Page 32 of The Study of Fire
“Yes, sir.”
“Thank you.” Then to Valek, “Let me know if you need anything else.”
“I will.”
She left. The patroller eyed Valek with curiosity, but he unlocked the door. It opened into a foyer. A bench filled with lanterns, oil, and matches lined the left wall.
“Light your lantern here. No open flames are allowed inside,” the man said in a tone that implied he had given the speech a million times. “If you knock the lantern over, don’t hesitate to extinguish the flames. There are plenty of buckets of sand within reach. Removal of any records is strictly prohibited. Your pack will be searched prior to your exit.”
Valek wasn’t carrying one, but he said, “Thanks.” Lighting a lantern, Valek entered the main room.
File cabinets stacked to the ceiling lined the walls and created new walls within the space. Step stools littered the floor. Thank fate each drawer was labeled. The deeds to all the buildings in Castletown filled two entire floor-to-ceiling cabinets. Each district had its own drawer. He pulled the one labeled Garden District out, hoping they were organized by street address and not by owner’s names.
Luck was with him. He sorted through them and found forty-three Peach Lane. A few desks had been scattered around. Each had a bucket of sand next to it. Valek sat down and opened the file. The owner of the house was not a person, but a corporation—Secure, Trustworthy, and Reliable, Incorporated.
Valek wasn’t familiar with the company. If he had to guess, it might be one of the caravans that transported goods between military districts. The name was a bit over the top, though. Too earnest. And the only reason for them to purchase a house was probably for the owner of the company and their family. However, something about it just didn’t sit right. He wondered if the company owned other buildings in Castletown.
He took the lantern and strode to the record room’s entrance. The same bored patroller stood guard.
“I’ll be right back.” Valek set the lantern onto the bench in the foyer.
The man yawned.
Valek hurried to the FIIK room. He took the map and half the incident reports and carried them to the record room. He made a second trip for the rest of the stack. Then he spread the map out on the desk.
Bea lived two houses away from forty-three Peach Lane. Good thing he had organized the reports by date. He opened the first one. The address of the victim had been recorded along with their name. Valek located the residence on the map and then began the very tedious process of checking the owners of each of the houses nearby.
The owners’ names didn’t spark any inspiration, but the fourth house he checked was also owned by Secure, Trustworthy, and Reliable, Incorporated. And it was close enough to victim numbers two, three, and four.
Valek spent the rest of the day checking addresses. Sure enough, a building owned by Secure, Trustworthy, and Reliable, Incorporated was near all the victims’ houses. Were they providing safe houses for new magicians? He needed to investigate the company. Good thing he was in the record room.
The files on the companies registered in Castletown filled three cabinets. Thank fate they were alphabetized. Secure, Trustworthy, and Reliable, Incorporated claimed to be a general contractor available for any and all jobs. The company was owned by Gestirn. Valek didn’t recognize the name. Not a surprise.
Valek wrote down all the information. Perhaps Kenda would have some insight. By the time he finished his research, it was close to sunset.
Suddenly ravenous, he hurried back to the safe house. Hildred and Inrick had waited for him.
“Report,” he said to Inrick as they sat down for dinner.
“No one left or entered the house all day.”
Disappointing, but typical. “I’ll keep watch tonight.”
“Aren’t you exhausted?” Hildred asked.
“It’s been a while since I’ve had to stay up multiple nights, but I’ve plenty of experience.”
Valek talked a good game, but after hours of nothing but silence, he struggled to stay awake. He walked in circles around forty-three Peach Lane to keep alert. No one raced through the streets screaming. Nothing happened.
He dragged his body back to the safe house, updated Hildred and Inrick, and collapsed onto the couch.
* * *
Waking in time for dinner, Valek dressed and joined his agents. “Anything?” he asked.
“Yes,” Inrick said. “A man arrived in the afternoon. He carried a couple bags filled with food.”
“Did you recognize him?”
