Harley Merlin and the Secret Coven

by Bella Forrest

  “I don’t get it,” I said. “They’re gawking at me, but they’re not attacking.”

  “Let’s focus on catching them first,” Wade replied. “Take the left side, and don’t let them get off the roof!”

  I nodded, then rushed over to the doctor’s office on the left side of the church. Wade stayed at the front, his gaze fixed on the gargoyles, who were starting to get restless, scampering across the roof.

  Lights flickered inside the ground floor, followed by a number of popping sounds. Whatever Tatyana was doing inside, it was loud and flashy, and it was making the gargoyles even more nervous.

  One of them tried to take flight, but a bright wisp of light smacked right into it, bursting into a myriad of fireworks. The creature fell backward, squealing as its eyes burned. The others spread their wings and hissed, then attempted to fly out, but Wade shot fire projectiles at them, targeting their heads.

  Tiny balls of green energy shot out from behind the building, whirling around until they hit the gargoyles again. No matter where they went, there was a magical using some kind of spell to keep them on the roof.

  As soon as the monsters came over to my side of the building, I knew what I had to do. Even without an Esprit, I could still do my part. I latched onto the billboard advertising some random life insurance company, pulled it off the doctor’s office it was displayed on, then tossed it at the gargoyles.

  It flew in fast, knocking three of them back, while the others tried to escape on the other sides again. They didn’t stand a chance, though. Whenever they came back to my side, I focused my mental lasso on their heads, and waved them back like loose coconuts.

  One final bang rumbled through the ground floor, followed by a bright white flash that spread outward and upward, swallowing the entire building. Just as Tatyana ran out, the light reached the roof, covering all the walls before it formed a super-fine net.

  The gargoyles roared as they made one last-ditch effort to get off the roof, but the glowing net covered the entire surface and came down with such strength that it crushed the creatures hard into the terracotta tiles. They growled and shrieked as they struggled against their restraints.

  “Santana, Tatyana, you’ve got Mason jars in your bags, I hope,” I heard Wade say through my earpiece.

  “Yeah, more than enough,” Santana replied.

  “Okay, grab Raffe and Dylan,” Wade said. “Five minutes. You know what you have to do.”

  “Roger that,” Tatyana’s voice came through.

  I went back to the boulevard, where Astrid joined us from across the street. Wade had made sure to keep her in the enormous time lapse. “Not bad, rookie,” Wade said, giving me a subtle wink as I reached him.

  My heart skipped a beat. This was Wade’s first sort-of compliment.

  “Thanks,” I murmured, my cheeks lighting up like the 4th of July.

  “Well done, Harley!” Astrid cheered, while tapping various controls on her computer tablet. “I wonder if all these bad boys came out of the Bestiary.”

  “We’ll check for serial numbers when we bring them in,” Wade replied, crossing his arms as he looked up at the roof. I followed his gaze, and watched Santana, Tatyana, Dylan, and Raffe perch on the sloped edges, summoning the gargoyles one by one into Mason jars.

  Once they were done, they snuck back through the windows and met us outside with two backpacks full of gargoyles. Pieces of the roof were missing, as terracotta slates lay crushed on the ground around the church. The gargoyles may have been invisible to the human eye, but the damage they left behind was clear as day.

  “Does cleanup involve fixing the roof?” I asked.

  “That’s the humans’ responsibility,” Wade said, shaking his head. “The building is insured, anyway.”

  “Technically speaking, we’re actually creating jobs right now. Construction jobs.” Astrid chuckled, eyes on her screen. “Okay, I’ve planted a couple of phone calls to notify the authorities about the damaged roof. They’ll send surveyors soon enough.”

  “I’ve never seen ten gargoyles in one place before,” Santana said, her brow furrowed. “Outside the Bestiary, I mean. What could this mean?”

  “And why were they all staring at me? Why didn’t they attack?” I sighed, my shoulders dropping.

  After a lifetime spent under the radar, being stalked by gargoyles wasn’t exactly my idea of getting attention. If anything, it scared the life out of me. Whatever happened to me trying to stay out of trouble?

