P.I. & Magic

By Volentrin

Published 2005

Chapter 1

I pulled into my driveway and stopped the car, shutting off the engine. I sighed. It had been a long day. I got out of my car, locking it behind me, and went up the front porch steps picking up my newspaper and mail as I went. Opening the screen door, I entered my enclosed front porch and unlocked the front door and entered my house.

Two things happened at once. The cuckoo clock went off three times. The second was I knew someone had entered my house, but was no longer there. I muttered to myself that I really had to fix that clock. The clock was actually a spell. With each cuckoo, my spell-bound clock was telling me how many people had entered my house. Three cuckoos meant three intruders. But since my wind up toy dog was not barking, they were no longer on my premises. If they had been, it would have been barking its little mechanical mouth off. Handy things, spells.

The clock and the dog only went off under certain circumstances; they were one of my warning systems. I put my briefcase down next to the umbrella stand and went to the kitchen. The clock on the wall said 6:30 PM. I got a juice out of the refrigerator and went to the living room and turned on the TV, sat in my recliner and leaned back, causing the foot rest to extend.

I sighed loudly, popping the top of my can of juice. I drank off several mouthfuls and set the can down. I looked through my mail. Nothing important. I opened the paper and started reading all the headlines on the front page. At least, that was the impression I was trying to give. I didn’t really know if I was under any surveillance, but I wanted to play it safe. Until I could be sure I was not under observation, I would be a tired man home from a hard day at work.

I put the paper down and closed my eyes, seemingly going to nap in my easy chair. In actuality, I was preparing myself to let my spirit move freely from my body. In that form I would be able to see much more easily if anything had been disturbed.

It took about 5 minutes to achieve that state which allowed me to move from my physical body. As I did, I saw gentle currents of energy pulsing everywhere I looked. The pulsing was in time with my heart, since I was the one who placed the security spell in my house, it was tied to my being.

No, it wasn’t one of those spells that harm people or scream out something is wrong, just a little something to let me know what had been disturbed, if anything. There — I saw the three faint but clear psychic trails. I chose one and followed it through my house. I then followed the other two trails. Thirty minutes later I had my answer.

These people were very professional. As I followed the individual trails, they had led me to several places where I noticed little knots in my energy screen. Concentrating, I saw what the disturbance in each knot was. There were a number of listening devices in my home which had not been there when I had left for work this morning. Also there were two very small cameras.

One of the cameras was placed in my living room, and was no doubt feeding my watchers a live look at my body apparently sleeping in my easy chair. I went back to my body and re-entered it. I snorted as if waking from a nap. I got up, rubbing my eyes and went into the bathroom. I splashed some water on my face then dried it.

I was definitely hungry. I went back outside, locking my front door behind me. I had some thinking to do, and didn’t want to do it at my house while it was bugged. I still didn’t know what I was going to do about the bugs. Should I destroy them? If so, it would let whoever was bugging me I was onto them.

Getting back into my car, I drove back into the city proper and pulled into the parking lot of a small restaurant I sometimes ate at. Locking my car again, I entered the place and was quickly seated. There were about twenty people inside.

I asked for a smoking table for one. I know, not very politically correct in this day and age, but I enjoyed the act of smoking. I was quickly seated and had a glass of water, a menu, and a cup of coffee placed before me. I took a sip of coffee and looked the menu over.

I looked up as two more people entered the establishment. Yep, I had observed these two people on my drive back into the city. The probability was extremely low that they were not involved in my newfound problem of the bugging of my house. They were seated in my same section, but two tables away. I would have to turn to look at them, but they had a good view of me.

“Hey Paul. It’s not Friday. What brings you in so early?” Asked my waitress as she came up to take my order.

“Why, because I miss your company of course.” I replied.

“Sure, you and half a dozen others. What can I get for you this evening?” She asked.

