Chapter 2
Opportunity
The bell hanging above the cafe door rang, alarming everyone inside of someone entering. Bishop and Niles stopped trading insults when a young woman stepped inside. Long and wavy blonde hair fell over her gray jacket and she wore black pants and heels. Her blue eyes scanned the room until settling on Niles behind the counter as he leaned on his cane looking in her direction.
“Hello… I saw the sign outside on the door… you’re looking for a part-time waitress?”
“Ah yes, come right in, young lady,” said Niles with a soft smile. “My name is Niles Lockhart, welcome to the Blue Moon Cafe.”
She walked over to the counter reaching over to shake Niles’ hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you Mister Lockhart, my name is Harmony Hill.”
“Beautiful name, Harmony,” Niles commented. The phone rang, interrupting their meeting. “Excuse me, Misses Hill. Rook, would you mind helping her?”
“It’s okay,” she smiled.
Niles turned to answer the phone. Rook rose and walked toward her. Arriving before her, he extended his hand, and she returned the pleasantry.
“Rook? That’s an interesting name,” she laughed.
“Likewise,” Rook replied with an awkward smile. “Harmony is a better name than Rook, I will admit.”
“Thank you,” she said, letting go. They stared at each other for a moment then looked away. “So… about the opening?”
“Oh yeah,” Rook replied. “Our friend Marron left us a while back—to be honest, you’re the first person to apply to the position. We thought no one wanted the job.”
Harmony admired the cafe, her gaze falling upon the empty booths and tables, then Bishop and Felix as they stared at her. She turned back to Rook and cleared her throat. “Yea, it doesn’t seem that busy in here. Are you sure you need a waitress?” she joked.
“Look how beautiful she is—I’m proud of Rook, leaping up to greet her like that. I wonder if she’s single. She reminds me of Marron—young, beautiful, charming. What do you think Felix, a girl like that, think I got a chance?”
“No, you don’t,” Harmony snapped. She said it loud enough that Niles put his hand over the phone and leaned in closer to listen. She held her hand out so everyone could see it. “As you can see, I’m engaged and for you to speak like that about me, loud enough for me to hear you, even if I wasn’t you still wouldn’t have a chance.”
Bishop’s face went blank. “Never mind, Felix, she’s not like Marron at all. She reminds me of my sister—cold. It got chilly in here suddenly?”
Felix didn’t respond, he only stood with his mouth gaping, mesmerized by Harmony’s beauty. Bishop nudged him on the arm, but it didn’t move him, the young cook was awestruck with her. Rook’s eyebrows raised as Niles chuckled softly. The only person he has ever seen put Bishop in his place before was his uncle.
When Bishop talked that way around Marron, she ignored him because she was used to his crass humor and he knew what boundary he couldn’t cross. Harmony however just walked inside the cafe a few minutes ago and already shut Bishop up. Rook noticed his uncle’s reaction and turned to him. He had a smile from ear-to-ear and nodded in approval.
“Young lady, you’re hired!”
Harmony turned to Niles, her cheeks turned red and a large smile grew on her face. “Really, Mister Lockhart?”
“Yes! And please, call me Niles—anyone that can shut him up is worth having around here. I assume you have experience?” Niles exclaimed.
“Thank you so much! And yes, I have the experience, I used to waitress part-time during high school, now I’m attending college and, as you know, it won’t pay for itself!”
“That’s good to hear and you’re welcome. Felix, show her around while I finish my phone call.”
Harmony turned to Bishop once more. “I hope I wasn’t rude, I mean, what you were saying was rude and I don’t want any hard feelings because of what I said—”
Bishop threw his hands up. “It’s all good, congratulations. You’re doing the world a great service—helping the blind and all.”
“Ah, right this way!” said Felix, scurrying to her side and leading her into the kitchen.
Rook nodded and smiled as she passed him. He joined Bishop in the booth once more, resting against the wall watching Rook devour more brownies. Rolling his fingers on the wooden table, his thoughts wandered, occasionally glancing at Bishop as he ate.
