Page 41 of Slouch Witch
I glanced at his hands. ‘You still have that silly sceptre?’
‘That silly sceptre saved our lives.’
My lip curled. ‘I still hate it.’
Winter leant in. ‘Me too.’
For a moment we grinned at each other. Then, slowly, Winter’s smile began to leave his face until his expression was something else entirely different. His eyes drifted downwards to my mouth and he raised his thumb, brushing it gently against my bottom lip. ‘Stray slime,’ he said softly. I shivered.
‘I still need to shout,’ I whispered. Someone had tried to kill him. No-one, I decided, was allowed to do that other than me. My rage was only building.
His nod was barely perceptible. ‘Go get’em, bruiser.’
I sucked in one deep breath then whirled round. I was most definitely on a mission.
When I reached the top of the stairs, I had to use considerable energy to force the door open. That meant that when it finally budged, I went flying out and landed at the feet of two startled Neophytes.
Maidmont hurried towards us from the other side of the hall. ‘What happened? Why are you all wet?’
I looked at the librarian. He was wringing his hands and seemed very concerned by our sudden, bedraggled appearance.
‘We have retrieved the sceptre,’ I heard Winter say behind me. I sniffed and picked myself up. He could return the stupid thing to its stupid display cabinet. I couldn’t shout at Maidmont; I’d already tried that once today and it was like kicking a puppy. I needed to find someone else.
I left Winter to explain what had happened and continued my march, storming out of the library and round the back to the next Order quadrant. There were many, many people staring. I couldn’t give a shit.
I flew along the pavement, ignoring the sudden chill wind that whipped at my wet hair. I was a tornado of fury and I was going to find someone to vent all that fury on. I had a good mind to head straight for the Ipsissimus. When I passed the sign pointing towards human resources, however, I changed my mind. At least with this lot I wouldn’t be kept waiting.
I made an abrupt turn left towards their small annexe. Slamming open the door so that it rattled violently in its frame, I pulled my shoulders back and stamped inside.
‘Hello,’ the brunette at the front desk called. ‘Isn’t it a wonderful day, today?’ Despite her words, her voice remained flat and unenthusiastic, as if she were merely repeating her welcome by rote. ‘Just look at all the sunny…’ She faltered as she took in my appearance.
‘All the what?’ I snapped. ‘All the witches conspiring to steal from the Order? All the witches conspiring to kill me and my partner? Or,’ I said, leaning forward with a dangerous glint in my eyes, ‘the people who fucked up and put me in this position in the first place?’
The woman recoiled. I realised, somewhat belatedly, that I probably smelled bad but I really didn’t care. ‘Who’s in charge here?’ I demanded.
She sniffed. ‘Adeptus Major Price. But if you want to see him you’ll need to make an appointment. He’s not here.’
Price. I’d heard that name before. I searched my memory until I remembered that was who Tarquin was supposedly running errands for. My eyes narrowed. The plot thickened.
‘Well, that’s convenient,’ I said. I was betting that Price was actually here. She just didn’t want to trouble him with a sodden, pyjama-wearing crazy woman. Tough.
I turned but, instead of leaving, headed straight for the door to the offices beyond.
‘Hey!’ the receptionist protested.
I ignored her. I stalked down a corridor until I reached a large, open-plan office filled with red robes. The witch nearest me, seated at a large desk with a pile of paper in front of him, sniffed the air, made a face and looked up. As soon as he saw me, his eyes widened with alarm. I bent down. ‘Where,’ I said icily, ‘is your boss?’
‘He … he’s not here.’
I folded my arms. ‘Where is his office?’
The hapless witch raised a shaky finger and pointed behind him. I spotted the door at the side of the room. Nodding, I abandoned the witch. If Price really wasn’t in, I would wait. Or I’d yell at every single person in this bloody office. Frankly, it could go either way.
I stomped over as more and more of the HR witches took notice. I paid them no attention and focused on the door. It was slightly ajar and I could hear voices from within. Aha.
‘If Price finds out that you screwed up like this,’ a female voice said, ‘he’ll chew up your insides. He’s in a lot of trouble with the Ipsissimus over this.’
I had a sudden mental image of the nervous-looking witch from the boardroom meeting. Adeptus Major Price didn’t seem likely to chew up anyone’s insides; in fact, from what I remembered, he appeared more likely to run and hide in the corner.
