Chapter 6 #2
The door opened again and yet another pair of witches walked in.
‘It’s ridiculous,’ one of them was saying.
‘All of Coldstream knows that water nymphs are the best cleaners in the city but you can’t hire any of them at the moment, not even for small jobs.
They’re not allowed to work and nobody would explain to me why.
I practically had to drag the reason out of the last one who worked for me.
Honestly! The thought that every single water nymph in Coldstream is supposed to maintain a damned vigil at Jacob’s Well until the bloody spring equinox just because of some stupid old tradition is offensive to the principles of capitalism.
’ By the sound of her voice, the witch was only half-jesting.
‘It’s not a regular thing,’ her companion soothed. ‘Didn’t you say it’s only every twenty-five years? That’s not so bad.’
‘Tell that to the dust collecting in the corners of my house! Why do you think I need to come here and spend a small fortune on cleaning spells?’
The other witch laughed and they pair moved away, thankfully without glancing in Mallory’s direction.
The door opened yet again and this time a werewolf strode in. Mallory flashed him the same bright smile she’d given the first two witches and instead of striding away, he paused. ‘Well, well, well,’ he murmured. ‘What do we have here?’
She realised belatedly that she knew who he was; he’d even merited an entry in her precious notebook, although she’d not had the pleasure of meeting him in person.
That crooked nose, chiselled jaw and chestnut-brown hair had been the subject of considerable Coldstream gossip lately; as the beta wolf to the powerful Ferguson pack, he was known as a man with considerable strength and power.
Word on the street was that he was making moves on his alpha.
Werewolf hierarchy made it all-but impossible for an underling to overthrow their alpha without experiencing considerable physical pain, but that didn’t stop the whispers that this man was prepared to suffer whatever it took to become the Ferguson alpha.
Without evidence, Mallory doubted any of the gossip was true but now that she was confronted with Liam Ferguson there was no doubt that he possessed a confident air similar to Alexander MacTire’s.
‘It’s not what it looks like,’ she told him. ‘I promise.’
He arched an eyebrow. ‘And what does it look like?’
She grinned. ‘Like I’m a dirty rotten thief who’s been caught red-handed.’
‘That innocent face? I wouldn’t believe it for a second.’ He leaned towards her. ‘Besides, I already know that you wouldn’t steal from this shop. What good would a bunch of spells do a squib?’ He regarded her curiously. ‘Your reputation precedes you, Ms Nash.’
She sighed ruefully. ‘If that were true, I wouldn’t be in this predicament now.’ She eyed him. ‘How do you know who I am?’
‘You helped a good friend of mine out last year. Zeke Simpson?’
Mallory instantly remembered the affable troll who’d come to her because he wanted to find out more about a business rival.
She had supplied him with a detailed report that included various underhand dealings.
Last she’d heard, the rival had been serving time at the pleasure of the Magical Enforcement Team.
On all fronts, it had been a job well done.
‘I remember Zeke well,’ she said warmly.
Liam Ferguson’s eyes crinkled. ‘He still speaks very highly of you.’
Mallory dipped a curtsey, which was the most that the tightly bound ward allowed. ‘It was a pleasure to help him.’
‘Perhaps I can return the favour and help you now,’ he murmured.
Over his shoulder, Mallory spotted Alison Cole heading her way. ‘Thank you, but I’ve got it covered.’
‘As you wish. Have a good day, Ms Nash.’
‘Call me Mallory.’
‘And I’m Liam.’ He smiled then stepped away, leaving her free to speak to Alison in peace.
The store manager didn’t apologise for Mallory’s predicament though she did click her tongue. ‘I’m sure I told you after last time that you should warn me before you decide to drop by.’
Mallory shrugged. ‘It slipped my mind.’
‘Another twenty minutes and I’d have clocked off for the day. We’ve been having a lot of trouble with over-enthusiastic tourists, and with a high staff turnover it’s not easy to keep track of people like you.’
‘Pathetic squibs with no magic to speak of?’ Mallory enquired lightly.
Alison shot her a wary glance then relaxed when she realised that Mallory wasn’t particularly offended. ‘You’re far from pathetic. As we both know.’
‘You’re too kind.’
Alison snorted. ‘Hardly.’ She reached for a broom and, with the appropriate words to undo the magical ward, swept away the ring of salt.
‘This is one of the good ones,’ she called out to anyone who might be listening.
‘She’s allowed in here whenever she wants.
’ She lowered her voice. ‘Don’t you get tired of being treated like a second-class citizen? ’
‘I might not be pathetic,’ Mallory told her.
‘But I am a squib. There are less than a hundred of us in Coldstream. Unfair treatment is par for the course and the situation usually resolves itself fairly quickly. It used to happen several times a day, but after ten years I’m better known.
I only have to deal with situations like this a few times a week. ’
‘It sounds horrendous.’
‘If I got annoyed about everything I couldn’t change about the world, I’d spend all my days in a state of rage,’ Mallory said.
‘To some Coldstream citizens, I’ll always be a suspicious stranger because I can’t shapeshift or wield a magic spell.
I can deal with minor inconveniences if it means I get what I want in the end. ’ Most of the time, anyway.
‘Uh-huh.’ Alison regarded her carefully. ‘And what do you want this time?’
Mallory smiled. ‘The best preservation spell you can provide.’
‘Not a problem. We’ve got plenty in stock.’
‘And,’ Mallory crossed her fingers, ‘a bellarmine jug with a useable seal.’
The store manager grimaced. ‘Seriously? A real bellarmine jug?’
‘Yep.’
‘It’s been more than a year since we’ve had any of those. They are not easy to come by.’
‘Can I order one?’
She shrugged. ‘You can try but it could be months before we find one.’
Mallory doubted that Chester Longchamps would be willing to wait that long, especially since the Clouded Map had to be returned to Nicola Sturgess by the end of August. ‘I’ll see if anywhere else sells them.’
‘You’ll be lucky to find one.’
‘So it’s a good thing I’m a lucky person.’
They exchanged amused glances, both well aware that it wasn’t luck that made Mallory’s secrets and favours brokerage service successful but a great deal of hard graft.
‘I’ll fetch the preservation spell,’ Alison told her. ‘You still have some leeway on your account.’
Mallory shook her head. ‘I’m not paying for it, my client is. He’s a vampire by the name of Chester Longchamps. You can send him the invoice.’
‘A vampire came to you for a favour?’ Alison looked more impressed than intimidated.
‘Business is good.’
‘Clearly. Next I hear, you’ll be working for the likes of a beta werewolf like Liam Ferguson.’ She nodded towards the werewolf who was wandering down an aisle, frowning.
Mallory wondered what Alison would say if she told her she was working for the MacTire alpha, but she smiled and said nothing.