Remnants Page 3

  Dressed and feeling refreshed, I wandered down to the dining room and found Bannen at the table, some kind of market listing in his hands. A frown lingered on his face, and every now and then he winced.

  I plopped down next to him, leaning against his shoulder so I could read it as well, then blanched. “Ye little gods! Houses are that expensive here?”

  “Wifey, I vote we do not settle in this city.”

  “Seconded,” I passed that motion without a second of hesitation. “It’ll bankrupt us even on MISD pay.”

  “Trust me, no one buys in this city.” Turning, I found Nora in the doorway, pulling off her uniform jacket as she moved. “Evening. Am I in time for dinner?”

  “It’s still cooking, so I say perfect timing,” Bannen assured her. “Take a seat. So, what, everyone rents?”

  “Basically. Or the employers supply housing for their workers. The MISD certainly do here. But I feel like you’d do better in a different place than here, honestly.”

  “We’re actually considering other places, but it depends on the answers we get from other people,” I explained somewhat cryptically.

  “In better news,” Bannen shuffled the papers off to the side, signifying a change in subject, “Nora, we decided to sign on with the MISD.”

  Our friend lit up, slapping the table with both palms in her excitement. “YES! I’m so, so happy to hear it. When?”

  “In the next few days.” I eyed the paperwork sideways and decided to read it later. No point in letting it spoil my evening now. “We had a few stipulations to work into the contract, and the director needs time to approve them and write them up.”

  I realized, belatedly, that I didn’t know where she lived and asked, “Nora, where are you stationed?”

  “Here, actually. Not my first choice, but it’s not a bad place to live.” She shrugged, eloquently stating her feelings on the matter. “Is that one of the things you’re negotiating? Where you want to live?”

  “We don’t actually have a specific place in mind,” I explained, sharing a look with Bannen, as we had spent many an hour listing out places and debating the pros and cons. “The problem is there’s certain places we want to avoid. Corcoran, for instance. Z’gher. But also those cities where I had to destroy whole sections of it because of Toh’sellor. I don’t imagine the natives would take well to us making a home there.”

  “But we’re hoping to talk the higher ups into giving Rena a permanent team,” Bannen tacked on. “And then, maybe, living in the same city as everyone else.”

  “Permanent team being Chi and Vee?” Nora stated knowingly. “Well, I don’t blame you. Rena only gets called in for the impossible situations and it’s hard for just you to protect her. I really, really don’t want to see you on your death bed again, Bannen. That scared ten years off of me.”

  “Believe me, I don’t want to climb back into it either.” Bannen eyed her thoughtfully. “You know, we can always make the argument that we need five people. Should we request you as well?”

  Nora laughed, a blush high on her cheeks. “I appreciate the thought, but do us all a favor and request Dah’lil first? He really hates where he ended up and would seize on the offer whole-heartedly.”

  “We actually already did request him, but where did he end up?” I asked, worried now for Maksohm, as I hadn’t heard anything since we split ways.

  “Lalani.”

  I winced. “Oh dear. Doesn’t he hate the ocean?”

  “With a passion, and there he is, surrounded by it on three sides. You see the problem.”

  I did indeed. “We’re still not sure if the higher ups will agree with our demands, but I hope for all our sakes they do.”

  Nora lifted a shoulder in a simple shrug, agreeing. “Maybe not. But I give it good odds they will. Tell me about the wedding, though, that’s what I’m curious about. How did it go?”

  “Anyone who wants a big wedding is crazy,” I told her firmly.

  Bannen rocked back in his chair, laughing. “Seconded!”

  Her dark eyes darted between the two of us, mouth parting in the beginnings of a smile, mostly at our reactions. “I know you two said it would be a circus before you even went up there, but was it really that bad?”

  My husband launched into an account of it, which I only half-listened to. Honestly, the only thing bearable about the wedding was that I got to see people I normally didn’t: Master Tarkington, Steph, Emily, and Lori all made it up, Vee and Chi had come up the day before the wedding. My family was there of course, and even then I felt like celebrating when the festivities ended. Z’gher weddings lasted an ENTIRE WEEK, something my groom had failed to inform me of beforehand. And I don’t like pomp and ceremony. It was highly uncomfortable being the center of attention for that long.

  As Bannen regaled Nora with the full tale, I turned my thoughts in another direction entirely. I gave it good odds I would have my way and get that permanent team. Having a permanent team with Chi, Vee, and Maksohm sounded delightful, but we really needed to decide on at least a top three pick of places to live. Somewhere not near an ocean, for Maksohm’s sake.

  Now, what options did that leave us?

  The food arrived and we dug in heartily, as it all tasted amazing. Nora ate about half before she warned, “It might be more than a few days before the director can get that contract ready for you. We’ve had a very strange emergency hit us.”

  “We got that sense.” I let my fork rest against the plate, my full attention on her. “What’s going on? Will they need me?”

  “I don’t think this will fall in your expertise,” she responded, mouth set in an unhappy way. “But it’s best to be forewarned. Some undisclosed group of people have kidnapped a dozen familiars.”

  Bannen jerked upright next to me, sharing my alarm. “What? From where? When?”

