Batter and Spells

by Zoe Arden

  At nine, news reports began to trickle in calling for a close contest between Mayor Thomas and Hadley Miner. By ten, the announcement was made. The news stations all agreed. Hadley Miner was the uncontested winner. The other candidates all called to offer their congratulations, including Eleanor.

  "What kind of mayor do you think Hadley will make?" I asked my family. They all shrugged.

  "This is the first time in history anything like this has happened," Eleanor said. "I just hope she does a good job."

  * * *

  CHAPTER

  THIRTY

  .

  .

  .

  * * *

  * * *

  .

  "You're dead," Colt said as he walked into the Mystic Cupcake.

  I blinked at him, feeling my father's eyes on the back of my neck.

  "That's not funny," I told him.

  "I'm not joking," he said. "Remember that Sheriff Knoxx body double that washed up on Mistmoor Beach?"

  I nodded. Of course, I remembered it.

  "Well, we got another one."

  "Another body double?" I asked.

  "Yep. Only this time, it's you they're doubling."

  "One of the assassins," I breathed. "They're dead?"

  "Looks that way," Colt said.

  "How were they killed?" my father asked.

  Trixie and Eleanor were still in the back. They came out when they heard Colt's voice.

  "Oh, hi, Colt," Trixie said. "How's your dad doing?"

  "Fine, thanks," Colt said.

  "Guys!" I cried excitedly, jumping up and down. "I'm dead!"

  "Ava, please," my father said, frowning at me. His eyes were dark and worried.

  "What?" I asked. "It's not really me. It's one of the assassins."

  Trixie and Eleanor exchanged a look. "The assassins?" Eleanor asked, trying to keep up. "I think Trixie and I missed something while we were working on our Venus chocolate lava cakes."

  "One of the assassins just washed up on Mistmoor Beach," I told her.

  "Uh, hold on a second," Colt said. "I didn't say they washed up on Mistmoor Beach. I said it was like the other body who washed up on Mistmoor Beach. This one washed up on our beach. Sweetland Beach. And to answer your question, Eli, they were killed the same way as the first one. A death curse."

  "A death curse," I murmured, feeling my insides tighten.

  Death curses were horrible. People didn't even like to discuss them because the mere idea of them made people feel ill. Essentially, a death curse was dark magic. An evil spell you cast on someone, which killed them either instantly or slowly, depending on the way you worded it. Most witches and wizards didn't even know how to cast a death curse. They weren't exactly the type of thing taught in school growing up.

  "So why are you here?" Trixie asked Colt. "Not that you're not welcome, it's just that I have the feeling this is more than just a visit to keep us informed."

  Colt blushed and cleared his throat, and I knew Trixie had hit the nail on the head. "Well, we're not sure what this means. There's still another assassin out there, and he may have killed this guy so that he could keep the bounties on everyone's head for himself."

  He looked around to gauge our reactions. "Sheriff Knoxx is stuck at the beach, but once we realized it was an assassin who was dead and not a local or a tourist, he wanted me to make sure that you knew." Colt cleared his throat again. "So you could be protected."

  "Protected?" I asked. "What do you mean?"

  "He'd like you all to go to my apartment and hang out with my dad for a while." I admired the way he tried to phrase it like it was a fun get together rather than an order of protection. Hang out? Really? As if any of us were going to buy that.

  We looked around at each other uncertainly. Our eyes stopped on Eleanor, whose face was growing redder by the second.

  "Please tell the sheriff that we are more than capable of protecting ourselves, thank you," Eleanor said. Clearly, she had no intention of going anywhere. We would follow her lead on this one. After all, she was the sheriff's fiancée, if she didn't go, why should we?

  "My dad would actually love the company," Colt said, trying a different angle. "You'd be helping him out as much as Sheriff Knoxx. He's already called Melbourne and he agreed to meet you all there."

  "Who called Melbourne?" Trixie asked, suddenly alert.

  "Sheriff Knoxx."

