she picked up a faint buzz from fragments of psychometric energy but there wasn’t enough to receive any impressions. She sat down on the sofa and placed her arms over the armrests.
“I know you must be tired but we have work to do here,” Alex quipped.
Josephine ignored his teasing as she drew in power to deepen the scan. A chilly breeze materialized near her as she generated too much energy to harness completely. She sensed Alex growing uneasy because category six wizards sometimes caused explosions when they did this. Josephine had never let things get out of hand like that before and it annoyed her that after all the years she’d worked with him, he still reacted this way.
“Take a chill pill, Whiney. You’re perfectly safe,” Josephine said.
“It’s not recommended that you use excessive energy for scanning,” Alex cautioned.
Josephine snorted with derision and continued working in silence. She made sure not to draw too much power though. The chilly breeze continued and she shivered as goose bumps blossomed over her arms from the drop in temperature. Josephine tried coaxing some of the fragments together as sometimes they broke away into smaller units as they degraded. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough to work with. She was about to give up when a bank’s parking lot flashed in her mind for a split second. Josephine’s temples throbbed as she went back to the fragment that contained the impression she’d just glimpsed. She gently probed at it in order to prevent any further deterioration but couldn’t read anything. Josephine generated more power as she continued working. The bank parking lot materialized in her mind’s eye once again. She focused her attention on the sign which read Regatta Bank. The scene slipped from her grasp again and she was forced to rest. The breeze in the room immediately died down.
“Did you get anything?” Alex asked hopefully.
“I did.” Josephine pushed herself up out of the chair to face him. “I saw Regatta Bank. I don’t know what it means but it was involved in his plans somehow.”
“What plans?”
“I’m afraid I have no idea. I need to rest for awhile before I try to read anything again,” Josephine said.
“I’m not sure I’ve heard of Regatta Bank,” Alex said.
“It’s in Venice by the Goodwill bookstore,” Jake said.
“Really? I’ve never noticed it,” Josephine remarked.
“Knock knock.” A blond woman in her thirties stood in the front doorway smiling at them. “I’m one of the neighbors and I wanted to be sure everything’s okay.”
She strode towards them as Josephine became aware of dark energy in the room. Josephine’s senses were still aching and lethargic because of the earlier strain so she couldn’t tell where it was coming from. She activated her shield just before the woman drew a dagger from behind her back and hurled it across the room. The knife bounced off Josephine’s protection and clattered on the floor about a dozen feet away. Jake and Alex drew their revolvers and ordered the woman to halt but she ignored them. Without any trace of fear, she marched across the room towards Josephine. Josephine pulled out her wand as she scanned the intruder.
“Halt. I’m an enforcer,” Josephine said.
“Stay where you are. This is your final warning,” Jake snapped.
When the woman failed to respond, he fired a shot in her shoulder. A small wisp of black smoke appeared in the spot where the bullet passed through for a split second but then it was gone. There was no sign of damage and the woman continued to approach her target. Alex and Jake both fired their guns at the assailant’s shoulders with the same lack of results.
Josephine backed away from her. “It’s a construo letalis curse. Our shields and weapons won’t do much good against it.”
A construo letalis was a mobile construct comprised of dark energy that took the form of a human with one goal – to murder its target. Weaponry and shielding had very little effect against them.
“Not another curse!” Alex fired three more shots at the woman’s chest as if to prove Josephine wrong.
Josephine knew it probably wouldn’t work but she fired a telekinetic blast at the woman. The assailant’s image briefly flickered with wisps of black smoke for several seconds then solidified. Josephine darted to the side and tried to run past the woman. Unfortunately, the curse moved with inhuman speed and her hand bashed into her shield. Josephine was tossed several feet to the side but she managed to keep her footing.
“You two need to get the car started,” Josephine said.
“We have to help you,” Alex argued.
“You need to be ready to
take off. This thing can move fast and it’s after me,” Josephine said.
The woman leapt at her and Josephine dodged the tackle. Jake and Alex still had their guns trained on the curse.
“Go!” Josephine screamed.
Jake nodded and yanked Alex backward to get his attention.
