Page 14 of Concluded
“Yeah, only not the sugary cereal.Do you know how someone could go about doing that?”
Her answer came promptly.“Magic.”
“That’s… that’s ridiculous.”
“Agent Spanos, you were taught this years ago.Magicisn’t pulling rabbits from hats and it’s not a fairytale.It’s simply a term we use for forces we don’t yet understand.”
Yes, that was what he’d been told, but he hadn’t easily accepted that lesson.He believed in things he could see, hear, and feel.Most civilians might not realize that creatures such as vampires, merpeople, and shifters were real, but it was damned hard to deny their existence when they were biting you or attempting to eviscerate you with their claws.Magic, on the other hand, felt way too woo-woo.
“If magic is a thing, why haven’t we researched it?”he asked.
“We have, although not sufficiently.There is some promising work suggesting that much of it involves focusing or harnessing forces of will, which can be quite strong despite being intangible.”
“Okay, fine,” he conceded.“How come this particular subject can do that harnessing and most people can’t?”
“I don’t know, but I’ll look into it.I’ll let you know what I can find.But unless it’s urgent, I might not get to it for a day or two.We have agents on the way to Fairbanks with a reported Amarok sighting, a family of bakeneko near Milpitas, a possible kishi in Seattle, a… well, you get the point.Can it wait?”
Achilles considered.It would certainly be nice to have this information before dealing with Martell, but it wasn’t critical.“Yeah, okay.Just call when you’ve got something, please.”
“Of course.”
He thanked her and ended the call, then glanced at his GPS.Martell’s location was less than half an hour away.Although the road pavement continued to be cracked and scarred from heat and the shoulders sandy, the rest of the overall landscape had changed.The earth was covered with oasis-like patches of greenery laid out in neat squares.Despite getting only a few inches of rain each year, this valley grew a lot of the fruits and vegetables Americans ate during the winter.
“Huh.What if magic is like irrigation, with metaphysical canals carrying those forces of will?”He’d have to ask Afolabi about that the next time they chatted.
Soon he reached the outskirts of El Centro, where fast-food joints, taco shops, and gas stations squatted under the unrelenting sun.He considered stopping to grab something to eat but decided to get the business with Martell over with as quickly as possible.After leaving town, he found himself in an even more alien landscape, with endless sand dunes undulating in all directions.It reminded him of pictures he’d seen of the Sahara.“What the hell is he doinghere?”he wondered for the zillionth time.
He was astounded that his phone continued to get reception out here, as did, apparently, Martell’s.Maybe Con or someone else at HQ had worked their own brand of magic to make that happen.If so, Achilles was grateful.
He almost missed the turnoff, which looked more like a path than a road: simply tire tracks leading across packed sand and disappearing behind a medium-sized dune.Access for off-roaders and campers, he supposed, although he didn’t see anyone else as he wound deeper into the wilderness.
Until he drove around a particularly tall dune and discovered a mansion.
It was so bizarre, so unlikely, that his first assumption was that he was seeing a mirage.He stopped the SUV, blinked several times, and even rubbed his eyes, but the mansion remained.
It was flat-roofed, two stories high, and glaringly white.A row of enormous columns topped by ornate gilded capitals created a deep front porch, and a line of palm trees surrounded the house on three sides.A Lexus SUV was haphazardly parked in front.
Realizing he was gaping, Achilles shut his mouth, then pulled in near the Lexus, cut the engine, and got out.He checked to make sure his gun was in its holster, and after a few deep breaths, he marched to the front door.The lion’s-head knocker was bigger than Achilles’s head.
“Here goes,” he muttered.And he knocked.
It took a long time before the door opened, and when it did, a woman wearing a sundress smiled at him.“Are you lost, honey?”She looked familiar, although he couldn’t place her.
“No.I’m looking for?—”
“This is private property, and I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
Achilles had never been much attracted to women, but this one was an exception.She had vivid blue eyes and sunshiny hair, and it looked as if she worked out regularly.
He cleared his throat.“I just need to?—”
“You need to go.”When she smiled, she showed very straight white teeth.
And dammit, he wasn’t even supposed to be here.He’d intended to remain in his nice condo until he was fully recuperated and then maybe take a vacation before planning the rest of his life.The Bureau could go screw itself.
“Sorry,” he mumbled.
He turned, walked back to his SUV, and drove away.If he drove fast, he could be home in less than four hours.
