Hidden Magic (The Magic Carnival Book 5)

by Trudi Jaye

  “What makes them think Fee is a bad person?”

  “Because she’s talented with robots. They think it’s magic instead of talent.”

  Franklin paused. “They think she uses magic?” he said softly.

  Henry nodded. “They’re crazy. Fee is just really good at what she does.”

  Franklin nodded, and stared down at Fee, who had closed her eyes again. “So tell me more about them.”

  “The people hunting Fee?”

  “Yes.”

  “They’re called the Witch Hunters. They’re some kind of secret organization who hunt people they believe are using magic and kill them. They’re essentially serial killers.”

  “How is it that they get away with these murders?”

  Henry shook his head. “I don’t know. This is all a new concept to me as well.” He tried to decide if he should tell Franklin that the other man was Fee’s father. Would it somehow incriminate them further? And would Franklin find out eventually if he was investigating it? He took a breath. “It was her own father who shot her.”

  Franklin’s face remained the same at this revelation.

  “You knew that already?” Henry realized.

  Franklin’s face didn’t give anything away. “I’ve had her investigated. We found out a few interesting things.”

  “Like what?”

  “Her family. Who they are and what they’ve been doing.”

  “Mainly, her father, as I understand it,” said Henry, thinking of Fee’s mother back at the Carnival.

  Franklin shook his head. “The mother has been plenty involved. We have evidence of multiple murders where she was present and participating.”

  Henry froze. “Are you sure about that?” he said, his voice ragged. What had they done? They’d taken Fee’s mother to their home. If Rilla hadn’t insisted on chasing him, they could have been back at the Compound by now. “I have to call them.” He patted at his pockets, trying to find his phone.

  Just then, the ambulance came to a screeching halt on the road. Henry crashed into a set of shelves, only just saving himself in time before he fell completely off his seat.

  Franklin didn’t fare much better, but he recovered quickly and pulled out his gun. “You stay here with Fee. I’ll see what’s happening.”

  Henry nodded, thinking of his brother up the front. If it were something bad, Jason would be backup for Franklin and if it were something of the Carnival’s making, they wouldn’t harm Franklin. Either way, he was going to stay here and protect Fee

  Franklin opened the back door and peered around the door, his gun at the ready.

  He stepped down out of the ambulance and looked around. He closed the door slowly, and Henry clasped Fee’s hands tightly, his blood pumping at one hundred miles an hour.

  He thought of the Witch Hunters. They’d been a step ahead of them the whole time. Had they known she would be in a second ambulance, traveling down a road on the outskirts of the city? It was possible, if her father had been able to send a message before he attacked them.

  Henry looked around for something to use as a weapon, his eyes fixing on a fire extinguisher in the corner. He stood up, grabbing the heavy metal canister, and waited by the slightly ajar door, his arms raised in readiness.

  Listening at the door, he heard the sound of a scuffle, and the grunts of people fighting hand to hand. His whole body tensed, and he wondered if he should go out and help Franklin, just in case it was the Witch Hunters. He glanced back at Fee. No, he wouldn’t leave her vulnerable.

  The door to the ambulance was pulled abruptly open. Henry tensed in readiness to slam the extinguisher down into the face of their attacker.

  His brother’s face grinned up at him. “You a little anxious, bro?” he said.

  “What the hell’s happening?” asked Henry, releasing the fire extinguisher.

  “We’re saving your butt, that’s what.”

  “What did you do with Franklin?”

  “He’s all right, just knocked him around a little.”

  “He’s on our side, Jason. I hope you didn’t hurt him too badly,” said Henry sternly.

  Jason rolled his eyes at his brother. “You’re not very grateful, given that we’ve just saved you from prison.”

  “I don’t think he was going to put me in prison, Jase. He was actually rather interested in the Witch Hunters. I think he wants to investigate them.”

  A groan sounded from next to the ambulance.

  “You knocked him out?” Henry hurried over to where Franklin was lying prone on the grass next to the road.

  Franklin groaned again and opened his eyes.

  “Are you okay?” asked Henry, his eyes scanning the man’s body for injuries.

  “Relax, bro, I used a move that knocked him out pretty quick. He had a gun; I had to get him unconscious as soon as I could.” Jason flicked his gaze to Franklin. “Sorry about that.”

  Henry let out a relieved breath and helped Franklin sit up. The man was still groggy, but he seemed to understand what was happening.

  Franklin put one hand up to his neck and moved it stiffly. “Whatever you did, it was effective.” He glanced around, first at Henry and then Jason. “So what’s happening here?” he asked.

  Jason glanced at Henry before replying. “We want you to help us. And if you help us, we’ll help you.”

  Franklin raised his eyebrows, his eyes hard. “What makes you think I’ll help you? You just knocked out a federal officer. I think you might find you’re in a whole crap ton of trouble.”

