Compared to her brief ride in the back of a London police cruiser, the drive out to the Laushire estate felt like an eternity. Hailey could have flown it in no time at all, but she waited patiently in the back of the stately car Laushire had sent for her, trying to keep calm and remind herself that she needed more direction if she was ever going to find Malton. Who better than his biggest rival?

  The lawyer Laushire had sent got her out without too much trouble, to the shock of every officer in the station. Technically, Hailey was still in the country illegally, but he managed to talk her way out of the station and into the personal custody of the Laushire residence in mere minutes. Some loopholes of the law she couldn't begin to understand, plus what she assumed was a bit of bribery, and she was well on her way out into the city.

  She probably would have loved this part… Hailey sighed as she watched the landscape go by. They were still within the London sprawl, but there was a charm to the place she'd never felt in the Seattle area. Laushire's mansion had rolling gardens and a stately path leading up to the huge structure, with a wide portal leading inside. It was all so… familiar. Hailey had seen it before, and so had Jessica.

  In fact, the design wasn't all that different from Kendra's home back in Rallsburg. Kendra must have paid for the design and construction to imitate her childhood home. Hailey was surprised—she'd assumed her old professor would have wanted nothing to do with her father or her home. Things weren't exactly adding up, and she really wasn't in the mood to puzzle them out.

  As the car rumbled to a halt, the driver leapt out and opened the door for Hailey, offering his hand. She ignored it, heading straight through the huge double-doors without a moment to spare. A servant waited just inside, wearing a set of finery and with the most pompous voice Hailey had ever heard outside of TV.

  "May I present his lordship, Sir Thomas Laushire."

  Thomas Laushire was just inside, exactly the same as every picture Hailey had ever seen. She'd studied the man in one of her business classes, and he was even more imposing in life than in a staged photograph. Thomas stood at the top of the winged staircase, along with his wife, both sharply dressed in business attire. His short red hair, the same as his wife and daughter, lit up in the sunbeam that shone through the tall window overlooking the main foyer. It was an impressive sight—and Hailey was having none of it.

  "Welcome, Miss Winscombe," Thomas called out.

  Hailey shook her head. "I'm sorry, but I don't have time for all that. I need to find him."

  "You're looking for Cornelius, I presume?"

  She nodded. "He's got a lot to answer for."

  "I don't disagree." Thomas glanced up at the elderly man who'd driven and escorted Hailey inside. "Thank you, Collins. You may go."

  Hailey glanced over her shoulder at the bowing man, who quickly retreated from the foyer along with the pompous servant. "...Collins? Like the guy in Rallsburg?"

  "The McCreary family has been with us for many generations," said Mary. "We were devastated to hear of their son's fate in May."

  Sure doesn't sound like it… "He seemed like a good guy," Hailey offered awkwardly. Truth be told, she hadn't really known him, except the rare occasion he popped by class to bring something to Kendra—and the day he'd died while Hailey was trying to fly people away from the golems to safety. She shuddered.

  "You were a student of Kendra's, correct?" asked Thomas.

  "Yeah."

  "Is she…" Thomas trailed off. His mouth seemed to be having severe difficulty staying open.

  His wife filled in the rest. "Is she all right?"

  Hailey nodded. "I just saw her yesterday. She seemed fine." The memory brought back Hailey's sense of purpose. She wasn't here to give Kendra's parents an update on their estranged daughters—she was here to find a murderer. "I need to find Malton."

  "Why?" asked Mary, without a moment's hesitation.

  "Because men he hired are responsible for everything that happened last week."

  Thomas frowned. "Can you prove that?"

  "I don't have to," said Hailey. "I just need to find him."

  "And do what?" asked Mary. "You're talking about one of the most powerful men in the world, and someone who brings a substantial amount of money into the country."

  "I wish nothing but plagues upon the man," said Thomas, "but legally my hands are tied. He's broken no laws."

  "He murdered my best friend!" Hailey snapped. Her blood was boiling again. Why can't they just give me what I want? She didn't care if Malton was legally in the right. Nobody could possibly think he was innocent. She'd drag him into the center of London and show everyone what he'd done.

The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Mary's eyes softened, showing the first real emotion Hailey had seen. "...I'm so sorry, dear."

  "If I could help you, I would," said Thomas. "I don't have any power over him. Even economically, I'm ashamed to admit I'm flummoxed. Cornelius has had me at every turn."

  "Just tell me where I can find him," Hailey said. "I don't need you to do anything else."

  "I have no idea," said Thomas simply.

  "So use your people. Do something."

  "I have been, as a matter of fact. My chief of security had the man followed for a month now, trying to determine how he's getting inside information from my company. Cornelius vanished without a trace seven days ago, and Bastian hasn't been able to locate him since."

  "...The same day as the Battle of Lakewood," said Mary thoughtfully.

  Thomas glanced at her. "Indeed. I hadn't made that connection."

  Hailey couldn't stand still. She started pacing around the bottom floor of the mansion, while the Laushires looked on from above curiously. She needed to be doing something. She even started levitating objects at random, while the curtains swayed from her wings brushing them as she walked by.