  "And Mel actually agreed to meet us there?" Trixie asked, her eyes lighting up. Colt had just won her over. I groaned, knowing this was going to make it harder to get out of this now. She was excited that Melbourne had not only agreed to leave his house, but had even agreed to surround himself with people and another vampire.

  "We just need to grab a few things," Trixie said, running into the back for a tray of chocolate cherry AB-positive brownies, made especially for Melbourne.

  "Okay," I agreed.

  Eleanor shot me an annoyed look. "It's not even six," she complained.

  I knew she didn't want to go either, but I would actually feel better if she was there surrounded by people I knew could protect her. On that account, Sheriff Knoxx was right. Two vampires and a roomful of people were her best protection against an assassin's attack. Her name was still on that hit list, even though she'd lost the election. Thaddeus had won, and he'd still been murdered, I didn't think things were over just yet.

  That being said, there was no way I was going to Colt's place, not when my own lookalike was washed up on the beach. I wanted to see what was going on. I slipped my phone from my pocket and pretended to fidget with something behind the counter while I texted Lucy. The beach wasn't far from here. I told Lucy to meet me there and quickly changed the subject before Colt could ask me what I was doing.

  "So, do you think the assassin who's still alive is going after Hadley next?" I asked whoever wanted to answer.

  "That is the assumption we're working on," Colt said. "It would make sense. The last person who died was Thaddeus, and it was right after he’d won. Now that Hadley's won, she must be worth the most money. Her bounty's probably doubled."

  "So, what are you doing to protect her?" Eleanor asked. "She gets sworn in tomorrow and tonight is her victory party."

  Unlike Thaddeus, Hadley had decided to keep her party small, family and close friends only. I didn't blame her, not if there was an assassin out there waiting to get to her. She had to protect herself, after all.

  "Lincoln has people on it," Colt said.

  We all shuffled out of the store, locking the door behind us, and just managed to fit into Colt's car. Barely. Colt dropped us off in front of his apartment but didn't wait until we got upstairs. He was in a hurry to get back to the beach.

  "Oops," I said, snapping my fingers when he was gone. "I forgot something at the store. I'll run down there and be right back."

  "What did you forget?" my dad asked.

  "My... headache medicine."

  "Oh, I could use some of that," Eleanor said.

  "Me, too," said Trixie.

  My father looked at me suspiciously, but the bakery was only a ten-minute walk and it was still sunny outside. We'd closed up shop early enough that people were still out, milling around, going about their business. Despite Colt and Sheriff Knoxx's concern, none of us really felt like we were in danger right now. My father relented and I hurried off in the direction of our shop. Once I was around the corner, I turned toward the beach.

  * * *

  CHAPTER

  THIRTY-ONE

  .

  .

  .

  * * *

  * * *

  .

  Colt and Sheriff Knoxx were easy enough to spot when I arrived. I hid behind some giant beach rocks, not unlike the ones I'd climbed at Mistmoor Beach. They were jagged and ran high toward the clouds. I had to be careful not to cut myself on them. The ones at Mistmoor had been slightly smoother.

  A minute later, I heard my name.

  "Ava!" Lucy cried, running toward me
on the sand. She was wearing shorts and a tank top. Her flip-flops clapped across the sand, louder than you would have thought possible

  "Sssh! I don't want them to hear," I said, nodding toward Sheriff Knoxx and Colt. They were studying the body and were completely unaware of me so far, too absorbed in their work to notice much else around them.

  "What's going on?" Lucy asked. I hadn't given her all the details yet.

  "They found one of the assassins. The one who's been doubling as me. They're dead." Lucy's eyes widened. "I just want to see what's happening."

  "That's so morbid," Lucy said. "Your body's just lying out there decomposing on the beach. Gross."

  "It's not my body, Lucy, it's the assassin's. It only looks like me because they've been wearing a disguise."

  We watched Colt, Sheriff Knoxx, and Dr. Dunne examine the body on the sand. They finally laid a blanket over it and brushed their hands on their pants, then stood around stretching.

