They were filled with scribble, long litanies on the evils of magick and its practitioners. Here and there were articles cut from newspapers and magazines, each spawning a new rant based on its ‘evidence’.

  She flicked through the remaining six books, but they were all the same. If anything, they were significantly worse. By the fifth book Patric had begun to write out elaborate fantasies of killing magickal beings, and by the sixth he had illustrated them. It seemed killing them wasn't enough, the goal was eradication of her people. It was then Tessa hit pay dirt. It seemed that “Mr Man” and “The Man With The Plan” had promised to eradicate magick kind if Patric helped. Here was written proof that someone else was involved, and Tessa was entirely sure this “Mr Man” was Senator Parsons. She was just patting herself on the back when a shout rang out from the hallway.

  ‘What the fuck?’

  The door flew open fully, pushed by a very angry Patric Wills. He was brandishing a knife which was already crusted with dried blood and dirt. Tessa hoped that the blood was old but wasn't convinced as it came flying at her. She dove to the side, trying not to think about what filth was now attached to her as she fell to the grimy carpet. The texture could only be described as crusty. Patric had fallen into a pile of rubbish, and was working hard to get out of it.

  Tessa leapt to her feet, not even bothering to pull out her knife for this clumsy fool. The man himself had finally battled his way out of the trash and was now struggling to stand. When he was finally on his feet Tessa whistled loudly before talking.

  ‘Hey asshole, I found your ratty little bolt hole. I finally get to take you in for putting back the magickal community by about 40 years. And being a murderous little bastard.’ She managed to keep her voice even, despite her anger. This was the man who had made those women suffer so, who had inspired hate and violence to her people. To her surprise and intense ire, Patric merely smiled at Tessa.

  ‘About time. Pretty weak for someone with all those unnatural powers your kind have. Don't you want to know why?’ He asked, a mock coyness tainting his words.

  ‘Not really, but I am sure you are going to tell me anyway. Why kill those women?’ Tessa responded, matching his smirk.

  ‘Who better to kill than the women, especially the young and beautiful ones. It’s the best way to get people pissed off, aside from kids. But I couldn't kill kids you know?’ As Patric spoke Tessa noticed lunacy glowing from his eyes.

  ‘Well aren't you quite the modern saint?’ she quipped with a roll of her eyes and a click of her tongue.

  ‘Quite. I did this for the safety of all humans, to inspire the eradication of the freaks and make a safer world. If you had have just let me finish my work I would have saved more lives then I took. They were sacrifices in order to protect humanit...’

  ‘Oh shut up you bigoted fool, I am sick of listening to your madness.’ Interjected Tessa angrily. Unfortunately it just caused Patric to smile more.

  ‘What are you going to do, cast a spell on me?’ taunted Patric, making his voice a childish and petulant tone.

  ‘No, this,’ responded Tessa, balling her small hand into a fist and punching him right between the eyes. There was a satisfying crunch as the asshole dropped like a stone. He hit the floor heavily, cracking the ancient wooden floor boards.

  Resisting the urge to really lay into him, Tessa pulled out her phone to call someone to collect her now unconscious murderer, before snapping on the Agency cuffs. Very slimline and made from silver reinforced with a myriad of blocking and binding spells, the cuffs were made for far greater game than a scrawny diabetic human, but they would hold Patric well enough.

  Tessa used the wait time to have a bit more of a poke around. Nothing else really stood out to her, aside from a tiny scrap of paper hidden under the phone, scrawled with a mobile number and “The Man With The Plan.” Tessa took note of the number in her phone, then placed the slip in a plastic baggie before setting it aside with the notebooks. She was willing to bet that the number was that of Senator Parsons, and he was indeed the man with the plan.

  Trying to ignore the fetid nature of her surroundings, Tessa fidgeted impatiently while waiting for the cavalry to come galloping in. At one point Patrick started to rouse but a quick cuff to the head soon put him out again.

  Tessa flinched as her stomach growled angrily, a gruff reminder that she had eaten very little and done too much. Rifling through the cupboards revealed that Patric had as good a taste in food as he had in decor. Most of it was well into rot, incubi for the fungal masses. That which was unspoiled was all of a greasy nature, and all with some variety of meat. Tessa decided to just grin and bear it.