  And how did I see the coven now? A cluster of pencil-pushing elitists and frustrated Mediocre magicals who were in charge of guarding a cesspool of humanity’s worst nightmares—and doing a crappy job of that, too.

  Why would I ever pledge my life and loyalty to a coven? Wasn’t I better on my own?

  Who was I kidding? I had no Esprit, no knowledge of who my real parents were, and a string of gargoyles following me around, eager to eat me alive. For the time being, I was stuck with these people. At least they had my back, and in all fairness, my Rag Team peeps were pretty cool, despite their antisocial dysfunctionalities.

  “All the more reason for you to stay with us.” Santana smirked, trying to get over the concerns brewing inside her. She was worried about me.

  For good reason. I’m worried about me, too.

  Chapter Twenty

  We loaded the jars into the back of Wade’s Jeep. My apartment was next on our to-do list. We left the fire trucks responding to the fire alarms behind, along with the church staff gawking at the damaged roof, as Wade shoved us in his Jeep and drove us up to Park West.

  My stomach churned as we reached the scene of yesterday’s attack—and my home.

  The police had already been there and cordoned off my poor mangled Daisy with their yellow caution tape. They’d also taped the windows to my apartment, and I could see the blackened ceiling from below. The place had definitely burned up a little before the sprinkler system went on.

  The team repeated the cleanup operation from the casino, going into and around the apartment building to check with potential witnesses and flash them, altering their memories where needed. Santana and Raffe took the inside of the building, while Tatyana and Dylan handled the surrounding area, and Astrid got to work on modifying CCTV footage, as well as checking police and fire department records.

  Wade had me wait outside, not wanting me to get a closer look at my wrecked apartment. He quickly regretted bringing me over at all, once he saw me tear up as I walked over to my Daisy. I ran my fingers along the edges of her bent hood. My car looked as though a giant cement ball had been dropped on her, pulling everything down in the middle. Glass crumbled beneath my boots as I moved closer and retrieved a little hand-painted world globe from the passenger seat.

  It was my rearview mirror ornament, the only thing left intact after Murray the gargoyle’s crash landing. I used to look at it and dream of the places I’d visit in the near future. No car, no apartment… Clearly, travel plans will have to wait.

  Wade’s hand settled on my shoulder. “Are you okay?” he asked, his voice low. I looked up to find his face surprisingly close to mine—enough to make me hold my breath for a second. He was worried.

  “How can I be?” I sobbed, no longer able to hold it in. “My apartment was trashed. My car is done for. I’ve got gargoyles following me around like I’m prime beef walking. Of course I’m not okay.”

  Not sure what to say, he kept his mouth shut. For about two seconds. “Material belongings of the human world aren’t all that valuable, Harley. They can all be easily replaced.”

  “Easy for you to say, maybe,” I said, wiping my tears. “Daisy was my soul. Raucous and loud, sturdy and feisty. And now look at her. Not going to bother explaining that to you. Again.”

  “Move on, Harley. There’s no point in dwelling on these things. The sooner you do that, the better you’ll feel,” Wade replied. He clearly didn’t understand where I was coming from, and I had to admit, it hurt a little. “With the money you’ll
be making with the coven in the future, you’ll be able to afford a newer, better model, anyway.”

  “What, as a research assistant in a library?” I said. “Are you kidding me?”

  “That job is just to get you started in the coven and the magical society. I trust you’ll be able to work as a coven operative on a full-time basis once you take the pledge. But you’ll get nowhere if you cling to sentimental nonsense like this heap of trash,” he said, pointing at my Daisy.

  “Don’t call her that!”

  My hands balled into fists, and I could feel the anger coursing through me like a violent waterfall. Wade didn’t seem to care.

  “It is what it is, Harley. This thing is going right into a junkyard. Get over it and worry more about why there are gargoyles following you around in the first place.”

  “Thanks for the reminder,” I replied, rolling my eyes and crossing my arms.

  As much as I hated admitting it, Wade did have a point. A car was replaceable, no matter how much I loved my Daisy. My life, however, was one of a kind. And yes, there were gargoyles coming after me now, and I had no clue why.

  “I can’t help but wonder, Harley, if there’s something from your past that you’re not telling me. Something that ties the gargoyles into this whole mess.”

