Page 28 of Whispers of the Magical Forest

"Time to go!" I yelled and grabbed as many documents as I could reach. "Unless anyone fancies becoming part of the local ghost stories?"

"Been there, done that, got the therapy bills," Aislinn shot back as she snatched up what looked like a particularly important grimoire.

We ran for the door, dodge-rolling under a beam of purple energy that turned a chair into ash. I hadn’t realized that death by magical laser beam was on the menu tonight. The corridor looked like someone had taken chaos, multiplied it by crazy, and sprinkled ‘there’s no way out’ on top. The Alpha's minions were hopped up on dark magic and were climbing the walls like reject Spider-Man extras. Their eyes were glowing that special shade of purple that screamed, ‘evil overlord approved’.

A thing that used to be human shot across the hall. Its form wavered like a bad TV signal between there and not. It moved like someone had taken all the bones out of its body. It stretched and warped as it tried to clothesline us with arms that reminded me of Mr. Elastic. I dropped androlled under them. The cold void where its humanity used to be chilled me to the bone.

Violet, being Violet, decided that was the perfect moment to show off. She vaulted through the thing. Her phoenix fire turned its mass into screaming ash. The sound it made? Was like static and a scream had a baby. Two more proto-shades came at us from opposite directions. They probably thought they were being clever. News flash. Trying to attack someone who could manipulate kinetic energy? Not the brightest idea. I redirected their half-formed bodies and let them disperse into each other. The way they merged and split apart like oil in water was deeply disturbing. Violet kicked another that had grabbed hold of Aislinn.

We burst out of the house just as the first floor decided gravity was more of a suggestion. The corrupted almost-shades vanished right before that just like they had in the cellars. The building made the kind of noise usually reserved for horror movie climaxes. Decades of dark magic threw a tantrum and took the structure down like a toddler dropping building blocks. Windows exploded. Each pop was accompanied by purple fireworks. Very festive, in a ‘holy shit we almost died’ kind of way.

We didn't stop running until we reached my car. We were gasping like we'd just run a marathon. Through lava. While being chased by demon bees. The Blackwood Manor house performed its grand finale, imploding with all the subtlety of a drunk dragon at a fireworks show. Yeah, Argies had a little too much fun last July when we visited my kids in the United States.

"Everyone alright?" I asked as I slumped against my car's hood. My muscles felt like they'd been through a supernatural CrossFit session.

"Define 'alright’," Violet wheezed. She was clutching stolen documents like they were winning lottery tickets. "Because I think my definition needs a serious update after tonight."

Aislinn's silence hit like a lead weight. When I turned to look at her, her face had gone whiter than a ghost at a bleach convention. She was staring at my side with that special kind of horror usually reserved for British people who've run out of tea. I followed her gaze down to where something warm and wet was doing its best impression of a leaky faucet across my jacket. Oh. Well, that explained the weird tingles. Funny how you don't notice getting mauled by a shade when you're busy trying not to die in other exciting ways. "Well, hell," I said softly.

CHAPTER 10

VIOLET

"For someone who's bleeding, you're being remarkably stubborn about this," I growled at Fiona as I pulled up outside The Cozy Corner café. The neon sign flickered weakly in the growing darkness. She’d drunk a healing potion and wrapped the injury, yet refused to go home to see Zreegy or the local hospital. She insisted she was fine.

"It's just a scratch," she said for the hundredth time. The makeshift bandage we'd fashioned from my scarf told a different story. "Besides, caffeine will enhance the healing potion, right?"

"That is not how it works," I muttered as I got out and went around to help her out of the car. The wound wasn't life-threatening. We'd checked that first. But it was bad enough to warrant concern. Especially given the traces of corrupted magic that I sensed around its edges.

Aislinn trailed behind us. Her worried frown deepened as she watched Fiona try (and fail) to hide a wince. "We should be taking you to the hospital," Aislinn told her.

"And tell them what?" Fiona shot back. "Sorry doc, got abit scratched up while investigating an evil cult's murder house? Besides, Vi’s healing potion has already stopped the worst of it."

The café was nearly empty this late. There were a few locals visiting and deliberately not looking our way. The subtle diversion and glamour I'd cast probably helped with the latter. It was bloody challenging to make three women covered in dust and magical residue appear unremarkable.

"I still think this is a terrible idea," I said as we claimed a corner booth. "We should be calling Gadross, not taking a break."

"I already texted him," Fiona replied as she eased herself onto the vinyl seat. "He's on his way. He said something about needing to secure a scene first. I don’t know about you, but I need to eat."

The waitress approached, wearing the glazed expression of someone who'd been on her feet one too many hours. "What can I get you?"

"I'll have a tea, please," Aislinn said. Her voice carried that musical lilt that always made heads turn. "And a cheese and pickle sandwich on granary."

"I'll have a coffee and a hot chocolate," Fiona ordered with a grin that didn't quite reach her eyes. "And one of those fruit scones from the cabinet. With clotted cream and jam, yeah?"

"Builder's tea for me," I added as I tried not to fidget. The magical residue from earlier was making my skin crawl. "And a bacon butty. Extra brown sauce." My stomach growled at the thought. Fighting Dark magic always left me famished.

After our order arrived, Fiona picked at her scone before pulling a face and gesturing toward the loo. "I need to clean myself up a bit."

"I'll come with you," I said quickly, knowing someone needed to keep her in check. "You're rubbishat healing spells." She stuck her tongue out at me as we got up and headed to the bathroom.

The loo was exactly what you'd expect from a small-town café. Poky and slightly grotty but clean enough. I splashed water on my face, trying to wash away some of the magical residue that still clung to my skin. The corruption from the house had left an oily film that ordinary water couldn't quite touch.

"You look bloody terrible," Fiona commented from where she was cleansing her hands with magic. Once clean, she took off my scarf. "Though probably better than me." She hissed as she began washing her wound.

"Considering you're still actively bleeding, that's not saying much." I started weaving a cleansing spell on myself. It helped clear away the lingering corruption. "Hold still, let me..."

A crash from outside cut me off. Fiona and I shared wide-eyed looks and froze for a split second. The sound of shattering glass mixed with screams from the few remaining patrons echoed through the wall. That broke our surprise and we burst out of the loo. Magic was already gathering around our hands. The familiar weight of power settled into my bones as my witchcraft responded to the threat. My phoenix also rose and burned at the ready.

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