“The LA Coven has supplied you with ample additional security for the Bestiary. These two just happened to be left over,” Leonidas replied. “Might as well put them to good use.”
Yeah, by watching our every move. “Happened to be left over,” my left ass-cheek. You put them here on purpose, Levi. Your poker face needs work, pal.
“I might have offered more of our people,” he went on, “but you are not the only ones dealing with the endeavors of Katherine Shipton.”
“What do you mean?” I asked sharply.
“It seems her influence is spreading. In the larger picture, these children pale into insignificance.” He glowered at me. “There have been several thefts across the country.”
“The break-ins at the Magical Artifact Armory at Fort Knox?” Alton gasped.
“Among others. These attempts at theft are taking up many of our resources. We are trying to stay one step ahead of Katherine Shipton and determine her next target. As you can imagine, it leaves us with little force to spare for something as trifling as a handful of missing kids. The Bestiary is different, as that affects us all. Two soldiers of the LA Coven will be more than enough for this task.”
I gawked at him. “Katherine Shipton is stealing magical artifacts, and nobody thought to say anything? Plus, I don’t think the abduction of children is ‘insignificant.’ Maybe to you, but to us they’re innocent lives, and they’re at stake here. Aren’t we supposed to protect all magicals, adults and children alike?”
“She hasn’t managed to steal anything yet, Miss Merlin,” Leonidas snapped. “Our repeated attempts to stop her are what’s been keeping us otherwise engaged. And I would ask that you don’t twist my words. Children are, of course, important. I simply meant that we have other things on our minds. Matters of national security, rather than regional.”
“Of course we’ll welcome Miss Chang and Mr. Madison, Director Waterhouse, Mage Levi,” Wade interjected, shooting me a look that said, “Calm the hell down.” Was I the only one who felt completely freaked out by the idea that Katherine was trying to get her hands on powerful stuff?
“Is there anything we can do to help with the robbery attempts?” I pressed.
Leonidas snorted. “No. Our people are dealing with it. You would only get in the way. Now, please do as Crowley suggested and get better acquainted with your new team members. I have had quite enough of the SDC and its… quirks for one day.”
Leonidas Levi was certainly full of himself, and then some. Refusing our help in such a stinging fashion was downright rude, and we deserved a little more respect than that. On the other hand, they probably had their most skilled folks dealing with this. They wouldn’t sit on their asses while Katherine tries to mug them. Fine, Levi. Have it your way.
I hung back as introductions were made. Honestly, I wasn’t sure how to feel about these newcomers. It was bad enough that we already had a mole inside the SDC. A thousand uncertainties haunted these hallways even without two complete strangers being added to the mix.
I glowered at Leonidas, who glowered back. Not that he scared me. I wasn’t one to fall for his intimidation tactics. He could bring in all the hawks, if he wanted. He wasn’t going to see us slip up. All this did was strengthen my resolve to catch my crazy-ass aunt and find those kids. And when we do that, it’s going to be sooooo satisfying to watch you struggle to apologize to all of us, Levi.
Frankly, I didn’t know which I was looking forward to more—stopping Katherine or hearing Levi’s future apology.
Four
Harley
Eventually, I had to bite the bullet and introduce myself to Stella and Channing. I almost had to check to see if they had rods up their backs; they were standing so freaking straight the whole time.
“Harley Merlin, pleased to meet you,” I said, offering out my hand for them to shake. I went to Stella first, figuring she was the less intimidating of the two.
“We’re aware of who you are,” she replied curtly. Hmm… maybe not the less intimidating.
“Well, glad to have you helping us out.”
“It’s our duty to obey the California Mage Council’s orders,” was all she said. It was like squeezing blood out of a particularly stubborn stone.
I moved on to Captain Beefcake. “Nice to meet you, Channing.”
“Yes, it is.” His voice came out practically robotic. I scanned his eyes to make sure there weren’t two tiny, orb-shaped computers staring out. Maybe there’s a reset button and we can get the fun version to come out.
“I… hope you like it here in San Diego.”
