Merick chuckled. “She’s come a long way, Oliver, but she’s still a PIB agent. Killing with magic is forbidden and has a long list of consequences.”
“One of which is death. I’ve already almost come close to being tried for murder. I’d hate to have to explain a situation where I used magic.” I shrugged and started hiking over the bumpy ground.
Oliver and Merick joined me. Oliver pulled out a fancy GPS that led us to the coordinates. After a couple minutes of hiking, we came into a clearing, and I looked at Oliver. “You can put it away. I think we’re here.”
We looked at a large house. Three peaked roofs made it look almost like three smaller houses stuck together. The windows had bars on them, and even though the house itself was brightly colored, it didn’t look inviting.
The dark wood of the front door stood out against the obnoxious colors of the house.
“Hansel and Gretel anyone?” Merick whispered.
“Come in my, children,” Oliver answered back.
I wasn’t going to give in to their weird banter. I moved around the clearing to see if I could get another view of the house. There had to be a weakness somewhere. Only the waning moon illuminated the darkness of the night. I tried to think through the situation.
In the other scenes, the torture room had been upstairs. My eyes glanced up to where the bars were. We could chance popping in there and instantly being caught, or we could devise a different plan.
I jerked my head back to the forest to tell them to follow me. If we were lucky, we hadn’t been spotted yet. We’d stuck to the treeline, so maybe the shadows hid us from view from above. Or maybe the house was empty.
We waited for a moment. “I don’t know if anyone is home,” Oliver stated.
Merick nodded. “I don’t feel any magic.”
“So, you think we just pop on in?”
Oliver shook his head. “That’s blocked, I’m sure.”
“Good old breaking and entering then?” I asked.
They both nodded, and we crept back to the clearing. The windows remained dark, and I couldn’t hear any noises from inside. We walked around the back and found a porch with a back door. I went up to the door, but Oliver put a hand on my wrists and stopped me.
He produced a lock picking kit from his pocket and went to work until there was a satisfying click of a tumbler.
I raised a brow at him, and he merely shrugged as he opened the door. We walked in, and the smell of blood hit my nostrils strong enough that I could taste it on my tongue, almost making me gag.
I pulled out my gun as we moved through the kitchen. Spotless. Like no one lived in it, or it was kept very clean. We moved into a hallway that led to stairs. I could hear screaming and noises from above. Oliver motioned for me to take point. I trusted him and Merick to have my back. The hall the stairs led to was empty, no army, no bodies, but the noises continued. Sounds of pain and struggling. Occasionally, I could feel little flares of magic.
In my experience, any random flares of magic were bad. Typically, it meant a witch or warlock was reaching out for help as their magic started to fade.
I crept down the hallway, checking door by door to find each room empty. The last house I explored had the torture chamber in the back room. I took a deep breath before I tried the handle of the door.
It didn’t budge.
Oliver moved up with his trusty lock picking kit again, and I turned to look down the hall to guard his back. The moment the lock clicked, we switched spots again, almost like a practiced dance. I toed the door open. My heart pounded in my chest as I saw inside the room.
Just like the other scenes, blood coated the floors, dried brown patterns everywhere, which explained the smell. But this time there was a living person struggling against chains on the table and sending out little magic bursts.
The hair was matted with blood, but I knew the face. Liz.
I holstered my gun and ran to the table, examining the chains. I could melt them. There were no other witnesses, and at the moment, I wouldn’t have cared if there were. I met Liz’s gaze. Her eyes were wide with fear, and I took a moment to assess the damage. Her lips had been sewn shut, and they were swollen with crusted blood on them. Various cuts covered her body, but each one had been stitched up expertly.
“I’m going to get you out here.” I put my hands on the chains and called on my elemental power. The chain broke at the weak part of the link. I repeated it and was working on the third chain when Oliver hissed.
“Hurry, Abigail.”
I didn’t like the way he said it, but I sped up a little bit. The last chain snapped, and Merick come to help me get her off the table. “Let’s go. Oliver’s.”
Oliver nodded, and the world around us disappeared.
We reappeared in Oliver’s office, and Liz collapsed next to me. Oliver and Merick took her to a room, and I sighed. I’d have to let them take care of her for the moment. Oliver had the ability to heal, so hopefully he could take of the damage. Or at least some of it.
I pulled the phone out and texted Mason. “Found Liz, not our culprit.”
“She okay?” Was what I got back.
“I’ll let you know as soon as I can.” I sent it and leaned my head against the wall. I couldn’t get the image of her out of my head.
