a/n: Cue the Billie Eilish fans going crazy in the background...

"Will always was the one with the crazy stupid hideouts." Aidan said, waving his arms around in the air at a fly.

I decided on ignoring his stupid attempt and walked faster. Aidan jogged to catch up.

"Car, you know there may be a chance that you're wrong." I glared at him, showing him that now was really not the time, especially when Will is missing and Ellie is still in the Salutem.

"I mean," Aidan said quickly. "There's a chance that what you said isn't true and it was all Will. You shouldn't underestimate people's intentions."

I stopped and looked directly at Aidan.

"I'm not underestimating him. I just don't want to believe that he's really like that."

+++

"You know as strange as Will's hiding places usually are, I'm finding it difficult to believe that he can afford something like this." Aidan said in disbelief, his mouth agape.

We stood in front of a mansion consisting of dozens of windows allowing us to peak in at the rich interior. I rang the doorbell.

The sound of small feet came from inside before a girl came out - no older than Aidan and I.

"Carter Anderson, being blessed with your presence on a day like this. Do tell me what you have to offer." She smiled at me, showing her pretty white teeth.

"What would you like your payment in today, Josie? Nephilim, Lycanthrope or Elemental." I said automatically, knowing the usual protocol.

"Why not give me all three? You know how close we've become. Surely you know how much work I put in." Josie batted her dainty eyelashes dramatically, staring up at me with greedy eyes.

"Shut up, Josie. Don't try and take me for a fool." I said, causing her face to immediately drop, her smile replaced by sneer.

"I'll take Lycanthrope. I do like to know what they're up to." She sighed giving a sour look.

I reached my arm out and she grabbed hold of it quickly muttering words I could not translate.

"Ah the Lycan. Always a busy bunch, don't you think, Carter Anderson?"

"That indeed." I said, pulling my arm away from her grip and stepping into her house, gesturing for Aidan to follow. I turned around when I didn't hear footsteps behind me.

Josie had her arms around Aidan's neck and was staring at him with her big green eyes.

"I'm sure you're a much more generous person than Carter Anderson. Do give me some of your information." Josie's fingers trailed up and down Aidan's arm.

"Josie!" I shouted, frustrated. She glared at me before pushing past me into the house, leaving Aidan staring at where she once was.

+++

"Josie is a Witch with a Nephilim heritage. She is quite rare considering the Nephilim side is usually dominant in these situations. So it's most likely that her Nephilim side had a recessive witch gene. Of course, this would ruin the credibility of the entire Nephilim family, so Josie was left on the streets. Thus giving her the capabilities of a Witch and the charm of a Nephilim. Giving you the reason as to why you were drooling when she came into view."

"I wasn't drooling." Aidan protested weakly meanwhile I rolled my eyes at him.

"And what was with her holding your arm as payment?" Aidan asked, trying to change the subject.

"I give her the information in my mind to which only certain parts she can access. Although gold, silver and bronze pieces are popular payment types, Josie seems to prefer information on others. I have learnt for years how to put up barriers in my mind to allow payments like these without exposing everything I know." I explained quickly.

"You didn't think you we could possibly find Will without another divisions' help, did you?" I pointed out.

"No, but a Witch-"

"Is an Elemental ally and vice versa."

"But still Car. It's risky. Privacy isn't something guaranteed when dealing with them." Aidan pressed.

"She's trustworthy, aren't you Josie!" I called out.

"How did you know I was listening, Carter Anderson?" Josie said coming out from behind the door. I shrugged my shoulders and grinned.

"It seems like it's not just the girl in your team that doesn't trust me." She said looking over at Aidan.

"Ellie knows her too?!"

"Ellie has heard of her and knows what she looks like but has never come into contact with Josie. Thank god for that."

"I do think the girl is just jealous of my fabulous looks." Josie exclaimed, placing herself in between me and Aidan on the antique sofa.

"Well you think a lot of ridiculous things don't you, Josie." I said chuckling. She hit my shoulder lightly in response.

"It is you who is asking something of me Carter Anderson so I should think you know better than aggravating me."

"Is it nearly ready?" I asked eagerly wanting to get out of this damned place.

"Carter Anderson it was ready the second you appeared on my door step. But I do like the anticipation of it all." She replied. I groaned and refrained from pulling at my hair.

Of course, she had made us wait for ages. Her Nephilim side made her one for the theatrics.

