Familiar Magic: An Uncanny Kingdom Urban Fantasy (The London Coven Series Book 1)

by M. V. Stott

  ‘Well? Let’s see this ‘magic’ then. Unless you’re talking out of your bum because you’re insane.’

  ‘Detective David Tyler?’

  ‘Yes?’

  The ancient words ran through my head as I reached out one hand and pushed them towards him. ‘Shhh.’

  I watched, amused, as David waited for something to happen, for the fireworks to begin. Perhaps disappointed, perhaps satisfied that I’d been lying all along, he smiled and opened his mouth to say something…

  …only no words came out.

  ‘It’s no use trying,’ I said, as David’s eyes opened so wide it seemed like they were in danger of falling out. He gripped his throat, pulled at his tongue, walked around in a little circle of panic, all the time trying and failing to speak.

  Finally he stopped and turned to me, mouthing some words, wide and slow.

  ‘”What have I done?” I cast a spell on you. Just a little one. It’s called the spell of silence and robs anyone its cast upon of their voice for a short time. Or until the spell is reversed.’

  I pictured the words in my head once again, but this time reversed them, before reaching out to him: ‘Speak.’

  ‘—uck is going on? I…! Wait… I can talk! Hello? Hello? This is David.’ He looked up at me, relieved beyond belief. ‘I can talk!’

  ‘Yes, congratulations, you’re neck and neck with a two-year-old.’

  He stopped rubbing at his throat and the relief began to drain from him as a horrible reality dawned.

  ‘That was… was that…?’

  ‘Magic?’

  ‘Yeah. That was magic, wasn’t it? I mean, sort of, magic-magic. David Blaine, but not tricksy bullshit.’

  ‘Your face has gone very pale.’

  ‘I’m just going to sit down and tremble for a moment or two, if that’s okay?’

  ‘Okay.’

  David sat down, placed his elbows on the table and his head in his hands. ‘This is insane. This is completely insane...’

  ‘Would you like to see more?’

  David looked to me, eyes wide, and shrugged. ‘Can’t hurt. Unless it can, in which case… still yes.’

  I smiled and prepared myself to blow his mind.

  7

  ‘Is that… that’s me!’

  David hopped up onto his feet and backed up a little, staring with a mixture of confusion and wonder at the replica of him I’d just made appear between us. This David, this simulacrum of David, glimmered with colour, magical sparks popping and fizzing around it. It wasn’t solid, it wouldn’t fool anyone that it was the real thing. This conjured David was see-through, like a ghost. It took more power than I knew how to cope with to create a true double, a double that could replace someone and fool even the closest of friends.

  ‘Officer David Tyler, meet Officer David Tyler.’

  The copy smiled and waved to him, ‘Hey there.’

  ‘Okay. Okay, that is very disturbing. Also, I am at least an inch taller than that, and my shoulders are a lot broader.’

  ‘Afraid not.’

  I passed my hands through the double and he began to break apart, drifting like smoke.

  ‘Bye, David; good to meet you.’

  David waved to his double as it faded from view. ‘You too...’

  ‘Well?’ I asked. ‘Convinced?’

  He looked to me; I knew what he was feeling. Bewildered, excited, terrified, I’d seen the emotions pass over more than a few normals in my time as the London Coven’s Familiar.

  ‘Stella.’

  ‘Yes?’

  ‘What did you put in that coffee?’

  I sighed and dropped my chin to my chest.

  ‘That’s all this is, must be. You put something… something illegal in my coffee and now I’m seeing things. Hallucinating. Tripping off my tits. That’s all there is to it.’

  ‘Nope.’

  ‘No?’

  ‘Definitely not.’

  He put his hands on his hips and huffed for a second, searching for what to say next. ‘Well… I’m still getting that coffee tested.’

  ‘Stop. You know it’s not true. You know what I showed you was real, admit it.’

  David’s breathing slowed as he calmed down and took a seat again.

  ‘Okay.’

  ‘Okay?’

  ‘Look, I’m not completely closed-minded. I’m open to the idea of, you know, the supernatural. Aliens. Strange shit. But… look, this is just a lot to wrap my head around this early in the morning, okay?’

