The biggest problem with a victorious ending is usually the aftermath. Adrenaline and emotions complicate things, often setting the actual success on the proverbial back burner. The longer it takes to get back to the success, the less important it becomes… until sometimes one forgets it was a success at all. Then it starts to become somewhat dissatisfying and mundane.
Never take success for granted.
In retrospect, I should have expected John Kelly to show up at the Bell Tree. When he did, I was cleaned up, wearing a borrowed shirt, and seated in one of the high-backed wooden cubby-booths, composing an email on my phone and sipping a glass of water. The not-so-fragile twig had been carefully wrapped in a wet paper towel and tucked into a plastic baggie by Amy, and I had secreted it away in the shirt pocket.
I had already shot a message to Tristan giving him the all-clear, but I hadn’t yet heard back. Kelly walked up to me, and not seeing Rebecca, glowered. “Where is she, Shestin?” Yup, imposing older brother and annoyed cop mode was certainly set to on. Granted, I couldn’t blame him; in my younger days, I’d have been much the same about my little sister. Hell, push come to shove, I’d probably race to her rescue today if she needed it, no matter what she thought of me.
“Relax, she’s upstairs taking a long hot shower, and will be down as soon as she is done. Want something to drink? The waitress will be by momentarily. Don’t be rude; she’s deaf but not dumb. Just tell her what you want, and she’ll bring it.” I hadn’t bothered to look up from my email, but I knew that he was still standing there. “And have a seat. I don’t find you at all imposing. Perhaps tiring, bit never imposing. My brother is imposing, so I do know the difference.”
Kelly moved opposite me, sitting on the edge of the bench like a man prepared to leap to his feet and charge to his sister’s defense the instant he laid eyes on her. “Did he do anything to her? Did he hurt my baby sister?” His voice was a low and dangerous growl, and I lifted my gaze from my phone to look at him. Who knew the guy actually had a heart?
“No, Kelly. She’s fine. Your sister is a resourceful and remarkable young woman. She does her brother credit.” I hit send on the email and set my phone to the side, looking to him. “She’s seen magic at work, though, and she had a bit of a fuss over that. I smoothed some of it over, but I’d expect her to have nightmares for a few nights. Nothing lasting, though. She’s a tough girl.” I decided against mentioning the demon and the wings. There was only so much I could drop on him before he had his own issues.
Amy, the waitress, walked up to the table and smiled to Kelly, looking to him for his order. He blinked at her for a moment, and then his gaze slid across to me. His lips twisted in what I thought might have been a smile, and then he looked back to Amy, whose turn it was to look surprised. Ah-ha. Just as I thought. Kelly was a thoughtmage. Amy burst into a smile, and she nodded to him before she moved off to get whatever it was that he had ordered. “Nice girl,” he commented absently, and pulled his phone out of his pocket and set it on the table.
“I’m quite fond of Amy. She’s very sweet, patient and kind. Anyone who tries to be ugly to her when I am present gets an invitation to apologize or leave. Most apologize. Suzu just throws them out.” My phone chimed with an email, and I picked it up, reading the header before I put it down. “Suzu’s the proprietress… and she doesn’t tolerate customers abusing her staff.”
Kelly nodded, turning as Amy approached with a tray carrying a glass of what looked to be some sort of soda. She placed it on the table before him and smiled at him for a moment, then turned to head back behind the bar. Without Suzu to mind the bar, Amy was keeping track of everything. There weren’t but a small handful of customers in the dining room, so it wasn’t a problem, and I knew that Amy was perfectly capable of calling up to Suzu for help.
Fifteen minutes of awkward silence and attempting to ignore each other later, Kelly spoke. “Tell me how you found her.” I looked up from my phone in surprise, finding him looking at me with an intensity that almost rivaled my brother’s gaze. I put my phone down, considered for a moment, and then nodded. If he wanted to know, I suppose that he deserved the truth. Granted, what I put in the report would be a mundane fistfight and a bizarre chemical explosion which resulted in loss of life.
“All right. My partner and I,” I ignored the voice in the back of my head helpfully pointing out that Tristan was my son, not my partner, “determined that the most likely reason for the kidnappings was a case of mistaken identity. Once we decided who the likely target truly was, we could hypothesize why he wanted her. After that, it was fairly easy for me to figure out where he was based and given that we’d already searched there and found nothing, the next most logical answer would be where she was.”
