by Helen Harper
He laughed again. He didn’t believe me for a second. ‘Course you are. Well, I’ve got something that will truly make you fly.’ He paused. ‘If you’re interested.’
My stomach clenched. Despite his attempts to be intimidating, he was nothing more than another run of the mill drug dealer. He didn’t know anything about faery godmothers. He wasn’t the fucker I was looking for. I’d known all along that it was a long shot but that didn’t mean I hadn’t still hoped this was my guy.
My disappointment must have shown on my face. ‘It’s not an upper you’re after, then?’ he inquired. ‘It’s a downer. I can do that, little faery. I can bring you right back down to earth.’ His toothy smile grew. ‘It won’t cost you very much. Not this time.’
I pulled back my shoulders. ‘Not today. Thanks though.’
He leered at me. ‘Whatcha afraid of? I don’t bite.’
I had the distinct sensation he was lying. I looked him up and down. Actually, now I could see why he’d earned the nickname of boogeyman. He did possess a particularly menacing air. It wouldn’t be wise to get on his wrong side. I shrugged to myself. He might not be the villain I was looking for but he was someone’s villain.
‘Another time,’ I said. I whirled away, marching to the park’s exit as his laughter followed me. I dug out my phone on route and hastily pressed a few numbers. ‘Hi,’ I said in a low voice into the receiver. ‘I’m in St Clements Park. There’s a man in there who’s wearing a trenchcoat. He just flashed a young kid. In broad daylight. I think he’s got a knife too.’
‘What’s your name?’ the operator asked.
‘He’s coming towards me!’ I squeaked. ‘I think he heard me talking to you! I have to go!’
‘Wait, can you …’
I hung up. With any luck that would be enough. I walked out of the park as my stomach grumbled again. Grimacing, I headed across the road and into a small café which faced the park.
The bell jangled as I entered and a man wearing an apron looked up from behind the counter. He seemed far too old to still be working, his wrinkled skin loose and flabby looking. Maybe his love of food was such that he couldn’t bear to retire. Or maybe his beady dark eyes which were fixed sharply on me meant that he actually had extraordinarily poor vision and I’d end up with yoghurt on my sandwich instead of mayonnaise.
‘Can I help you?’ he asked.
‘I’d like a sandwich to take away please,’ I said.
‘Ah, yes. You must work nearby.’
‘Mm.’ I pointed vaguely behind us. ‘Over there. It’s my first week so I’m just getting to know the area. This looks like a good place for a quick lunch though.’
He smiled, showing off a set of surprisingly sharp yellow teeth. Ex-smoker, I decided. ‘Oh, it is that. Are you enjoying your new job?’
I wasn’t in the mood for small talk. ‘It’s alright,’ I said in a non-committal manner. I glanced at the ready made sandwiches he had on offer. Nothing looked very appealing but I selected one at random anyway. I’d never get through the afternoon if I didn’t get some sustenance. Even if it was a flaccid cheese sandwich.
‘Good choice.’
Judging from the sandwich’s appearance, I doubted it. At least I could eat it in peace without any side looks and mutterings though. Every cloud had a silver lining.
Chapter Fifteen
When I walked back out onto the street again, there was already a police car parked on the pavement, its flashing blue lights creating a little dance across the grey stones. Beyond, in the park, three police officers had pinned down the boogeyman and were cuffing him. I smiled to myself. It hadn’t been an entirely wasted half hour. I began to turn right, in order to head to the office. I had plenty of time left before I had to be back so I didn’t have to rush. I’d enjoy the sights and bustle of the city and ponder over what my next move could be. I wasn’t about to give up on looking for the kidnapper. Not a chance.
Just as I started to move, something else caught my eye. I froze before quickly drawing into the door of the coffee shop. Striding along the other side of the road, and making a determined beeline right for the park, was the Devil’s Advocate.