"Well where is it then?"

"Right here." She pulled out a map of the city and a short strand of hair.

"I'm presuming he's not gone out of the city?" Josie asked. I shook my head.

"Good. I do hate wasting my payments on maps of the world. They do cost a pretty penny when drawn magically." Josie placed the map on her lap and put the strand of hair in her hand.

She closed her eyes and whispered unknown words. The strand of hair suddenly floated from her hand onto the map. It circled the map before stopping and standing upright on a building. It stayed like that for thirty seconds before burning up until it was gone.

Josie opened her eyes and looked over at me.

"Well? Did you manage to catch where your friend is?" Josie asked.

"Yeah, thanks Josie. Come on Aidan we need to go." I got up off of the sofa and dragged Aidan who was staring at Josie.

"Aidan try not to drool on Josie's carpet." My remark woke him from his trance and he looked up at me.

"When are we going to start the tracking spell?" He said urgently. "We need to find Will as soon as possible, Car."

I felt like facepalming. Josie just laughed and leaned over to Aidan.

"Feel free to drop by anytime Carter Anderson's friend. I could have a lot of fun with you." Josie smiled at him.

"Wait. Don't you need Will's DNA for the tracking spell?" I said.

"Yes, of course Carter Anderson. I mean I could've taken his blood too but it makes the process rather messy. I don't like stains."

"And how did you get a strand of Will's hair?" I asked suspiciously.

"I may have bumped into him after you called for my services." She said quietly.

"You mean you've seen him?! Josie! Who was he with you, need to tell me?!" I looked at her sternly.

"Do not act like a parent talking to a child when addressing me Carter Anderson. The person gave me a good payment for sealed lips."

"And what was it?! I can top it Josie. I'm sure of it."

"The person gave me my life to live. If I tell you their name, chances are you won't find me alive for your next service."

"I could kill you too, Josie. I would never put you over someone who means something to me."

"Rather rude of you to say that, Carter Anderson. Especially when the blade is in my hand. You may win in combat but in doing so for information you risk war between my people and yours. And even someone as oblivious as you would know who would win that battle." Josie said coldly.

The Elementals heavily relied on the magic of Witches and Warlocks. If a war was to break out between them it would give other enemy divisions a chance to get a powerful ally on their side.

I stormed out of Josie's house (with Aidan following behind me) slamming the door on the way out.

+++

An abandoned building. How typical. Not the most inventive hiding place.

In fact it was not a hiding place at all. Everyone seemed to know about it in town when Aidan and I had asked and it was right in front of a roundabout, easily seen by... well everyone.

From the outside you could see the windows were all smashed from stupid Proletarian teenagers throwing gosh knows what at them and the paint was pealing from the building.

It was easy enough to break into, with the door being half rotten. The furniture inside was full of dust and cobwebs. It took us no time looking in all the rooms and concluding that Will was not here anymore.

"Any luck in the back?!" I called out to Aidan.

"Nah, it's just this weird garden. Actually it's kind of- Car! Carter! Come here!" I quickly made my way over to Aidan who was staring at the 'weird garden' through the window.

"What is it, Aidan?" I asked unsure of what he wanted me to see.

"Look." Aidan replied pointing at the garden.

"Aidan. I don't know what you're talki-"

"Car. Really look. Closely." Aidan said not taking his eyes off the window.

I focused my eyes to where he was looking at and still saw the garden. It was then for a split second that the garden flickered. I looked away at Aidan.

"What was that?" I asked, confused.

"That was the fault in a Mirage, Carter. Try and raise some earth."

I looked nearly annoyed that I couldn't see anything accept the garden flickering every so often. I raised my right hand trying to lift the earth up from the garden. Nothing happened. I tried again putting more concentration into it. Nada.

"What's going on? Why isn't-" And then a door appeared where Aidan was looking.

"A Mirage that can fool even the mystical divisions. A powerful Witch or Warlock's work." Aidan said.

"A powerful Witch or Warlock who doesn't want us knowing what they're doing."

"That's why you couldn't raise the earth because there is no earth. This entire place is one big Mirage. And you have to slowly look for the fault to uncover what everything is."

"Thanks Aidan. I think I'd have left this place if you hadn't found the Mirages." Aidan shrugged his shoulders in response and said nothing.

I raised my hand and moved it forwards. Earth came from the front garden of the building to us. I twisted my hand and put some earth on the door handle. Nothing. I then adjusted my hand and put earth on the door.

