Chapter Nine

Witches and Rock Stars

            Alice stared into the fire. Gabriel brought her some peppermint tea, which she took gratefully and then promptly forgot. They sat there for several minutes, discussing the best way to get Azura back.

            “If we could contact someone in Cairo…” Gabriel was saying.

            Alice jumped as something vibrated against her hip. She realized it was her cell phone. Miraculously it had stayed in her sweater pocket through her entire traumatic experience.

            “My phone!” Alice seized it eagerly. “Hello?”

            “Alice! Is everything all right?”

            “Azura! Oh my gosh, are you okay?”

            “I’m fine. I’m at an old friend’s place. What happened?”

            Alice nearly sobbed in relief. “I…the shop…a guy came in with a knife and made me move the shop.”

            “Is everyone okay?”

            “We’re okay. I was freaking out because we left you. I’m so sorry - how are you going to get back?”

            Azura’s voice was reassuring, “Oh honey, don’t worry about me. Just keep the shop where it is. I’ll join you tomorrow.”

            “Are you sure? We’re in Manhattan!”

            “Absolutely.”

            Alice relaxed a little, and once Shakra and Gabriel were sure she wasn’t going to run downstairs and send them all back to Cairo, the three of them retreated to their rooms for the night. But she wasn’t surprised when she had trouble falling asleep. She kept feeling the man’s grip around her throat and the cold tip of the knife on her neck.  Alice shivered. It made her feel a little better when she remembered the brand she had put on him just before he fled.  Every magical person in miles would see that.  He would certainly have difficulty finding anyone to rip off now.

Eventually she drifted into fitful dreams.

            New York customers were a different crowd of people.  They seemed to do everything with gusto, or aggression, as Gabriel put it; they dressed tough, talked tough and shopped tough.  They seemed to come in groups, and Alice and Gabriel had just finished serving a bunch of Werewolves with thick Bronx accents when Azura came through the door.

            “Good morning!” she sang. “I return from Egypt bearing gifts!”

            Alice flung herself at the older woman, catching her in a bear hug. “You’re okay!”

            “Are you okay? You sound like you had quite the scare.”

            “I’m fine now. When I realized we’d left you behind in Cairo…”

            “I was with a friend,” Azura said soothingly. “I was perfectly fine. Oh, that reminds me, my friend said he met you and….”  Alice stared in astonishment as Azura pulled a small bronze Hookah from the bag on her shoulder. It had green and gold markings, similar to the lamp she’d bought in the market. “He says they’re a set - he would like you to have this.” Azura laughed at the look on Alice’s face. “Apparently you made quite an impression on him.”

            “I did?”

            “He seemed…fascinated. He said you were ‘delightfully innocent’.”

            Alice made a face and Azura laughed. “He may be an old friend but he is still a Vampire. I told him if he even looked at you for too long I would have his guts for garters. He does so love his familiars.”

            Alice swallowed hard. “That’s like…a Vampire slave, isn’t it?”

            “Not so much in Jahi’s case. None of his Familiars are his against their will - they all adore him.”

            “Well I don’t,” Alice said indignantly. “I not even sure if I liked him. Gabriel certainly didn’t.”

Gabriel emerged from the backroom with a large cardboard box. “I didn’t what? Hi Azura - glad to see you’re safely back.”   

            “Hello Gabriel. I was just giving Alice a gift from my Vampire friend back in Cairo. Alice says you weren’t too fond of him.”

            Gabriel’s eyes widened. “That vampire at the stall was your friend?”

            “He seemed quite taken with Alice.”

            Gabriel’s face took on a noticeably darker cast. “I could see that.”

            “He gave me a Hookah.” Alice showed him the object and he eyed it as he would a poisonous snake. She turned back to Azura. “How did you get back, anyways?”

            “Jahi knows a Sorceress who can Plains Walk. She graciously agreed to bring me to New York.”

            Gabriel seemed impressed. “Wow, I’ve never met anyone who can Plains Walk before.”  

Alice was annoyed at her own ignorance; she didn’t want to sound like a moron in front of Gabriel, but she was really curious. “What’s Plains Walk?”

            “Hard to explain.…”

            “It’s when you are able to use magic to transfer your body to a separate plain of existence. Every step you take in that plain is hundreds of miles. You can travel faster than humanly possible this way.”

            Azura nodded approvingly. “Well put.”

            “Thank you. So, now that Azura is safely back and all is well, perhaps we should go and hunt down that scum.  After all, he is loose in the streets of New York.”

            “Yeah,” Gabriel said fiercely. “Let’s go find him.”

            Alice was taken aback by the savage light in Gabriel’s eyes.   She felt a stab of alarm at the idea of him going up against the savage man of yesterday.

“No.”

            All three looked at her in surprise. 

            “Don’t you want him caught after what he did?” Gabriel looked frustrated. “Why wouldn’t you want to go find him?”

            “He is in New York somewhere - we were just his ride here, he won’t be coming back. And I’m not interested in going on a wild goose chase trying to find him. Besides, I think he’ll find that his time here won’t be  as easy as he expected.” Azura arched a brow at her and Alice explained, “I threw a spell on him just before he ran out the door; it stands out like a beacon to anyone who can see magic. Nobody will trust him.”

            “What if he sees the spell?”  Gabriel looked critical.

