She nodded. “I think this whole situation is a load, if you ask me. You’re the best agent we’ve got. They’re shooting themselves in the foot.”
I smiled. “Thanks, Elsie, I appreciate that.” And the Hades honest truth was I did appreciate it. At least someone recognized the fact that I was good at what I did. Which only made me feel worse about lying to her.
I started down the hallway, pleased the vault was as far from Elsie as could be. As long as no one else was out and about, I’d be fine.
“If you need any help, just holler,” she called after me.
“Will do!”
I found my desk and shuffled around it, thinking I should pack some things so my being here didn’t look suspicious. Finding a small box on Trey’s desk, I emptied out his rubber band ball collection and started packing up my business card holder, a few pens and three coffee mugs. I left the box on my seat so I could grab it on my way out.
Then, eyeing my surroundings, I moved toward the vault, which was behind Quillan’s office and at the end of the hall. Grabbing a piece of blank paper, I scrunched it up and started for the vault, thinking maybe I could say I was looking for a wastebasket in which to toss the paper in case anyone noticed me. Course, why I wouldn’t have used my own trashcan was a good question, but one I didn’t want to bother with.
No one was around. Thank Hades.
The vault ran the length and height of one wall and now glared down at me, as though knowing I had no right to enter. I eyed the card scanner that would grant me access and pulled Knight’s key card from my pocket. Then I slipped it in with a silent prayer. The doors slid open and I grabbed the card, walking inside before the doors closed behind me.
I was in.
Once inside though, I didn’t know where to go. With a sigh, I glanced around, taking in the rows of unlabeled, white boxes sitting atop pine shelves. But I wasn’t about to start digging through those. Hoping my anti-potion would be easier to find, I headed for the back of the vault where I noticed multicolored vials sitting on the top shelf, contrasting against the dull steel of the vault wall.
Upon closer inspection, these vials were labeled and all were anti-potions-a good fifty or so. Great. Sam had told me the potion I was looking for was purple and called Dragonroot. I scanned the numerous titles: Whisker Remover, Au de Wort, Crabapple…finally I settled on a small, cylindrical vial holding what looked like grape juice. Grabbing a nearby bucket, I turned it over and standing on it, grabbed the vial. Even though the label was peeling off and difficult to read even up close, I could faintly make it out. Dragonroot -I was in business. I threw it in my pocket before turning around.
A loud thump came from behind me. My heart leapt into my throat. As I scurried off the bucket, one foot tripped over the other and I careened onto the floor. I pulled myself up and glanced around, looking for whatever had made the noise.
No one was in the room.
Even if no one was in the room, I’d made enough of a clatter when I’d fallen that Elsie would come investigating.
Then the noise sounded again and I jumped around. The row of anti-potions innocently stared back at me. I shook my head, when one of the potions, a bright pink powder in a test tube, jumped up and pounded itself against the steel wall. And there was my culprit- Megane, an anti potion that reacted to body heat. I must have been letting off a high temp when I’d been after the Dragonroot.
I fingered the Dragonroot in my pocket and started for the vault door. From the corner of my eye, I noticed a small closet-like room off the main hall of the vault; inside were more of those white boxes but beside the boxes were hundreds of clear bottles with long cylindrical necks and wide bottoms, like an I Dream of Jeanie bottle. It wasn’t so much the bottles that grabbed my interest as what was in them. A fluorescent green liquid and fluorescent green liquid could only mean one thing- Arsonflower. We’d busted a dealer with a house full of A rsonflower months ago and now the very same bust was sitting on the shelf like it was having the last laugh. I’d thought the Netherworld was better at getting rid of illegal potions than this! No wonder no one had access to the vault.
I turned on my heel, slipped the card in the reader, and hurried outside the doors as soon as they opened. Running to my desk, I grabbed Trey’s box. “Did you hear a noise?” Elsie asked. I glanced up and said a silent prayer of thanks that Elsie hadn’t found me leaving the vault. “No, I didn’t hear a thing.” She frowned but seconds later, a smile took control of her lips. “Hmm, oh well. Must be hearing things!” I started for the front door. “Night, Elsie.” She waved. “See you soon, I hope.”
