Chapter 17 #2
I blink and my mind stalls out. “Wow, when you said pop in… you meant it literally.”
His brow tightens, and then he seems to understand. “Ah, my apologies. If your solicitor didn’t chat me up, you might not have realized I prefer to handle things in person. And, as I’m a Rift Minotaur, I’m able to walk the hidden corridors of the labyrinth of reality to be anywhere in an instant.”
“Yeah, no, Vale didn’t say anything.” My mind is still tripping on the labyrinth of reality thing, but I realize Asher is unusually still. “Asher, put down the burger and say hello to the head honcho of the Order of the Arcane.”
Asher is staring, wide-eyed, mouth open, and sitting there with his burger halfway to his mouth. “Holy fuckamoly! Poppy said you were a badass bison man, but wow, dude!”
Smooth, Ash. I turn, ready to apologize, but Garrison doesn’t seem the least bit offended. In fact, if I had to guess, I’d say he was amused with Asher’s assessment.
“Badass bison man? I can honestly say that’s one of the more complimentary descriptions I’ve been given in my life.”
My cheeks are burning so hot, I could probably fry an egg on them. “Garrison, this is my best friend and roommate, Asher Hendrix.”
“The boy who found you and kept you safe.”
I nod. “The very one.”
Garrison extends a hand the size of a shovel, and Asher takes it without hesitation. “You did well, son. It’s the sign of a true warrior to stand as the champion of a stranger.”
Asher accepts the praise and waggles his brows at me. “It turned out all right, I guess.”
I laugh. “Nice. Thanks.”
Garrison watches us, a smile softening his stern expression. “Now, to the reason for my visit. I was greeted by a great many panicked inquiries this morning regarding demonic energy tainting the ley lines. I tracked the source here and would like a full report.”
I swallow. “Am I in trouble?”
“Not necessarily. How about you tell me what happened, and we’ll go from there? We're colleagues now, after all. We need to be able to discuss the challenges of our duties.”
Colleagues with him?
Yikes, I’ve never felt so out of my league.
And so, I give Garrison a full report of what happened yesterday: removing the sigil from Mrs. Peterson, trying a mass cleanse, Tharuzel’s minions attacking, and how I’d managed to heal the standing stones, ending the incursion.
When I finish, his bushy black brows are pinched. “And where does that leave you now?”
“Sebastian, our eldest and most experienced witch, is speaking to a fae friend who knows more about ley lines than we do. He’s hoping to figure out another way to execute the mass cleanse without a repeat of the demon attack.”
Garrison scratches at the fur on his chin and nods. “And did you suffer any fatalities?”
“Thankfully, no.”
His gaze turns to Asher. “Standing as the champion of the innocent is one thing, but entering a demon portal when you had no idea what awaited on the other end was reckless. Heroic, but reckless. I can’t say I wouldn’t have done the same thing, but as the man in charge, I would be remiss if I didn’t advise you to be more careful. ”
Asher dips his chin. “I appreciate the concern. Still, it worked out, and we got Poppy’s familiar back.”
Garrison follows Asher’s gesture to the heap of demon gremlin roasting on low in the fireplace. “On the mend, though, is he?”
“He is. Apparently, that’s his idea of a healing spa.”
Garrison doesn’t give it much more thought. Instead, he turns back to me. “The other reason I came was to ask you about your rebellious brigade. How are you settling into your new role?”
“I’m still figuring it out. We’ve got a lot of irons in the fire. I feel like I’m juggling rabid badgers, and if I look away, blood will be shed.”
He grunts and lets out a low chuckle. “That’s how I feel every day. So, in the spirit of you keeping your limbs from being gnawed off, I came to give you access to the database of registered members from all empowered organizations. Do you have a laptop?”
“I’ll grab it.” Asher jogs off toward the dining room where we have all our Cinderheart Crucible research spilling out over the table.
“Type your email under your contact.” Garrison hands me his phone with my name called up, and I get my thumbs moving. By the time I return it to him, Asher is back. “All right, check your email—you should have a secured portal link waiting."