  “Huh? Like what? I thought you knew everything about me. Including my bra size,” I retorted, and instantly felt my throat burn—that was Wade’s utter embarrassment.

  “I don’t know. You tell me,” he shot back. “Maybe you do know something about your parents, for example?”

  “Oh, so now I’m a suspect or something?” I raised my voice, my hands trembling with anger.

  The ground beneath us started to shake, like a mild earthquake. Wade stilled, his forehead smoothing as we both came to the same conclusion. I heard people gasping as they came to a halt on the street. Tires screeched close by, as the entire neighborhood felt the shudder of my Elemental burst.

  “Maybe I should try and calm down.”

  “You should calm down,” he said at the same time.

  Deep breaths. Deep breaths.

  A minute later, the earth stopped shaking. Wade and I stared at each other—he was in awe of me, I could feel it. “I went overboard, I’m sorry,” he said. “It’s just that we’ve never had these Bestiary issues before, and it’s eerie enough to coincide with the discovery of you. I can’t help but think that there might be a connection.”

  “I honestly don’t know anything about my parents,” I replied. “I wish I did. I mean, even I’m thinking that the gargoyles might know something I don’t. Maybe they’re drawn to me for a specific reason that actually has to do with me, with who I really am. Then again, maybe I’m just tastier than the rest of you. I have zero input on this right now.”

  “And without an Esprit, you clearly have little control over your abilities,” Wade concluded. “Your emotions are powerful enough to trigger them, though.”

  “Which makes me say, once more, that this whole Mediocre thing is absolute BS!” Astrid called out from the stairs. She’d been listening this whole time. I’d completely forgotten about her. Wade’s fault.

  Once the team reunited outside my apartment block, the cleanup job was complete. Santana, Raffe, Tatyana, and Dylan covered all the witnesses, and Astrid successfully altered everything we needed to make the story stick—a gas leak had resulted in an explosion, then a fire, followed by the sprinklers soaking everything. No one got hurt, other than Harley Smith. I was carried off to the hospital and discharged shortly after that. End of story.

  It was more believable and easier to manage than a home invasion route. That would’ve brought more cops into the fold, and we wanted none. “I’ll give Alton a report tonight,” Wade said.

  “Make sure you mention Poe’s sloppy work,” Santana said. “That boy could easily be classified as a liability to the coven. I don’t get why Alton let Garrett put him on the investigative team in the first place.”

  “Either Alton is an idealist who thinks those schmucks will make something of themselves and actually help the coven, or he just let them play to appease their ultra-rich parents, and to then watch them crash and burn,” Raffe mused.

  “I’m rooting for the latter,” Wade replied. “I refuse to believe Alton is gullible enough to think the likes of Poe, Garrett, and Finch might actually be good for the coven. He’s been here three years and broken up too many fights started by those idiots.”

  “Meh, it’s not like we’ve been stellar performers, either.” Santana chuckled, hands in her pant pockets. Her curly hair gave her a very hip look, when paired with a dark gray pantsuit. She could’ve easily graced the cover of a fashion magazine, if she wanted. Judging by the warmth coming from Raffe, I wasn’t the only one appreciating her look.

  “Speak for yourself,” Wade shot back. “My record is spotless.”

  “Ugh, let’s grab some drinks at Waterfront Park,” Santana said, rolling her eyes as she walked over to Wade’s Jeep. “Another minute of Mr. Perfect here and I’ll unload my breakfast.”

  “That would be a shame. Those scones were delicious,” Tatyana chimed in, amusement twinkling in her icy blue eyes.

  “Unless you want to walk there, I’d suggest you jump off the ‘Insult Wade’ train,” Wade said, wiggling the keys.

  After we left the Jeep in the Maritime Museum’s parking lot, we went back around to West Ash Street, on the south side of Waterfront Park. It didn’t look different. I was expecting something more magical.

  “Out of all the places in the world, this is where you people like to hang out? This is basically Toddler Central,” I said, pointing at the groups of parents herding their children across the park. “What is it with magicals and kids’ playgrounds?”