  "They're done," I said.

  "Now what?" Lucy looked eager to find out more about what was happening but also a little nervous about being so near a dead body, especially when that dead body belonged to an assassin. She was braver than most people, though, and I knew she'd go along with whatever I wanted.

  "Let's see if we can get closer," I told her.

  She looked at me skeptically.

  "Closer to the dead Ava?" she asked, suppressing a laugh. "I'm surprised Colt isn't crying over you now, trying to give you one last kiss as Sheriff Knoxx struggles to pull him off your lifeless corpse."

  "Now who's being morbid?" I asked. "You have a sick sense of humor, my friend."

  I started creeping along the sand, using the rocks as cover.

  Lucy was still giggling.

  "What do you think we're going to see?"

  "I don't know, but I think—"

  I stopped walking. Lucy almost ran into me. "Why'd you stop?" she asked.

  "Look," I said.

  She followed the direction I was pointing to.

  "Oh, my roses."

  A man in black stood on a rock not far from us, his hands on his hips. I could see his form but not his face. He watched the scene below him. I gasped louder than I meant to and his head instinctively turned toward us. His eyes widened. I knew he recognized me when he saw me. He hesitated half a second, thinking, then he started to run.

  "It's him!" I shouted, taking off after him. "The last assassin!"

  I chased him off the rocks and across the sand. I had wanted to keep out of sight but it was too late for that now. This was too important.

  "Colt! Colt!" I yelled as I ran, turning my head just enough so that I could see whether he'd heard me. He was still standing around the body talking to Sheriff Knoxx. I sucked in a great gulp of air and tried again.

  "COLT! SHERIFF KNOXX!" This time I screamed at the top of my lungs. I was still running as fast as I could, I couldn't let the assassin get away.

  Colt and Sheriff Knoxx both turned in my direction. They looked angry when they saw me, then their eyes took in the man I was chasing. They started chasing him, too.

  I was closing in on him. Just a few more feet. I tripped over a rock and landed in the sand. "Ugh!" I muttered. Without even thinking about it, I grabbed the rock that had tripped me and threw it at him. It hit his head and the assassin stumbled forward before falling to the ground.

  "Woohoo!" Lucy shouted from way behind me.

  I clamored to my feet and made it to the assassin at the same time as Sheriff Knoxx and Colt.

  "You're under arrest," Sheriff Knoxx began, "for the murder of Thaddeus Black, the attempted murders of Tazzie Singer and—"

  "It wasn't me!" he cried. The assassin was wearing a fake nose that made him look a lot like Mayor Thomas. Sheriff Knoxx pulled it off. It wasn't just the nose. It was most of the lower half of his face that peeled away. It was all plastic or something.

  "What do you mean it wasn't you?" I asked.

  "Ava, get back," Colt said, but I didn't budge.

  Lucy was beside us now. "Cool," she said when she saw the fake mask in the sheriff's hand.

  "I didn't kill Thaddeus Black. Greg got him. Not me."

  "Who's Greg?" Sheriff Knoxx asked, dragging the assassin to his feet.

  "The guy back there. The one you found."

  "What's your name?"

  "Call me Albert. Or Al."

  "So, you killed Greg because he got the money for killing Thaddeus? The money you wanted. You wanted to make sure it didn't happen again," Sheriff Knoxx said.

  "No. I mean, yes, I wanted the money, but Greg and I had agreed to split the lists. I was gonna take Sweetland; he was gonna take Mistmoor."

  "So, what happened?" Colt asked. "What went wrong?"

  "What went wrong is that the person who hired us double crossed us. They killed the first assassin, the one who looked like you," Al said, looking at Sheriff Knoxx. "Our employer said he was bad on the job. But now they killed Greg, too, and Greg was the best there was. Now they're gonna kill me, I know it. They're shutting us up. Tying up loose ends."

  "Who is?" I asked.