  I sat opposite him and reached out, placing a hand over his. I thought he might pull away, but his hand remained under mine. ‘You’ve no need to be scared of me, David.’

  ‘Who said I was scared?’

  ‘Your hand is trembling.’

  ‘Okay. Maybe a touch, you know, terrified.’

  ‘Magic is real. I use it to help people. I suppose you could say I’m the magical equivalent of you.’

  ‘So, you’re a what? A magic detective? Harry Potter with a badge?’

  I smiled, ‘Sort of. I’m the Familiar to a coven of witches.’

  A long pause.

  ‘Okay,’ said David. ‘Witches. Coven. I’m following.’

  ‘London is a hub of the Uncanny. All kinds of magical sorts run around these streets. If they were left to do whatever they wanted it would be chaos. It’s my coven’s job to try and keep things under control.’

  ‘So these witches, are we talking big floppy hats, broomsticks, black cats, giant warty noses?’

  I laughed and shook my head, ‘No. Afraid not. They look more like a group of middle-aged women at a knitting circle. Well… looked like.’

  ‘Looked like? As in, past tense?’

  I pulled my hand away and closed my eyes, hoping for dark, instead seeing that room, empty of magic, covered in the blood and torn flesh of my masters. My creators. My friends.

  ‘They’re dead. Murdered.’

  ‘What? Okay, I need to call this in, the police can—’

  ‘No. The police can’t do anything, this is way beyond their, you know, remit. This wasn’t a simple break-in. Nothing can get into my coven that isn’t invited; believe me when I say that place is locked up tight. If you had tried to wander in and we didn’t want you there, your heart would have exploded out of your ribcage before you took a second step.’

  ‘Right. Okay. Gross, but cool. Go on.’

  ‘Whoever did this to my coven is…’ I shivered despite myself. ‘They’re powerful beyond anything I’ve come across before, and they’re going to come after me. They already tried, that’s how I ended up here. Somehow. Not sure of the specifics there, but I’m grateful of the end result.’

  ‘Look, if what you’re saying is true, if someone just murdered some women on my streets, I’m not going to just look past that. I don’t care how high and mighty the perp is. I’m involved now whatever, end of discussion.’

  ‘You already helped me. Kept me safe.’

  ‘That’s my job, Stella. I don’t take a lot seriously, but the oath I took? That I do.’

  I sighed and nodded. ‘Okay. So I owe you the truth, and you’re probably not going to like it.’

  ‘Well, today’s the day for surprises that make me want to poop myself, so go ahead, what is it? You’re not best buds with the Loch Ness Monster are you?’

  ‘We’ve met, but no.’

  ‘Okay, I’m probably going to want to circle back to that another time, but go on.’

  ‘Here’s the thing, David, by helping me, you might have placed a big, neon target on your back.’

  David did one of his slow nods again: ‘So, some almighty magic man is probably going to try and murder me?’

  ‘Yes. Sorry about that.’

  David sighed and rubbed at his eyes with the heels of his hands. ‘I’ve only been up twenty minutes…’

  8

  Murder, magic and mayhem were a lot to take in on an empty stomach, so we made our way to a nearby cafe. It was the sort of plac
e that stank of last decade’s fat and cigarette smoke.

  ‘I’ll pay,’ I said.

  ‘Oh yeah, you’re definitely paying,’ was David’s reply. Which, given the circumstances, was fair enough.

  We sat in silence as David ate, the quiet giving me chance to think things over and over and over. The witches were dead, so where did that leave me? What was I without them? I only existed because they decided I would. My entire purpose for being was to do as they asked. I wasn’t a person, was I? Not really. Not like David. I was their tool to use. So what did that make me now?

  Now that I was just me.

  David finished and pushed his empty plate aside, patting his stomach and reaching for a napkin.

  ‘You didn’t have to have the most expensive breakfast on the menu,’ I said.

  ‘No, I think I really, really did.’ He turned his head to the counter and waved his hand, ‘Garcon! Another round of your very whitest toast once you’ve got a mo.’