I set my laptop on the island counter and open my inbox. Sure enough, there's a new message with an official seal I don't recognize. “Is this it?”
“It is. Now, click the invitation and I’ll approve it.”
I follow his instructions, and he pulls out a stylus and taps in an exhaustingly long numeric code. When that’s done, he slides his phone and stylus into the back pocket of his pants, and my screen opens with the same seal staring out at us.
"Excellent. Use this access wisely, Miss Hallowind. And congratulations again on the Life and Death Brigade's recognition. I'll be watching your progress with great interest."
He’s gone before I can respond.
I stare at the empty space between me and Asher. “Okay then, bye.”
Asher chuckles. “Apparently he is a busy man and doesn’t feel the need to make chit-chat or say goodbye.”
“Apparently.” I return my attention to the website, my pulse quickening. “Access to every registered member of every empowered organization? That's huge. That's—”
I click to get started, and when a login box appears, my excitement deflates. “Disappointing. It’s asking for a passcode.”
Asher snorts. “Of course there's a passcode. He’s giving you access to the personal information of a secret society governing a secret world of magical beings.”
“Well… when you say it like that…”
My phone rings again before I can spiral into frustration. “Hey, Vale. What’s up?”
“Your Order of the Arcane non-disclosure agreement and privacy contract have been set up. I’m sending them to you now. Once you sign them, you’ll receive your passcode and have the keys to the city.”
“How did you—” My email beeps, notifying me of a new email. “Man, you’re slick.”
“Good of you to notice.”
I click the email open, scan the agreement stating anything I learn will be used only for the good of the empowered community… yadda, yadda… no access beyond guild executives… yadda, yadda…
I click my agreement to the terms, and an iridescent bubble materializes beside my laptop screen.
I freeze. “What the hell?”
The bubble hovers there, its surface shimmering with oil-slick colors that shift and swirl. Within that hypnotic shimmer, numbers and letters form in elegant script.
“Pen!” Asher races over to the recipe desk and runs back with a pencil and a pad of sticky notes. I scramble to jot down the passcode before it disappears.
The moment I finish writing, the bubble pops with a soft sound like a champagne cork.
"Did you get it?" Vale's voice sounds almost amused.
"That was... new."
"Secure magical delivery. Much harder to intercept than email. Now, you officially have access to more sensitive information on the empowered community than I do. Use it wisely and let me know if I can be of any other help."
"Thank you, Vale."
"Of course."
He hangs up, and I fumble to type in my passcode. “Damn, my fingers are shaking.”
“Let me.” Asher angles the laptop toward himself and keys in the passcode with practiced strokes.
The seal of the Order of the Arcane flips to a welcome homepage that makes my head spin. Current events scroll across the top—notices about gatherings, warnings about dark magic activity, calls for aid in various supernatural crises.
Along the left side, tabs organize everything by empowered race and community. Witches. Shifters. Vampires. Fae. Warlocks. Even categories I don't recognize.
I tap my finger on the screen. “Click on the witch tab.”
The new screen loads.
“It lists every registered coven in North America,” Asher grins, leaning back so I can see, “organized by region.”
My breath catches, and I move the laptop to take control. “This is more comprehensive than anything I could have imagined.” I scroll through, spotting familiar names—
Emberwood, Thornhill, dozens of others.
When I click on Emberwood, profiles appear.
“Look at this. Every member in good standing has a photo, name, magical affinity, and contact information.” I skim through, recognizing faces from the community center, from passing encounters around town.
“Ha! Check out Wylder’s mugshot. He looks like a dork.”
I roll my eyes. “It was probably from his induction. He would’ve been sixteen.”
“Well, I’m still going to razz him.” He takes a picture with his phone and shrugs, unrepentant. “Find Orion.”
I ignore the request and move on. “Do you think the two mystery witches from Laurel’s meeting are in here?”
I meet the excitement in Asher’s gaze with my own. “If they're registered members of a coven, they're in here somewhere.”
Asher waggles his brows. “We just have to find them.”
My fingers hover over the keyboard. Maybe this is it. Maybe this is how I find out who took my sisters, what happened to Davina, and where all the missing witches have gone.