  We stopped in front of a glass refuge by the bus stop, a bland and nearly unnoticeable structure. There was a staircase leading downstairs to a public restroom. “You’ve got to be kidding,” I said.

  “Aperi Portam,” Wade said, then pushed through the door.

  One by one, we joined him, and, just like my first incursion into the coven through the emergency door of Kid City, I realized that there was a whole other world hiding in Waterfront Park. I heard myself gasp at the sight unraveling before me. Elegant steel-and-glass cubes rose on both sides of the single wide alley ahead. This both was and wasn’t Waterfront Park, another interdimensional pocket. The human world was something akin to a lens flare, occasionally visible in the form of two-legged wisps—people walking through the park.

  “Welcome to our Waterfront Park, home of some of our best nightclubs and craft-related stores,” Wade said.

  This version looked a million times better. It offered views of the city and the ocean, beyond the tall crystal walls surrounding the interdimensional pocket. “There’s another exit on that side, leading to the Maritime Museum,” Wade added, pointing across the park. “I just wanted to show you this entrance first, for future reference.”

  My mouth was wide open as I tried to take it all in—a plethora of stores, bookshops, cafés, and bars sprawled all over this alternate Waterfront Park, encased in a giant, glistening glass box. The sky was gloriously blue above, the sun smiling down at us as we moved forward. There were plenty of magicals out here, migrating from one venue to another.

  An amalgam of words and giggles poured through from various terraces and cocktail bars, and I couldn’t stop my heart from fluttering. I’d never seen anything so different, so intriguing, and so damn stylish. It reminded me of the photos I’d seen of London’s Oxford Street and New York’s Soho areas, with flashy signs and beautifully decorated store windows.

  “What is this place, exactly?” I managed, utterly bedazzled.

  “Well, it’s not Toddler Central, for sure.” Santana chuckled. “It’s where we go to supply all of our magical needs. Books, recipes, spell ingredients. Drinks, food. More drinks. It’s a place where magicals can be themselves without worrying about humans seeing them. Hell, you can
even buy an Esprit here, if you have a hard time finding your own.”

  “Wait, what?” I asked, slightly confused. “I thought the Esprit was a personal object, something you connect with.”

  “It is,” Wade replied. “However, sometimes it’s hard for a magical to find such an item. Cabot’s Esprit Reliquary over there stocks up on a variety of pre-owned objects, former Esprits of deceased magicals. They cost a fortune, though.”

  He pointed at a storefront not too far ahead. I could make out the Cabot name in shiny steel letters mounted above the main entrance.

  “Okay, let’s grab a drink and a bite at Moll Dyer’s, first,” Astrid suggested, “I’m starving. Then we’ll show you Cabot’s place, though I sincerely doubt you’ll need it.”

  I managed a nod before all three girls flanked me and escorted me to a gorgeous little café and bar, with Moll Dyer’s name lovingly written in swirly cursive gold letters above the terrace. The interior was decorated in charcoal gray and soft beiges, with a French feel—complete with classy smoked glass wall sconces and elegant silverware. The terrace was a tad more casual, with tables covered in white linen, each with a red-and-yellow flowerpot.

  We gathered around a larger table, and a waitress brought over the lunch and specials menus. I let Santana order for me, given that she swore by their minty lemonade and quiche. Wade, as usual, requested sparkling water in a glassful of limes—his almost-limeade. It brought flashbacks of the night we’d met, and the glimpses I’d caught of a gargoyle’s tail.

  The team engaged in a conversation about today’s mission, while I found myself gawking at a detail I’d somehow missed before. The night I met Wade, there was already a gargoyle inside the casino, long before the actual incident out in the parking lot. What was the creature doing there in the first place?

  Oh, my God. Was it because of me, from the very beginning?

  If so, I was probably, though indirectly, responsible for its attack on Jamie the drunk dude.

  “Wade, I just remembered something,” I murmured, feeling my blood chill as I went deeper into my memories of that night. He looked at me, waiting for me to continue. “The night you were at the casino… When I was still at the poker table, and you were sitting in one of the booths… There was a gargoyle in the room, right? I thought I saw a tail up on the ceiling, by one of the vents.”