No More Black Magic

by A. L. Kessler

  “Simon, leave the door open.” I called over my shoulder. I didn’t sense magic, but I wanted a quick escape. My emotions might have gotten the best of me and spoke to my paranoia.

  “Why?”

  “Just...just indulge me, okay?” I continued down the stairs and didn’t hear him shut the door. I was the witch, it was my job to take lead on this. Luckily for me, Simon seemed to understand that and listen to me. I reached the bottom where the stairs opened up into a huge family room. The memories hit me hard. My mother’s body had been three feet away from the stairs. I had made it to her before Levi pulled me away. She’d been dead for hours at that point, her body cold and laying in a pool of her own blood, her lifeless eyes staring. The bloodstains were gone now, but I swore I could remember the feeling of it soaking through my pants as I cried over her. Simon’s hand on my shoulder made me jump. “See anything useful?”

  I hadn’t even truly looked at that point. I continued into the room without giving him an answer. Someone had removed the couch my father’s body had fallen over. “The rune on the door was from the same language. I need to see if there are more throughout this area.”

  “Not the rest of the house?” He asked and I was willing to bet he honestly had no idea about runes and magic.

  I shook my head. “No, because this was where it was done. I was in a room upstairs and I was perfectly safe. That means if there was any magic it was down here. My mom’s circle still held for hours up there. Levi had to find another witch to pull it down.”

  “Grim.” He muttered and looked around. “There are runes all over these walls, they look like the same type? I don’t know enough to really know.”

  I saw them too and wondered why I hadn’t seen them before, or why no one mentioned them. The murders were before there was a supernatural department, so they probably didn’t know what to look for. My heart ached as I thought my parents might have been betrayed by their own kind.

  “Talk to me, Abby.” Simon whispered. “I can see something going through your head.”

  I sighed. “Something isn’t adding up. I just don’t have all the pieces that I need, but this confirms that everything is related.” I took my phone out and took pictures of the carvings. “Carving runes and circles is one of the most permanent ways to use a spell. Most of the time it’s used for protection spells, wards, things that need to be activated quickly or remain active.”

  “Okay.”

  “Carving takes time, so either there were ten or more people in this room at the time carving these, or they were able to set it up beforehand.”

  “Which means your parents were betrayed. Why didn’t the murderer come searching for you?”

  His guess was as good as mine. I shrugged. “Seems like they are coming back to remedy that.”

  “Levi told me the message said to let them complete their mission and they’d be gone. You could just let this pass you by, Abby.”

  No, I couldn’t, because there was a chance I could catch or at least identify who killed my parents. “This is personal and a state case now, there’s no way I can just let it pass.”

  “Abigail.” The tone in Simon’s voice made me turn around to face him. “This is your life we’re talking about. They already put you in a coma and stopped your heart.”

  I knew that, but I couldn’t let fear rule me. “I know, but now I have protection against their hex and I have a job to do.”

  “Let another investigator pick it up. Please.” His hazel eyes begged me, but I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t let the past lie. His desire for me to be safe couldn’t interfere with my job, no mater how much begging he did.

  I met his soft gaze and sighed. “I’ll consider it if there’s another attack.” It was the best I was going to be able to do. “Honestly, at this point it’s all research.” Except for tracking down the rest of the body that belonged to that arm. Yeah, that was going to be fun with this hex.

  “I know there’s field work, but don’t forget, you aren’t allowed to be alone. Per Levi’s orders, I get to go everywhere with you.”

  I curled my lip. “You or Clarissa.”

  “The witch is handy, but you said it yourself, she tends to overreact.”

  Yep, which is why Simon would be coming with me to check out that damned arm. “Well, I hope you’re up for a trip to the morgue tomorrow then, because we have a body part to get aquatinted with.”

  “Seriously, Abby? A body part?” His voice raised a pitch and I guess he wasn’t expecting an arm.

  “My job is just exciting and interesting, isn’t it?”

  He snorted. “Are we done here, then?”

  “No, I need to check my dad’s office. I just want to see if there is any research Levi might have missed when he brought the stuff to the library.” Like a magical notebook that told me what these runes were and who they belonged to.

  “Lead the way.” Simon motioned with his arm and it made me smile. I went back up the stairs and once we were both up there, I shut the door and took a picture of the wards. I would have to arrange for someone to come in to replace the door and do something about the walls downstairs, there was no way I wanted to leave the runes there. Even if I wasn’t living at the house, I didn’t want bad magic to be hanging about.

  My father’s office was on the top level and across from my room, the room where my mother concealed me within a circle. I had never been allowed in the office and Levi assured me after that he’d gotten everything out of it that he needed for the library. I took a deep breath before I turned the knob and opened the door.

  Simon stepped in first and looked around. “Everything is packed up and covered in sheets.”

  I followed him in and of course he was right, but I know that something had to give me clues. “Look for a journal or a notebook. Anything he might have kept notes in. Even if it looks like gibberish.”

  “Did your dad have a computer of any sort?” Simon started opening drawers and digging through anything that was left.

