Page 79 of Slouch Witch
‘No, it’s probably just one or two people. But,’ I added ominously, ‘you can never know for sure.’
‘How can I help?’ he breathed.
‘Time is of the essence.’ Because I didn’t want to wait around in the cold all night until the building was vacated. ‘We’re talking about an innocent man being in custody.’
Maidmont nodded vigorously. ‘Yes, yes.’
‘I need…’ I paused and backtracked ‘…weneed to gain immediate access to the HR building. We can’t wait until every single witch leaves. We need a way to get them out of there so we can search it properly. The only way to do that is—’ I held my breath before finishing my sentence for dramatic effect. It worked.
‘What?’ Maidmont asked. ‘What? Tell me!’
‘A fire,’ I finished. ‘A fire at the library.’
I could probably have asked for just about anything and Philip Maidmont would have given it to me but fire in his beloved library was a step too far. He drew back and gazed at me, horrified. ‘Never,’ he whispered. ‘It’s not worth it.’
Darn it. ‘You don’t understand,’ I said quickly. ‘I’m not asking for anything to be put in danger. All you need is a small fire for the magical wards to be engaged, right?’
He agreed warily. ‘Right.’
‘There’s a basement below us. Clear a space in the middle and set one or two old bits of cardboard alight. Everyone who’s left in any of the Order buildings will come running. The fire will already be out by the time they get here but they won’t know that.’
Maidmont was appeased – but only just. ‘What’s to stop them from returning to their own buildings when they realise it’s nothing serious?’ he asked.
‘You,’ I said simply. ‘You’re going to have to put on the show of your life, Philip. We’re counting on you. You tell them that, with the events of the last few days, you’re too nervous to leave the library unattended. You need all the remaining witches to stay overnight to make sure all these precious books and manuscripts and documents are safe.’
‘They’ll never fall for that.’
I put my hand on his shoulder. ‘They will if you’re convincing enough. They’ve just learned that we almost lost an entire Volume of the Cyphers, Phil. No-one will want to be the only witch not dedicated enough to keep watch all night. It wouldn’t look good on their CVs.’
‘But…’
‘Trust me.’ I smiled. ‘This will work.’
***
I’d barely made it back to the shadows around the HR building when the screeching began. Watching the witches inside, I noted a moment of frozen shock before they all sprinted for the door, hurling themselves at the library. I gave myself a pat on the back then I waited a little bit longer. For once, my patience was rewarded.
Not long after everyone had gone, robes flapping in breeze, a dark figure peeled away from the corner of the building. I’d have recognised that straight-backed march anywhere. Winter strode forward, pausing once to glance towards the library. I held my breath and hoped he’d realise that there were more than enough bodies heading in that direction to deal with whatever might – or might not – be happening, and that he’d stay on course. When he continued towards the front doors of HR, I knew he’d made the right decision. I gave a little jig. He thought he could pull the wool over my eyes but he was wrong. No one outsmarted me unless I wanted them to. Apart from Brutus. And maybe the Ipsissimus. Okay, and several others. Tonight, however, I was in charge.
I counted to twenty, giving Winter time to get to the spot he wanted. Then I followed on my tippy-toes. I wanted to see him jump with shock when I confronted him.
Pushing open the door as quietly as possible, I headed inside the HR building. I was getting to know the layout after the number of times I’d been here in the last few days. I veered round Rebecca the receptionist’s desk and into the large office space. Now that it was almost entirely empty, there was a rather tragic air about it.
A small light wavered above Winter’s head from the far corner. Records. Aha. Treading lightly, I went towards him. He was busy opening drawers so I was able to get right up behind him. When I was less than a foot away, I stopped and grinned. I was hoping for a small scream when I announced my presence.
‘Don’t just stand there, Ivy,’ Winter snapped. ‘Come and help me search.’
I jerked several inches upwards. The plonker. The absolute plonker. ‘You knew I was here? All along?’
‘Of course.’ He still didn’t turn around, intent as he was on pulling out files, examining the names and dropping them again. ‘Who else would be impatient enough to set a fire in the library because they didn’t want to wait for everyone to finish work?’
I bristled slightly. ‘I didn’t set the fire. Maidmont did.’
Winter finally glanced at me. ‘You drew that poor librarian into your scheming?’
I drew myself up. ‘Scheming? Scheming? You’re the one who’s been scheming, mister!’
He looked exasperated. ‘I didn’t want you here, that’s true,’ he admitted. ‘But when I saw you loitering around outside, I knew you’d end up with me so the entire venture to exclude you was pointless.’