  “Four days ago, and they hit three different masters that had multiple students.” Nora rubbed her forehead, body language screaming fatigue and anger. “In all different areas, no less: Kapanka, Ridiger, and Ginsberg. The students, of course, are beside themselves. They’re emotionally not handling this well. I certainly don’t blame them. They still feel them, so the familiars are alive, but we have no idea what this group’s purpose was. Or where they’ve taken them. After that single attack, they completely disappeared. What’s worse is that this was on top of another theft we’ve experienced. A selection of sentient magical weapons also went missing about three weeks ago. We suspect the same group, as they seem to have the same modus operandi, but we’ve no proof to tie the two together.”

  I slipped my hand through Bannen’s, suddenly glad he was so deadly on his own. Even if kidnappers came for him, he’d make them regret it. “That’s awful, Nora. No wonder Headquarters felt so off-balance. You’ve no leads at all?”

  “A few, not much to really follow up on,” she admitted morosely, stabbing her dinner with more ferocity than it warranted. “We’re all very alert now to any potential trouble. I almost wish they would strike again just so we can catch them. Anyway, if it takes more than a few days to get your contract to you, that’s why. It’s not because we don’t want you. We really, truly do.”

  “I fully understand,” I reassured her.

  Nora barely finished her plate when she got called back into work, and we waved her off with the offer to help if she needed us.

  Neither of us felt all that inclined to go sleep, and instead went for a walk along the coastline. The rising moon and lights of the city shone a pretty picture on the dark blue of the water. I felt the winter chill enough that I kept a coat on and a muffler wrapped around my throat. I held hands with Bannen as we leisurely strolled along, the wedding ring still new enough on my hand to catch my attention every time his grip shifted it the slightest bit. How long would I need to wear it before it became second nature?

  Bannen’s thoughts apparently went a different direction than mine as he asked, “Want to talk about our favorite
topic?”

  I groaned, more resigned than anything. “Where to live.”

  “My vote is Gargan.”

  I turned to look at him, puzzled. “Whenever we’ve talked about this before, all you said were the places you don’t want to live. So, why are you suddenly keen on living in giant country?”

  “Well, I’ve been thinking about this. Vee and Chi already live there, right?”

  “Right.” I skipped over a dicey section of the walkway, as that looked like black ice to me, then stuffed my free hand back in my pocket before it froze off. The walking helped work out kinks from travelling, but we probably should have done it before sunset. The air was quickly dropping in temperature.

  “The best vacation we’ve ever had was when we spent the winter holiday for their wedding in Gargan.” On his free hand, he started ticking off points. “The giants are great fun, they know how to eat, how to be good neighbors, and it’s probably the safest location in the entire world because you’d have to be certifiably insane to take on the giants.”

  All valid points and ones I agreed with. I thought about it, staring at the lit stretch of road we were on. There was a train station in Gargan—two, in fact. It might not be a central location, but it was close enough in this world, and I felt like we would be welcomed there with open arms. The giants for some reason loved me. Something about me being so inherently destructive pleased them. Bannen, of course, liked them because giants thought anything dangerous was fun.

  “I’m inclined to say yes, because I think it’s a good option,” I said slowly, more thinking aloud than anything. “But do you think Maksohm would be alright with it? If we can get him permanently assigned to our team.”

  “Sure, I think he would be.” Bannen smiled, pleased that I agreed with him. “He mentioned once it’s one of his favorite places to visit. Okay, so we have one place we agree on. I think we should have two more options for when we negotiate with Salvatore. Where else in the world do you like?”

  I sighed. This was going to take a while.

  We didn’t get very far into our walk before turning back. Even Foxboro had sections of city with no street lights, and tempting fate by wandering around in the dark seemed like a bad idea. I had no doubt that my danger-loving husband would have done it for kicks, but he never took chances with me. Besides, it’d become almost ridiculously cold. Even with the thick jacket and muffler, I’d been shivering hard, so we beat a hasty retreat back the way we’d come. When we made it back to the bed and breakfast, we found Nora pacing back and forth in front of the door. She spied us still coming up the hill and waved, openly relieved, before jogging toward us. “Rena, can I borrow you?”

  “Sure,” I responded before I could think twice. Bannen shot me quite the look for cluelessly volunteering, but it was Nora. I couldn’t say no to her. “What’s wrong?”

  She snagged my arm in a firm grip, already towing me toward the harbor. “The ferry is waiting on us, let me explain as we go. You remember I mentioned that some familiars had been kidnapped from their young students?”

  “Yes…?” I was already unhappy with where this led.

  “It happened again this morning in Alyadar. The report finally caught up with me an hour ago. Your eyes, can they see things like portal signatures?”

  “If it’s fresh enough. Anything over twelve hours old gets very dicey.” But I saw what she wanted from me and quickened my pace to an almost jog. “I’m certainly willing to take a look and give you what info I see. How many familiars were taken?”

  “Three. And this, after we put the alert out to masters to be careful. So, these thieves managed to get around the protective shields of the house, and that’s saying something. The master in question is no slouch in barrier magic, let me tell you.”