  I moved to the very back of the room and started pulling sheets off furniture and looking under chairs and cushions. Chances were that if it had been out in the open, Levi would have found it. “No, nothing was reliable then. From what I understand, Dad was a typewriter or quill kind of person.” Many of us were, sometimes magic had strange effects on technology. I was luck my phone was as reliable as it was.

  We dug through everything and found nothing. I growled. “Seriously, I cannot leave here empty handed.”

  “You aren’t empty handed, you found the runes.” Simon wrapped a friendly arm around me. “We need to be heading back, the drive is long and you need rest.”

  I stomped my foot like I was three. I wasn’t sure if it was the hex or the exhaustion but I was frustrated beyond belief. “No. I am not leaving until I have answers.” The hollow sound of my foot hitting the floor made Simon and I look at each other. At the same time we both dropped to the ground and started to pry up the board. It came up with a pop and so did the two to the left of it. There sat a notebook full of papers. I touched the cover and smiled. “It has a preservation spell on it.”

  “Which means what?” Simon asked as I pulled it out.

  “That the writing won’t fade and the pages won’t deteriorate.” I sat cross-legged and opened the binder. “These are the runes, this.” I said quietly, “this is everything I need.” I tried not to sound too excited because fate tended to bitch slap people who thought things were handed to them.

  I closed the binder and stood. “Okay, now we can go.” We walked through the house and made sure all the lights were shut off. I shut and locked the door, hesitating for just a moment.

  “You okay?”

  I nodded. “Yeah, just wondering if I’d ever get the nerve to live here.”

  “I think that’s why Levi kept it. You have a lifetime to decide.”

  Though my lifetime was slightly longer than a normal human’s, I wasn’t immortal like the vampires. “Yeah, but if we don’t get
this hex sorted out, I’m not going to live that long.”

  He made a sound that I assumed meant he agreed with me and we went back to the car together.

  At some point on the drive back, I fell asleep. I woke to the faint sound of Simon talking on the phone.

  “Yeah, she handled it well. Yes, we did find some things. I’ll make sure she calls you tonight.”

  He paused in the conversation and I was sure he was talking to Levi. Not many people wanted me to check in at night.

  “She’s exhausted. She did the spell on the bar and I saw it in her eyes. Let me know if anyone makes leeway on that hex. She needs it gone.”

  He made a few noises of agreement. “Yeah, Clarissa promised to stay with her on the full moon while I run with the pack. Good night, Levi.”

  See, knew it was the vampire. I kept my eyes closed and concentrated on the motion of the car. Simon was right. I was exhausted and probably shouldn’t have pushed myself so hard after being released from the hospital. In fact, I was pretty sure the doctor told me to go home and rest. I was always a horrible listener.

  “I know you’re awake.” Simon muttered. “I can hear the difference in your breathing, so there’s no use pretending.”

  I gave a small laugh. “I wasn’t pretending. I was debating on going back to sleep.” I opened my eyes and saw the sun starting to peek over the horizon. “We almost back to the city?”

  “Yeah, we’ll go to my place and crash for the day. Then we can try to get that...arm? Taken care of.”

  I groaned. “I don’t even want to think about the arm right now. I’m still trying to figure out why someone would use magic to take an arm, and explode a body. Not to mention why there were two victims in the first place.”

  “There’s not a dull day in your life is there?” He asked.

  “Nope, and just think, Levi wants us to get married.”

  Simon snorted. “Yeah, he’s talked to me about that. I still wish you’d go out on a date with me, but trust me, a lot comes before marriage, it’s not the first step. It’d take a hell of a whole lot more steps than a first date.”

  That was comforting. “Tell you what, once I get this hex off me, we’ll go on a date. Someplace other than your bar.” Maybe it was a near death experience that made me reconsider his offer, but either way, a drink was the least I could do for him having to baby-sit me.

  “I think I can arrange that.”

  I saw him grin in the faint light as he turned the car off the freeway. I shook my head. “I’m not promising anything.” He’d even arranged for Clarissa to come over and watch me on the full moon. Three nights away. I was hoping the hex would be gone by then, but I guess better safe than sorry.

  “What are you thinking?” He asked after a few minutes of silence.

  I shook my head. “My mind is just on the case and the people that are trying to kill me. You know, the usual thoughts that occupy my mind.”

  “You should try to think of nice things. Like rainbows and unicorns.” He laughed. “Okay, no, I think I’d be thinking about the same things.”

  He pulled up to a ranch style house. A weeping willow sat in front covering most of the small yard and I saw a pine tree peeking out from behind the house. It was quaint, large enough for a family, and seemed perfectly normal.

  “You can’t run here in the city. I guess I was expecting you to live out in the woods.”

  “We have a pack house in the woods. I go up there a few nights a week to check on the pups that come in. The newly changed pups that is, and I run then. I don’t have to run often since I have nearly perfect control over my beast.”

  Nearly, that was comforting. I was glad that I was planning on staying in the guest room. “Where am I sleeping?”

  “Right this way.” He opened the door and led me through the living room and down a hallway. “My room is right next door. I’ll be able to hear if something is wrong.”

  I nodded, pulled out a piece of chalk from my bag and drew a rune of protection on the door. “Not that I don’t trust you, wolfy, I just don’t know what else is lurking around.”