I gave her my order and she left to place it for me. I decided turn about was fair play, and got up and went into the bathroom. Sure enough, the male partner of the couple who had followed me into the restaurant was right behind me. I went into a stall and shut the door. I didn’t really have to use the bathroom, I just wanted some semi-privacy to work a spell.

After a couple minutes prep work I flushed the toilet, which covered the sound of my voice as I finished the phrase for my spell. Since I had to say the last of it out loud, that was why I was in the bathroom. With my spell prepped, I exited the cubicle and sure enough, there was Mr. A combing his hair at the mirror.

I nodded politely, washed my hands and left. Getting back to my table I softly spoke my spell and willed it to go to the table with the dark haired woman sitting alone. She was not alone long. Almost as soon as I reseated myself, her partner was back.

“Anything?” Asked the woman as her partner sat.

“Nothing. He went into a stall, was there for a couple minutes, came out. He did wash his hands though.” her male partner said.

This was confirmation that I was definitely being followed. Now the question was, who? Shortly the waitress returned with my order. I ate and listened to my newfound friends’ conversation. They spoke quietly together. My waitress returned with a coffee pot in her hand.

“So how is the private investigation business going?” My waitress, Cyndi, asked as she refilled my coffee.

“Just fine. Just resolved a case today. Got a couple nibbles. Business is definitely looking good.” I told her.

She flirted with me a moment, and I flirted back. My two interested followers didn’t say anything while this was going on. I supposed it was to overhear anything I might say or get told. I sipped my coffee and concentrated on listening to my two unwanted companions.

You meet all sorts of people in my line of work. I was an independent Private investigator, and I did very well. Actually, I did better than most. Part of it was hard work, and part of it was the fact I had an edge. I had magic to fall back on if I was stumped. Most people in the world don’t have this ability. But then, I wasn’t from this world originally.

I was a refugee. My mother had sent me to this world when I was a very young man. It was for my own safety she had said. I never saw her again. That had been in the year 1877 local time. That was a hundred and twenty eight years ago. If you looked at me, you would swear I was in my late 20’s or early 30’s. I age well.

I didn’t really hear too much more about me from my two watchers. I finished my coffee, my meal had been finished some time ago. I motioned for my check. Cyndi nodded and I stood, pulling out my wallet, I laid down three dollars for a tip.

“He’s leaving. Well, that means we are finished. Next team gets to dog him.” I heard through my spell.

“Good. Soon as I finish filing my report, I am for some sleep.” The male agent responded.

So, I rated a team. Great. Now all I had to figure out was, who they were, what they wanted, and why were they following me? Shouldn’t be hard for an investigator. I snorted a laugh as I unlocked my car and entered it. I drove back to my house, and it was dark before I got there. That gave me an idea.

I had quickly identified my new tail. Another team, this one two men. As I drove up the short driveway to my home, I saw they passed by and continued down the road. OK, I knew where every bug and both cameras were. The visual bug in the living room was going to be, ‘accidentally ‘ discovered.

I went in and turned on lights. Almost as soon as I did, a light bulb in the living room chandelier went out. I muttered to myself, and fetched a replacement bulb and the ladder. I climbed the ladder and started to unscrew the faulty bulb. It was then I, ‘discovered’ the spy cam.

“What the...” I didn’t finish the sentence. I wanted to make this look good.

I quickly removed the spy cam and replaced my burnt out bulb. I climbed down the ladder. The spy cam was a very expensive job. I went over to my desk and sat down at it. I picked up the phone and dialed the number of a friend of mine in the surveillance industry.

“Hello?” Asked a voice I recognized as the person I wanted.

“Hi Jack. It’s Paul. Paul Lindsy. You busy?” I asked him.

“Paul? No. Not busy. What’s up?” He asked curiously.

“Well, I was changing a bulb in my house, and I found the darnedest thing. A surveillance camera of some sort. You’re the expert in this field, so I thought I would give you a call. Could you come over to my place and check my house for me? It would make me feel much better.” I said, putting as much anger and confusion into it as I could for the benefit of my eavesdroppers.