Immediately symbols could be seen. It was the four symbols for the Elementals.

Fire an upright triangle. Water an upside down triangle. Air like fire but with a line running through. Earth like air but upside down.

At least they looked like the four symbols. Three claw marks of a demon ran through them on the door.

"Are we still going to open the door?"

"Fuck yeah."

+++

Turns out the garden was well and truly fake because when we went through the door it led us to another room. Like the others in the building except it lacked any furniture.

We both immediately saw Will standing in the middle staring directly at us. We walked slowly and hesitantly towards him. Unaware of whether he was still hexed.

Suddenly a horrible gargling sound echoed in the room and was then replaced by the sound of choking.

I looked round the room but it was empty.

Will was still staring at where the door was not moving, apart from a small flicker.

I looked towards Aidan and he tried lifting some earth from underneath all the foundations of the building. It took a while but earth shot through the floor.

I nodded at Aidan and he threw the earth at Will. Immediately the Mirage died and we saw Will choking on blood at our feet.

I went down and tried to help him up but his body felt heavy like it was dragging me and him to the earth's core.

"You can't help him. He's already completed stage one." I stood up and turned around at the voice.

Two Vampires and Evangeline Prontes. They must've been Miraged too.

"I told you I wouldn't be staying in that Elemental holding cell for long, Carter Anderson."

"Give us back Will." Aidan said, his voice shaking and his arm at the ready.

"You can have him. He knows what he needs to do." Evangeline Prontes said smirking at the two of us.

Aidan raised his hand but immediately stopped when the wall to our right broke through. Light shone through and a figure came and stabbed one of the Vampires and Evangeline Prontes.

Evangeline Prontes hissed unknown words and  a portal opened up. The uninjured Vampire took the daggers out of the other Vampire.

"Remember Carter Anderson. I'm not the bad guy." Evangeline Prontes said before all three of them quickly disappeared into the portal before Aidan could lift his arm up once more.

The figure who has stabbed them rose.

"Next time leave me a note when you're off to kill two Vampires and a Witch."

Ellie made her way towards us, slightly clutching her stomach.

"Ellie, you're still meant to be in the Salutem!" Aidan said still shocked at her appearance here.

"And we're still meant to be on the Vampire case but we're not. How do you think it feels to wake up in the bloody Salutem and having to be told by Benedict and Kai that I've been taken off the case."

"We're sorry Ellie but Will-"

"But you couldn't even leave me a note. I've been on a wild goose chase trying to find all of you! I've had to go to that Josie girl who gave me where you were in riddles! I lost seventy gold pieces!"

"Ellie, where did you get those daggers from?" I asked.

"A damn Nephilim who decided to get all grabby with me when I asked about this building. He then proceeded to try and kill me with his blessed sword. I knocked him out before he could do anything and took his daggers."

"Well at least you cut Evangeline Prontes. Her possession on Will should have faded now." I say taking a side glance at Will.

+++

All four of us managed to get back to the Pelagus without any further injuries. Aidan and I were supporting and carrying Will while we both filled in Ellie on what happened.

"Carter, Aidan, William, Eleanor." We all looked upwards.

Our superior looked down at us from the front steps of the Pelagus.

"I have been notified of recent events and although I offer my condolences to what you have all suffered, I think it's best if William is taken off the team. I know of his previous contacts with Evangeline Prontes and believe he is a hindrance." Our superior then turned to Will.

"William, I would suggest thinking about your act and a transfer." Our superior then went back inside the Pelagus, leaving us all to soak up the new information.

"I'm being taken off?" Will said staring at the ground. We all looked at each other and then Will. Sympathy was drawn on my face.

The doors to the Pelagus opened once again and Will looked up hopefully.

Benedict came rushing out to our disappoint in a look of frenzy and helplessness.

"Carter, do you know where your superior's just gone?!" His tone was in a state of urgency.

"No. What's wrong?" I asked for it was not like the reputable and proper Benedict to run round like a mad man.

"One of my team members has been bitten and killed by a Lycanthrope, while questioning about the Vampire murders."

a/n: 1k!!! Thanks so much for all the support and reads, literally love you all to pieces.

Dedicated to @baileytargaryen for showing some love by making the little star in the left hand corner orange. Or at least it will be dedicated once I've got my laptop fixed.

chapter release date = 15/08/19