Corruption (Grumpy Old Wizards Book 2) (2 page)

“I appreciate your help with this,” Josephine said. “I have a lot to consider though.”

“Like what? It makes perfect sense,” Alice argued.

“For starters, I need to talk to Jake. He may not feel comfortable with his grandmother working in the police force,” Josephine said.

“He’s really laid-back. He won’t mind,” Helen said.

“Nevertheless, I’m going to at least talk to him about it. I’ll let myself into his house this afternoon and fix him some dinner. I have a new lasagna recipe I’ve been wanting to try and maybe some peanut-butter fudge cheesecake,” Josephine said.

“That’s very thoughtful of you. I’m sure he’ll be grateful to have a home cooked meal waiting for him after a hard day at work,” Alice said.

“What if tonight’s one of his late nights?” Helen said.

“That’s okay. I’ll bring a book and wait up for him,” Josephine said.

Chapter 2

Josephine inhaled the aroma of her lasagna with satisfaction as it baked in Jake’s oven. She had decided to make the cheesecake first as it took longer to set and was cooling in the refrigerator. She had gotten a late start so dinner wasn’t quite ready yet even though it was after seven. Jake’s house was spacious and tastefully yet modestly furnished and located in an old neighborhood in Sarasota. Jake arrived with a dark-haired young man who was average height with brown eyes and a muscular frame. Like Jake, the stranger was wearing business casual so they were probably colleagues although he looked fresh out of high school. Jake took his grandmother’s unexpected visit with his usual grace.

“Hey, Grandma. How’s it going?” Jake said.

“Hi, Jake. I thought I’d surprise you with a home-baked dinner,” Josephine said.

“Sounds good. This is a new intern at the station I’m working with. His name is Mark Freeman. Mark, this is my grandmother, Josephine O’Connor,” Jake said.

Mark’s eyes lit up with sudden interest. “You’re his grandmother?”

“Yes and I also do part-time consulting for the police as well. That’s part of the reason I’m here.”

Jake’s easy-going smile immediately became business-like and concerned.

“Is there something wrong?”

“Not as such,” Josephine said. “I’ve been thinking long and hard about my life.”

Josephine found herself at a loss for words and an uncomfortable silence ensued.

“I think it’s so cool to finally meet you! You’re like a legend!” Mark gushed.

Josephine regarded him with surprise. “Are you serious?”

“Everyone talks about how fast you solve cases when you’re called in.”

Jake threw Mark an amused smirk. “This is only your second day, how can you say you’re excited to FINALLY meet my grandmother?”

“You should hear what everyone says about her,” Mark said. “I wish I was a category six.”

“It’s not all it’s cracked up to be,” Josephine said.

“You seem too young to be Jake’s grandmother.”

“I age well. It’s one of the few perks of being a six.” Josephine leveled a pleased smile at Mark.

“You’re beautiful,” Mark said.

“Thank you, young man. I think it runs in the family. Jake is a real looker, too. I keep telling him he should model,” Josephine said.

Jake laughed with mirth and shook his head no.

“You could model, too,” Mark suggested.

Josephine cocked a bemused brow. “I don’t think so.”

“You’re gorgeous. I think you’d do extremely well.”

Josephine turned her attention back to her grandson and cleared her throat as nervousness began to take hold.

“Jake, I’ve decided with how much energy I have and all things considered, I should go back to work. There’s a position open for a full-time psychometrist specialist,” Josephine said.

Jake’s smile dropped away as his expression reflected the utter shock her words elicited from him.

“I think that’s a great idea! You’d be a shoe-in,” Mark said with great enthusiasm.

“What do you mean by that?” Josephine regarded him with puzzlement.

“PD’s hardly ever get a six to work for them. They usually don’t tolerate the stress of picking up the psychic impressions of violent crime very well,” Mark explained.

“He’s right. You might want to think about another avenue to work in,” Jake suggested.

“I want to work in law enforcement and this is one of the safest positions,” Josephine said. “I’ve been doing part-time consulting work for you and Detective Whiney for years. I know I can handle the psychic energy from crime scenes.”

The kitchen timer rang to indicate the lasagna was ready. Josephine pulled it out of the oven and served everyone healthy portions. They gathered at the dining room table to eat and continue their conversation.