“Sure. Where you at?” He asked. I told him.

“Be there in 30 minutes.” He said and hung up.

While I waited for Jack to show, I made a fresh pot of coffee. I thought furiously while it was dripping into the pot. Lets see. I come home, and find I have been broken into, but no sign of it. Listening devices placed in my home as well as cameras. Two people identified as part of a team. Two different people follow me home. Obviously someone was interested in me, but who?

Jack showed up in 20 minutes. I was waiting outside, drinking my first cup of home brewed when he drove up. I walked down and met him as he got out of his car. We shook hands and I pulled out the Surveillance cam and handed it to him. He looked at it and whistled.

“This is a very expensive camera, Paul. Very High Tech too. See here? This is the antenna. I would say transmission range of about 1000 feet. More if there is a repeater set up close by. You found this in your Chandelier you say?” He asked.

I nodded. He informed me that he had his best tech on the way and she should be here shortly. I asked him if he would like a cup of coffee and he said sure. We went in and I fixed him one. We took our coffee back outside to wait for his employee.

In the meantime, Jack had partially dismantled the camera. He had it in several pieces on the hood of his car. Just then a van pulled into my driveway and parked behind Jack. A very good looking young woman got out and headed towards us.

“What’s the job, Jack?” She asked as she came up to us.

“Hey runt. This is Paul. Paul? This is my sister, Sandra.” Jack said, introducing us.

We shook hands and then she looked at the dismantled camera on Jacks car. In the meantime, Jack went to the side door of the van and opened it, then pulled out a belt which he put on.

“You in trouble with the government?” Sandra asked me.

“Not that I know of. Why?” I asked her.

“While this is a slightly older model, it is a model that is almost exclusively used by, Big Brother.” She said.

“I thought so. But I wanted your opinion before I said anything. Paul wants us to sweep his house for him.”

She nodded and went to the van and got a belt as well as a briefcase out of the van. She then closed and locked the van. We all trooped back into my place, bringing the disabled camera with us. I pointed out where I had found the camera.

I followed them through the house as they made their sweep. They found all but two listening devices and the second camera on the first sweep. They then swept the house again. Shortly, we had a pile of listening devices and both cameras on my dining room table. Total elapsed time, about two hours. They were very thorough.

“Ok. What we have here is a total of seven listening devices, and two cameras. The phone is still tapped. There is a drain on your phone that should not be there. The rest of your house is clean. Just what are you up to, Paul.” Jack asked me.

“I have to say I am puzzled. I am not investigating anyone right now. I finished a case today, but it had nothing to do with anything that should arouse this kind of interest in me.” I said musingly.

“Well, everything here is used by either the government, or by big industry. It is all very expensive equipment. You have almost 10,000 dollars worth of electronics here on your table.” Jack said in a pondering tone.

I blinked. Someone was going to a lot of trouble, and it annoyed me. So I had been broken into, bugs and cameras planted, and I had teams following me. Plus they had the resources to expend a lot of money on this stuff. Just who was that interested in me? I shook my head.

“Can’t think of anyone who would be that interested in me.” I said after a moments thought.

“Well, this stuff is really expensive. If you want, I can put it in my vault and store it for you, in case it is Fed property. If they have a warrant that lets them eavesdrop on you, they are going to want their stuff back. I actually heard about a guy who found and destroyed a bug, and the government charged him with destruction of government property!” Jack said chuckling.

We talked for a bit longer, then I wrote Jack a check for his service and he and his sister departed. It was only after they had gone that I remembered they did not check my car. Damn. Oh well, I would look it over in the morning after my morning jog.

The next day dawned bright and clear and I was out jogging shortly after the sun rose. The best thing about being your own boss, is you set your own hours. I really didn’t see how people could stand having to be at places at specific times to work. Sure, I had worked for others before, but that was why I was now self employed.