He didn’t respond, his gaze dead ahead.
“At ease, soldier,” I teased, garnering a cold look from his gray eyes. “We don’t really go in for the whole GI Joe thing here.”
“No, I can see that you’re less disciplined.”
Was he throwing shade at me? I frowned and stepped back, letting Wade attempt to break through the icy façades of our new teammates.
I could see that Channing and Stella came from a very different type of organization than the one we had going here in San Diego. For starters, we were all dressed casually in jeans and t-shirts, except for Wade, in a suit vest from his endless wardrobe, while they were rocking full-on military uniforms, complete with what looked like medal-ribbons on their chests. San Diego loved its rules and regulations, for sure, but these guys were something else—they gave off strict, army-like vibes.
“I never thought I’d say this, but San Diego is practically horizontal compared to these guys,” I whispered to Santana, who nodded discreetly.
“They make us look like amateurs,” she whispered back. “Even Wade looks unprofessional compared to these two.”
I looked at him to see what she meant. Wade was a head shorter than Channing and nowhere near as broad or muscular. That wasn’t what set them apart, though. The way the two newcomers held themselves was totally different. They looked serious, like they meant business. We looked like we were just in this for the giggles, all of us running around playing at being magical investigators.
“It’s okay, we don’t bite,” Wade joked. “No fangs here. Well, unless you check the Bestiary.”
“There’s no need for us to check the Bestiary. We have our best officers stationed there for the safety of this coven. Security has been lax and insufficient, considering the threat level,” Channing replied abruptly. “Have we established a plan of action for seeking the swift return of these missing children?”
The Rag Team looked at one another in complete disbelief.
“We were in the middle of planning when you came in,” Wade replied coolly.
“It seems a bit late in the day,” Channing remarked. “I would’ve thought there’d already be a plan in place.”
“Nope, but we’re getting to it,” I chimed in, backing Wade up. These two acted like they were the epitome of what it meant to be a coven agent. Personally, I saw two uptight snobs who were more than happy to look down on us without bothering to get to know us.
Stella cast an assertive glance across everyone. “No matter. We’re here now to improve the efficiency of this… group. I’m sure we can work together toward a suitable conclusion.”
Channing smirked. “There’s no point trying to befriend the locals, Stella. They wouldn’t know how to run an investigation. San Diego is known for its slackness; I just didn’t realize how bad it was. We’re working with a bunch of amateurs here.” I noticed he kept his voice low so Alton wouldn’t hear. He was standing to one side, in deep conversation with the Mage Council. I guessed they were talking about the robberies. The news had freaked Alton right out.
Wade scowled at my side. “Might I remind you that you are guests of the SDC,” he said. “You might think we’re ‘lax’ or inferior in some way, but it wasn’t the LA Coven who thwarted the first wave of Katherine Shipton’s plans, was it? Agreed, there have been a few bumps in the road, but we’ve successfully disposed of the Ryder twins and stopped Finch Shipton from
causing mass chaos. Pretty good for a bunch of ‘slackers,’ if I do say so myself.”
Stella smiled unexpectedly. “He has a point, Channing.” Her eyes lingered on Wade’s face. “Wade, right?”
“Right.”
“Did you lead the investigative team that brought down Finch and the Ryder twins?”
He shrugged. “I had a part to play in it, sure.”
“That must have been dangerous, taking on such powerful people,” she said. Her dark eyes glittered as they held Wade’s gaze. “I’d like to hear more about it, if you have a moment to spare sometime? It’s always a good idea to get to know your enemy."
“You think I’m your enemy?”
She laughed. “No, I meant Katherine Shipton. I’ve read the reports, but it would be nice to hear what happened directly from the horse’s mouth.”
I stared at Wade, who seemed to have forgotten the rest of us were there. He smiled back at Stella and folded his arms across his chest. A flutter of self-gratification moved through me, flowing from Wade. He was flattered by Stella’s attention. Irritation smothered the flattery, though the annoyance was all my own. Stella’s little coven buddy had just called us all inferior amateurs, and here Wade was, enjoying her pandering.