###
Back at my apartment, Sam took the Dragonroot anti-potion and with an eye dropper, sucked up the liquid and released exactly three drops into the bowl of potion that was supposed to break Trey’s spell. As soon as the anti-potion interacted with the white substance, the white immediately turned into a sapphire blue and Sam beamed at me. I guess I’d done a good job. She removed the plastic wrap and shook the bowl a bit. “Okay, we’re good to go. The spell should be broken.” I glanced at Trey, who still looked as dead as he had before. “Are you sure?” “We need to put a dollop of this on the strongest of his pulse points,” Sam answered. “On his neck and wrists?” I asked. Knight nodded. “That should do.” Sam picked up the bowl and neared the comatose Trey. “Dulce, can you shift his head so I can get to his neck?”
I wasn’t exactly thrilled with touching Trey but I took hold of his neck and shifted it to the side while Sam reached her hand into the concoction and piled it atop his neck, getting his pulse point as well as his hair and the pillow below him. My pillow, I might add. “Why so much?” I asked. “Too much is better than not enough.”
Knight reached for Trey’s wrists and placed them palm up alongside his still body. Sam reached into her bowl for another scoop of white stuff and pasted. As soon as she finished whiting out both of his wrists, Trey’s eyes popped open like someone had flipped on his life switch. “You did it!” I said. “Sam,” Trey started, his eyes dilating. “What’s going on?” Sam took a seat next to him. “You were under a sleeping spell, Trey. I just managed to crack it.” He started to sit up, but Knight pushed him back into the couch. “You need to relax,” Knight said. Trey’s eyes traveled slowly to Knight. “Who are you?” he asked, his brow furrowing. “Dulcie’s cousin, Todd,” Knight said before anyone else could respond. My cousin? Todd? “I didn’t know Dulcie had a cousin,” Trey said, and sighed as if it took all his energy. “Do you know who did this to you?” Knight asked, apparently not thrilled with perpetuating his lie. “Try to remember, Trey,” Sam added.
Trey shook his head. “I don’t know. I just remember being at my place, and then I heard something and went to the living room to investigate…I can’t remember anything else.”
“Well, someone was trying to silence you,” I said, hoping that might trigger something.
Sam sighed. “We should probably call Quillan. He was working another important case today, otherwise he would’ve been here, Trey,” she finished. “I think Trey should still stay here with me,” I said. I guess I was feeling magnanimous again. Who knew how long it would last… Trey looked up at me, his expression quizzical. “You let me stay with you again?” I nodded. “Yeah. You’ve been here a couple of days.” “Wow. Thanks, Dulce, I didn’t know you actually liked me.” I shrugged. “You’re okay for a hobgoblin. Even if--”
Suddenly, Trey’s eyes rolled back into his head. He trembled violently as if a seven point earthquake was originating from his chest.
“What the hell?” I started, panic seizing me.
Sam grabbed his hand. “Trey! I think he’s having a vision.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, Knight grabbed hold of Trey’s shoulder and closed his eyes. “Knight, what the hell are you…”
Knight took hold of my upper arm in an iron grasp. As soon as he touched me, I was flooded with emotions that weren’t my own.
I tried to pull against him, not understanding what the hell was going on. Before I could make any headway, my brain erupted into a fit of images, all flowing through my mind like a stack of pictures in the wind. I closed my eyes. The images stopped flying about and the more I focused, the more they fell into place, until I could actually piece together the scene before me.
It was Fabian’s store. And Fabian was still alive. It was like watching a home video-he was whistling as he unloaded a box full of potions. I tried to decipher if they were illegal potions but couldn’t get close enough to find out. Out of the darkness, something swooshed by. Fabian brought his head up, having seen it as well.