“If you can handle the work, I think you should go for it,” Jake said.

“I wanted to talk to you first before I did anything because I wasn’t sure how you would feel about working with me,” Josephine said.

“I think it would be great to see you more often.” Jake offered an encouraging smile before he took his first bite of the lasagna. “This is great.”

“It sure is. Thank you for including me,” Mark said.

“Any friend of Jake’s is a friend of mine.” Josephine threw him a gracious smile.

“I was wondering if you might want to go out for drinks sometime,” Mark said.

Josephine started at the obvious attempt for a date and wondered if this youngster was even past the age of consent yet. Even so, she couldn’t imagine ever feeling comfortable going steady with a guy fresh out of high school.

“I’m not sure that’s a good idea. Exactly how old are you?” Josephine asked.

“I’m eighteen and a legal adult,” Mark said.

“But you aren’t old enough to drink,” Josephine pointed out.

“So?”

“How can we go out for drinks?”

“I was thinking coffee,” Mark said.

“I see.” Josephine mulled this over for several seconds then decided to throw in a compatibility test she had devised over the years. “How do you like your coffee?”

“With plenty of cream and sugar,” Mark replied.

“Do you prefer tea or coffee?”

“Coffee.”

“How do you drink your tea?” Josephine asked.

“Same as I do my coffee.”

“Do you like dogs and if so what’s your favorite kind?”

“I like dogs but I don’t really want a pet right now. I prefer small dogs, I guess,” Mark said.

Jake’s eyes twinkled with mirth as he observed his grandmother interrogating Mark. Jake already knew all about Josephine’s test for selecting a suitable match and that Mark had passed with flying colors. Josephine had told Jake on several occasions that no matter how unlikely the prospect, she would give a guy a chance if he answered her questions correctly. Josephine exchanged a meaningful look with Jake before turning back to level a forced smile at Mark.

“I think it would be nice to meet for coffee sometime,” Josephine said.

“That’s great! Let’s exchange phone numbers.” Mark whipped out his cell phone.

Josephine dug out her own cell which was a recent acquisition and swapped numbers with Mark. Josephine enjoyed herself as they continued to converse over their dinner. She didn’t return to her condo until late in the evening but had trouble going to sleep as doubts about leaving retirement plagued her mind. Josephine looked over the application and résumé that her friends had completed for her before turning it in the next morning. Josephine’s body tensed with nervousness as she drove home. She planned on changing out of her professional attire and into shorts and a blouse so she could go jogging at the beach but as soon as she reached her condo, Alice and Helen came over to visit. Obviously, Alice had been keeping a vigilant watch from her guest bedroom window which offered a perfect view of Josephine’s parking spot.

“How did it go?” Alice asked.

“A clerk took my application and told me they’d call me for an interview if my qualifications were a good fit,” Josephine said.

“The government runs very slowly. I heard it can take weeks or even months before they contact any applicants,” Helen said.

“I don’t know if my nerves can take that,” Josephine said.

“You just need to do something to fully occupy your mind,” Helen suggested. “I would go running with you but I’m afraid I’m out of shape.”

“I think we should work on some jinxes to use on Dale. We’ll break into his condo and set up some surprises for him.” Alice’s eyes gleamed with mischief.

“I think you should try to extend an apple branch to him. See if you can mend fences,” Helen said.

“Extend an olive branch,” Alice corrected.

Helen’s eyes lit up with enthusiasm. “That’s exactly what I think!”

“I think Helen’s right. I’m going to prepare some enchantments as a goodwill gesture. Or maybe I can just use something I’ve already made,” Josephine said. “What do men like and dislike?”

“They’re a bunch of pigs,” Alice said with a moody frown.

“They tend to be lazy,” Helen supplied with a helpful smile.

Josephine snapped her fingers and pointed at Helen with elation. “That’s exactly it! I’ll give him a couple of my cleaning enchantments. They’re advanced and do a thorough job.”

“That’s perfect,” Alice agreed.

Josephine grabbed two of her small, thin wands programmed for cleaning with a small label wrapped around the handle to indicate their use. She placed them in a shiny, gold decorative box and went over to see Dale. As soon as Dale opened the door and realized who was paying him a visit, he slammed it shut in her face. Josephine scowled with irritation as her instincts screamed at her to shell out some payback.