Men.
Alton stepped forward, breaking my irritation. “Well, now that you’re all suitably introduced, maybe we should get to the task at hand? This entire endeavor is of the utmost urgency.” His face turned solemn. “Those children are out there, and we have to get them back. We’ve made promises to the parents who remain, foster and magical alike, and we’ve made promises to ourselves. We’ll bring them into our family, where we can protect them.”
“Because you did such a good job the last time?” Leonidas grumbled.
“If memory serves, you were the ones who told us to keep the children at their homes,” Alton shot back. “I suggested bringing them all here to the coven, where we could better protect them, but you wanted to use them as bait. It backfired, and now we’re cleaning up that mess before anyone else gets killed.”
Leonidas frowned. “You should watch your tongue, Alton. You have yet to earn back our trust,” he growled. “Do not forget that you and your coven remain on probation. The Council is watching your every move until we are satisfied that everything being done here has met our expectations. You kept your secrets from us once—you won’t get to do so again.”
“I’m not trying to,” Alton replied. “I’m merely pointing out the facts. We wouldn’t be in this situation if you had allowed me to bring the children here, as soon as it became clear they weren’t safe in their homes any longer.”
“Listen, Waterhouse, all I’m saying is, if you so much as sneeze in a way that I don’t like, we will come down on you so hard you won’t know what hit you.”
“Well, I imagine it’ll be you. You just said so,” I said, drawing Levi’s ire away from Alton.
“I’d advise you to toe the line as well, Merlin, especially after your little display today,” he said. “You see, the surname ‘Merlin’ doesn’t mean a damn thing anymore. It won’t get you anywhere fast, unless you’ve got your eye on Purgatory.”
Alton raised his palms as Levi and I faced off. “We’re getting away from the matter at hand. This is about the children,” he urged. “It isn’t about the reason they’re missing, or who’s to blame. We just need to fix it and get them back. Astrid, what information do you have already?”
Astrid whipped out her tablet, which was connected to her brilliant Smartie AI system. “There are eleven children on our list who were specifically targeted by the Ryder twins. All of them are missing, with the exception of Marjorie Phillips, who ran away before she could be captured. She may still be at large, which puts her as a priority. She’s seventeen and appears to have Air and Clairvoyance in her skillset. Some of these abilities are assumptions, based on what we’ve heard from parents or witness reports.
“Then we have Micah Cranston, age five, who has Telekinesis and Earth. Mina Travis, age six, with Telekinesis, Water, and Air. Samson Ledermeyer, age three, whose powers remain unknown. Then there’s Min-Ho Lee, age twelve, who has Herculean and Earth abilities. Andrew Prescott, age nine, whose powers also remain unknown. We also have Emilio Vasquez, age eight, who has Fire and Herculean abilities, and Cassie Moore, age eleven, who is an Empath and a Morph.”
I nudged Wade in the side. “Morph?”
“Magicals who can transfer their consciousness into animals.”
“They turn into animals?”
He shook his head impatiently. “No, they can only take over the mind of an animal—use its body as a vessel, that kind of thing. Their human body stays where it is.”
“Right, thanks.” I hadn’t seen it mentioned in any of the books I’d read so far. “Is it a rare ability?”
He nodded. “Rarer than Shapeshifting. Now hush. Astrid is talking.”
“Then, there’s Sarah McCormick, age ten, who appears to have Supersonic abilities, albeit fledgling and unconfirmed. Lastly, we have Denzel Ford, age six, whose powers remain unknown.”
“What about Louella Devereaux?” Dylan asked. “Have we given up on her?”
Alton grimaced. “I’m afraid there’s no use looking for her. We found her body shortly after the Ryders were captured,” he explained. “Well, what was left of her, anyway. Half a leg and most of an arm, both positively identified as belonging to the poor girl.”
A solemn silence hung over the group for a moment. I remembered the corkboard in the abandoned warehouse. Her face, crossed out. It had seemed unlikely that Louella had survived, but I’d been hopeful that she’d managed to get away. My heart gripped in an angry vise. They’d killed her in cold blood. The sick bastards.