  "I don't know." Al's eyes looked wild, scared. "We never met our employer. None of us did, I swear it. It was all done on the computer or over the phone. Nothing in person, that's the way they wanted it. You gotta believe me. You gotta protect me."

  "Protect you?" Sheriff Knoxx asked, surprised. "You're an assassin."

  "Yeah, but this guy... they're evil. Pure evil, man."

  "If you want protection, you need to give us something in return. Where did this person find you? How do you contact them?"

  "Look," Al said, "all I know is that they work in the mayor's office."

  Everyone shut up at once. "The mayor's office?" I asked.

  "Yeah."

  "Which mayor?" asked Lucy.

  Al shrugged. "Don't know. Never asked. Now, are you gonna help me or what?"

  * * *

  CHAPTER

  THIRTY-TWO

  .

  .

  .

  * * *

  * * *

  .

  Colt called his dad and told everyone I was okay. Lucy was chastised for helping me slip away from my family, and we were both yelled at for putting ourselves in a dangerous situation.

  "You put yourself in dangerous situations all the time," I told Colt, my hands on my hips.

  "Yeah, but Ava, I'm a detective. It's my job. I work for the Council on Magic and Human Affairs." I could tell it took every ounce of strength he had not to roll his eyes at me.

  "Look," Lucy said, patting Colt on the back. He looked at her like she was nuts. I suppressed a laugh. "Your girlfriend is a little... carefree. She likes a little excitement in her life. I suggest you get used to it. You'll be a lot happier if you do." She was smiling at him as if she'd just given him the best piece of advice in the world.

  This time, I couldn't help myself. I burst out laughing.

  "What's so funny?" Lucy asked. "You know I'm right."

  I nodded and turned back to the interrogation room, where the assassin was being questioned. We were watching him through the two-way mirror again. Now that he was under the lights and his mask had been removed, it became clear to all of us that he was not the same assassin who had sat in this room before, the one who had escaped.

  The escape artist had been Greg, the dead Ava lookalike. Al had no idea how Greg had escaped but claimed that Greg was one of the best assassins in the business. I couldn't help wondering how he'd gotten himself killed if he was so great at his job.

  "Is he better than you?" Sheriff Knoxx asked.

  "Better than me," Al said, "though it pains me to admit that."

  There was a knock on the door. Lincoln stepped into the room. He shut it behind him and muttered a round of hellos.

  "Hey," Lucy said. "Is Felicity with you?"

  Lincoln rolled his eyes, which was a yes. They'd probably been together when Sheriff Knoxx had called him. Just like me,
Felicity wasn't easy to get rid of when there was an investigation going on. Lucy excused herself to go talk to her.

  "I got here as fast as I could," Lincoln said. "Where are we at?"

  "He's confessed," Colt said. "I don't know what to make of it. Never seen a thing like it before. This guy's a professional yet he's acting like he's scared of the boogeyman."

  "You ever met the boogeyman?" Lincoln asked. "I used to dream about him when I was a kid. If I was working for him now, I'd be scared, too."

  Colt knocked on the window. There was no point in hiding that we were back here; the assassin knew. Most criminals understood the basics of a police station, even a small one like Sweetland's.

  Sheriff Knoxx held up one finger, give me a minute, and went back to questioning Al, who we all agreed was probably not really named Al. Sheriff Knoxx had already tried searching his fingerprints in the database and nothing had come back. At least, not yet. Colt had sent the prints off to COMHA for a more extensive search. It would take a lot longer to come back with results, though, and in the end, it might not even matter. A professional like this almost never left prints behind.

  "Was it a man or a woman who hired you?" Sheriff Knoxx asked.

  "I told you, I don't know."

  "Don't know or you won't say?"

  "I don't know."

  "Are you sure there aren't any more assassins on Heavenly Haven?"

  Al paused, considering. "Pretty sure. My employer hired the first one, whose name I don't know. They turned up dead early on, then Greg and I were hired. The thing is, we didn't even know there were two of us until we bumped into each other."

  "Then what?"

  Al sighed. They'd been going around in circles like this for an hour already.