by Zoe Arden
"If we don't stop the trickster quickly, many more will die," King Zulubar said. "We do not want another repeat of the draugr episode." I shuddered at the memory of an event that had happened not long ago. No one had been safe during that time. Goblins had been injured just as much as witches and warlocks.
Sheriff Knoxx nodded his agreement. "You're right, of course." He bowed deeply. He knew how to work the situation. Goblins respected those who showed respect to them. Sometimes, however, you had to overindulge to suit their tastes. They were fond of bowing every few minutes, and if you missed a bow, you might find yourself in trouble.
I took a position near the sheriff and offered my own bow before letting out a sigh. The hairs on my arms were standing on end. Getting shot at with arrows will do that to you. All this talk about tricksters wasn't helping any. I rubbed the goose pimples away and remembered that right now it would do me better to listen than to speak. Eleanor and Trixie often told me I had a real problem with that but I was determined to learn all I could just now.
"Tell me what you think I should know," said the sheriff.
King Zulubar bowed. The sheriff returned it.
"The night of Ava Fortune's birthday gathering, a force was called upon from the Earth. We in Goblin Territory all felt it." The goblins surrounding us all nodded their heads. "A trickster was summoned forth."
I shot a look toward the sheriff, whose ears were perked. His eyes were following King Zulubar as he began to walk around the rock, not pacing, just moving as he told his story.
"The trickster is not evil in himself," King Zulubar said, "but the one who conjured him is. They would use the trickster to their will, to kill others, to gain power."
"Do you know who summoned the trickster?" I asked.
"That we do not," King Zulubar said. His gray skin seemed to glisten in the sunlight that snuck in through the treetops. "But we can tell you that it was not a vampire, and that it did not happen in Sweetland Cove."
"Mistmoor Point!" I shouted, looking at Sheriff Knoxx. "We should have known."
"No," said the king. "Not Mistmoor Point."
My brow scrunched. So did the sheriff's.
"So, the conjuring did not take place on Heavenly Haven?" Sheriff Knoxx asked.
King Zulubar conferred with some aides who spoke in a series of grunts and groans.
"It was here on Heavenly Haven," the king finally said. "But the exact location did not favor one town over another."
"I don't suppose you could be more specific," Sheriff Knoxx said, scratching his head. Goblins liked to speak in riddles at times, and I supposed this was one of those times.
"Oh, my roses," I muttered to myself. "Of course!" Sheriff Knoxx shot me a glance and opened his mouth to say something but King Zulubar was not yet done with his speech.
"You must find the one who controls the trickster. It is the only way to stop it."
"Do you know where, er, I mean who, the trickster is residing in right now?" I asked.
King Zulubar turned his head toward the sky before shaking it. My shoulders fell.
"Is there more than one trickster?" I asked.
"No," King Zulubar said. "There is but one. It is powerful and goes from person to person at will. No one is safe from it unless they are human."
Sheriff Knoxx suddenly bowed. The king bowed back. The sheriff put one hand on my shoulder and began walking backward with me.
"We thank you for this information," Sheriff Knoxx said, bowing again. He continued to bow until the goblins were out of sight.
"Why did we leave?" I asked him.
"Because they didn't have any more to tell us," he said as we returned to the main road. "But I suspect you do." He glanced at me from the corner of his eye. "You got an idea back there."
I looked at him. "First, tell me something. Earlier, why did you deny there was a trickster around when I brought it up?"
Sheriff Knoxx sighed. "I never doubted that there was. But I was working on the theory that the less information Sean and Lizzie have to report to Warden Banks, the better. Also... I thought that maybe the trickster was in the room with us."
My mouth dropped open. "You mean like it was still inside me?" I asked.
He shook his head.
"It was just a feeling but I felt like it was there in the ethereal sense. An invisible force waiting to jump into any one of us. I didn't want it to hear what we were saying about it." We hit the edge of downtown Sweetland. "Now you tell me. What do you know that you're not telling me?"
"There are only a handful of places on the island that don't belong to either Sweetland or Mistmoor, right?"
"That's right, I guess."
"So, whoever conjured the trickster must have done it from either Whisper Crossing or one of the prisons. And given that we've had prisoners, prison guards, and the warden himself roaming around our town the last couple of weeks, it only makes sense that it must have come from one of the prisons."
"I wouldn't rule out Whisper Crossing, though," he said. "There's a lot of strange stuff that happens there, and everyone can get to it quite easily. Much more easily than the prisons."
"Well, you can check there if you want but I know where I'm going."
"Ava, don't go looking for trouble."
"I won't," I told him, then under my breath, "At least, not any more than usual."
* * *
CHAPTER
THIRTY-TWO
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Colt texted me just as I shut the door to my bedroom. He was finally home from the hospital. I was thrilled to hear it and quickly texted him back, careful not to squish the demibane cupcake that was tucked neatly into my purse. I couldn't believe that Blossom's cupcake still looked so fresh. It was as if it had been baked earlier this morning rather than a week ago. I wasn't sure whether that had to do with the demibane or some other, secret ingredient but decided it didn't matter. Not now.