“Any news on Kenneth Willow?” I asked, recalling the psychotic teenager with the bow-tie Esprit. He’d been the Ryders’ easiest target. All they’d had to do was push the big red button in his mind, and he’d lapped it up—a readymade soldier to join their army. I knew I was supposed to keep an open mind, but Kenneth had simply been waiting for that kind of opportunity to come along. The evil in him was innate.
Astrid shook her head. “He hasn’t shown up anywhere, which makes me think he’s keeping a low profile. Maybe the Ryders took him to wherever Katherine Shipton is hiding. It’s hard to know where he might be, but we should probably keep him on the list—see if we can find him. He might be the one person who can lead us to Katherine’s hideout.”
“Very good,” Alton announced. “It sounds like you’ve got everything taken care of, and I’m sure the Mage Council members are eager to get back to their duties. How about we leave them to it, and see where Mage Mephiles has gotten to?” He turned to the other three, a polite smile fixed on his face. I sensed deceit gripping his chest. He didn’t want to leave because we had everything taken care of; he wanted to leave because he didn’t want Leonidas to overhear anything we might say.
Keeping secrets again, Alton? I don’t blame you.
“That sounds like an excellent idea, Alton,” Imogene replied, before turning to me. “I hope we will meet again soon, Harley. Perhaps I could bring you a gift from my dear friend’s shop, to congratulate you on your fresh start and bright future.”
I smiled, my chest swelling with pride. “I’d like that very much, Mage Whitehall. It’s been a hot minute since we’ve chatted.”
“It has been much too long. But we’ll remedy that soon, I promise.”
After a brief farewell, the four turned on their heels and swept out of the Aquarium, with Leonidas banging the glass one last time. In the wake of their exit, a tense calm settled over the remaining group. Everything seemed to be a competition to Stella and Channing, and we appeared to be playing the silent game.
Wade cleared his throat. “I agree about keeping our eyes peeled for Kenneth. He might be the bridge between us and Katherine. A sort of Finch substitute, since the white-haired wonder isn’t squeaking a word about dear old Mom,” he muttered. “No
w, what kind of leads have we got on the children, Astrid? Are there any we can follow—any sightings or chatter on the news platforms?”
“If it’s all the same to you, Stella and I will conduct our own investigation,” Channing cut in. “We know what we’re doing, and, to be honest, it doesn’t seem like you have any idea what you’re doing. Other than a list of names, you have nothing. Plus, it saves us bringing the rest of you up to speed on the way we conduct things in the LA Coven. You can play detectives around the city, if you want. We’ll bring home the kids.”
He wouldn’t have dared say that had Alton still been here. You might look like a rhino, but you’re a timid little mouse in the face of authority. Coward.
“Are you kidding? We need to work together on this,” Wade insisted. “This is our case. We have the intel. We’ve met these kids—they know us. Do you really think they’re going to follow two strangers, after being snatched by the Ryder twins?”
“A rescue is a rescue. The kids’ feelings don’t come into it.” Channing glowered at Wade. “See, this is why we’re better equipped for the job than you. You put too much weight on emotion. This is our duty, plain and simple. A task. A job. That’s it. Throwing emotions into the mix does nothing but cloud judgment.”
Wow, they have militarized you to within an inch of your humanity.
Wade appeared to be handling the backtalk. Throughout the conversation, I’d barely felt any kind of emotion coming off Channing, and it wasn’t because he was a secret Shapeshifter. I could sense the difference. Where Garrett’s ability kept his feelings hidden, Channing just didn’t feel anything. The perfect soldier.
Stella, on the other hand, appeared to be a little more human. There was no mistaking the frisson of attraction she felt toward Wade; it pulsed through me like static electricity, setting the fine hairs of my forearm on edge. I tried to ignore the sensation as best I could, though it was pretty difficult with her making doe eyes at him.
Harley Merlin 3: Harley Merlin and the Stolen Magicals Page 5