Kelly nodded and motioned for me to get on with it. “I sent my partner off to keep an eye on the true target in the event something went wrong, and I headed off to the warehouse over on Charlotte.” At Kelly’s surprise, I lifted my hand. “No, I don’t think she’s been there the entire time. But given that you have some experience with the not quite mundane, I take it you’ve heard of a Gate?” At his nod, I continued. “There’s a Gate in that warehouse, and the young woman your sister was mistaken for is a high enough level magic user that she can control the Gate at whim.”
He winced, and I nodded. “Exactly. He wanted the Gate, and I suppose he thought he could take her, transfer her power to himself, and therefore claim the Gate.” I shook my head slowly. “Thing is, a mundane soul won’t survive the transfer attempt, which is why the other women who had been kidnapped were killed. Likely, your sister wouldn’t have survived it either, even though there seems to be mageblood in your heritage.”
“When I got there, she was gagged, and duct taped to a chair. Remarkably calm about it, though. Even resourceful enough to have managed to secret something into her pocket to get herself free. She managed it while I was fighting him and was witness to the marvels of science and chemistry.” At Kelly’s quirked eyebrow, I shrugged. “I started a magnesium fire that kicked off the sprinklers. Magnesium plus water equals very big boom.”
He shook his head, and it wasn’t in amusement. He took a drink of his water and looked back to me. “Do you ever do anything that doesn’t result in an explosion, Shestin?” Of course, he was referring to the explosion I’d caused earlier while fighting off the other demon, but I just shrugged it off. He rolled his eyes and set the water down. “One of these days I will get a straight answer out of you, Shestin.” Yeah, and it would probably end with him in a padded cell and me kicked out of the country.
I was spared any further questions by a delighted cry and Rebecca Kelly running into the dining room to embrace her brother. “JJ! Oh my God, oh my God, JJ!” Well, that wasn’t the young woman I’d encountered in the upstairs room of the warehouse. This was the little sister finally sure that the nightmare was over, and that she was safe. I felt fabric at my elbow and turned to smile up to Suzu as she put an arm around me in greeting, then slipped free before I could return it.
Sitting there in the dining room of the Bell Tree, watching John Kelly hug his little sister close made it all worthwhile; the first fight at the warehouse, waking up in the pool of my own blood, coming round in hospital in care of my brother, and dealing with everything else on top of it. All worth it. I rose from my seat and looked over to Kelly. “You know what? Take her home. Don’t worry about anything but taking care of her tonight. I’ll go over to Lockwood and smooth it all over, promise to get her checked out. My brother is a doctor at Roper; she’ll be in good hands there.”
I didn’t give him a chance to reply, instead turning and leaving the dining room and heading past the elevators. At the back door, I met Xelander, and once again remembered his penchant for turning up when I needed him back when we were young. “Xelander, there’s a girl in the dining room. She’s been in the relative care of a demon for a while… do me a favor and give her a quick look. If you see anything concerning, get her to hospital and give me a call. I’m going over to Lockwood to file my report, and then I’m going home.” I stepped past him, ignoring his echo of the word ‘report’ and headed for my motorcycle. The sight of Rebecca clinging to John Kelly had left me unnerved, and I needed wind in my hair and speed at my feet.
Teimhean, it’s a good thing you’ve done today. Of course, Suzu. She didn’t need to see me to talk to me, and I smirked as I slid onto the seat of the bike and turned the key. I kicked off and headed out of the parking lot, not bothering to try a reply. I didn’t need to; she knew I wouldn’t believe her, no matter what she said.
The Charleston Police Department building was on Lockwood drive, facing the Ashley River, and the building was pink. No two ways around it, it was a shade of pink that most self-respecting police officer pretended didn’t exist every time they checked in at headquarters. I parked in a visitor spot and joined the ranks ignoring the color as I headed in through the glass doors, nodding to an officer and waving at another as I went by. Most of them liked me. It was just John Kelly who didn’t, though I suspected that might have changed somewhat.
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
I made my way to Kelly’s desk, booted his computer and logged in with my own credentials. I used his computer mostly because I knew it would irritate him, but I wasn’t going to tell him that. Once I was logged in, I found the case assignment and considered how I was going to close the case. Suspect identified? No, but given that the suspect was caught in the act and had attacked me; I knew that I’d take a little heat, and then it would blow over. Better I take the heat than John Kelly, though maybe Tristan was right. Maybe I was insane, because I certainly wasn’t altruistic.
I went through the form on the screen, filling in the standard data before I started keying in the summary of events. I left out all references to magic and my son, but illustrating the thought process that had led to the determination that the warehouse was the most likely place for the kidnapper to be taking the victim. I opted to put ‘ritual sacrifice’ as the sub-motive, selecting ‘insanity’ as the primary motive, and then tagged the file as ‘closed – seeking review.’