  I reached out and found Bannen’s hand already reaching for mine, our hands tangling firmly together. If someone was stealing familiars, Bannen would be one of two of the most unique familiars in the world. He was also the most visible of them, as Gill was retired in the most remote village (un)known to man. I shot him a look that urged him to stick close and got the same silent warning from him in return.

  Nora caught our exchange and grimaced in sympathy. “I know it’s frightening for the pair of you. It’s part of the reason I didn’t think you’d mind helping. The sooner we get to the bottom of this, the better.”

  “No kidding,” Bannen growled.

  The ferry waited, the captain of the boat very impatient and obvious about it. Nora politely thanked him, ignored his huff, and we all set off. It felt like a small eternity to reach Alyadar, instead of two hours. We’re rarely in Alyadar, and I had no sense of bearing away from the docks or train station. I just followed Nora through the unfamiliar streets and into a residential area, passing parks and schools and two-story brick homes. It seemed eerily quiet to me—everyone already in their homes, only the lights from the street lamps and what little streamed through the windows illuminating our path.

  We went down a dead-end road to a two-story brick house that looked well-maintained, although I couldn’t get more than a general impression in the poor lighting. The front door stood wide open, agents coming in and out, every light in the house on. Nora went straight through and I continued to follow her down a narrow hallway and into a backroom. Bannen stayed right at my side, never more than a foot away. As I entered, my eyes flicked over the area. A large glass tank dominated one corner, a perch stood near the window, several chairs and settees were clustered together, and books stacked or left open were strewn on every available flat surface. I recognized a study area when I saw one.

  And there, lurking in front of the window, was the portal—or what remained of it. I saw the traces clearly enough and growled, “Did they seriously snatch the familiars right in front of their mages?”

  “Unfortunately. The kids are more than shaken up about it, not that I blame them. From the witness reports, all three familiars like to nap in front of the window, hence this arrangement. No one had more than a chance to look up before all three were nabbed and yanked back through. The portal was open barely more than a few seconds, according to them.”

  “Truth,” I confirmed, coming in closer to examine it in more detail. “Five men; one to hold open the portal, one to stand guard for attacks, three to grab familiars. Or so the residual energy tells me. All five mages.”

  Nora let out a soundless whistle. “I hate to be impressed, but that’s a lot of weight to yank through a portal. The mage must specialize in portal magic to pull that off. Where did they go?”

  “Part of it’s deteriorated,” I said apologetically, glancing at her, “but the coordinates match the general location of Kapanka. On the coast, maybe a bit north of the city.”

  “So, not far.” Nora’s mouth curved in a not-smile that could scare criminals and small children. “Excellent. Excuse me, I’m reporting that in.”

  She stepped to the far side of the room, already placing a call in to someone else, and Bannen came in closer to whisper, “How did they get past the barrier around this house?”

  “That is an excellent question. I’m not quite sure. That part of the portal spell has deteriorated to the point that it’s just a jumble of random syllables and numbers. At a guess? The barrier magic on this house doesn’t cover windows and doors as firmly as the rest. It can’t, not without trapping everyone inside. They used the weakness to anchor the spell to the window and then forced their way in. Brutal, but clever, and it unfortunately worked.” I hated evil, clever men. Why couldn’t all evil men be stupid? “I’m afraid the poor master of this place did all she could. She just met her superior in magical skill in this case.”

  “That’s not a comforting thought, love.”

  “You’re telling me.” Frustrated, I ran a hand roughshod through my hair. “It’s cold comfort, too. I hope that they’re able to find the familiars for these kids, at least.”

  It took three days before Director Sal
vatore called us back into his office with the request to come sign our contracts. Since we were unofficially MISD agents, we’d spent the time getting outfitted with the uniforms and ordering six sets each. I learned something interesting in the process. Yes, they had a standard look for the uniforms, but they also had designs that catered more toward the agent’s home country. Bannen ordered uniforms that looked remarkably Z’gher-ish in style. Instead of a double-breasted jacket, his had a v-shaped collar, the jacket wrapping in the front and buckling on the side. His summer version had no sleeves at all, but the winter one did, thankfully. I had to admit, the dark royal blue set off his exotic coloring and almond eyes very well. He almost looked respectable, instead of the rapscallion I knew him to be.

  We chose to wear our new spiffy uniforms to sign the contracts, mostly to get used to wearing them. I didn’t quite foresee the consequences of doing so. We’d come in and out of Headquarters so often that most agents didn’t really think much of it, and while they’d call out a greeting, they rarely did more than that. Entering in uniform, though, silently announced our intentions to join them.

  In short order, we became inundated with agents on all sides—happy, excited agents—demanding when we’d signed up and where we’d be stationed. It took three times longer than it should have getting to Salvatore’s office.

  I regretted wearing the uniform, just a little.

  Although I had to admit, this reaction was more than heartwarming. They’d really wanted me and Bannen to join them that badly? I’d rarely felt so welcomed in my life. A smile stayed on my face as we finally gained the office doorway. I gave the door a rap with my knuckles before entering. “Director?”

  Salvatore looked up and gestured us brusquely in. “I expected you earlier.”

  “So did we,” Bannen drawled, coming around to take the chair in front of Salvatore’s desk.