Future Warnings from Midnight

Chapter Ten: Stuck

No leads. Absolutely no leads! All of them damn dead ends! There has to be a solution... What am I missing? Mary leaned her head against the board of notes. She stood up and rustled through her paperwork. The corkboard was filled with many different pictures and notes from the police department. Her handwriting scrambled about the area. Friday rustled his wings for a moment as he settled on the perch in the office. He twisted his feathery head this way and that as Mary went to her chair. The detective looked at her beloved Friday. With all of the enchantment on him, Thursday had shown no insight or cleverness like usually. No not anything, just a silenced bird who made no sound. He lived, but seemed to lack all sense or intellect. He blinked at her. Mary sighed and covered her face.

She had been placed among the Magical Constabularies with a mentor, Orel. Orel was the best expert on the subject of animal transformation and enchantments. Unfortunately, Orel had been unable to figure out the unusual spellcasting on Thursday. The commissioner had thought it suiting to place Mary there. Apparently, the Scarred Man had influenced the commissioner's choices about her. Not to mention, that Thursday's father was the head district attorney. She dared not disagree with the choice as she worried over the fate of Thursday. He was still stuck as a raven. The detective wanted to be on the case, if for anything she could punch the jerk who did it. Mary read through everything again of the case notes.

The clock ticked away. She rubbed her eyes at the words. The information gathered so far float about her head. Orel pushed open her office door and sighed at the mess and gloom of the office. Orel was a plain looking man. His blue uniform of the Magical Constabularies stood out with his yellow stripes and badge. Orel's black hair was sleeked back into a ponytail. The only remarkable part of Orel were his golden rim glasses. He held up two coffees, "Yo Mary! I got you a gift!"

"Thanks, sir," Mary took the cup.

Orel frowned as he saw her face in the dark room. The man marched over to the window and opened the shades. Mary groaned and shield her eyes. Orel coughed and cleared his throat, "Look rookie, I get it. You really want to get to the ground running. But we have been at it all these last few weeks. I don't think I have seen you off the clock this whole time."

"Orel, please don't lecture me..." Mary placed her head on her desk.

"You have half of the Grand Library here, rookie," Orel chuckled as he took up the empty seat.

"Hmm, hmm."

"You ought to take a break. When is the last time you have been home? Or outside to take a walk? Or ate? Or a bath for that matter? You look like hell."

"I am fine," Mary muttered as she chugged the coffee.

"Rookie, you are in a tough spot. You are beyond your knowledge of magic and have been transferred to our department. Golly, rookie, if our best detective hadn't been retired from the Magical Constabularies, we could have had this cracked by now," Orel smirked as he peered at his coffee.

"You mean Shannon?"

"Yea, that kid was a genius! Too bad what happened to her..." Orel trails off as he drunk slowly.

"I know she was forcedly retired due to her health. But I thought she was kept on as a consultant and secretary. How else have we been getting her suggestions on our case?" Mary sat up.

"No, she was released from all active duties in the last two weeks. The commissioner said the poor kid is in the hospital in critical condition... The kid won't last long now," Orel quietly answers, "The last of her notes were the last thing they found her working on. Shannon must have really wanted on our case. The commissioner had been keeping her off because he was afraid what the stress would do to her..."

"Yea..."

Mary sorted through the pile of paperwork with Shannon's handwriting. Her notes had been good in theory, but none of it had lead anywhere. Her deductions had failed to connect Thursday's condition to the Scarred Man and his twins. Most of her ideas were based on someone having a grudge against Thursday's parent. It was a clear starting point ... Still Shannon was supposed to be a genius detective. Some of Shannon's ideas pointed to the Thursday committing the crime himself, which was pointless. Thursday knew nothing about magic. No less had any magic within his bloodline. Other ideas pointed to Mary, but the motivation was missing. Shannon's idea were all scrambled and made no sense. Mary had supposed it was just not fair as the poor girl was dying.

Orel sighed as he held his cup. His eyes drifting on the poorly written notes from Shannon. The man leaned on Mary's desk. His own file of papers and photos were on the desk. Orel had been researching all the possible spells casted on Thursday. Nothing had surfaced to the level of enchantment on him. Orel had concluded that the spellcaster had been well trained and created this spell themselves. He took a deep breath and picked up a page from Shannon's notes. The man realized too that the former kid detective was off her game. His eyes narrowed at her handwriting as Mary lifted up a book and flipped through the pages. Orel let his idea grow as he studied the writing.

The two sat in silence with the mute raven. Mary fluttered thru the papers one more time in hopes of figuring out what it could all mean. Orel held one of the pieces of paper between his fingers as he looked at the handwriting from Shannon. The former kid detective's handwriting should have been shaky. It should have been less prefect. Orel narrowed his eyes. The rookie held the files on the table. She spread them out and seemed to realize something else was off. Shannon had been adding more pressure to some of her words she had written. Her neat and square letters were bolder every few one. Odder was that she forced her pen over several different vowels. Mary raised an eyebrow, "Orel... Her handwriting. . ."

"I have read reports from Shannon before," He held the paper closer to his face, "You notice that the writing isn't right here, huh?"

"Yea. . . Why do you think she might have done that?"

"Shannon," Orel turned over all his thoughts, "She is hiding something. There is something she wants us to know."

"I found in her reports that she seems to be putting together some type of code," Mary handed over the file.

"Mary, check out Shannon's list of recommended readings for magical transformations. . ."

Mary looked at the list, "There are the title: Basics of Magical Happenings, Altering Reality, and Puzzler Wand Work."

". . ." Orel started to count the vowels and words. Mary wrote down the message as Orel repeated, "Puzzler Wand Work . . . The other two are fairly easily found books. But that last one is a rare first edition. Why would Shannon bother with all of the coding?"

"Do you think she is in trouble?"

"The girl is dying ... She is already in trouble. No there is something else going on. Something that is troubling her, but she must be afraid to speak out. . ."Orel stood up, "How is the code coming?"

"It is nonsense right now... Do you think the books would help?"

"Yea, come on. Let us go see what Puzzler Wand Work might be able to offer us."

Orel peered over the file one last time. The dual soon lift the room in a hurry with a new hunch about something. The dual had a new lead about Shannon, the Scared Man, and the twins. It was all coming together.