by Gina LaManna
I sighed. “I don’t know about that. Lately, I’ve been feeling like I have no clue what I’m doing. There’s so much to learn, so little time to learn it, and so many things to accomplish. The list is so long, and I haven’t even gotten started yet.”
“You’re not alone. Gus is around to help, and so are we,” Poppy said. “You are practically royalty here.”
“Royalty...” I said with heavy sarcasm. “Definitely not royalty.”
Poppy waved a hand in dismissal. “You’re a big deal. People listen when you talk. Even if some don’t realize it yet, they will soon enough. Even Elle knew who you were before you introduced yourself.”
“I think that’s her job.”
“Yeah, well...” Poppy bobbed her shoulders up and down. “She didn’t know my name when I was first hired, and I’ve lived here all my life. Just ask Hettie and Zin. Speaking of… Hettie? Where’d they go? Zin?”
My head swiveled in all directions as well, but the two ladies were nowhere in sight. Though it was hard to imagine where they could’ve disappeared to, seeing how all of the walls were made of glass.
“They do this every time,” Poppy said in annoyance. “Did you know they banned Hettie from this building for seven years? She kept disappearing and causing trouble. I told her to watch it or they’ll kick her out again.”
“What sort of trouble?” I had to pick up my pace to stay with Poppy. “Poking into business that wasn’t hers?”
“That, among other things. For a while, Hettie used to sneak into the bathrooms and take the little bottles of hand soap.”
I burst out laughing. “Why would she do that?”
“She likes the scent!”
I laughed, struggling not to run into any of the clear walls. “Do you know where they went?”
“I have a feeling,” Poppy said. Then she whirled around and stomped toward the edge of the maze. “Before we find them, I have to ask you one thing.”
“What?”
“You don’t have to whisper. Nobody can hear us.”
It was eerie being here, surrounded by enough glass to build a castle. Everyone could see one another, but nobody could hear whispered secrets. It was a bit of a thrill. “Is everything okay?”
She stepped so close that her nose was an inch away from mine. Then she ignored her own advice and dropped her voice to a nervous whisper. “I’m running low.”
“Low on what?”
“The Vamp Vites. I only have a week’s supply left.”
“A week?” My jaw flew open. “Poppy, you should have said something!”
“You told me you were looking for the missing ingredient!”
“I was! I still am. But you should have given me more advance notice that you were almost out. Some of our suppliers take two weeks to ship the goods. Even if we find it, the stuff might not get here in time. Not to mention, I don’t have the potions book right now. With The Magic of Mixology stolen, I don’t have any of my recipes.”
“How have you been operating in the meantime?” Poppy frowned. “Gus has to remember, right?”
“Probably,” I said. “But I haven’t asked him about the details because I haven’t had all of the necessary supplies.”
“You can do it. I know you can, Lily.”
“Do what?” My voice turned into a bit of a screech. “Find a book stolen by a professional thief? Find an ingredient that Gus and I have never once seen? All in one week?”
“Yes.” Poppy’s voice was firm as she nodded. “I have faith in you.”
“How? I haven’t done anything yet.”
“You’ve done plenty,” Poppy said. “You don’t think Gus brags about you when you’re not looking? I’ve heard the stories. Plus, I know all about why you had to close up shop today. Creating and serving The Elixir is serious business.”
“How do you know about The Elixir? That just happened this morning.”
“I work dispatch with all of the Rangers, and when things out of the ordinary are happening, it’s their job to know about it. If you think they’d miss something like a request for The Elixir...” Poppy blew out a breath. “Let’s put it this way. They knew the second that man walked into your bungalow.”
“But how?”
“There’s a lot you don’t know about Rangers, and it’s going to have to stay that way. They don’t share their secrets and techniques for a reason, and I really shouldn’t be talking about it. Especially here.” Poppy’s gaze shifted around the room as if she thought we were being watched. “Let’s go find Hettie.”