“We can’t leave her here to die!” Alex protested.
“Come on!” Jake dragged his partner towards the door.
Alex shrugged away from his partner as Josephine backed away from the curse. The woman rushed forward and slipped through Josephine’s shield which flared into visibility as a silvery light for an instant. The woman’s hand closed around Josephine’s throat in a vise-like grip and lifted her several feet into the air. Alex tackled the woman who released her victim as the two of them crashed to the floor. Josephine clutched her throat as she backed away from them. The woman pushed herself up into a crouching stance and grabbed Alex by the front of his shirt. Before he could react, she tossed him over her shoulder and into the wall. Alex crumpled to the floor in a daze. Josephine watched him with dismay then focused on the woman who stalked towards her.
Josephine activated another protection amulet that she and Mark had made together. Hopefully, the curse would need a few seconds to adapt to the new shield. Josephine dodged to the side as the woman’s hand thrust towards her with alarming speed. The shield flared into visibility as a bright white spherical-shaped glow and the hand was deflected to the side. Josephine darted past her and knelt over Alex. The woman marched over towards her with a malicious gleam in her eye. Josephine always wore two pendants around her neck containing teleportation enchantments in case of an emergency. She activated one of them which caused her and Alex to vanish in the blink of an eye. The curse halted and stared at the empty spot where her target had been.
Josephine and Alex materialized in the back seat of the police car. Luckily, Jake had realized his grandmother’s intentions and had the motor running. He immediately took off down the street. Josephine peered out the window and saw the woman walk across Lucius’s lawn. The curse exploded into a billowing cloud of black smoke for several seconds then collapsed and transformed into a crow which soared into the air in pursuit.
“It’s tailing us,” Josephine announced.
“I figured it would.” Jake glanced at her through the rearview mirror with a grim expression on his face.
He turned on the police siren and picked up speed. The crow continued to follow them but it trailed behind a bit. Alex pushed himself up into a sitting position.
Josephine glared at him. “The next time I give you an order, you’d better follow my instructions.”
“You’re not my boss.” Alex’s green eyes flashed with annoyance.
“I do outrank you as an enforcer.”
Alex regarded her with surprise then grudging respect. “You’re right. I’m sorry.”
Josephine realized she was partially to blame because she’d never issued any orders before and she’d worked for the police department as a consultant for many years until just recently.
“I’m glad I can count on your support.” Josephine flashed a warm smile at him then gazed out the window and was relieved that the crow wasn’t gaining ground on them. “Jake, take me to my house.”
“Shouldn’t we go to the police station?” he protested.
“The wards at my house are better but nothing can keep out a construo letalis except maybe white magic,” Josephine explained.
Jake’s eyes lit with understanding. “You’re thinking the garden might do the trick.”
“Exactly.”
“Why would your garden be safe?” Alex regarded her with confusion.
“The previous owner’s wife, Arabella, was a white magic practitioner and she has a special type of ward in the garden that keeps out black magic. Mark said that it prevents any dark energy from entering it.”
“Have you ever tested his theory?”
“Not yet.” Josephine knew she was taking a risk but it was the only possible solution that came to mind.
“There’s a panic room at the police station,” Alex reminded her.
“I know but I suspect the curse can force its way inside.”
“In that case, I hope Mark’s right about the garden.”
“Me, too.”
They were traveling south on Highway 41 now and approaching a crowded intersection with a red light. Jake was forced to slow down as he looked for the best way to weave between the parked cars because some of them had already stopped and were blocking his way. He had to pull almost onto the sidewalk as he approached the light. Josephine tensed up as the black crow gained on them. Once Jake passed the intersection, he speeded up again but the curse had closed the gap and was only twenty feet behind them now.
“How do we destroy that thing?” Alex asked.
“I have a niveus imperium enchantment with me but I’m not sure if it would do any good against that kind of curse,” Josephine advised
“It’s the most effective general antidote against curses,” Jake said. “I think it’s worth a try.”
“Just in case that doesn’t work, do you have any other ideas?” Alex asked.
