Fly by Midnight (24 page)

She saw no need to rub salt in that wound. Beatrice had been too stubborn to see that her own apprentice had gone rogue, and now she was paying the price. According to Harper, Beatrice had been promptly demoted and currently occupied a tiny cubicle at the end of a very long and dark hallway. The demoralized witch was reduced to making copies of important council parchments by hand with an old-fashioned ink pot and ginormous feathered quill.

The gargoyle was covered in plastic. Three masonry wizards had spent the past two weeks refurbishing the statue to its previous clawed and spiral-horned glory. Soon he’d be returned to the corner of the building where he once perched. It felt strange to stand on the ledge without him, but it was still a beautiful night with a crisp star-spangled sky. Stargazer City was as glittery as it ever was.

The council had made its announcements, and they told the witching world
almost
everything. They opened up about the wall and the wardens. They planned on creating an area in the council building to honor and immortalize the witches and wizards who worked at the four stations, maintaining the magical barrier. Haven Academy would expand its studies on the wall and the wardens, not to mention the Otherworld. In fact, the job of the wardens became very popular. Dozens of witches and wizards volunteered for positions on the wall. The council was also considering creating patrols of wardens to monitor and defend Everland if the wall ever came down.

The council had been wrong to doubt its citizens. Witches and wizards were not afraid of what was out in the Otherworld. They wanted to defend their world. They weren’t cowards shrinking from a fight, but were strong and determined to make sure the witching world prevailed. Honora was proud, too, proud to have been a part of the resistance, but also of her mother, who’d stopped by to visit her four times in the past two weeks to spend quality time with her.

The wind shifted. Three flyers came into view—one huge, one tiny, and one right in the middle. A grin spread across Honora’s face the closer they came.

“We weren’t sure you’d be up for the challenge tonight,” Harper said, setting down lightly on the ledge.

“When have I ever missed a flying club night? Never. I’m the stubborn one in the group, remember?” Honora smirked, her hand perched on her hip.

“True. So what’s the game?” Slader asked. His arm was covered in a sleek black cast designed especially for him by a healing witch he was cozy with.

“It’s this,” Harper said, holding up a glowing green ball the size of a grapefruit.

“What is that thing? And do I really want to know?” Honora asked. The glee she’d received on the last flight club night was now safe and snug in her office safe. She hadn’t had time to investigate the elfin magic and the coincidence of Slader finding it from a street peddler, so she’d decided to keep it locked up for now.

“It’s a trace evader. I got it from a guy who works in Hex.” Harper tossed it up and down in her hand.

“You always get the best stuff. How do you do it?” Jonas flew up to the group and hovered above the sphere.

“I have my ways.” She winked.

“How’s it work?” Slader asked.

Harper pulled four trackers out of her pack and passed them around. “We each have to wear one of these. Once I activate the device, it’ll hone in on the trackers, and we try to avoid capture. It’s great for evasive training.” She wiggled her eyebrows.

“Sounds pretty easy,” Honora said. A cocky grin played across her lips.

“You think so?” Jonas asked.

“Well, yes. There are four of us, and the device can only go after one at a time. You just can’t be the one it follows.” Honora lifted off the stone ledge, hovering.

“Yes, but do you think it’ll be so easy to outsmart your friends?” Harper asked. “We’re all trying to keep away from it, and it only picks up on one at a time—not necessarily the closest one, but the one in its line. So we can avoid the device and create traps for each other.”

“Sounds like a good game of strategy.” Honora studied her opponents.

“We needed a new training device,” Slader said. “After what happened with that gargoyle, we’re upping our practice time. Gotta keep sharp.”

“Let’s go. Oh, what are we playing for?” Honora asked, and then took off when Slader began to respond.

Sneak escapes were her new thing. She wanted to put some distance between herself and the tracker, but she also needed to fly high and fast, burn out the rust in her head. She’d been busy and overwhelmed the past few weeks, and what she really wanted to do was let loose and fly. The night air was her tonic. The starry sky kept her sane, and flying through the darkness made her feel like she controlled her destiny, which she hadn’t felt since before she took the case of Jonathan Rainer. And though she’d solved the case, the knowledge of the Otherworld burdened her.

She pushed on, darting high up above the buildings. Slader was off to her left side. He too had gone all-out, but he was faster. She couldn’t figure out why, since he was also much bigger. Jonas was caught in the trajectory of the device and was on a mad scramble to get the glowing green orb off his tail. Honora looped around and burst out laughing as Jonas tried to dodge and weave out of the orb’s way with no luck. Harper flew up behind him and somersaulted over his head in an attempt to be cute, but wasn’t paying attention and ended up getting tangled in a loose banner caught on the wind.

Doubled over laughing, Slader still managed to fly up to Honora as they watched their friends. “That’s the best I’ve felt in a long time,” he said, clutching his stomach.

“Thanks for your help. I really appreciate the combat-magic training you gave me before I went up north.”

“You can always count on me. And all of us, for that matter.” He cleared his throat. Even though he was a big softie, the burly wizard didn’t like to show his sensitive side. “Don’t forget. We aren’t just here for fun and games.”

“Though the games are fun,” Harper said, racing up between them. “Better take flight. Jonas is on the way, and he’s determined to lose that thing.”

A bright green glow appeared on the front of Honora’s suit. “What’s that?”

Harper’s eyes went wide. “You’ve been caught. It’s tracking you.” The tiny witch darted off in a flash.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Honora said, but Slader had also flown away. He waved at her from a safe distance.

“I tricked it into picking you up, Mayhem witch,” Jonas said as he flew above her head. He wiped the sweat from his brow. “Good luck ditching that little green monster.”