“Be safe, Neva,” said Niles before hanging the phone up.
“How is she?”
“She’s good; she has a big exam coming up. I’m going to check on Felix, need to make sure he doesn’t scare the young lady out of here,” said Niles before making his way to into the kitchen.
Rook watched Bishop finish the final brownie on the plate and licked the tips of his fingers. He cringed before looking away to find a man now standing inside the cafe. Rook stood from his set, catching Bishop off guard and walked toward the man.
He was an older man, with wizened features and creases lining the sides of his eyes. Thin gray hair fell behind his neck underneath his black bowler hat, matching his thick gray mustache. He wore a black coat, slacks and shoes, standing stoically with a black back under his arm.
“I’m sorry sir, we didn’t hear you come in, and how can I help you?”
After a moment the man’s gaze fell to Rook. His cloudy gray eyes analyzed him as if he was taking mental notes of his features. The man tapped his fist to his chest and cleared his throat. “My deepest apologies, sir. I was just admiring the esthetics of this establishment. It’s my first time coming inside.”
“No problem, sir, is there anything I can get you? Coffee or tea?”
“No, that won’t be necessary, thank you,” he said. “My name is Edgar Killshaw and I believe this is where I can find a—”
The man reached into his jacket pocket and pulled a card from inside. He raised it and tightened his eyes before reading. “Bishop and Rook?”
“Oh, I’m—”
Bishop rose from his seat and scurried to the man and shook his hand, interrupting Rook. “Hello Mister Killshaw, I’m Bishop—he’s Rook—we are the ones you are looking for! Welcome.”
Edgar admired them once more. “Hm, I expected you to be—older. Never mind, I saw your card while I was in the city and wondered if I could hire your services were available?”
“Yes, right this way,” Bishop answered, leading him to an empty booth.
Rook joined them, surprised that Bishop’s street promotion of their team actually worked. He still worried that they would attract the wrong clients, which is why he didn’t accept it in the first place, but that was not what the man represented at all. If this would be the type of people that would look for their services, Rook didn’t mind it. It was staying out of trouble as his uncle wanted and also not risking their lives in any dangerous way.
Rook sat in the booth, then Bishop, who cleared his throat and interlocked his fingers.
“So, Mister Killshaw, I see you have one of our cards, what led you to us?” Bishop asked.
“I was leaving a lunch with a few associates and found your card on the ground. I thought maybe you guys could help with a situation.”
“Situation you say?” Rook blurted, after noticing Bishop’s face turning read and forcing a smile. He nudged Bishop’s knee with his own, a silent gesture to calm down. “What kind of situation do you have that would require our services?”
“Well, from your tagline, I assume you two are warlocks? Or do you prefer mages? Nowadays I don’t know what to call you.”
“Either is fine,” said Rook.
“I’m afraid this job will require your special skills… Is he all right?”
Rook and Edgar both turned to Bishop, his eyes were glossy and shaking his head and teetering.
“Bishop, are you okay?”
“I’m feeling—” Bishop rose from the chair, clutching his stomach. “I shouldn’t have eaten all those brownies
—if you’ll excuse me!”
Bishop bolted around the booth and up the stairs as Rook and Edgar watched him.
“I’m sorry about that Edgar, as you can see; my partner is feeling under the weather at the moment. What were you saying?”
“We can wait until he comes back if we need to?”
“No, that’s all right, I can help you. I can inform him later.”
“Okay, well this job, if completed, it will have a substantial reward upon completion. The client I work for is a very wealthy influential man. And a man like that has many enemies. One of whom stole something that belonged to him. Retrieve the item that was stolen and deliver it to me.”
“What is this item?”
“I am not at liberty to discuss that. I can only tell you it’s secured by magic, which is the reason your services are preferred over others. We already have a man on the inside that will assist you if you decide to accept the job.”