For one fearful second, I thought that he was here for me. That I’d committed some sort of cardinal sin by coming here and speaking to the supposed boogeyman myself. I briefly touched my bag, where my godmother cloak had yet again been stuffed. Then I told myself that I was being stupid. I’d not done anything wrong. I’d only chatted to a dodgy man and gotten him arrested. Yes, he’d remember me because I wasn’t here on official business, and I’d stated quite categorically that I was a faery godmother. I’d done so in the interests of good, however, and he hadn’t believed me anyway. Why would he? I squared my shoulders. If the Devil’s Advocate was going to admonish me for taking some initiative then I’d give him a piece of my own mind in return. I was still in that sort of mood.
Despite the expression of grim intent etched onto the Devil’s Advocate’s face, he didn’t once glance over in my direction. His head tilted towards the supposed boogeyman as he was unceremoniously dragged towards the waiting police car, then he politely stepped out of the way to give the police officers more room. He watched the proceedings with little more vague curiosity, turning his back as soon as the path in front of him was clear enough that he could proceed. I scratched my head and watched him more closely. Maybe it was because he was dressed all in black but he had far more of a threatening air about him than the boogeyman himself had enjoyed. The question was, however, if he wasn’t here for me then what was he actually up to?
At first, it appeared that he was heading to the bench I’d previously vacated. Then he swerved past it. Every time he passed one of the other seated people, each of whom had clearly been enjoying the show of the boogeyman’s arrest, they got up to their feet and immediately left the entire park. The Devil’s Advocate didn’t say anything and I couldn’t spot any surreptitious magical hand signals. He was definitely doing something to cause them to walk out, however. He wanted the place to himself – and I wanted to know why.
I hurriedly crossed the road again to get closer, just as the Devil’s Advocate reached the lone tree towards the back of the park. He circled round it, his head tilted upwards. He appeared to be examining it closely, but for what I couldn’t say. Then he disappeared out of view, crouching down behind the skeletal trunk. I chewed on my bottom lip before sidling back in and skirting round the park’s fringes to stay out of his line of sight.
I was very careful. I edged round while keeping an eye on the sun so that my own shadow didn’t give me away. I kept to the balls of my feet and avoided the fallen twigs in order to stay silent. I avoided looking at him directly so that his subconscious wouldn’t feel the force of my gaze and cause him to turn towards me. It worked. The Devil’s Advocate was entirely intent on scrabbling around in the dirt at the foot of the tree. If he’d also been snorting, I’d have imagined he was questing for truffles. He was completely silent, however.
After a minute or two, he got up to his feet and began walking round the tree again, moving further and further out in ever increasing circles. His gaze remained fixed to the ground. He was clearly searching for something and he was taking his time over it. I moved round with him, remaining behind him at all times so that he didn’t notice me. I might not have bothered. The Devils Advocate was completely focused on his own task.
Eventually he stopped what he was doing, stepping back, putting his hands into his pockets and frowning. The man didn’t crack a smile very often. Without giving anything else away, he abruptly strode off again, obviously in the direction of the park’s exit.
I waited until I was sure he was far enough away. Then I too walked over to the tree. There was a pile of loose dirt by the patch of ground where he’d been crouching. I knelt down and looked at it. Something was there. Something … dark. I reached down and brushed my fingertips against it. They came up sticky. I raised them to my nose and sniffed. I was no forensic e
xpert but that smelled like blood to me. There wasn’t a lot of it and I’d never have noticed it if the Devil’s Advocate hadn’t paused here for so long. I swallowed and stared at it, feeling nauseous. Then I scrambled to my feet and took after the Devil’s Advocate. He was onto something. I had to know what it was and where he was going now.
I was worried about the time – after all, I still didn’t want to be late getting back to work. I was also slightly worried that he might notice I was following him. I shouldn’t have been concerned. It didn’t take to long to work out exactly where he was going. Fortunately, it was the exact same place as me. I began to relax. It wouldn’t matter if he spotted me now. I was simply returning to work after my lunch hour. That was a perfectly normal thing to be doing.
Thirty seconds after he entered the Faery Godmothers’ building, I strolled in after him. I smiled cheerily at Mrs Jardine. She managed a tiny smile in return even though it was clear that the Devil’s Advocate’s return was unsettling her. I signed back in and scooted round her desk towards the lift, where the Devil’s Advocate was also waiting, drumming his long fingers against his thigh.