“Poppy...” I reached for her hand. She stopped abruptly at my touch, and I gave her fingers a squeeze, offering her an olive branch of a smile. “I’m going to find the missing ingredient. Between Gus and me, we’ve got the situation under control. Don’t worry.”
Poppy gave a serene smile. “I’m not worried.”
Chapter 8
After weaving our way through a few more glass hallways, the scenery changed from clean and modern into old and regal in an instant. We passed through tall, stone arches with columns rising high on either side of a path covered by plush red carpet. Purple tapestries dangled from the doorways, hushing the hallway. Statues in all forms of undress posed around us, and for a moment, I might’ve believed I was standing on Mount Olympus itself.
“This place is beautiful,” I said with a note of reverence. “What is it called?”
“The Hall of Fame.” She, too, spoke in a hushed voice. “It’s where we honor the greatest of supernatural beings.”
“And this is where we’ll find Hettie?”
Poppy gave me a sideways glance. “You’ll understand in a minute.”
“Let me guess, Hettie considers herself one of the Greats?”
“She calls herself a goddess,” Poppy trilled as she attempted to stifle a laugh. “It’s not nearly as funny as when she was caught trying to steal a set of fake grapes from an Aphrodite statue. She said they’d look better on her dining room table than in this dusty old hall!”
I covered my mouth to contain my own laughter as we toured deeper and deeper into the regal space.
“That woman, I tell you...” Poppy and I turned a corner, stopping short at the sight before us. “Just like I said.”
Hettie and Zin stood before a wall of trophies. The room was full of them, floor to ceiling. Silver and gold statues, plaques, and other memorabilia.
“I’m just pointing out the statue of myself,” Hettie said without turning around. “Zin doesn’t believe I worked with the Rangers. She was trying to tell me I was in no position to train her. Well, I give you...this. Am I a goddess or what?”
Joining Hettie on her other side, I looked to where she was pointing. The tiniest of all the statues sat at the end of her fingertip. The figurine reminded me of a little army man with a parachute attached to his back, the kind found in the bottom of cereal boxes. Except this statue was of a woman wearing a tiara with a smirk that distinctly matched my grandmother’s. Below the figurine was a tiny plaque that read: Most Valuable....
“What does that say?” I squinted. “The last word is all smudged out.”
“I can’t read it either,” Zin said. “It sort of looks like pinhead?”
“It does not say pinhead!” Hettie flounced a hand on her hip. “How rude.”
“What does it say?” Poppy asked. “I’ve never heard of anyone who knows what the original award was for.”
“No matter,” Hettie said as a pink flush decorated her cheeks. “Isn’t she beautiful?”
“Lovely,” I said.
“Really impressive,” Zin agreed. “And this should explain why you’re allowed to train me...how?”
“Because!” Hettie crossed her arms and puffed out her chest. “Not just anyone gets a statue here.”
“True,” Poppy agreed. “I don’t even have one yet, and I fancy myself an integral part of the workforce.”
“I’ll have one,” Zin vowed, her gaze leveling at the statue. “Just you wait.
”
“Come on, let’s get out of here before someone starts asking questions,” Poppy said. “Pretty soon they’re going to stop letting me show people around because all of my guests cause trouble!”
“Maybe if I could just touch this one last thing...” Hettie reached forward to run her hands along the abs of Hercules. Just as she did so, loud, angry voices erupted behind her.
“I will not accept that as an answer,” a male voice said. “We need to let her find out on her own.”
“We don’t have an option,” a second, quieter male voice said. “We need to hurry. They’re already here.”
“You don’t think she’ll notice all the robes? They’re flocking across The Isle.”
Hettie’s eyes widened, and Poppy’s matched hers.
“We’ve gotta hide,” Poppy said. “That’s the director’s voice.”
“We’re not allowed to be in here?” I blinked at her. “Why’d you take us in here then?”
“I didn’t! Hettie did.”