I had never thought I would want such a cupcake as the one I carried with me now. When Blossom had given it to me, I'd wanted to throw it in the trash. I was glad now that I'd saved it. Demibane was a potent truth serum, and I needed a bit of that.
Swords and Bones was dark. There was no other way to describe it. The prison was made from dark gray stone. The sky above it seemed just as dark, as if a permanent cloud had been placed there. The time of day was irrelevant; it always looked like night here. I was glad it had taken less than an hour to get here in Eleanor's car. If I'd had more time to think about it, I might've changed my mind.
I held my breath as I approached it, glad I'd called the warden before coming. Though I hadn't given a specific time of arrival, they knew I would be here before nightfall. I got the impression that if you weren't expected at Swords and Bones, you were liable to get shot trying to get in. As if anyone would want to break into this place. The idea was ludicrous.
A guard showed me to a waiting room where a woman in a black pencil skirt and button-up white blouse led me down a long hallway. I held the cupcake in its tiny package, ready to thrust it upon the warden as soon as I entered his office. The secretary knocked quickly on his door then pushed it open without waiting for an answer. She gasped as she stepped into his office. Her face went red.
"I'm sorry, sir," she said, her voice rising an octave.
Lizzie Rambler moved quickly out of the warden's arms. She held her head high, though her cheeks colored a bit. If I hadn't just seen her kissing the warden, I never would have believed it. I remembered that Calista and Polly had said Lizzie had a crush on the warden but until now I hadn't suspected that he felt the same. I'd have thought that Sean and Lizzie were hooking up behind closed doors, if anything. I couldn't help wonder how Sean would feel now if he knew what his crush was doing with the warden.
Warden Banks shot his secretary a look of hatred. "If you cannot remember to knock and wait for a reply, then you will no longer have a job
here. Is that understood?"
"Yes, sir," she replied. Her face was pinched tightly together. "I'm so sorry." She muttered those words over and over again, I'm so sorry, even as she closed the door and backed out of the room. Lizzie hovered in the office a moment longer, then shot the warden a look and walked out herself.
I waited for the warden's face to relax before presenting him with my cupcake. "I thought you might like a little pick-me-up."
He took the cupcake from me, eyeing it with skepticism.
"Something tells me you wouldn't bring me a cupcake just because you like me. I know your true feelings about me. They're quite plain."
I blushed. "You're right," I told him, wishing I'd thought this out a bit better. "I'm not very fond of you, it's true. But I'm less fond of prison. And you helped to keep me out of here. You have also never given up on your instincts, and I'm beginning to think you may have been right all along."
"Oh?" said the warden, holding the cupcake to his nose. Once he smelled it, a smile broke out on his face.
"Yes," I said. "Polly Peacock and Calista Woodruff are dangerous. I see that now."
He hesitated just a moment before biting into the cake. "And what has brought about this change in your mind?" The second his taste buds touched the creamy frosting, I saw his eyes light up. He devoured the cupcake in three big bites. I tried not to smile.
"I've just realized that you were right. Everything that's happened started after they were released. Also... I spoke with the goblins."
He hiccupped. I tried not to laugh.
"Goblins?" he asked.
"King Zulubar, to be more specific."
The warden's eyes widened. "What did he say?" He sat on the edge of his desk. It was the most attentive I'd ever seen him. I wasn't sure how long the demibane truth extract took to kick in. I thought that it ought to happen rather quickly, though.
"He told me that there is, most definitely, a trickster running loose in Sweetland Cove."
"I knew it!" the warden said, slapping his thigh.
"You... you did?" I asked, surprised. He'd seemed even more resistant to the idea of a trickster than Sheriff Knoxx had pretended to be.
"Of course. I'm not a dim-witch, you know. I recognize magic when I see it, even dark magic." He balled up the cupcake wrapper and tossed it in the trash.
"Then why are you planning to move Polly back to Swords and Bones, unless you think she's responsible for it?"
"Of course not," he said, then tilted his head to the side as if he was surprised at his own words. "What I mean is, I know Polly's not behind this stuff. I might have thought so at first but it's been quite apparent for some time what's really going on."
"It has?" I asked, wanting to push him but afraid of going too far with it. "Do you know who conjured the trickster?"
Something in his eyes flickered. "No. Yes. I don't know." The truth extract must have been kicking in. He was fighting it but it was winning out.
Then I asked the question I'd come there to ask. "Was it you who conjured the trickster?"
I held my breath, waiting for his reply, which was loud, offensive laughter. Instead of answering my question, he was laughing at me.
"Is that a yes?" I asked uncertainly. He only laughed some more. I was suddenly worried that what Blossom had told me was a demibane cupcake had actually contained hilarity extract. Maybe nothing he'd been telling me was the truth. And he still hadn't answered my question.
"Why do you hate Polly so much?" I asked, trying something else.
"Because, she killed the only woman I ever loved." He doubled over at his stomach, still laughing.
My jaw dropped open. It hit the floor and rebounded, only to drop again. "Wh-What? Who?"
He tried to speak but his words wouldn't come through his laughter.
There was a knock on his door. "Warden Banks?" his secretary called out.