Honora flew, but it followed, tight on her butt. Even as she tried to catch her friends, the tracker stuck to her. Sure, she could sucker one of them into the trail, but sometimes the fun was all she needed. After playing cat and mouse with the ball, she yelled and dove for the device. “I’m caught! I surrender!”

Once the game was over, the gang headed over to The Owl Bar. Honora was on her way to their booth when Tommy approached her.

“Got another one for you,” he said, motioning to a familiar-looking wizard sitting at the bar. “Word’s gotten out about a certain wonder witch. I can tell him to leave if you want.”

“I’m glad for the work, but don’t I get a day off?” She smiled. “I can take care of him. I’ve got this.” Honora waved to her friends and made her way over to the handsome wizard. She hopped up on a barstool. “Are you going to let me buy you a drink? It’s the least I can do after all the help you gave me recently.”

“Detective Undress Me” smiled that gorgeous grin. “It’s the least you can do. You put yourself in the council’s good graces for once, but you owe me big time for that little stunt at the morgue. And you owe me some gold for a new test dummy. The old one got torched at the crematorium.” He gulped down his drink. “Those things aren’t cheap.”

Tommy put Honora’s favorite ginger crush martini on the bar in front of her. “Don’t worry, I’ll reimburse you. What’s on your mind, Andreas? You didn’t come all this way to collect on a debt, did you?” she asked.

“The chief wants to put you on retainer, throw you some work now and then—see if we couldn’t benefit from your
expertise
.” He rolled his eyes.

Honora laughed. The past few days had given her a lot to think about.

“It’s not that funny, is it?” Andreas asked, brow lifted.

“No, it’s just that I’ve been getting a lot of job offers lately. Seems I’m on an upswing. The Mayhem aspect of my life is attracting more people than it’s deterring, and that’s a change.”

“Change can be good. We’re very competitive and can meet any other offers. Working with me can be fascinating. You might learn something.” He dramatically dusted off his lapels.

“I’ll bet. Let me think about it. I’ll call you in a few weeks. I’m heading out of town on a little vacation.”

“Going anywhere exciting?”

“I’m planning on disappearing.” She picked up her martini and sauntered back to her friends, leaving the sexy detective in her wake.

24

H
onora leaned back in her lounge chair and stared out over the pure white beach. The surf was a shimmering tumble against the pale sand and crystalline water. There was no one around for miles. Her tiny cottage was the only house on the beach. Or at least that was how it appeared. She loved magic, and Ghost Beach was the best kind. She dug her toes in the sand, and a warm, salty breeze blew across her skin. The view was stunning, and her stress melted away.

Life back in civilization was on an uptick. The council was in full swing—reinforcing the wall and coming clean with the witches and wizards of Everland. This time, the threat had been contained, but they needed to be prepared, since it could easily happen again. Though still with Hex, Elspeth was working at the academy, meeting up with professors, comparing notes and research. She was already planning her next trip to the Otherworld, and the council was talking of opening the wall for a recon mission, sending out scouts, using the wall and the arch in strategic ways. It was smart—even Honora had to agree. She had a lot to think about, so the solitude did her good.

Well, maybe not
total
solitude.

Ren walked out of the cottage wearing a pair of swim trunks. Suntan oil glowed on his bare, muscular chest. A pale pink scar on his shoulder was the only reminder of the past few weeks. He’d shaved his beard and cut his hair and was more handsome than ever. He handed her a frosty drink with a little umbrella in it and settled down next to her on a lounge chair. He flicked his hand, conjuring an umbrella to shade Honora from the hot afternoon sun.

Ren had been trying to convince her to move up north and join the guardian and the Woodsman. The thought of the snow-crusted landscape caused a flurry of goosebumps to rise across her arms. With the wardens program expanding and growing, Honora was just the kind of witch they were looking for. She wasn’t surprised when she got the offer. It was tempting, and she’d be doing something truly worthy with her life. But if she took the job, she’d have to commit to the wardens permanently and leave her current life behind. She’d have to say goodbye to her sisters, her friends, and her business to join them, and that was a calling she wasn’t prepared to hear.

She loved her life in Stargazer City, so that was where she was staying. She could always visit the wild north. Honora’s business needed her more. Who would investigate all those mysterious happenings? Who would drive “Detective Undress Me” crazy with prying questions and annoying intrusions? She would. It was her duty. Plus, she had a new business partner. Honora and Jenny Liu were going to team up, join forces. Jenny had rented the office space next to hers, and they planned on sharing Sawyer’s time and talent. It might just work, especially if the detective threw her some prime jobs.

Honora glanced over at Ren and smiled. Her future as Stargazer City’s up-and-coming private investigator had never looked brighter.

Afterword

T
hank you for purchasing this novel. I really appreciate it. If you enjoyed it, please leave a review. Also, if you’re interested, check out my Facebook page for the latest news on the Mayhem sisters.

Acknowledgements

S
pecial thanks to friend and editor extraordinaire Elizabeth Buck for once again coming to my rescue and helping me make the book as good as possible. I couldn’t have done this without her.

About the author

S
ince she was a little girl, Lauren Quick has been a believer in the unbelievable. She loves all things fantasy from fables and fairy tales to high fantasy and urban paranormal and everything in between, especially if witches are involved. “The more magic, the better” is her motto, and if a mystery is involved, then she’s all in. She lives in Maryland with her familiar cat that has so far shown no magical tendencies, but there’s always hope.

Also by this Author

The Mayhem Sisters

Fly By Midnight, Book 2