‘Good afternoon,’ I chirped.
He merely inclined his head in response. That was a bit rude, I decided, given that we’d shared a lame joke or two yesterday. I shrugged to myself and instead cast an appraising eye up and down his body. I wanted to see if there was evidence of any more clues. Alas, I couldn’t see even so much as any dirt on his shoes from his park explorations. I couldn’t say the same about my own footwear. Billy wouldn’t be able to complain about the patent leather now. You could barely tell that my shoes were black given the layer of dirt and dust that now covered them.
The lift arrived and both the Devil’s Advocate and myself stepped in. He still smelled of cinnamon, which I had to admit was a pleasant change from the other people I’d been spending time with recently. I stepped into the corner and eyed his straight back. What are you really up to? I wondered at him. What took you to St Clements Park?
The lift doors slid shut and the same tinny muzak filled the air. Without turning round, the Devil’s Advocate murmured, ‘Are you about to begin giggling again, Ms Sawyer?’
‘I wouldn’t say I’m in the giggling mood today,’ I replied.
There was a beat of silence before he spoke again. ‘That’s a shame.’
All of a sudden, the lift jolted. Instinctively, I put my hand out against the wall to brace myself. I was still knocked forward, however, colliding against the Devil’s Advocate before jumping back.
‘Sorry!’ I held my hands up.
He tutted at me. Then he stepped over to the control panel and jabbed a few buttons. ‘We’ve stopped,’ he said.
Even I’d worked that out. ‘I’m sure we’ll start moving again in a moment.’
‘Mmm.’ He didn’t sound convinced. He pressed a few more buttons. Nothing happened. Expelling an irritated sigh, he hit the intercom. ‘This is the Devil’s Advocate,’ he said. ‘I’m in the lift with Saffron Sawyer and it appears to be stuck.’
I winced internally. I could imagine the expression on Mrs Jardine’s face right now. A moment later, her voice filled the air. ‘I’m calling an engineer straight away,’ she said. ‘My sincerest apologies. We will have you moving again in no time. Are you both alright?’
His response was clipped and to the point. ‘We are fine.’
‘I’ll keep you updated,’ she promised, ‘this won’t take long.’ The intercom clicked off.
‘You know,’ I said conversationally, ‘Mrs Jardine is a scary woman. She’s also a very intelligent one. She sees everything that goes on in this building and knows everyone. She’s also incredibly intimidated by you. It wouldn’t hurt to be a bit … nicer towards her.’
The Devil’s Advocate slowly turned round, as if unable to believe that I’d dared to give him advice. ‘She intimidates other people,’ he said, with a pointed look to me. ‘She should be able to handle being intimidated herself.’
I wrinkled my nose. ‘She can handle it. She can probably handle everything. It’s just … unnecessary for someone in your position to not be a bit kinder.’
He didn’t move. He gazed down at me with dark, unfathomable eyes. ‘I will take your comments on board,’ he said with the sort of air that told me he wouldn’t give them a second thought. He cocked his head. ‘Why were you at the park, Ms Sawyer?’
I started. Fuck a puck. ‘Er … pardon?’
A tiny smile played around his lips. ‘Why were you at St Clements Park?’ he repeated. ‘You weren’t following me. Not to begin with anyway, because you were there before me.’ He tilted forward, using his size to loom over me. It was quite unnecessary. I was already feeling claustrophobic and trapped enough in the lift as it was. ‘So why,’ he said softly, ‘were you there at all?’
‘I was getting some fresh air,’ I replied, panic forcing me into a daft, unnecessary lie. ‘It’s a pretty park and it’s not too far away from here.’
‘You don’t really expect me to believe that, do you?’ His eyes glittered.
Feeling crowded, I crossed my arms. He got the message and stepped away slightly, although his expression didn’t change. ‘Why were you there?’ I shot back. ‘Maybe you were following me.’
The Devil’s Advocate appeared amused by the suggestion. ‘Why would I do that?’