We both turned on Hettie, who crossed her arms and made a disgruntled noise in her throat. “I refuse to be intimidated by the two of you. I have a statue in here with my name on it. I can be in here if I want.”
“You’re supposed to have special clearance,” Poppy muttered. “Quick, just duck! Duck behind there and we’ll let them pass.”
The four of us scurried behind a partial wall that held a display of marble statues posed like sprinters in the Olympic races.
“This is fun,” Zin said with a dark, mischievous smile. “Really, really fun.”
“It is not fun,” Poppy whimpered. “You guys are going to make me lose my job.”
“Relax,” Hettie said. “I was basically the first female Ranger.”
“No, you have a statue the size of my thumbprint on the wall. That doesn’t make you a Ranger,” Poppy said crossly. “You had a moment of glory, and it does not allow you to wander free around Headquarters three decades after you earned it.”
“Sure it does,” Hettie sniffed and pointed her nose upwards. “Plus, I’m an old, senile woman. I can wander wherever I want and blame it on my age.”
“Nobody thinks you’re senile,” Poppy said. “Crazy, maybe. But that has nothing to do with you being old.”
The two glared at each other until I gestured for them to keep things down. The voices in the hallway were still loud and still angry, and they were getting much closer to us. It didn’t take long for their voices to wash throughout the room as they paused a few paces away.
“Let’s not talk about this here,” the second voice said calmly. “I’m sure there’s a logical explanation for everything. Would you like to come up to my office?”
“We’ll talk about it in here,” the director said. “And we’ll talk now. What is going on?”
We all pushed closer against the wall as the voices lapsed into silence. When the conversation resumed, they were whispering.
“Answer me,” the director said. “Why are they here so soon? I thought we had more time.”
“We can’t be sure, sir.”
“What do you mean? Are you not in charge of Foreign Affairs?”
“This is hardly a Foreign Affair. They’re part of the community just like the rest of us.”
“Anyone who is not from The Isle is foreign for my purposes,” the director said sternly. “This is most certainly foreign.”
“Their presence here is not forbidden.”
“Do we need to make it forbidden?”
“No sir, that would be a drastic measure.” The head of Foreign Affairs sighed. “We believe they’re here to recruit new witches and wizards.”
“Now is not the time to be focusing on recruitment,” he said. “I thought we agreed that until the business with The Faction is done, schooling takes secondary priority.”
“Yes, but there are no laws against it.”
The director paused. “So be it. But what I won’t have is my Mixologist threatened.”
“The Mixologist was threatened?”
“One of the cloaks requested The Elixir. That’s something no Mixologist should have to serve, let alone a beginner.”
I froze at their conversation. Poppy, Zin, and Hettie’s eyes all landed on me, but I looked at the ground. Were people watching my every move?
“The Elixir?” The head of Foreign Affairs asked. “No. That doesn’t make any sense.”
“The potion was served successfully this afternoon.”
“I’ll...I’ll get in contact with the Headmaster,” the head of Foreign Affairs said after clearing his throat. “I apologize. Is the Mixologist handling things all right?”
“As best she can, from what I hear.”
“I’ll take care of it.”
“Pass along this message to the Headmaster, will you? Tell him kindly about the high number of cloaks we’ve seen lately. Let him know...we’re watching.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And Ranger M, one more thing.”
“Sir?”
“If we must ban all recruiting from The Isle, we will. I’ll ban all cloaks if I have to. If they want to be here, I need to know what they are up to, and why. Understood?”
“Yes, sir.”
I imagined the head of Foreign Affairs bowing, or nodding, or whatever it was that Rangers did to acknowledge one another. Did they salute? Footsteps shuffled away shortly after, but only one set of them. The four of us remained crunched behind the wall, waiting to see which of the men had gone and which had stayed.
After a few seconds’ wait, another set of footsteps approached in the hallway. A different voice spoke. A familiar voice. “Director?”
