And how did I see the coven now? A cluster of pencil-pushing elitists and frustrated Mediocre magicals who were in charge of guarding a cesspool of humanity’s worst nightmares—and doing a crappy job of that, too.
Why would I ever pledge my life and loyalty to a coven? Wasn’t I better on my own?
Who was I kidding? I had no Esprit, no knowledge of who my real parents were, and a string of gargoyles following me around, eager to eat me alive. For the time being, I was stuck with these people. At least they had my back, and in all fairness, my Rag Team peeps were pretty cool, despite their antisocial dysfunctionalities.
“All the more reason for you to stay with us.” Santana smirked, trying to get over the concerns brewing inside her. She was worried about me.
For good reason. I’m worried about me, too.
Chapter Twenty
We loaded the jars into the back of Wade’s Jeep. My apartment was next on our to-do list. We left the fire trucks responding to the fire alarms behind, along with the church staff gawking at the damaged roof, as Wade shoved us in his Jeep and drove us up to Park West.
My stomach churned as we reached the scene of yesterday’s attack—and my home.
The police had already been there and cordoned off my poor mangled Daisy with their yellow caution tape. They’d also taped the windows to my apartment, and I could see the blackened ceiling from below. The place had definitely burned up a little before the sprinkler system went on.
The team repeated the cleanup operation from the casino, going into and around the apartment building to check with potential witnesses and flash them, altering their memories where needed. Santana and Raffe took the inside of the building, while Tatyana and Dylan handled the surrounding area, and Astrid got to work on modifying CCTV footage, as well as checking police and fire department records.
Wade had me wait outside, not wanting me to get a closer look at my wrecked apartment. He quickly regretted bringing me over at all, once he saw me tear up as I walked over to my Daisy. I ran my fingers along the edges of her bent hood. My car looked as though a giant cement ball had been dropped on her, pulling everything down in the middle. Glass crumbled beneath my boots as I moved closer and retrieved a little hand-painted world globe from the passenger seat.
It was my rearview mirror ornament, the only thing left intact after Murray the gargoyle’s crash landing. I used to look at it and dream of the places I’d visit in the near future. No car, no apartment… Clearly, travel plans will have to wait.
Wade’s hand settled on my shoulder. “Are you okay?” he asked, his voice low. I looked up to find his face surprisingly close to mine—enough to make me hold my breath for a second. He was worried.
“How can I be?” I sobbed, no longer able to hold it in. “My apartment was trashed. My car is done for. I’ve got gargoyles following me around like I’m prime beef walking. Of course I’m not okay.”
Not sure what to say, he kept his mouth shut. For about two seconds. “Material belongings of the human world aren’t all that valuable, Harley. They can all be easily replaced.”
“Easy for you to say, maybe,” I said, wiping my tears. “Daisy was my soul. Raucous and loud, sturdy and feisty. And now look at her. Not going to bother explaining that to you. Again.”
“Move on, Harley. There’s no point in dwelling on these things. The sooner you do that, the better you’ll feel,” Wade replied. He clearly didn’t understand where I was coming from, and I had to admit, it hurt a little. “With the money you’ll be making with the coven in the future, you’ll be able to afford a newer, better model, anyway.”
“What, as a research assistant in a library?” I said. “Are you kidding me?”
“That job is just to get you started in the coven and the magical society. I trust you’ll be able to work as a coven operative on a full-time basis once you take the pledge. But you’ll get nowhere if you cling to sentimental nonsense like this heap of trash,” he said, pointing at my Daisy.
“Don’t call her that!”
My hands balled into fists, and I could feel the anger coursing through me like a violent waterfall. Wade didn’t seem to care.
“It is what it is, Harley. This thing is going right into a junkyard. Get over it and worry more about why there are gargoyles following you around in the first place.”
“Thanks for the reminder,” I replied, rolling my eyes and crossing my arms.
As much as I hated admitting it, Wade did have a point. A car was replaceable, no matter how much I loved my Daisy. My life, however, was one of a kind. And yes, there were gargoyles coming after me now, and I had no clue why.
“I can’t help but wonder, Harley, if there’s something from your past that you’re not telling me. Something that ties the gargoyles into this whole mess.”
“Huh? Like what? I thought you knew everything about me. Including my bra size,” I retorted, and instantly felt my throat burn—that was Wade’s utter embarrassment.
“I don’t know. You tell me,” he shot back. “Maybe you do know something about your parents, for example?”