  The woman behind the counter looked up with hangdog eyes and grunted.

  ‘Well at least you’re talking again. For a moment I thought I’d accidentally unleashed the silence spell again.’

  ‘Not funny, Stella. Not funny at all.’

  ‘A bit funny.’

  David eyed me, then broke, smiling and shaking his head. ‘You know I should have you in cuffs already and be dragging you down the station. This is insane.’

  ‘I’m not the one who should be in chains.’

  ‘Okay, let’s say I believe everything you’re saying. Magic is everywhere and there’s a freaky underworld doing bad things, what makes you think all of them are above the law? They walk these streets the same as anyone else. Or at least, I’m assuming they do. Unless they fly. Ooh, can you fly? Can you make me fly?’

  ‘They’re not above the law. And no, I can’t fly.’

  ‘Aw.’

  ‘There’s just a different kind of accountability in my world.’

  ‘The London Coven.’

  ‘Exactly. We keep the peace. Or we did.’

  A plate piled high with pasty toast and butter pats was dropped between us with a distinct lack of hospitality.

  ‘Thanks, Nora.’

  Nora, body like a bin bag full of mayonnaise, grunted then shuffled away.

  ‘So, seems to me like someone didn’t like being told what to do by your lot and decided to do something about it.’

  And that ‘something’, the ripping apart of the people closest to me into hunks of dead flesh, was going to get them killed.

  ‘I need to find out who was behind it.’

  David slowed his toast buttering and looked up, serious for a moment, ‘And what’ll happen then.’

  ‘And then I’m going to bring them down in whichever way I decide.’

  David nodded, finished up buttering, then took a bite and sank into thoughtful chewing for a few seconds.

  ‘You know that’s against the law, yes? Like, properly, incredibly, illegally against the law.’

  ‘Well, when I’m done, you can arrest me. Or try to anyway.’

  David stopped and eyed me for a second, then broke into a grin. It might have sounded like a joke, but at this point I really didn’t care. What had been done to my coven… revenge was all that mattered. Cold, violent revenge. What happened to me after that didn’t matter, just so long as whoever was behind the murders screamed in terror and agony at my feet first.

  ‘Toast.’

  A plate piled with more white bread was plopped into the centre of the table again by Nora.

  ‘Nora, I think one extra round is enough… Nora?’

  The strange tone in his voice caught my attention. I looked up to Nora expecting to see her sagging face and hangdog eyes, instead I saw something else.

  Something terrible.

  Her face was twisted and distorted, like someone had torn it off and was wearing it as a mask. Something much larger and uglier than poor Nora. Her teeth were now a jumbled, sharpened mess and her eyes were missing, leaving two dark hollows.

  ‘Jesus...’ said David, his voice a trembling hush.

  ‘David, run, she’s—‘

  The movement was so swift I didn’t see it coming, instead I found myself sliding across the floor on my back, my right cheek throbbing from the back of Nora’s hand.

  ‘Stella, watch out!’

  Shaking the stars away, I lurched up onto my knees, only to find Nora eating up the distance between us.

  Around us, chairs were falling and people were screaming, a mad rush for the only door and away from this sudden explosion of violence into their morning.

  I needed to make sure Nora kept her sights on me and not on any of the fleeing bystanders, so I did the stupid thing and ran directly at her.

  It felt like a head-on collision with a truck.

  I bounced off her into a wall, the back of my head connecting and trying to pull me into unconsciousness. I clung on by the skin of my teeth.

  The café was empty now apart from me, David, and the now possessed Nora. Time to get to work.

  I staggered up and drew in some extra magic from my surroundings, ready to—

  —Nora’s hand gripped my throat, and my handle on the magic words was lost. The palm of her hand, it seemed to burn my flesh.

  As though I weighed no more than a bag of sugar, Nora lifted me with one hand, sliding me up the wall, a drooling, lopsided grin spreading across her face and showing off the full range of vicious teeth that crowded her mouth.