"C-C-Come in!" he shouted, his face bright red. Either he was having some bizarre allergic reaction to demibane or Blossom had been lying to me about what was in that cupcake. The door opened and his secretary's head popped in.
"There's a man out here from COMHA. He needs you to sign some papers." She scrunched her brow as the warden hurried toward her, still laughing. She looked at me with raised eyebrows then shut the door and followed him down the hall.
I couldn't believe my luck. Warden Banks must have employed the silliest secretary in the world to open doors without knocking and to leave me alone in here unsupervised. If Warden Banks had been in his right senses, he would never have approved.
I hurried behind his desk and began pulling open drawers, searching for something that might help me understand the situation better. Who had he been talking about when he'd said Polly had killed the only woman he'd ever loved? The only woman Polly had ever successfully killed was Margaret Binford. Had she and the warden been a couple? Dating in secret, perhaps? If they had, then it would explain the warden's desire to see Polly back behind bars. He might even go so far as to frame her for things she hadn't done, like killing Trevor.
There was nothing in his desk, so I moved quickly to the filing cabinet. The first drawer was locked but the second one slid easily open. Inside sat several papers, beneath them was a picture frame. I pulled it out and it felt like someone had just hit my head with a hammer. I was holding a photograph of Warden Banks... with Polly's mom. It had obviously been taken some time ago, maybe even as much as twenty years. Heck, maybe even high school. It was hard to tell from the goofy grins on both their faces as they posed for the camera.
Anastasia was wearing a fancy red dress in the photo. Warden Banks was wearing a pin-striped suit. He had one arm thrown around her shoulders, the other was holding her hand tightly in his. They looked happy. I shoved the picture into my purse just as the door opened and the warden came back in.
"I'm sorry to keep you waiting," he said. "What were we talking about?"
"Polly Peacock," I said promptly. "And her mother."
His eyes glazed over ever so slightly. "Oh, yes. Anastasia was a beautiful woman. It was a shame what happened to her. Polly was supposed to be back in Swords and Bones by now but Dr. Dunne keeps stalling. He's trying to keep her there, I know. Thinks she deserves a second chance. I can't get Calista until I get her. If she hears that Polly was arrested, she'll run."
"Why bother with Calista when it's Polly you want?"
"Because Calista is an evil little toad who deserves whatever she gets."
I kept quiet, hoping he might volunteer more info. When none came, I decided I'd better get out of there before he discovered I'd gone snooping through his things.
"Well, thanks for seeing me," I said.
"Anytime," he muttered, sitting at his desk. His eyes were beginning to close, a side effect of the cupcake, I was quite certain. I hurried from the room. I had to tell Colt what I'd found out.
* * *
CHAPTER
THIRTY-THREE
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I texted Colt that I was coming over to see him and hit send. I was sure he wouldn't mind, especially when he found out what I had to tell him. I hurried down the sidewalk, my hand on my purse. I kept pressing on the frame through the thick fabric, worried that the picture would suddenly fall out or dematerialize or something if I couldn't feel it in there. I ignored the sounds of tourists and locals around me and tried to focus. I had to think through everything I knew, separating fact from supposition.
First off, I knew positively that Warden Banks and Anastasia Peacock had been an item. I also knew that he blamed Polly for Anastasia's death. Whatever he had going on with Lizzie Rambler right now clearly had nothing to do with his feelings for Anastasia.
"The warden wasn't at my party, though," I said, biting my lip. That was true but only so far as I knew. Colt had commented that night on how quickly the warden, Lizzie, and Sean had arrived. I tried to remember just how
fast it really had been. Twenty minutes? An hour? Everything that night had seemed to drag but I did remember Warden Banks' words. He'd said that he and his guards had been nearby because he'd suspected that Polly or Calista would soon get themselves into trouble.
Had that been an accurate prediction, or the prediction of someone who was trying to frame them for crimes they hadn't committed?
Assuming that Polly had been possessed by the trickster the night of my party, which I thought now was a safe assumption considering what I'd seen that night—her eyes going black—and what I now knew about tricksters bouncing from one person to another, it made sense to assume that Polly was responsible for Trevor's death. That thought had crossed my mind before but I hadn't been certain. Now I was.
I was also certain that tricksters could inhabit whoever they chose. I was certain it had been inside the sheriff and probably also in Otis that day I'd seen him at the sheriff's station. And also myself, though it pained me to admit it. I must have attacked Polly just as Lucy had said I'd done, I just didn't remember doing it.
Who else might have been possessed?
Dean Lampton, my mind quickly told me. He'd been the only person in the room with Colt when he'd been attacked. The trickster had probably jumped into him, attacked Colt, then quickly exited. Where had it gone next? Into who?
Damon had shown up just as the attack happened but, according to everyone I talked to, tricksters couldn't inhabit humans, only trick on them. That gave me an idea.
I pulled my phone back out and dialed Damon's number. "Hello?" his voice came on the line.
"Damon, it's Ava."
"Ava, hi." There was a muffled voice behind his. He held the phone away from his mouth and muttered something to whoever else was in the room with him. A second later, I heard a door click closed.