  “Fine by me. I'd rather you were safe, Levi would murder me if I let something happen to you.”

  Yeah, and half the city on top of that. “I’m going to draw one on your door as well.”

  “I don’t need witch craft to keep me safe.”

  I turned and faced him. “Simon, these guys blew up a barn, cut the arm off a human, and put me in the hospital.”

  He met my gaze and considered for a moment. “Okay, fine, I guess some extra protection won’t hurt.”

  “Mmhmm, that’s what I thought.”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  The night passed without incident. I slept better than I had expected, no strange dreams of red runes, no crazy people claiming that Ra sent them to me with a message. Nothing of that sort. I walked out to the kitchen to find Simon cooking breakfast, at noon. I watched him for a moment, wondering why this was starting to feel normal. Him and I spending so much time together was new, but without him hounding me for a date, it was kind of nice.

  “I just need to call Detective Mason about the arm, and then we can be on our way.”

  He turned to me as he flipped a pancake in the pan. “Is that all you think about?”

  “Pretty much, the sooner I know more about the arm and the people who did this the better. The sooner I’m done with the arm, the sooner I can get to looking through those new notes and figuring out exactly what those people did to me.” I sat at the breakfast bar that overlooked the plain kitchen.

  He nodded and slid the pancake on a plate. “Well eat up, if what I saw last night is any indication, you’re going to need your strength.”

  “Yeah, this spell is going to drain me. It takes a toll on a normal day.” I sighed and took the plate from him. “Thank you, you didn’t have to cook breakfast.”

  He shrugged. “You have to eat too.” He pulled his own plate over to him and then put two more pancakes from his plate on mine. “Now, make your phone call and eat up.”

  I pulled out my phone and called Detective Mason.

  “Do you have something for me?” Mason’s voice made it sound more like a demand than a question.

  I glanced at Simon and rolled my eyes. “No, not exactly, but I’m going to the morgue to deal with the arm.”

  “Good, someone is breathing down my neck to get this solved.” He sounded irritated. Of course maybe he didn’t have someone making him breakfast.

  “I’m working as fast I can. It’s not my fault that I landed in the hospital.” I took a bite of my pancake.

  He grunted. “I’ll let the morgue know you’re coming.”

  The line went dead in my hand and I stared at my screen for a moment.

  “Seriously, this job is going to be the death of me.” I put the phone down on the counter and picked up my fork.

  “Yeah, I’m sure it’ll be that job, not the one for Levi.” Simon snickered.

  I shrugged and dug into my pancakes. “Levi lets me work on my time. The state, however, does not.”

  “That’s what you get for working two different jobs.” Simon took a bite and chewed while keeping eye contact with me. I knew he had more to say and I waited.

  He swallowed. “You could quit the state. Levi pays you more than enough and if it’s about independence you could come work at the bar.”

  “The bar patrons hate me. They know I’m too powerful to be around and actually be liked.” I muttered. “Besides, I’m good at the state job.” It wasn’t about independence, it was about the chance to use my magic on a daily basis, but he wouldn’t understand that.

  We ate in silence for the rest of the meal and I let him drive me to the morgue. I had no idea how I was going to explain him being with me. Maybe I could say that it was doctor’s orders. Yeah, that was probably the best way to go.

  He pulled up to the morgue and I wrinkled my nose. Simon did the same. I could sense the death, but I was willing to be
t that he could smell it. I got out of the car and started towards the old brick building. Simon was by my side within a minute, not touching, but there in case something happened to me. He seemed content to just be a protective presence. Even though neither one of us expected anything to happen, it was better to be safe.

  We walked up the concrete steps and into the building. The halls were white and bare. A desk sat in the small room that acted as the reception area.

  “Can I help you?” A young woman with her hair twisted up, thick-rimmed glasses and bright red lipstick asked. She didn’t bother to look away from the computer and my guess was she was playing on the Internet and not actually working.

  “I’m Agent Collins and I’m here to see a man about an arm.”

  She didn’t even crack a smile. She looked at me and handed me a clipboard. “And him?” She jabbed a finger at Simon.

  “He’s an associate, he’s here to advise on the case.”

  “Both of you sign in and I’ll get you badges.” She turned back to the computer and tapped a few keys before turning to get two white plastic visitor badges out of a plastic basket. She put them on the counter and then turned away from us. No ID checks, nothing.

  Simon and I took a badge and then continued down the hallway. We had no idea where we were going and started trying doorknobs. Every door we walked by was stainless steel and locked.

  Finally, a short, fat, man with a bald head and thick-rimmed glasses stepped out from one of the doors. “Ah, Agent Collins, please come this way.” He opened the door that he stood in front of. His forced smile and the shadows around us reminded me of a horror movie.

  I glanced at Simon and he shrugged. He motioned for me to go through first and I had to wonder if he thought it was because the room would explode. The man stopped Simon at the door. “You can’t come in unless you’re an agent and we were only expecting one.”

  “He’s here to make sure I don’t pass out or drop into a seizure or something.” I crossed my arms. “Doctor’s orders, I can’t be alone and he’s got the affidavit for treatment.”