            “He won’t; he’s blind to it.” Alice hesitated. “I don’t know how I did that part…actually; I don’t know how I did any of it. I just know he can’t see it.” She saw Shakra and Azura exchange a look, and wondered if she had done something she shouldn’t have. “Did I break some magical law or something? I would never do that to anyone else…”

            “Heavens no.” Azura smiled, “That was very clever. It’s surprising though, for someone who hasn’t been taught that spell.”

            “I was so mad I didn’t stop to think.” Alice shrugged. “I just grabbed the magic and sort of…demanded it be what I wanted it to be…and sent it after him.” She blinked, feeling a little unsettled as she remembered it. “I was beyond thinking straight.”

            “Beyond thinking,” Azura mused. “And perhaps beyond doubting yourself? Alice, I hope you realize that the magic you did last night was far outside anything you should be able to do right now. I have taught you all I can in the short time you’ve been here, but aside from simple shop spells you’ve only been taught the very basics.”

            “It appears that when you use magic on instinct alone you can accomplish that which far exceeds your training. Azura, her potential is quite astonishing.”

            Alice tried not to blush at the praise she was getting. “Well, let’s not forget what circumstances I was under. I hope that all of my training won’t be so…rigorous.”

            “Perhaps we could cage her with wild animals, or throw knives at her.” Gabriel was grinning cheekily. “We would get to see her true potential fulfilled.” Alice slugged him on the shoulder and he backed away laughing, rubbing his arm. “Ow! See? Already she shows fighting spirit.”

            “All joking aside,” Azura said, tapping her chin thoughtfully, “You may find that your ability to adapt to the magic will come in very handy if you’re ever in a tight spot again. Never hesitate to do what you did, Alice. When you are in danger, there are no rules to magic, no boundaries.”

            Alice hesitated. “How do you mean? Like….killing someone?”

“If necessary.”

            “You must do what it takes to save yourself and your companions. Hesitation has cost lives.”

            “What about the council of magic in each town? Don’t they frown upon the magical community killing one another?”
            Gabriel leaned against the front desk. “You would be surprised; most councils don’t care, unless there’s some kind of risk that the Regs might find out. Or if it looks like something might start a war. If we kill one another now and then, it doesn’t concern them. That’s essentially how the magical community runs - if it’s not your problem, don’t get involved.”

            “Seems like a lousy attitude…” Alice shook her head.  “I know the justice system doesn’t work half the time in the…er, regular world, but to totally ignore a murderer?”

            “It’s just too complicated when magic is involved,” Azura said. “Or at least, that’s what they say.

            “The councils have many excuses…” Shakra didn’t get a chance to say anything else because a large group of teenage Witches came in at that point, laughing and squealing as they descended upon the last of the talking compact mirrors.

            Gabriel gestured to the cardboard box he had set down by the desk. “Good thing I’ve got backups.”

            Alice nodded, distracted by snippets of conversation she was hearing from the six girls.

            “I love this song! His voice is so smooth.”

            “He is sooo dreamy,” a blonde Witch with bright pink horn-rimmed glasses said. “When Alexie sings I get goose bumps.”

            Alice realized they were talking about the pop song playing on the radio. She’d heard the song a few times a day now. Apparently it was very popular on “Bewitched Radio, home of the top magical hits”.  So that was Alexie Ambrose. She listened to the lyrics more closely,

“I’m as mean as a dragon and twice as strong,

And you said you want to hold me all night long.

But I caught you with a Nymph

No, you never stop to think,

And now I’d rather kiss Medusa,

 Yes I’d rather kiss Medusa all night long.

Alice wrinkled her nose. The lyrics left something to be desired.

            “My sister’s friend Monica saw him at a restaurant last week.”

            “No way! What restaurant? I will so totally haunt it for the rest of my life!”

            Alice blinked as the girl turned slightly and the light hit her face at an angle. She gave off a faint sparkle, as if her skin was made up of perfectly smooth diamonds. Alice nudged Azura, who looked up and saw what she was indicating.

“She’s a ghost,” Azura whispered. “She’s very tangible, meaning she has no desire to move on to the next world.”

            “Wow,” Alice whispered back. “I wonder what happened to her.”

            Azura shook her head. “It’s not considered polite to ask unless the ghost volunteers the information.”

            “I can understand that.”

            The girls continued to giggle as they made their way over to the potions section.

            “Love potions!” the ghost girl said. “Theresa you should buy one and use it on Jeremy.”

            “I don’t want him to like me because of that.” The girl named Theresa was examining one of the “Pure Luck” potions. “Maybe you should get one though - you can use it on Alexei  Ambrose.”

            “He’s totally got body guards to make sure people don’t do stuff like that.”

            “I’ll find a way to make him love me,” sighed a short redhead.

            “He’s sooo dreamy,” the little blonde ghost shoved her glasses further up the bridge of her nose.

            “I know. I have every CD he’s ever made. I can’t wait till his new one comes out next week.”

            “I know, right? I’m so first person in line.”

            “Not if I get there first!” More giggling, and talking, and then the girls finally figured out what they wanted. After Alice had rung them all through (noticing that in spite the girl’s noble protesting, the one called Theresa had bought a love potion), she turned to Gabriel.

“Who is this Alexei Ambrose guy? I’ve never heard of him.”

            “He’s big in the magical world right now. I’m starting to hear a lot about him. He lives in New York, I guess.” He shrugged. “I haven’t been here in a few years.”

            “I’m hearing he’s pretty dreamy.”

            Azura smiled. “From the mouths of several teenage Witches themselves.”