“Oh, so now I’m a suspect or something?” I raised my voice, my hands trembling with anger.
The ground beneath us started to shake, like a mild earthquake. Wade stilled, his forehead smoothing as we both came to the same conclusion. I heard people gasping as they came to a halt on the street. Tires screeched close by, as the entire neighborhood felt the shudder of my Elemental burst.
“Maybe I should try and calm down.”
“You should calm down,” he said at the same time.
Deep breaths. Deep breaths.
A minute later, the earth stopped shaking. Wade and I stared at each other—he was in awe of me, I could feel it. “I went overboard, I’m sorry,” he said. “It’s just that we’ve never had these Bestiary issues before, and it’s eerie enough to coincide with the discovery of you. I can’t help but think that there might be a connection.”
“I honestly don’t know anything about my parents,” I replied. “I wish I did. I mean, even I’m thinking that the gargoyles might know something I don’t. Maybe they’re drawn to me for a specific reason that actually has to do with me, with who I really am. Then again, maybe I’m just tastier than the rest of you. I have zero input on this right now.”
“And without an Esprit, you clearly have little control over your abilities,” Wade concluded. “Your emotions are powerful enough to trigger them, though.”
“Which makes me say, once more, that this whole Mediocre thing is absolute BS!” Astrid called out from the stairs. She’d been listening this whole time. I’d completely forgotten about her. Wade’s fault.
Once the team reunited outside my apartment block, the cleanup job was complete. Santana, Raffe, Tatyana, and Dylan covered all the witnesses, and Astrid successfully altered everything we needed to make the story stick—a gas leak had resulted in an explosion, then a fire, followed by the sprinklers soaking everything. No one got hurt, other than Harley Smith. I was carried off to the hospital and discharged shortly after that. End of story.
It was more believable and easier to manage than a home invasion route. That would’ve brought more cops into the fold, and we wanted none. “I’ll give Alton a report tonight,” Wade said.
“Make sure you mention Poe’s sloppy work,” Santana said. “That boy could easily be classified as a liability to the coven. I don’t get why Alton let Garrett put him on the investigative team in the first place.”
“Either Alton is an idealist who thinks those schmucks will make something of themselves and actually help the coven, or he just let them play to appease their ultra-rich parents, and to then watch them crash and burn,” Raffe mused.
“I’m rooting for the latter,” Wade replied. “I refuse to believe Alton is gullible enough to think the likes of Poe, Garrett, and Finch might actually be good for the coven. He’s been here three years and broken up too many fights started by those idiots.”
“Meh, it’s not like we’ve been stellar performers, either.” Santana chuckled, hands in her pant pockets. Her curly hair gave her a very hip look, when paired with a dark gray pantsuit. She could’ve easily graced the cover of a fashion magazine, if she wanted. Judging by the warmth coming from Raffe, I wasn’t the only one appreciating her look.
“Speak for yourself,” Wade shot back. “My record is spotless.”
“Ugh, let’s grab some drinks at Waterfront Park,” Santana said, rolling her eyes as she walked over to Wade’s Jeep. “Another minute of Mr. Perfect here and I’ll unload my breakfast.”
“That would be a shame. Those scones were delicious,” Tatyana chimed in, amusement twinkling in her icy blue eyes.
“Unless you want to walk there, I’d suggest you jump off the ‘Insult Wade’ train,” Wade said, wiggling the keys.
After we left the Jeep in the Maritime Museum’s parking lot, we went back around to West Ash Street, on the south side of Waterfront Park. It didn’t look different. I was expecting something more magical.
“Out of all the places in the world, this is where you people like to hang out? This is basically Toddler Central,” I said, pointing at the groups of parents herding their children across the park. “What is it with magicals and kids’ playgrounds?”
We stopped in front of a glass refuge by the bus stop, a bland and nearly unnoticeable structure. There was a staircase leading downstairs to a public restroom. “You’ve got to be kidding,” I said.
“Aperi Portam,” Wade said, then pushed through the door.
One by one, we joined him, and, just like my first incursion into the coven through the emergency door of Kid City, I realized that there was a whole other world hiding in Waterfront Park. I heard myself gasp at the sight unraveling before me. Elegant steel-and-glass cubes rose on both sides of the single wide alley ahead. This both was and wasn’t Waterfront Park, another interdimensional pocket. The human world was something akin to a lens flare, occasionally visible in the form of two-legged wisps—people walking through the park.