Something snapped. Perhaps it was his humour at my situation. Perhaps it was simply that I’d had enough of this entire thing. Either way, the words came tumbling out of my mouth before I could stop them. ‘Why wouldn’t you? Everyone else is following me, after all. You probably can’t wait until someone jumps out of the shadows and kidnaps me. It’ll make your day.’ I changed the pitch of my voice. Let the dope faery be the one to be kidnapped. Don’t tell her that her life’s in danger so she can prepare or protect herself though. She’s not that important. She’s expendable and she’ll make excellent bait.’
Judging by the look in his eyes, I’d genuinely surprised the man. ‘The Director told you why you’re here?’
‘No,’ I half snarled. ‘I worked it out for myself. With a little help from the one or two faeries who work here who aren’t complete wankers anyway. In any case, I’m not as stupid as you all seem to think I am.’
He watched me carefully. ‘I don’t think you’re stupid, Ms Sawyer.’
‘Oh, I see,’ I said with heavy sarcasm. ‘You only think that my life is less important than anyone else’s then. Thanks a lot. Good to know.’
He hissed under his breath. ‘That is not what I think.’ He muttered to himself before meeting my angry gaze. ‘The plan was not my idea. I counseled against it. I would have forbidden it outright if it hadn’t already been in motion before I visited yesterday. There are many things which occur in this office which are against both complicated regulations and simple morals. Why do you think I’m conducting an audit in the first place?’
‘How the hell should I know? I assumed it might have something to do with the five missing faery godmothers.’ I drew back my shoulders. I should have known he’d try to deny his involvement. Why would anyone admit to such a thing? ‘I’m hardly the go-to person around here for information!’
‘You should calm down, Ms Sawyer.’
Oh, he did not just go there. ‘Calm down? Calm the fuck down? I’m being used as mushroom bait for some bastard who enjoys cutting pieces of faery godmothers and sending them through the post by special delivery and you’re suggesting I calm down? You patronizing tosser.’
He blinked. I didn’t suppose that anyone had ever dared to call the Devil’s Advocate anything like that before. Now that I’d started, however, all my pent up emotions were bursting out like an uncontrollable steam train. There was no stopping them. My brakes had well and truly gone.
‘Why aren’t you out there trying to find the kidnapped faeries?’ I demanded. ‘Why isn’t someone doing something about those poor sods instead of playing around with me? Is this the best you could
come up with? Offering me up like some sacrificial lamb?’
‘Ms Sawyer…’ the Devil’s Advocate said stiffly.
‘I mean, no-one seems to care that Lydia DuChamp is now missing one ear. You’re all too busy congratulating yourselves on your genius plan.’
‘Ms Sawyer, if you would be quiet for one moment and let me speak…’
‘What happens if he doesn’t take the bait? What happens if he goes after some other faery godmother instead? Will I get the blame for not being a tempting enough victim? Because right now nothing you lot do would surprise me in the slightest.’
The Devil’s Advocate shifted his weight. ‘Saffron!’
I stilled. I continued to glare at him though. ‘What?’
He pointed at the corner of the lift. ‘Sit down and I will explain everything.’
I folded my arms, ready to refuse. That was until he sat himself down in the opposite corner, stretching out his long legs and glancing at me askance. I sighed audibly and rolled my eyes. Then I sat down as well, leaning my back against the side of the lift.
‘Go on then,’ I said icily. ‘Explain.’
His expression turned thoughtful. I could tell that he was considering how to begin. Somehow, despite my seething ire, something told me that it wasn’t because he was planning to lie to me or manipulate me in some way. It was because he wanted to be absolutely clear in his explanations without leaving any detail out. A small part of the tension in my stomach uncoiled.
‘The Office for Faery Godmothers has always been held in very high regard. For a long time this was because it deserved it. In recent years, however, and under various different Directorships, standards have been slipping. No-one has ever questioned what’s been going on because,’ he offered me a faint smile, ‘they’re Faery Godmothers. They’ve rested on their laurels for too long and used their reputation to skate by.’ He held up his hands. ‘That doesn’t mean to say that their intentions aren’t still good or that good work isn’t being done. Just that things could be … better.’