  "Astounding…" murmured Mary. Hailey snapped around to look at her, startling the older woman. "I'm sorry, Miss Winscombe. I did not mean to offend."

  "You didn't," said Hailey. "I'm just…" She trailed off, not sure what to say. She knew they were right, though she couldn't bring herself to voice it. Even if she found Malton, what was she really going to do with him? She had no proof. All they had was the guy Jeremy and Stebbins had caught, and she doubted they could link him to Malton in any way.

  "You are in mourning," said Thomas, nodding slightly.

  No, I'm in anger. "I need him to pay," she snapped.

  "I'm doing the best I can." He sighed audibly. "I've been working with a new partner from the colonies. Someone from your neck of the woods, in fact. He's quite the sharp mind, whomever he is, but we're only moving so fast. Malton will catch on sooner or later, and we'll be in another arms race to the top."

  "Why the Pacific Northwest?" asked Hailey, finally coming to a halt. "I thought Laushire mostly did energy and European goods."

  "We needed a market Malton didn't have his claws in, and we saw an opportunity to work with a major new player," said Thomas.

  "Cornelius' greatest flaw is his pride," added Mary. "He's made it to the top, and stopped bothering to watch for the peasants at his feet."

  Wow, no mincing words here… "And you can't work in Europe anymore because he's sniping all your negotiations?"

  "Precisely. Our operations in the Northwest have been conducted entirely through the third party." Thomas frowned. "I'm not comfortable with handing off my money to someone I've never even met and letting them make all the decisions, but it's working. We're seeing returns."

  Okay, Mom. I'm actually going to make a deal. Aren't you proud? Hailey smiled, though it felt as bitter as the worst coffee she'd ever tasted. "I can tell you how Malton's getting his information."

  Thomas' eyebrows disappeared into his hair. "...You… how?"

  And I'm going to use Kendra's lessons to negotiate with her own father. Who saw this coming? "Just trust me. I know. But I need you to give me something in return."

  "...We really don't know where the man is," said Mary.

  Hailey shook her head. "That's not it. I believe you. I need you to help me pay for as many lawyers as it takes to bring him down, after I bring him in." I'll do this right for you, Jessica. "He's a billionaire, I'm nothing compared to that. No matter how stupid-famous I am now, I gotta have money on my side, right?"

  Thomas inclined his head. "Too true. You have my word, Miss Winscombe. No matter the cost, I'll make sure Cornelius pays the price for his sins."

  Hailey turned to leave. She got what she needed out of him, and she had a job to do now—but before she could open the doors, Mary called out to her.

  "Miss Winscombe, before you go—would you stay for some tea?"

  Hailey hesitated. "I…"

  "You aren't going to find him today. Please…" She trailed off. Hailey turned around. Mary had taken hold of her husband's hand. "We haven't heard a word about Kendra in years. Not from someone who truly knew her."

  "...I dunno if I really did," said Hailey dubiously. I mean, she had a whole secret twin sister… but I guess nobody knew about Lily. They still haven't even mentioned her. This secret sure runs deep.

  Hailey did feel some kinship to Kendra though, as one of the other natural awakened, even if Kendra always seemed apart from the rest of the eight. While she shared the traits that caused them all to be treated differently by many forms of magic, as well as their habit of voicing spells aloud, Kendra never could muster the same level of power as the rest of the group.

  Hailey had noticed it first in the ritual, when they'd all joined together to hit Omega with everything they had. Hector, Jessica and Hailey had all pushed out the same rough amount of energy for Cinza to use, but Kendra's paled in comparison. It wasn't the best measurement—Hailey could only barely feel her essence from across the circle, totally overwhelmed by Jessica's pure magic and Hector's raw power—but the fiery-haired professor never seemed to match them in magical ability.

  And yet… she could do vast spells which exceeded everything Hailey could even conceive of. She had no idea how Kendra's portals and pocket dimensions worked. Even with the bag she always wore at her belt, to which she fed a constant tiny stream of energy, was a complete mystery. Hailey knew it was Creation magic in some form, and she knew too that it took far less energy than might be expected simply based on the strength of the aura, but beyond that? Kendra was a genius. Hailey wished she could come up with so many useful and creative applications of her own affinity.

  Kendra intimidated her, Hailey had to admit it. She didn't think raw power would ever beat a truly creative, innovative mind, and Kendra far outstripped her in those qualities. If Lily were able to match her sister, they'd be unstoppable. Good thing she's on our side… At least I don't have to worry she might have another full page like mine. I wonder why Lily didn't awaken off the same page as her sister. Maybe she just wasn't in town yet.

  "She was the best teacher in our school," said Hailey finally. "She invented whole new kinds of magic I still don't understand. Wherever she is, Kendra's doing just fine." Somewhere in Seattle, I think… They never let anyone into their house except Natalie. Her stomach rumbled, and Hailey finally remembered she hadn't eaten a bite since landing on the freighter halfway to London. "...Do you guys have anything to eat?"

  Mary smiled warmly. "Our personal chef is the finest outside the Palace."