  “We’ll help you catch the Witch Hunters, or at least give you everything we know on them. Absolutely everything. In return, we need you to say that Fee died here in this ambulance. And Henry escaped, taking her body out of some kind of weird attachment, but that you’re not planning to charge him with anything. So no one goes after him.”

  Franklin narrowed his eyes at Jason. “And what makes you think I would do any of that?”

  Henry cleared his throat, catching on to the idea they’d obviously come up with since he and Fee had left them. “Because we can help you catch a group of people who’ve been systematically murdering innocent people for years. A group of serial killers. Can you imagine the coup that would be for you, and your agency? Fee isn’t part of it, but I’m sure we could persuade her to give you information that would lead to their capture. People she knew growing up, lists of the places they lived. But you need to protect her from her father, and the rest of her family. Even her mother.” Henry sent a significant glance to Jason. “We’re not the bad guys here.”

  Franklin sighed and looked between Henry and Jason. “This is highly irregular,” he said. “How do I know you’re not just trying to con me?”

  “The people you’re trying to catch have been doing this for decades. Maybe longer. Imagine if you caught them. Imagine if you were the one to bring them to justice. Imagine the lives you would save.” Henry was irrationally pleased to note that it was the argument for saved lives that seemed to persuade Franklin.

  “If I do this,”—he paused, glancing sternly from Henry to Jason—“If I do this, I don’t know how much I’ll be able to cover over. I’ll have to speak to my superiors to make sure it’s a deal they’re prepared to make.” He rubbed one hand over his face, as if he was suddenly tired.

  “Between Fee and her mother, you’ll be able to take down a criminal organization that has been operating for longer than we’ve been alive. That’s not something every FBI agent has the opportunity to be part of.”

  Franklin looked up. “I believe I can make the case for it,” he said. “Now help me up.”

  Henry grinned, and held out his hand, pulling Franklin up. “You won’t regret it. We’ll get these bastards.” He turned to Jason. “In the meantime, where’s Fee’s mother?”

  “She’s back at the airport. It was just me and Rilla who headed out this way.”

  “She can’t know that Fee’s okay. We have to tell her that Fee died here tonight. Frankli
n says she’s in on everything as well.”

  Jason’s eyes widened for a moment, and then a look of sympathy crossed his face. “Poor kid. Imagine having both parents trying to kill you. That’s rough.”

  Franklin nodded. “I want the mother.”

  Henry narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. It wasn’t as if they wanted Summer Dawn hanging around the Compound. “I’m sure we can arrange something. You take Fee’s mother, and see if she’ll talk. As far as everyone else and both her parents know, Fee is dead. You can contact us through me and we’ll help you however we can.”

  “If you try anything, I’ll tell them Fee is still alive,” Franklin said, his face grim.

  “We’ll keep our end of the bargain, Franklin. You keep your end, and we’ll be fine.”

  Franklin glanced around the road. “So now what? How do we work this thing?”

  Henry grinned at Franklin. “You want us to tie you up?” he said.

  Franklin glared at Henry. “No. Being knocked out is sufficient. Where is the other medic? Or is he in on it as well?”

  “He’s in the front. I gave him a little something to make him sleepy,” said Jason.

  “I think as there will be no actual evidence, I will write a report swearing that she died before the ambulance was stopped, and you were so distraught you took the body with you to be buried it in an unnamed place. Leave the mother at the airport, and I will send someone to pick her up.”

  Henry nodded. “Thanks, Franklin. I appreciate this.”

  “You just make damn sure this is all worth it. I’m risking my career on you.”

  “It’s worth it.”

  “It better be.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  Fee opened her eyes and looked around groggily. She was in a hotel room of some kind. Her first thought was panic, and she tried to sit up. The room spun, and she flopped back down to the soft bed.

  “She’s awake,” whispered a woman from the far side of the room. “Go get Henry.”

  “But we only just convinced him to sleep,” murmured another voice, this time male.

  “He made me promise.”

  There was a shuffling noise, and the opening and closing of a door. Fee closed her eyes again. Henry was coming and that was all that mattered. A moment later, the door opened again, and in rushed her golden god.

  “Hey, Fee. How you feeling?” he asked softly, as he grasped her hand and sat on the bed next to her. A chattering noise accompanied his arrival, and a small metal creature raced down his arm, and across hers to hide in the crook of her neck.

  She cleared her throat. “My head hurts,” she whispered.

  Henry turned his head. “Rilla, do we have anything for that?” he asked.

  Rilla stood up and came over to stand beside Henry. “Hold my hand, and we’ll see what the Carnival can do,” she said.

  Fee watched as Henry put his other hand in Rilla’s. Almost immediately, she felt something warm flowing into her body, reaching out to her hands and legs and her head, pushing soothing and cooling feelings through her whole body. She sighed. It felt very good.

  “How is it doing that?” Henry whispered to Rilla.

  Rilla shook her head. “I think it’s something to do with the connection you two have formed. I’ve never seen it work on someone outside of the Carnival in quite that way before. Even the people inside it are often not affected like that.”