  She was blissfully happy when the unique Agency sirens began to wail in the distance, growing ever closer to the squat.

  Soon after, heavy footsteps beat a firm tattoo up the stairs, then a simple, masculine knock rang out. Given that there was very little left of the door, Tessa thought that was very polite. She greeted Louis Fitzgibbons warmly. Louis was one of the few people in the Agency that Tessa could remotely tolerate, aside from a few techs and the interns she studied with. He had a warm open face and a dimpled smile, despite to horrors an Agent faced. A flash of shock crossed his demeanour as he noticed the bruising on Tessa's face, but he politely quashed it into a pleasant neutrality.

  ‘This the fool starting up the witch hunts? Looks pretty pathetic, doesn't he?’ asked Louis, a slight but unrecognisable foreign lilt marring his words. He never talked about his past, and Tessa never asked. They all had their little secrets, just like she was heir to the famous Bale family. Also, that her mother had tried to kill her.

  ‘This is he, complete with a stack of evidence. Name is Patric Wills, but he didn't do this alone.’ Louis raised an eyebrow to Tessa quizzically but said nothing. She sighed audibly and pulled a hand through her hair. ‘Everything points to Senator Parsons putting him up to it. Patric was murderous and completely cock-a-doodle-doo, but I don't think he would have gotten organised enough to do anything about this without the aid from the illustrious Senator.’

  Nodding as she spoke, Louis agreed while beginning to look very unhappy.

  ‘Good luck to that, not much shit sticks to that asshole. Not the first time I heard his name in connection to something disgusting.’ With that he stomped over to the still unconscious Patric, scooped him up with very little grace and dragged him out the door.

  Tessa picked up the books and the number before locking off the door. The forensic crew would come through later to try to find anything else. As she stepped out the front door Tessa still felt the darkness and grime from that house clinging to every inch of her body. It was a feeling that would last a very long time.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Weeks passed, and sure enough, Senator Parsons evaded every charge they could throw at him. The general hatred for all things occult dissipated rapidly when the public realised that the murderer was one of their own. Interestingly enough, the public then turned on Patric Wills, protests and calls for his death began to resonate around the city.

  The Agency lost its final bid to make Senator Parsons answerable for crimes, much to Tessa' grave disappointment. Lee was eventually released from the healers with a good enough patch up job that he could return to work. Sir McAdams finally revealed the pawn he had played to save Tessa, drafting Lee as a professional hunter and back up to Tessa. She almost hugged Sir McAdams, until a suggestive leer practically undressed her on the spot and she stopped short.

  Everything seemed rather neatly tied off, but one part still niggled at Tessa. The fact that Senator Parsons had almost wrangled a complete genocide and had gotten off scot-free was a thorn in her side. She stayed up late one night with Lee, hatching a plan.

  Her hair shortened and temporarily dyed blonde, Tessa finished the final touches on her make up. She could barely recognise herself with a more natural tone, none of her usual dark eyes and cherry red lips. This look was all glitter and nude tones, the kind of make-up favoured by the trendier sex workers these days. A tight mini skirt along with a strappy top and a push up bra completed the look. Lee had almost spat his morning coffee when he saw Tessa, declaring that the look was a shocking waste of her looks. She took this as a sign as it was complete.

  Strapping on her glittery gold heels and grabbing a clutch purse as the taxi tooted out the front, Tessa nodded to Lee, who would leave shortly after. He would take her car over, just to make sure they were separated from the main event.

  The ride over to the offices of Senator Parsons was short and sweet, especially given that the taxi driver used every corner as an attempt to look up Tessa's skirt. She breezed into the offices, turning a few heads as she went and draped herself over the usefully placed chest-high bench in front of the receptionist.

  ‘Hi, I'm Cara, the Senator has an, uh, appointment.’ Breathed Tessa suggestively. Clearly the receptionist was unimpressed and simply snorted and jabbed her thumb towards a door over her shoulder. Tessa stepped through the metal detectors confidently, she didn't need any weapons for this take-down. Sticking her butt out as far as possible as she sashayed into the office, Tessa quickly shut the door before Senator Parsons exclamation of ‘What the fuck?’ could be heard. Tessa moved quickly, placing herself in front of him before he could rise out of his chair.

