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TO KEEP UP APPEARANCES, Kade had to spend at least some of his time running errands for the Magic Guild. People would notice if he stopped turning up for work altogether. He was given a package to deliver when he showed up for duty, but he had to take it to someone in the Shifter District for a change.
Crossing the City Square, the warlock headed for a bridge that would take him to the east side of the city. It was already raining and it seemed like the storm that was brewing would be worse than usual. The carriages were busy transporting civilians to their destinations. One stopped for him and he climbed inside. The skeleton would only follow him if he tried to refuse it. He called out an address close to where he needed to deliver his package to and the vehicle lumbered along the cobbled street.
Kade climbed out when the driver stopped and he nodded his thanks. The creature saluted him with a bony hand, then the carriage took off. It was quickly lost to the deluge that was increasing by the second. Kade erected a shield to keep the rain off, then slowly sauntered the rest of the way to the address he’d been given.
All around him, shifters were huddled in their homes. Others were hard at work in the factories and other businesses in the industrial areas of their District. The few pedestrians he saw were gaunt faced and downtrodden. They barely bothered to glance at him, but scowled when they realized he wasn’t one of them. From the parcel he was carrying, they knew he was a courier.
Lightning flared brightly as he took his time to reach the address. It was a house near several apartment complexes. The ten story buildings hulked over the houses, making them seem far smaller than they really were.
Kade knocked on the door and a young girl opened it a few moments later. “Can I help you?” she asked. Her amber eyes were sad and she was far too thin.
“I have a package for the master of the house,” Kade replied.
“Come in,” she invited and stepped aside for him. Her clothes were better quality than the pedestrians he’d passed, but even the middleclass shifters didn’t have enough food to go around. “My father is in his study,” she said and led him to a room down the hall.
Her father had heard their exchange and stepped into the hall with a wary expression. “You’re from the Magic Guild?” he asked.
“Yes, sir,” Kade replied and handed over the parcel.
“Wait there for a moment,” the werewolf said. “I have something for you to take back to the guildhall.”
Kade waited patiently with the little girl as her father crossed to his desk. “Your eyes are very pretty,” she told him. “What are you?”
“I’m half fairy and half human,” he replied.
“You’re a half breed?” she asked, wrinkling her nose. “I heard your kind are shunned by the fae.”
“We are,” he replied. “Fairies and elves are snobs. They look down at anyone who doesn’t have pure blood.”
“Shifters are like that, too,” she leaned in to whisper. “I know a girl who is only half shifter and no one talks to her.”
“She must be very lonely,” the warlock said, feeling sad for the unknown girl.
“I guess so,” she replied with a fatalistic shrug, then skipped down the hall, singing quietly to herself.
Her father crossed to the door and thrust a package at Kade. “Here, take this back to your guildhall and hurry up about it.”
Kade clenched his teeth at the order, but nodded and followed the werewolf to the door. He stepped out into the rain and began walking back towards the City Square. Hail bounced off his shield. The rain was coming down so hard that he could only see for a few yards.
Sending his senses out wide, he picked up on a few people with magical talent scattered here and there. He’d heard some shifters could use magic, but he hadn’t really thought about searching their District for a match. A few of them seemed to be quite strong, so he mentally marked their general locations. When he had time, he would return to the area and determine if any of them were female and if they would be suitable companions.
During a bright flash of lightning, he saw a woman with long blonde hair and a tall, slender form at the end of the block. Her face flickered and he realized it was Sorcha. The lightning died and he ran to where he’d seen her standing. She was gone by the time he reached the corner. A carriage must have picked her up and had ferried her away.
Not for the first time, he wondered who Sorcha worked for and what her job was. He’d never seen her at the Magic Guildhall, but she had to be a member. Not all magic users worked at the guildhall. Plenty of them had stores spread throughout the City Square and the Fae District. He figured she was a courier like him, but that she must work for a business rather than for the guild.
Another carriage stopped to pick him up and carried him back to the City Square. He made his shield vanish and instantly became drenched. It wouldn’t be a good idea to be bone dry when he stepped into the guildhall.
A loud bang came from the far side of the square. He turned to see lights on the roof of the Immortal Triumvirate’s headquarters. A hole had been blasted in the slate tiles, probably by a lightning strike. A skeleton crew was diligently working on repairing the damage. Long ladders had been erected to give the Night Cursed workers access to the roof. They were dropping shattered tiles to the ground far below. Another one landed with a loud clatter that made a few pedestrians scream and scatter in fright.
Kade stepped into the Magic Guildhall to find a cluster of witches and wizards gathered near the reception desk. He crossed to the desk and handed over the package, then lingered to listen to the gossip.
“This is terrible!” an overweight, elderly witch with frizzy gray hair declared. Her watery blue eyes were wide with outrage and fright. Her dress was brown and badly made and she wore ugly, black, thick soled shoes. “That’s two Magic Guildmembers who have been murdered now. Any one of us could be next!” she exclaimed.
“Don’t say that, Poppy!” a wizard scolded her. He was in his mid-twenties and had the usual contempt for old people that youthful humans felt. “It was probably an accident.”
“He had a hole in his head that was caused by magic, you idiot,” she said in derision. “I’d like to know how that could possibly have been an accident.”
“Has anyone informed Guild Master Onvier about this?” another witch asked. Her hands were clutched together, but she couldn’t stop them from trembling.
“One of our guildmembers is on his way up to his office right now,” Poppy said.
Kade left before anyone noticed him and sent him on another errand. He slipped outside and quickly made his way from the square. He teleported home and hung his soaked cloak on a hook near the door. His clothes became clean and dry before he made it to his library.
Another magic user had been murdered with a hole to their head that had been caused by magic. “It has to be the same assassin who killed the fairy I delivered a package to,” he figured. The Immortal Triumvirate’s private killers wouldn’t stop until their leaders were dead. He’d freed Eden and Malachi from their chains, but he didn’t know how many more of their colleagues were left. If the Immortal Triumvirate ever figured out that Kade was a threat and sent an assassin after him, he wouldn’t hesitate to kill them, even if they had no choice but to end his life.