Snagging a slip of paper from Kelly’s desk, I picked up a pen and jotted down a fast note, then taped it to Kelly’s monitor and three-fingered the keyboard to log out of the machine. That way he’d know I’d used his computer and wouldn’t lock the computer by entering his password on my login one time too many. I hoped.
I didn’t get off the floor before his supervisor caught me. “Shestin, do you ever not close cases?” I turned away from the elevator and flashed a grin as I offered a hand. “One or two, Mark. But they’re not yours, so you don’t have to worry. I took it upon myself to pass Miss Kelly to her brother’s care, so if you’ve anything to say about that, let it land squarely on my head. He knew better than to ask. Doctor Wexforth of Roper was present.” He shook my hand as I spoke and waved me off.
“No, I trust your judgment, and if she was cleared, there’s no sense in dragging her through paperwork. I’m sure she’s been through enough. I won’t keep you; just saw you’d submitted for closure and wanted to catch up before you left. You’re a good man, Shestin. Glad you’re on our side.” He clapped me on the shoulder and missed my wince as he moved away. At 6’3” and probably 195, he was a big man. If someone had told me he’d been quarterback for his college football team, I’d have believed them.
The elevator doors opened, and I headed in, pushing the button for the main floor. Time to go home and talk to Tristan about mundane things such as transportation and schedules. I didn’t want him to feel trapped in the townhouse, but I was going to have to go back to the daily life of working at Ravenswing Corporation, and that meant he’d be on his own for a good part of the day. All right, to be fair, I didn’t have to go back to working for Ravenswing, but who else would Caroline make coffee for? As far as I knew, Ravenswing didn’t drink it.
Back at the townhouse, I parked the Ninja by the back and headed through the garden to the side door and slipped inside. “Hey, Tristan, thanks for…” my voice trailed off as I realized that my son wasn’t alone, and that the other person sitting on the edge of the sofa who had turned at my voice was none other than Vanessa Ravenswing. “Uh…” I said cleverly, “Right. I’ve missed something, haven’t I?” The door closed quietly behind me with a click that echoed in my head.
“Her Da wasn’t home, and when she saw the car, she thought I was you. I figured here was as safe as anywhere, though we were mostly here when I got your text,” Tristan shrugged replied, and grinned at me. “We’ve just been having a smashing discussion regarding your decorating sense, and we agree; Ikea has got to go. We’re banning you for life.”
I needed a drink. My son and the demon child from Hell were sitting in my living room, discussing my décor. Instead of going for the bottle of brandy, however, I pinched the bridge of my nose and took a deep breath. “Where is your father, Vanessa?” I was very likely to regret asking that, but it had to be done.
“When he saw your car pull up, he left,” Vanessa offered, looking to me for a moment, and then looking back to Tristan. “He didn’t bother to look and see who it was. I didn’t know you had a son. I like him.” She smiled at Tristan, who grinned back, and I felt a peculiar pit opening in my stomach. “His sense of humor is better than yours.”
Oh… Christ. “Yeah, and he’s older than you are,” I replied, looking to Vanessa and knowing full well the age she was versus the age she appeared. “And before you ask, Tristan, her apparent age is a function of an incredibly powerful and overprotective father.” I walked around the coffee table and sat in the chair, looking at the pair of them as they looked at each other across the glass surface. “It’s nearly dinner. Vanessa, when did you last eat?” Now, Tristan looked chagrined as he glanced to me.
“I had a grilled cheese sandwich for lunch. I’m allowed to cook, you know.” Spoken like a true female whose ego has been badly trampled. “But nothing since then. I wouldn’t mind something to eat.” Now that the proverbial cat was out of the bag, she was acting less the part of the eight-year-old, and more akin to what her natural age likely was. “I’m thoroughly sick of pizza, though. That’s all they feed kids in school.”
I leaned back in the chair and looked across to Tristan for a moment, who shrugged. Well, it wasn’t as if he knew what was in the area that delivered. “It’s either pizza or Chinese if you want delivery. Takeaway is a little more open. I’m good with either one, personally.” Cheese pizza or mixed vegetables. Odds were, I’d eat very little of either.
Tristan gestured to Vanessa, who tilted her head to look at him for a moment, and then she turned to me. “Chinese. Shrimp with broccoli. White rice. May I use your bathroom?” She rose, and I pointed to the door and looked to Tristan as I took my phone out of my pocket. He requested curry chicken and then rose from his seat to walk into the kitchen. I called in the order, and by the time I was done, both Tristan and Vanessa had retaken their seats. It felt a bit like a Mexican standoff.