  “It’s like she’s already got some kind of connection. Or that her own magic is amplifying it or something,” said Henry with a frown, already trying to understand what was happening.

  Fee smiled. He’d keep at it until he worked it out. “So we made it out, then?” she asked. “What happened to my father? Where’s my mother?”

  “Your father is in hospital.” Henry paused. “Your mother has been taken into witness protection by the FBI. She’s going to help them investigate the Witch Hunters.”

  Fee’s eyes widened. That was the last thing her mother would have wanted. “But... Why? I thought she was on her way to the Compound?”

  Henry grasped her hand tighter. “Franklin intimated that your mother might not be as innocent of the deaths as she had suggested. We couldn’t take the chance of taking her with us.”

  Fee felt dizzy for a moment, her world shifting yet again. Her mother had been part of it? “Was she trying to get to me when she was at the farm?”

  Henry shook his head. “I don’t know. It’s not clear if she really did have a falling out with your father or not. But we couldn’t risk it. Franklin promised to take good care of her. She won’t be harmed.”

  Thoughts crashed into each other inside her head, and Fee closed her eyes, unable to process everything. The only thing that seemed real was Henry by her side, holding her hand. She tightened her hand against his, and sent a silent thank you to whoever was listening that they had sent her Henry. “Thank you,” she whispered, opening her eyes to look into his golden eyes.

  Henry leaned closer and kissed her softly on the cheek. He brushed away a strand of hair from her face, and smiled. “No, thank you, Fee,” he said. “You mean everything to me. When I thought I’d lost you...” his words trailed away. His hand cupped her cheek. “It was the worst thing I’d ever felt. I don’t want to feel like that again. I love you. I want you to come back to the Carnival with me.”

  Fee smiled up at him, wondering how a golden god had ever come to love her. She put one hand up to touch his cheek. “I love you too, Henry. I’ll go anywhere with you,” she whispered. “Anywhere at all.”

  EPILOGUE

  Fee looked up from where she was soldering a connection on her latest creature. The door to the lab had opened, and Henry walked in. He grinned at her and walked over, his arms wide.

  She dropped her tools, turned off the soldering iron, and stepped into his embrace. “How was it?” she asked as he crushed her to him. The familiar feel of electricity zinged through her body.

  “Good, but I missed you. Four days was a long time.”

  “What did Lucas say?”

  “He paid me the full amount for my contract. Wants me back later in the year.”

  “You’re not thinking of going are you?”

  “I’m not sure. I did make a new friend while I was back there. Wanda gave me a hug and thanked me for fixing her glasses.”

  “That old battle-axe. She didn’t like anyone.”

  “She likes me,” said Henry smugly. “They’re devastated by your death, by the way. But Eugene and Nolan were determined to get the project up and running again. They were talking about naming her Fee in your honor and they even had Pelgrim in to help them out.”

  “How did Pelgrim take that?”

  Henry grinned. “Surprisingly well, apparently. The other two have mastered the art of telling him off if he steps out of line.”

  “And they really think I’m…?”

  “Dead? Yes. They even held a memorial service while I was there. It was rather sad.” Henry looked down at her.

  Fee blinked. “Really? What did they say about me?”

  Henry laughed. “I’m not going to tell you. It’ll just feed your ego.”

  Fee smacked him lightly on the arm. “You’re one to talk about ego,” she said. “What about Max?”

  The door to the lab opened at that point and a familiar metal face poked through. “Do you wish to have coffee served in here or on the veranda?” Max asked, as if he’d been living there all his life, and not just the five minutes since he’d arrived.

  “He’s happy to be back with you.” Henry leaned down and kissed her. “As am I.”

  Fee leaned to one side. “It’s good to see you, Max.”

  “It’s good to see you too, Fee,” said Max. “I’ll put it out on the veranda… In half an hour.” He closed the door, leaving her alone with Henry.

  “Did you hear him? He just called me Fee.”

  “He’s getting soft in his old age,” smiled Henry, pulling her closer again.

  “I love yo
u,” whispered Fee against his lips.

  “I love you, too.”

  THE END

  Thank you

  Thank you for reading Hidden Magic, I hope you enjoyed it!

  If you’d like to be updated when my next book is out, receive Magic Carnival short stories, and go in the draw to win prizes and giveaways, please join my Readers Group. I’d love to hear from you!

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  Other books in the Magic Carnival series:

  Ringmaster

  The Gift

  Tilly’s Secret

  High Flyer

  Trudi Jaye was born and raised in New Zealand, where she currently lives in a secluded haven amongst the trees with her lovely husband and her cheeky four-year-old daughter. She’s been writing since she was a young girl, and for the last ten years has worked as a magazine writer and editor for a variety of niche titles. She enjoys yoga, although she’s not very bendy, and karate, although she doesn’t like the idea of hitting anyone.