In Plain Sight

Spell breakers were just what they sounded like, runes that reacted with the kinds of magic sorcerers used. The runes weren’t too difficult to write and they could disrupt even complex magic, like the crawlers or the capacitors at Empire Tower. As a result, their use was highly illegal. Just possessing one could land a runewright in prison for twenty years.

“Spell breaker runes are illegal,” he said with a smile.

“But you do know how to make them,” she pressed. Alex shrugged.

“It’s in my Lore book,” he said. “I’ve heard you can buy the instructions on the black market for a C-note.”

Sorsha regarded him for a long moment, then dropped the pistol back into Alex’s bag.

“Unlock him,” she said.

Davis’s face fell for a moment, but then his smile returned. “Agent Warner went next door to call this in,” he said. “He’s got my key.”

“Oh, for heaven’s sake,” Sorsha said. She leaned down to the short length of chain that connected the handcuffs. As she did, the fox stole pressed against Alex’s face, filling his nostrils with her delicate floral perfume.

Sorsha grasped the chain between her thumb and forefinger. Alex heard a crackling sound as the link turned suddenly white, then, with a gesture of casual ease, the kind one might use to shoo an annoying fly, the Sorceress crushed the frozen link between her fingers.

Trying not to look impressed, Alex sat up straight, his back popping as he stretched it, then he stood.

“You wanted to know where Evelyn went?” he said, holding out his hand so that Agent Davis could hand over his kit. The FBI man reached in and removed the pistol before complying.

Alex took the bag and went to the workbench where the burned remnant of the rune paper still lay. He pulled out his lamp and his ghostlight burner, then shone the green light on the wall. It only took him a few seconds to locate Evelyn’s shadow. The shadow was visible under the green light, even without the oculus. She had turned, as if running for the back corner of the room.

The corner where Alex had been.

He chose to believe that in her last desperate moments she had wanted him to save her.

“Is this what happened to everyone who disappeared?” Sorsha asked, her voice husky and low with emotion.

“Yes,” Alex said. “If you ask me, this rune is some kind of trap designed to weed out anyone smart enough to be a threat to whoever made it.”

Sorsha smiled. “I assure you,” she said. “The Monograph is real.”

Alex shone his light on Thomas’ shadow.

“He believed that too.”

At that moment Agent Warner returned.

“The investigators are on the way,” he said. “They’ll go over this place with a fine-toothed comb.”

“Good,” Sorsha said. She turned to Agent Davis and nodded toward the door and without a word, he left, taking the young blond Agent Warner with him. Once they were gone, Sorsha fixed Alex with a hard stare.

“How did you know that rune would fail?” she asked.

“Because I didn’t finish unraveling it.”

“But how do you know?”

“Because I could see that there were parts that weren’t aligned yet.”

Sorsha smiled. It was not a reassuring look.

“So you admit you could have unraveled it,” she said. “Given enough time.”

Alex tried to look casual as he shrugged. “Assuming it could be unraveled at all,” he said. He didn’t want Sorsha telling her government friends that she found a patsy to take another run at the Archimedean Monograph.

Her eyes flashed suddenly, as if lit from inside her skull.

“I think you’re lying to me,” she said, but her voice was suddenly deep and the sound of it echoed, trailing off after her words until they became lost in a faint blur of noise. At the same time, the room seemed to dissolve around him, colors and shapes blending into a solid plane of gray.

Alex wanted to be alarmed, but felt calm and safe instead. As if this platinum-haired angel in front of him were the person he trusted most in all the world. The person who wanted nothing more than to help him.

Somewhere in the recesses of his mind he knew it was a truth spell. Like spell breakers, truth spells were also illegal, which is why Sorsha had sent the only witnesses out of the room before using it. Now, if Alex tried to make an issue out of it, it would be his word against the word of one of New York’s most prominent citizens.

“I have a few questions for you, Alex,” Sorsha said, her voice still unnaturally deep and echoing. “Does your version of the finding rune work?”

“No,” Alex said, feeling no compunction to lie.

“Did you find the Archimedean Monograph?”

“No,” Alex said.

“Are you going to continue to look for the Monograph?”

“No.”

She picked up the notebook where Alex had drawn the rune Evelyn used.

“You seem to have this mostly figured out,” she said. “Do you think you could finish it?”

“No.”

“Why?”

“That rune will never work,” he said.