Twenty minutes later, I’d placed the twig in a cup of water and there was still an uncomfortable silence in the living room when the food arrived. I paid and took the food, thanking the driver and closing the door as he left. I carried the food past the pair who were still watching each other and set it on the dining room table. “When you’re finished sizing each other up, food is here. Do either of you use chopsticks? They gave us some.” The best way to handle the tension between them, I’d decided, was to ignore it. Whatever the tension was, and I rather suspected it was a war for my attention, I wasn’t playing along.
They rose as if choreographed, and to try to break whatever spell was weaving between them, I addressed Vanessa directly. “Have you the power to return to your normal physical age?” I was curious to see if she was holding the spell, or if Valen Ravenswing was. It didn’t truly matter, but it was a valid question. “If the concern for being kidnapped is still there, you can forget it. Your would-be kidnapper met quite an explosive end earlier today.”
Eyes the color of new green leaves shifted my way in surprise. “You killed Rathbourne?” Her voice carried her disbelief, and she stopped moving, watching me. “You honestly expect me to believe that you killed Rathbourne. You can’t even keep your car from being stolen, how do you expect me to believe that you had the power to destroy my father’s ex-third in command?”
Ex-third in command. Vanessa may as well have carved those words out of ice and dropped them on me, one letter at a time. No wonder the creature knew what to look for… only he was doing math and kidnapping what he expected. The only thing that had kept Ravenswing’s daughter safe was the fact that he’d forced her to remain eight. “Well, it was a combination of magic and science, to be fair. But yes, he exploded in a disgusting mess of blood, wings, and guts if you must know.”
“Good thing I’d ordered curry,” Tristan quipped. “Because curry chicken doesn’t resemble any of that in shape, form, or color.” He cheerfully popped open the plastic tub of yellow curry and pointed to it. “See? Yellow, which normally is an abnormal color for food, but for once I’m grateful for that wonderful Yellow No. 5.” I decided not to tell him what it looked like to me and waved him off.
Vanessa paid Tristan very little attention, instead watching me calmly. “You used a combination of magic and science. And he exploded. You are certain that he didn’t simply re-form? What did he look like? I want to be certain that he was who you encountered.” I noticed she’d used this as a convenient way to avoid answering the question of age regression spells. I decided to let it pass for the moment.
“He was tall, not as skinny as I am, but not built, and he had pale skin and dark hair. I’d say he could have been easily mistaken for your father in passing, and perhaps by people who didn’t know either well. His eyes were blue, though.” And they’d not had the luster of a demon in full power. “His wings were in bad shape; he looked as if he was in need of a powerbase.” A flicker in my head, and I suddenly recalled a gash in one of them, as if it had been damaged in battle and left unhealed.
When I added that knowledge, Vanessa nodded. “James Rathbourne. He often doubled as my father. When he was removed from my father’s employ, his wing was sliced as a mark to others that he was a traitor. The ceremonial dagger used is enchanted such that a demon’s wings cannot heal from its cuts.” She mused thoughtfully for a moment, and then smiled to me. “I seem to owe you thanks, amongst other things, Mister Shestin. So, thank you.”
Well, now, that was unnerving. The thought of Vanessa Ravenswing owing me anything was somewhat appealing, considering that she’d shown herself capable of wresting control from her father for a moment. The other side to that was that she’d just acknowledged owing me. I could use that to my advantage later, if necessary. I offered her a smile and waved towards the table. “It was a pleasure to assist a damsel in distress.”
Tristan snorted and I caught the tail end of an eyeroll as I turned to look to him. I didn’t point out that the damsel in distress I had helped wasn’t Vanessa, nor did I point out that Vanessa owed me simply on the fact that it was collateral damage. Two birds, one demon. I was perfectly okay with that. “Right, I’ve water and juice in the refrigerator… so, water for myself and Tristan. Vanessa?”
“I can’t wait until I’m allowed alcohol again. Water will be fine.” She sounded every inch the sulking eight-year-old she appeared, and I stifled a chuckle at Tristan’s near spit-take in reaction to the adult words from a youthful voice. It did seem a bit incongruous, but I’d had a little more time to interact with her than Tristan had.
I grinned and collected three bottles of water from the refrigerator, dispensing them onto the table by way of my magic, and belatedly realized I’d not emptied my pockets. Or put my gun away. A quick glance to Tristan and Vanessa, and I pointed up to the ceiling. “Need to pop upstairs for a moment. Go ahead and eat; I’ll not be long.” Granted, leaving the pair of them alone meant they’d immediately be talking about me, but I figured there were far worse things they could… right. I went up the stairs.