  ‘What the... who the fuck are... YOU, you're that fucking witch bitch who dragged me through the courts with your bullshit!’ he spluttered. Tessa spread her legs a little in order to lean down and meet him face to face.

  ‘Aww you remember me, I’m touched. Now-now, is that any way for a fine, upstanding Senator such as yourself to talk?’ she asked, hitting a few seductive poses as she leant on the desk a little, revealing even more cleavage.

  ‘Like I give a shit what some whore of Hel thinks,’ spat back the senator. Tessa turned around and put her butt on the edge of the desk before throwing her head back and laughing.

  ‘My my, glad to see that nothing has changed, you are still the ignorant bigot you always were. Well...’ Tessa took a moment to walk around the desk and spun the senator around in his chair. This way, he faced the enormous window overlooking the city. She dipped her head low and took a short pause before looking into his squinty little piggy eyes. ‘Here is the thing senator, see this huge city of people? There is far more magickal people in this city than you can even fathom, and even more of the non-humanoid kind. I am sure we will all be keeping a real close eye on you, cowboy. Might not want to go too far off the reservation there boy.”

  ‘I don't respond to threats made by abominations, aberrations of humankind’

  Tessa grinned widely, leaning in close to whisper in his ear. She was pretty sure the window got a good eyeful of what was up her skirt. She had purposely worn very little in the way of underwear.

  ‘Oh senator, I was merely stating facts. I was even being helpful if you must. Not everyone takes as kindly to genocide as I do,’ she finished, flouncing over to the small bar to pour herself a drink. Walking back to view the senator once more, Tessa raised her glass to him, downed the contents and stalked out. She hopped back into the waiting taxi, quickly changing into the spare clothes she had left in there. The cabbie’s day had clearly been made, and he thanked her profusely as she paid him outside the diner she had agreed to meet Lee at.

  A cliché bell chimed as she stepped in, throwing her sexy bait clothes in the bin on the way through. Lee sat at their favourite table, as unruffled as ever, and Tessa slid into the spot beside him.

  ‘Well, how did they turn out?’ she asked, using a napkin to wipe off the glittery make-up.

  ‘Absolutely perfect. You should be an actress my dear! We got perfect, high-resolution shots, all in very compromising positions. We just need to mix up the order a little and make some prints for the media, his opposition and his wife.’ They both grinned from ear to ear, overjoyed at their success. ‘C'mon Helcat, let’s get you home and get rid of that godawful hair colour,’ continued Lee, scooting Tessa out of the booth. She kissed him long and hard before they walked out hand in hand.

  Epilogue

  Tessa eventually managed to return the engagement rings to Susan after handing in her final reports. Now there was no obsidian horned demon to abduct and rudely interrupt her, no murders to ruin her day, she could organise a discreet coffee date with Susan. Despite the many delays the girl still seemed happy to see her.

  ‘Lady Bale, I am so glad to see you!’ A young girl with a shock of blue hair pouffed up on top of her head and an all plaid outfit bounded over to the table Tessa had organised to meet at. This is exactly who she had envisioned marrying the very gothic Missy Peirce.

  ‘Hello Susan, glad to see you! These are some unique rings.’ Tessa said by way of greeting as she handed over the black velvet pouch that contained the rings. Pouncing cats forming the shank and a blood red ruby certainly stood out but seemed to mean something to the girls. Tessa had an internal laugh, calling them girls when they were barely a year younger than herself. She couldn’t help but feel an age gap, or at least a maturity gap.

  ‘Look at them. I can’t believe I managed to buy something so pretty for my love. I hope she says yes. Do you think she will say yes?’ Now Susan was starting to cry, running the full gamut of emotions in a single minute. Tessa nodded emphatically. Of their love she had no doubt, but she was unsure about their youth. Still, it wasn’t up to her to be a dream killer, she just wanted to deliver the rings and get out of there. ‘Thanks miss. I’m gonna invite you to the wedding if you want. I promise.’