“It’s secured by magic? How valuable is the item?”
“All I can say is, it’s a family heirloom that belongs to my client and he will pay any price to have it returned to him.”
Rook leaned back and pondered the offer. This was a good opportunity for them. They would only return an item to its rightful owner. No matter how he looked at it, it was stealing, but the fact that Edgar’s client is will pay anything to have it returned intrigued him. He didn’t care about money. He only wanted one thing, and that was to find his sister and Edgar’s client had the resources to do so. Bishop wouldn’t mind, it was he who promised to help Rook find her.
“I tell you what; you can keep the money. When we complete the job, I want you client’s help with a problem I’m having.”
“A problem you’re having? What do you mean?”
“When I was nine, my sister and I were separated and I have been looking for her,” Rook explained. “That was ten years ago, and I don’t have the money or the resources to expand my search, but your client does.”
Edgar smile before exhaling. “I see. Instead of monetary payment, you wish for my client to use his resources to help you find her. Hm, that’s a tall order, especially since you don’t know where she is.”
“You said it yourself, Mister Killshaw, your client would pay anything to have this item returned to him. I figure helping a guy find his lost sister wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility, given his willingness to pay a substantial amount of money for it.”
“My orders were to give whatever was asked to do this job; your request shouldn’t be an issue for my client I suppose. I will agree to your terms.”
“Then we have a deal.”
Edgar reached across the table and shook his hand. He opened the black bag he carried and retrieved a file and placed it on the table. He rose from his seat and shook Rook’s hand.
“All the information you need is in that file. Once you’ve completed the mission, you can contact me and I will come back to retrieve the item. Only then will we begin the search for your sister.”
Rook rose from his seat. “Thank you, Mister Killshaw; I look forward to speaking with you soon.”
“Likewise.” Edgar spun on his heel and walked out of the door.
Rook sat in the booth and sighed. This was the opportunity he was looking for and it was all thanks to Bishop and his business cards. The thought of seeing his sister, after ten long years filled his heart with so much excitement, he could barely contain himself. He wore a confident and relieved grin as he opened the file. He was closer to his goal than ever before. Now all he had to do was figure out how he and Bishop would complete the job.
Chapter 3
Rathbone Estate
It took Rook several hours to scour through the files Edgar left him. They’d done their homework. The target was a man named Magnus Rathbone, a wealthy man with no children that owned several Fortune 500 businesses around the world. He lived in Crescent Hill several hours away the Blue Moon Cafe. It was an area populated by the rich, with an estate the size of a city block. His daily, weekly and monthly routines, his businesses, family and security details were all within the file. Rook had a hard time keeping note of everything, focusing on the most important parts.
The Rathbone Estate was a massive one-hundred acre palace. It had twenty rooms and just as many bathrooms. Surrounded by a large forest, the nearest neighbor was three miles away. A detailed trail through the forest provided the perfect path through the woods, avoiding the heat censors placed inside it.
Edgar’s contact inside the estate would leave a window open and allowing entry into the estate. Video surveillance placed in every corner and facing all directions guarded the hallways of the estate. To combat that, Rook decided using Bishop’s shroudnet would make it easier to avoid them entirely.
Things would be easier if Bishop was here to help him, but he never returned after excusing himself earlier in the day. Though, Rook thought his plan would be to storm the place and attack anyone they came in contact with. It was an option, but in this case, the wrong one. Even if they attempted that route, the guards would overwhelm them and the result would end in their capture or deaths.
Rook rubbed his temple before deciding to go get Bishop. Niles and Felix trained Harmony in the kitchen while he sat in the corner booth working on the job. He left the booth and the mess of papers on the tables behind, Rook walked upstairs. Coming to a wooden door with posters of bands and scantily clad women scattered about it he racked his knuckles on the door and waited. There was no answer, He knocked and waited once more. Again, Bishop didn’t respond. Impatient, Rook made what Bishop described as an unforgivable sin; he went inside his bedroom.