  Any second now, she was going to lean forward and sink those teeth into my face. I needed to get my shit together, stop letting pain and fear cloud my thoughts, and find the right spell to—

  —The hand around my throat opened and I dropped hard to the floor.

  ‘My name is Detective David Tyler. Step away from her and put your hands behind your head.’

  Nora turned from me; I could see a livid gash on the side of her head. David was stood, extendable baton raised, one hand out, warning Nora to keep her distance. He must have hit her with the thing! More than likely saved my life.

  ‘I said my name is Detective David Tyler and you will surrender yourself or I will use further force!’

  I got back to my feet, throat and rear end throbbing, and circled wide towards him.

  ‘David, no, you can’t talk a thing like that down. Hit it as many times as you like with your little stick, it’ll only keep coming.’

  ‘Hey, David, thanks for saving me from being choked to death a few seconds ago. Oh, don’t mention it, you’re welcome.’

  Nora laughed, it sounded like metal twisting. ‘You will both die now. Die like those stinking whore witches.’

  ‘So I take it good ‘ol Nora here has been possessed by something magical and evil?’

  ‘You catch on fast, Detective.’

  ‘Well, the teeth, the empty eye holes, the super strength, they teach us to look out for these little clues at police school.’

  ‘Nora is dead. Whatever has claimed her is all that’s left now, and we are in a whole load of danger.’

  ‘I will rip and I will tear and I will grind your bones between my teeth.’

  ‘Oh, Nora, we used to share such sweet pleasantries.’ David raised his baton and charged forward.

  ‘David, no—!’

  Nora grabbed his arm mid-swing and tossed him across the room like a rag doll. He came to a crashing halt out of sight as he flew over the serving counter.

  ‘David!’

  ‘I will kill you first, Familiar, send you to the dark pit your creators now dwell in.’

  Okay. It was time to put a stop to this.

  ‘You know Nora, you’re kind of big-headed for a lowly pit demon.’

  Nora stopped, head cocked, confused for a moment. That moment was all I needed. The café was old. The building had stood for over two hundred years, and was chock-full of ancient, strong magic.

  I pulled it into me and pictured the correct order of words. It took onl
y moments, and then, screaming with fury, I punched a fist toward Nora and unleashed the spell.

  It surged from me, a golden lasso, dripping like molten metal, and swamped Nora. Her empty eyes widened.

  ‘Catching on now, Nora?’

  She staggered back, clutching her head as it began to swell, bone cracking, skin tearing. Any second now it would be over. Nora knew it too. She lowered her hand from her rapidly inflating skull and looked at me with her black, empty sockets, smiling even as death came to claim her.

  ‘That’s good, Familiar. I like my marks to have a little fight in them.’

  ‘Who are you? Tell me your name. Tell me!’

  ‘And where would the fun in that be?’

  She laughed.

  And then her head exploded.

  9

  When something like that happens in public it’s best not to hang around too long.

  I grunted as I lowered David, sitting him against an alley wall ten streets away from the café. Leaning back against the opposite wall, I inhaled slow and deep, trying to catch my breath and rub some life back into my muscles. I wasn’t in bad shape, but he was heavier than he looked.

  So, that was attempt number two on my life. Whoever was behind all of this wasn’t going to let me wriggle out of things. I was a loose end it intended to tie up. Good.

  But how had the thing found me? I did a quick check on myself, trying to locate any magical prints left on me that would help it zero in, but came up with nothing. Nothing obvious that I was able to sense, anyway.

  ‘M-my name is… I am a detective police man and you…’

  I crouched down next to David as he came too, his bleary eyes gradually coming into focus as they locked on mine.

  ‘Hello, David.’

  ‘Hello, magic lady woman.’

  ‘Careful, you took a bit of a knock.’

  He rubbed his head, confused. ‘I had the weirdest dream that old Nora at the café became possessed by some sort of magic monster and tried to kill us.’

  ‘Yes, sorry, that wasn’t a dream.’

  ‘Oh, I was afraid you might say that,’ said David, getting to his feet whilst using the grimy alley wall for support.

  ‘Careful, you’ve been out of it for almost six minutes.’