  ‘Sure thing.’ Just don’t call me if she says no, Tessa added to herself.

  For a sneak peek into the third book in the Bayton Agency series, keep reading... This is Demon Enchanted.

  Chapter One

  ‘Lady Contessa, DUCK!’

  This was always the problem with new transfers, it took so long to break them out of using her full name. Tessa shook her head as she swerved a king-hit from a spirit possessed accountant, who had turned from mild mannered geek into a swinging, hissing and spitting hellion overnight. When his family had been beaten to the brink of death, they finally called the Agency in. This would be a simple tear 'em free exorcism, but they had to subdue the creature first.

  Another blow whistled past her ear as Tessa leapt away again, however this time she countered, kicking off her back foot and coming up under the accountants extended arm, a sharp blow to the jaw, and he was done. The momentum of her punch tipped him over, and he landed heavily on his own garage floor. Kneeling on his chest to pin him, Tessa motioned to Lee to bring over the restraints. All the while she was fighting, he had simply leant against the roller door, as calm as a lake on the surface. His shrewd eyes watched every motion, just in case she needed back up. He handed her the blessed cuffs, as the new transfer, Billy cheered from the sidelines.

  He was so green he might as well have been a tree and had just transferred here from out of state. As much as she hated babysitting a newbie, even Tessa had to admit that any fresh meat was needed to boost the flagging numbers at the Bayton Agency. It was a necessary evil.

  Once the ex-family man was safely cuffed and stowed, Tessa began to unpack all that she needed for an exorcism. She set up her travel sized fire dish while Lee kept a foot on the hapless accountant's back. The spirit-possessed had a habit of trying to wander when it was exorcism time, and Tessa was hoping to return the accountant, one Dodd Martin, in relatively good order. Whether his family would forgive him was another matter. To the mundane folks it didn't really seem to matter whether or not it was a case of “the spirit did it”.

  Handfuls of rosemary and oregano went into the dish and were soon smouldering away happily while Tessa set a salt circle around the prone man, closing it only when Lee had hopped out. The circle was completed with a bind rune, so when the offending spirit was wrenched loose it couldn't just toddle off to find another victim. Tessa began her chant as she added myrrh and frankincense to the dish, which soon began to spark. Billy watched on intently, beginning to shuffle closer to hear her murmuring. Tessa didn't bother to glance up, needing her utmost focus to finish the exorcism successfully and return the man in one piece, minus the spirit.

  Thin tendrils of ghostly energy were beginning to trail from the nose and mouth of their captive, wending their way almost to the ceiling. The air within the circle began to thicken with it, settling across the whole circle until it was almost an opaque tube. As Tessa was about to utter the final banishing words, the small pinch of sulphur waiting in her hands, all Hel broke loose.

  Billy unexpectedly tripped onto the circle, having leant too far over to hear Tessa speak. Down he went, kicking up the salt border and falling onto the prone accountant. They both sprawled across the floor, and a whole second passed before the mist descended rapidly and disappeared. The accountant stumbled to his feet, groggily weaving back and forth as he rose watery eyes to Tessa.

  ‘What happened to me? Why was I doing all those things to my family? I could see it, but I couldn't stop it at all. What happened to me?’

  Fully aware that a violent spirit was on the loose, Tessa held her poker face, even as the man in front of her collapsed into tears. She hadn't finished the incantation. Possessive spirits were damn tricky, and this could be a ruse.

  ‘You were possessed. Probably still are, so why don't you sit tight while I put another salt circle around you?’ Tessa said, flinching slightly at how harsh she sounded. The man before her looked sad and scared, but he slowly nodded anyway. That made Tessa pause, and she looked over to Billy.

  He lay with his face turned away from her, arms and legs twitching gently. It took Tessa a few seconds to realise that the movement was not twitching, it was laughter, which was soon resounding around the room.

  ‘Well, ain't this a boon. I possess a pathetic, whiny accountant and end up with an Agent. This is going to be fun indeed!’ laughed Billy, or more specifically, the spirit within him. Tessa cringed as she weighed up the options before her, as well as how much trouble she would be in for letting the transfer baby hunter get possessed.

 

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