“The only thing we can do is wait for it to run out of juice unless we have other curse antidotes we can use. I do have a few odds and ends for emergencies I keep in the house but I don’t think I’ll be able to reach them,” Josephine said.
“If it ignores Alex and I, we might be able to get them for you,” Jake suggested.
“It’s too risky. You’ll need to stick with me.”
When they reached Josephine’s neighborhood on Siesta Key, Jake didn’t slow down until he was directly in front of her house and then he stomped on the brakes. Josephine grunted as the seat belt dug into her for a split second and then she freed herself with haste. She glanced back at the crow which dove at the car with breakneck speed. Josephine, Alex, and Jake emerged from the vehicle just as the crow smashed into the pavement nearby, exploding into a writhing cloud of black smoke. Josephine didn’t stop to stare. She raced across the lawn with the two detectives towards the side of her house where the enchanted garden began. The curse solidified into the form of the woman it had assumed earlier and sprinted towards its target.
“No matter what happens to me, you two need to keep moving and stay in the garden!” Josephine ordered.
The curse was running too fast and they weren’t going to make it. Josephine opened her satchel and pulled out the wand containing the niveus imperium. The curse caught up with her and grabbed her right arm, tossing her away from the garden and into the next-door neighbor’s front yard. Josephine gasped with pain as she hit the ground. Her assailant stalked towards her. Josephine still had the wand clutched in her hand and pointed it at the curse as she activated the enchantment. The tip of the wand flared with a bright gold light and a stream of gold energy in the form of a mist swirled around the woman who stopped moving. The curse seemed to be contained by the spell – at least temporarily. Josephine kept the enchantment active as she walked past the woman toward her garden. She was forced to walk backwards so she could continue to direct the potent magic at her assailant. When the energy drained out of the wand completely, the gold sparkling mist of energy continued to swirl around the curse.
Josephine continued retreating and several seconds later, the woman smashed her fist through the barricade surrounding her. The gold mist abruptly dissipated and the woman sprinted towards her target once again. The entire garden was surrounded by a row of large, half-buried rocks. It was massive and beautifully landscaped with a myriad of herbs, fruit trees, bushes, palm trees and flowers that were sectioned off by bark chips bordered by large half-buried quartz crystal clusters. Octagon-shaped, polished stepping stones formed a variety of trails. The garden spanned the entire backyard which measured about half an acre. Josephine felt the shift in energy as she crossed the stone border. Under normal circumstances, she would take a leisure stroll and enjoy the am
bience. Alex and Jake continued running as she had almost caught up with them. When Josephine glanced back, she saw her assailant run past the stone border without showing any signs of weakening. It was going to catch up with her in mere seconds. Josephine turned to face the creature and dodged to the side as it leapt to tackle her.
The woman rolled in an energetic somersault that carried her back to her feet. Josephine linked with the vortex inside her home and power flooded into her. She pointed the palm of her hand towards the creature and unleashed a tremendous force of wind. The creature was thrown off her feet and tossed into the air like a rag doll. The woman managed to land on her feet and sprinted towards Josephine with superhuman speed. Josephine repeated the wind spell but this time it had no effect except that a few wisps of black smoke appeared over the creature for a couple of seconds. Jake and Alex drew closer and had their wands ready. Josephine didn’t react to them as she didn’t want the creature to notice. She created a large fireball several feet above the palm of her right hand and launched it at the woman. The flames engulfed her for several seconds then died out and the curse didn’t slow down at all. Alex and Jake shot telekinetic waves at the creature to no avail. Josephine activated her other backup shield but her assailant passed right through it and tackled her.
The two women crashed to the ground with the curse on top. The assailant’s eyes turned black as it placed both of its hands on either side of Josephine’s head with the intent to break her neck. The curse exploded into course black sand. Josephine froze with shock then sat up and brushed off the disgusting substance from her body. A flash of white light swept over the course black grains and they vanished. Alex and Jake rushed over to Josephine and helped her to stand up.
“Are you all right?” Jake asked.
“I’m fine.” Josephine took a deep breath as relief washed through her body. “It looks like Mark was right but I guess it takes awhile before a curse is destroyed in here.”