He entered to find Bishop asleep on a large chair in front of a flat television screen with a video game controller in his hand. While he was downstairs for several hours trying to figure out how to execute their plan, Bishop was in his room playing video games. Rook shook his head and stormed inside. It wasn’t surprising to find Bishop like this, but it was frustrating. Bishop was the one who wanted to do this in the first place, he even had business cards created and the first time they get a job, he leaves to go play video games? That was Bishop in a nutshell.
“Bishop! Wake up!” Rook yelled, shaking his leg furiously. “We got the job, get up!”
Rook shook him with a fury to wake him up, but he remained still, snoring every now and again, sound asleep. This is a state in which Bishop referred to as a food coma. He’d eaten an entire tray of brownies without so much as stopping to offer anyone else a piece. Rook wondered how he could eat so much and be so frail having once watched him devour twenty tacos in single sitting and still claimed he was hungry after.
He tried several more times to wake him, but failed. Bishop wasn’t waking up in time. Rook was in it alone and wanted to get the job done as soon as possible. He scanned the unkempt room until his gaze fell upon a glass box sitting on a shelf in the corner. Use only in case of an emergency was written in black ink on the outside. Inside was what Bishop described as an emergency survival kit, but to Rook, it was an old fanny pack. It was an ugly red color, worn and tattered, what remained of the logo on its front had all but fade. Rook crept over to the case and retrieved it carefully. He half expected there to be a protection spell around it, but there wasn’t. It was simply a fanny pack in a clear box. Rook didn’t know what Bishop kept inside of it, but he had nothing else to take besides the shroudnet that set on his dresser.
Bishop created the shroudnet to make whoever wore it invisible for as long as they channel their magic through it. After taking the fanny pack and shroudnet he hurried downstairs and to the booth where the files overtook the table. He flipped over a piece of paper and scribbled a note to Bishop.
After several subway rides and a few buses, Rook made it to the outer perimeter of the Rathbone estate. He’d changed from his white long-sleeved shirt into a long-sleeved black shirt, black jeans and boots. There was no way he would wear the fanny-pack, so he tossed it over his shoulder. Open
ing the map and instructions from the file, Rook entered the woods and followed the path covered by the shroudnet. He ran through how things could go wrong several times and came up with several contingency plans, all of which involved him running away. It wasn’t the right head space to be in and he knew it, but it was a daunting reality.
He took nearly an hour to reach the grounds of the estate. By that time, the crescent moon was high and passing clouds took away the luminous glow of the stars. He crouched in the tree line and watched as armed guards walked around the mansion looking for signs of trouble.
Reaching into his back pocket, he placed a piece of cloth with a symbol drawn on it on the ground next to him, carefully lining it up under a thick tree branch. Guards roamed the grounds, wearing matching black suits and ties with white radio ear-buds connected to their ear from the radios on their waists.
From his position, he saw the opened window that Edgar Killshaw’s inside man left open for him. He briefly wondered why the inside man didn’t steal it instead, but those thoughts quickly faded when there was an opening in the guards sweep. A pair of security guards walked on the other side of the estate, allowing Rook to make a mad dash to the window. It was thirty yards away, and he cleared it within a few seconds. It was a perk of being a warlock and using magic to increase his speed.
The room was dark as he approached. Grabbing the windows edge he lifted himself up and inside before the security guards returned. He sat against the wall under the window, allowing them to pass before making any moves. Waiting until the sound of footsteps and distant radio chatter disappeared, he rose and realized that he was in guest bedroom and from what he remembered; the item was located in the master bedroom three floors up.
Removing the shroudnet, Rook opened the fanny pack. His eyes widened and his mouth opened. Looking closer, he scanned the contents of the pack. “Firecrackers? Why would he need those? Never mind, its Bishop I’m talking about. What else is in here… a whistle… matches… this is all useless!”
Magecraft (Magik: The Avatar Wars Book 1) Page 2