Hettie exhaled an almost audible sigh of relief as the director took a few steps away from the wall.
“What is it, X?”
“There’s a guest for you in the main lobby, sir,” Ranger X said. “Do you have a moment?”
The director hesitated before responding, and for a long second I worried he’d spotted us. “Of course. Will you be joining me?”
“No. It’s a private matter for you, sir. I’m just the messenger.”
“Thank you, X. Any word on the other issue I asked you to keep an eye on?”
“Still working on it, sir.”
“Keep me posted.”
“Of course.”
The now-familiar jaunt of the director’s footsteps sounded as he strode quickly down the hall. Behind the wall, a barely audible sigh sounded as Poppy’s shoulders sank at least three inches in relief.
“Why, hello ladies,” Ranger X said, stepping around the corner. Somehow, he’d made his way across the room soundlessly. “What brings you into hiding today?”
“Oh, you know...” Poppy said, coughing as she straightened up. “Business.”
“Really.” Ranger X raised an eyebrow. “So you have clearance to be in here, then?”
Poppy grinned like a lunatic while Zin wore a scowl on her face that’d have a lesser man shaking in his boots. Hettie licked her lips as she stared up at Ranger X’s tall form. Meanwhile, I watched it all like a dork.
Ranger X wore a suit made of the finest materials money could buy. The fabric begged my hands to touch the sleeves, to run my fingers over its soft contours. The man inside the suit was just as impressive.
With eyes like black diamonds and hair curling into a wavy, matching shade of darkness, the only thing cheerful about him was the twinkle in his eye, and the soft curve of his lips. When he crossed his arms, the jacket moved with him like a suit of armor.
“You look fancy,” Hettie said, breaking the silence. “Did someone die?”
Ranger X looked stunned for a moment, and then gave a low, throaty chuckle. “No, not that I’m aware.”
“You never wear a suit,” Hettie pointed out. She hauled herself to her feet and took a few steps closer to the man, sizing him up as if she were a seamstress about to tailor his clothes. “What’s the big deal?”
Ranger X cocked his head to
the side and studied my pint-sized grandmother. “I’m in the office. We dress nicely here.”
“You normally wear those jeans that give your rear end a really nice shape. At least, when you’re out and about that is.” She circled Ranger X, stopping directly behind him and staring at said butt. “You know, I suppose this isn’t all that bad either. Can I touch it?”
“No!” the three of us girls chorused. “Hettie, stop it. This is a professional workplace.”
“What’s the point of working hard if you can’t have a little fun?” Hettie eyed Ranger X’s backside again like it was a particularly juicy apple. Then with a sigh full of rattling frustration, she shook her head. “Fine. Lily, give it a poke and let me know how it feels.”
“No!” My face burned. “I’m not...we’re not...Hettie,” I chided. “Stop being inappropriate.”
“I’m old and senile. I can say whatever I want.”
Ranger X cleared his throat. “Then tell me what brings you ladies here today.”
“Well, uh, I wanted to visit Poppy,” I said. “I had the day off from the bungalow, and I’d never been here before.”
A flash of recognition blitzed through his eyes as I mentioned the shop closing early. “And that led to you hiding from the director...how?”
“You know Zin is training for the Ranger trials,” Hettie said. “I want to be her instructor.”
Ranger X waited patiently.
“You know how grandkids can get,” Hettie said, twirling her hand in the air in front of her body. “Difficult.”
“I actually know nothing about that,” Ranger X deadpanned. “Since we’re not allowed families.”
“Well, they’re difficult, I tell ya. They think they’re on top of the world.”
“Is that right?”
“Darn tootin’,” Hettie said. She thumbed in Zin’s direction. “This one thought I didn’t know boo about being a Ranger, so I came in here to show her my statue.”
Ranger X glanced over his shoulder, his gaze falling briefly on the army-sized figurine behind him. “I see.”
“Then the director waltzed his way in here, not even minding his own business. So we hid.”