“Dale, I just want to talk,” Josephine called out.

“What’s stopping you?” Dale’s sarcastic voice was muffled through the door.

“We can’t carry on a meaningful conversation like this,” Josephine said.

“I’m not going to invite a slut into my home.”

Josephine’s face flushed as righteous indignation swept through her. “I’m not a slut.”

“You don’t belong in a retirement community.”

“I’m older than you,” Josephine retorted.

“You have all the advantages of youth and shouldn’t get to use any retirement benefits.”

“I contributed to taxes and social security the same as you.” Josephine strove to keep calm as she began to harbor doubts about her goodwill mission.

“Why don’t you take your slutty ass and march it on out of here,” Dale said.

Josephine opened her second sight and examined the security enchantments and wards protecting Dale’s condo. It took her only a couple of moments to disarm everything. She made a sweeping gesture with her hand as she forced the door open with a potent burst of telekinesis. Dale gaped at Josephine with stunned disbelief for several seconds before he turned to flee. Josephine reached her hand out and used telekinesis to toss Dale across the room and pin his body against the wall. Josephine made a sweeping motion at the door to cause it to slam shut as she approached Dale. Her mind simmered with hostility and anger. Dale’s fearful gaze locked onto hers as he tried to pry himself away from the wall to escape. Josephine halted in front of him and frowned at him with reprisal.

“You’re making it very difficult to be nice to you,” Josephine said.

Dale’s mouth opened and closed several times in a comical fashion that almost made Josephine burst out in hysterical laughter. She bit her lower lip to keep the amusement at bay as she didn’t think it would help her cause.

“What do you want?” Dale asked.

“I want to call a truce. I don’t plan on jinxing you anymore if you stop pestering me,” Josephine said. “Don’t you think it would be nice to enjoy your retirement without looking over your shoulder all the time?”

“You don’t scare me,” Dale said with false bravado.

“I come with a peace offering.” Josephine held up a gift box which caused Dale to flinch with alarm. “It’s a powerful cleaning enchantment. I thought you might find it useful.”

Josephine released the telekinetic hold on Dale and he pushed away from the wall but didn’t try to flee. Dale regarded the box with obvious suspicion.

“How do I know you don’t have it jinxed?” he demanded.

“I’m trying to show you that I want to be a good neighbor,” Josephine said. “Do you think we can stop slinging spells at each other?”

“I’ll think about it,” Dale said.

“That’s all I ask.”

Josephine held out the gift box and Dale hesitated before accepting it. Josephine’s lips formed a strained smile.

“Thank you for giving this a chance, Dale,” she said.

“I’m still thinking.”

Josephine left Dale’s condo with mixed feelings. Mending fences could prove to be a prudent course of action; however, Josephine didn’t trust the old fart and seriously doubted he would stop hounding her. Early the next morning, on the drive to Siesta Key beach, Josephine thought she saw the same blue sedan tailing her for almost the entire trip. Josephine tensed with nervousness as she wondered if someone suspected she was illegally tapping into the vortex. When she turned into the parking lot, the blue sedan continued on down the road without slowing down. She heaved a sigh of relief and wondered when she would stop suffering from guilt and paranoia over shutting off her aequitas enchantment. Just because category six wizards were so powerful didn’t mean they should be banned from doing what everyone else could do.

Josephine reached out with her mind and linked with the vortex. Potent energy flooded through her mind and body. Josephine jogged along the shoreline in her bare feet, enjoying the feel of the soft crystalline sand against her skin. She took deep breaths of the salty air but never grew tired as long as she maintained her psychic connection with the vortex. Her body thrummed with pleasure and she savored the delightful sensation, wishing these moments would never end. A male figure heading her way came into view. Josephine’s temporarily enhanced psychic senses immediately recognized her friend, Gary Eslinger. He was medium-set, in his mid-thirties, with hazel eyes and brown wavy hair. Sometimes, Gary and Josephine went jogging together or he’d come over to visit but it had been a couple of weeks since she’d seen him. Gary was clad in just swim trunks and he looked preoccupied in spite of the rush obtained from the vortex.  Like Josephine, he was a category six.  There were only three of them who lived in the area.