“Okay.” Quentin pulled the metal door open, then stepped inside. I followed him with Will and Heidi behind me.
The archivist drew his wand, muttered a quick spell, and a dozen wall-mounted torches blazed to life, lighting the cavernous space in dim, golden light. We clomped down some metal stairs. Rows and rows of tall shelves, two stories high, lined the space.
Against the far-left wall, several long, wooden tables lay covered in various artifacts, brushes, white cleaning cloths, and stacks of books. Candelabras burst into flame on the tables.
“So this is where the magic happens, huh?” I followed Quentin onto the floor of the basement. He headed toward the tables in the back. The rows of shelves loomed overhead. It felt like a library, except the shelves were littered with wooden crates of all sizes, treasure chests, and lumpy items under drop cloths instead of books.
He nodded, a worn leather jacket now covering the chain mail he’d “borrowed” from the museum. While I couldn’t condone the action, I had to admire the fashion bravery.
Will curled his lip at the dusty shelves and dim light. There weren’t even any windows down here. “So cheery.”
“It’s, um—” Heidi hugged Will’s coat tight to her sides and looked around, eyes wide. “Interesting.”
A mouse squeaked nearby, and she jumped and shrieked.
I lunged for the baseboard in time to see a tail disappear into a small hole. Snakes! So close. I needed to have a word with these mice to see if they’d seen anything.
I crouched low, and with Quentin out of earshot, put my face close to the mouse hole. “Cheep squeak squip!” Hey there, little guy. I’d like to have a quick word. Can you come back? You don’t even have to come out. Please? I’ll give you some cheese and make it worth your while?
I waited but heard nothing. After a few more attempts, Will helped pull me to my feet.
“Snakes.”
Heidi cocked her head. “Doesn’t that usually work?”
I nodded. “Yeah, but sometimes animals are really shy. I’d guess this little guy’s been avoiding traps for months now, so he must be pretty wary of people.” I turned to Will. “Know of any mouse shifters who could go in and try to talk to it?”
He arched a brow. “You know I don’t have any friends.”
Heidi huffed. “Present company excluded?”
He rolled his eyes. “Duh.”
I tapped my foot and sighed at the mouse hole. “I guess I’ll just have to be patient.”
Quentin led us to one of the long tables and pulled a six-inch-thick tome from the bottom of a pile of books and set it in front of him. His shoulders slumped and he sniffled, then slid a finger into the middle of the book’s pages and flipped it open. The center had been hollowed out, and a small wooden bowl sat inside.
Heidi and Will edged closer to get a better look.
“What is it?” She nibbled at a glittery gold nail.
Quentin used one finger to push the bridge of his glasses up. “It’s supposed to be part of the cursed objects collection, except I haven’t put it on display yet.”
I lifted a brow. “Why not?”
His throat bobbed and his chin trembled. “It’s rumored to make anyone who drank from it fall in love with you.” His voice grew so quiet I had to lean forward, hands on the table, to hear him. “But it was also rumored to bring with it bad luck.”
“A cursed object bring bad luck?” Will pressed a hand to his chest in mock surprise. “Who’d have thought?”
Heidi flashed her eyes at him.
Quentin sighed and hung his head. “I overheard Geoffrey telling Kalia about his favorite wine. It was so expensive, it cost me a whole paycheck, but I bought some and offered him a drink from the bowl.”
I leaned closer and examined the object hidden in the book. The candlelight didn’t glow too brightly, but I made out a faint tinge of dried red liquid in the bottom.
“We both drank from it.”
“And?” Had the cursed object worked?
His throat bobbed. “I don’t know if it had any effect—he died later that same night.” He sniffled, tears tracking down his cheeks. “I shouldn’t have done it, I knew it was wrong but—but I was so into him and he didn’t even look at me twice.” He jerked his head up, face scrunched in pain. “I was desperate.”
Will arched a brow. “Never a good look.”
Heidi elbowed him.
I sighed, torn between pity and contempt. “If it had worked, it’d be pretty messed up.”
He nodded, vigorously. “It was—it was messed up. He drank from that horrible thing—” He shot an arm toward the bowl. “And died the same night. It’s all my fault.” He slumped into a chair. “I killed him.”
“Welp, case closed.” Will thumbed over his shoulder. “Can we go home now?” He yawned. “I remember why I don’t go out dancing anymore. I’m too old to be out this late.”
I shot him a look and turned back to Quentin. “So you believe this piece is authentic? The curse is real?”
He didn’t lift his head from his arms. “Yes.” The word came out a groan.
I sighed, not so certain. For one, Geoffrey had died from being hit in the head with a figurine from the gift shop. Peter and I had established it couldn’t have simply fallen on him with enough force to kill him. Could bad luck from the curse have really resulted in his death?
I had serious doubts. Kalia had also questioned whether the cursed objects were indeed cursed. And besides, I still had my eye on Dr. Pendergast, the museum’s director, as the most likely suspect.
I cleared my throat, and Quentin looked up, eyes red and glassy with tears. “We’ll look into this more.”
His eyes pinched in confusion. “You’re—you’re not going to just arrest me?”
“Aw.” Will cocked his head. “How adorable. He thinks you have real authority.”
I rolled my eyes at my friend. “Just because it’s past your bedtime, Grandpa, don’t
