AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The hallway of whatever boring building this was remained clear as I skipped toward the exit. The big cobweb of threads hummed around me, all of them waiting for my attention.
I stopped right before the door, my finger extended up. “I only need one of you,” I informed them. “Just one. You know who you are.”
The killer was my prey for the night, and I wouldn’t be getting even one pair of fuzzy socks until I caught that camel cock of a person.
Not one!
My phone buzzed again, but I ignored it.
The threads of magic all warbled as if incredibly upset I wasn’t giving them enough affection. One by one, their colors faded into bloodless white. It was terribly sad. Like watching an entire flower field wilt and die in seconds.
All except for one, however. One deep blue thread remained, stark against the snowy tone of the others. “You sneaky, sneaky lil string of cottage cheese,” I scolded the blue one playfully. “You’ve been here all this time, haven’t you?”
It wriggled, or maybe my vision just blurred again. Now that I thought of it, the world did have an odd sideways tilt that made it really hard to stand straight. Had that always been there?
My ass cheek vibrated again. Razai was just getting handsy again, wasn’t he? This time, I answered. “Helloooo?” I sang.
“Gray… where have you been? And why do you sound drunk?”
“Dunno.” The sky distracted me with all those stars. There were just so many, and they were blinking and streaking across the sky in pretty lines.
“You definitely know.”
“So serious all the time,” I groaned. “Why can’t you ever just chill for a second?”
“Really? Coming from the sticky-note woman?”
I straightened at the insult. “The sticky notes are sacred, you fiend!”
He chuckled on the other end, and it sent warm tingles through me. “I’m just relieved you’re okay. Where are you right now?”
“Oh! I’m walking. Not sure when that started. But get this.” I held the phone speaker to my mouth and whispered, “I’m following the killer.”
“The killer? You’re following them on campus?”
“Yeah! A lady in the Secret-You-Know-What-Place—who knew my mom of all people—gave me a poop-water potion that’s making me super strong!”
Razai shuffled something on the other line. A door clicked closed. “Let me get this straight. You went to the Underground, met a mage who knew your mother, and she gave you a potion that’s enhancing your tracking skills?”
“You just repeated exactly what I said. That’s so rude.”
“And you’re currently tracking the killer?”
“You’re really good at repeating things,” I say. “But, yeah! Their trail is really pretty to look at, actually. It’s dark blue, but I can still see it in the dark. I’m cool. The verdict is in, Professor.”
He sighed. “You’re walking chaos, Detective. Tell me where you are.”
I squinted. The killer’s thread jerked sideways. Just a little. Looked like they were moving around. Or was I spinning again? “I’m by the fire magic building. I think? Yes, I definitely am.”
“Okay, don’t move until I find you.”
I held the phone away, glaring at his illuminated name. “Why?”
In my ear again, he said, “Because you’re magically high, and although I have complete trust in your skills, you’re not in the best state to go up solo against a murderer.”
Hmm. He had a point. “Fine. But you better hurry because I’m not slowing down for you.”
“Not a problem. I’ll be with you in a few minutes.”