I pounded along my route and thought about the surveillance I was under again. Ever since 9/11, I had been worried something like this might happen. The government was taking liberties with peoples rights in the name of safety. It was also getting much harder to establish new identities. Computerization was a pain. So was living longer than other people.

I had been very young, just 12 years old when I crossed the portal from my world to this one. I learned that people got upset if you didn’t age as fast as the others did. My mother placed me with a man here who had been a wizard on my world, and was a wizard here. He told me that most people did not really believe in magic in this world. A lot of it was due to religious instruction. Still more was suspicion of the strange and unusual.

In 1909 I had to move away as people were questioning my age. People I had been friends with since I had arrived were getting upset with me. I looked like I was only in my early twenties while others my age were getting older with gray hair. Despite being cautioned to move once every ten years or so, I had gotten comfortable where I was. My mentor arranged for me to move and established a new identity for me. He also trained me in magic. I picked up a lot of magic and created new spells as I aged.

So I had moved around. I learned how to establish new identities. As medical technology and life had gotten easier for people, I found I did not have to move as often. People were living longer, and since life was not as hard, they did not show aging as fast as they used to.

Still, someone was spying on me. So I might have to establish a new identity. I had not thought I would have to do this for at least another 20 years. The probability that it was the Federal Government doing the spying, was strong. I turned onto the final leg of my jog and noticed a car parked in my driveway. Two people were leaning against it looking my way.

Sighing, I ran a few more feet, then decided to do my cool down walk early. 5 minutes later I turned into my driveway and watched as the two walked towards me, splitting as they came. I stopped. There was no way I was going to let them bracket me.

“May I help you?” I asked in a slightly breathless tone.

“Paul Lindsy?” Asked the man on the right. The other man was still moving and trying to edge around me. I dropped back two steps before I answered.

“Yes, and who might you be?” I asked, repositioning myself so the man to the left could not get around me.

“We have a few questions we would like to ask you. Could we step inside please?” The man on the right asked.

“Not until you identify yourselves. If you don’t stop trying to flank me, I am going to knock your teeth down your throat.” The last I said to the man on the left who was still trying to get around me.

“Mr. Lindsy, we mean you no harm. If you would just give us a few minutes, I think we can clear this up.” Right hand man said.

“I have asked you to identify yourselves twice now. No identity has been forthcoming. Yet you guys move to bracket me. You do not inspire any confidence, you know.” I finished.

“Alright. I am agent Clay, and this is agent Kempler. We are with the FBI.” They both produced little leather folders with their pictures and identity papers. I had seen enough FBI identity papers in the past to know this was the real deal.

“So what can I do for the FBI?” I asked.

“IF we could go inside, perhaps you would feel more comfortable.” Agent Clay asked.

“I don’t think so. Just state your business and we will go from there.”

“Sir, we are running a new project that is confidential, and we were wondering if you would be interested. It is really best if we went inside to talk. Or better yet, if you would come down to our office downtown, we could be more assured of confidentiality.” Clay said.

I walked around the two agents and climbed the steps. They followed me up the stairs. I unlocked the door and went in and turned around blocking the two agents.

“Not interested.” I said, closing the door.

They immediately started knocking on my door. I heard muffled conversation, but was unable to make it out. Soon I heard car door slams and they drove off. Interesting. The FBI was offering me some sort of job, or wanted me involved in some project they were doing. I had a firm rule, which was never work for the government.

An hour later I had showered, shaved, and found another listening device as well as what appeared to be a transponder in my car. The transponder got me thinking. I had ONSTAR in my car and ONSTAR had the capability to track my car. What if they let me find the transponder, but were still tracking me with my own built-in transponder?

As I finished my drive to where I had my office, I parked my car and walked two blocks over to a pay phone. I spent 10 minutes talking to two different people. I went back to where I parked my car and waited. While I waited, I checked my car. Before leaving, I had cast a spell on it. It was undisturbed. Opening the door, or hood, or trunk would have caused that spell to fail, which would have told me someone had tampered with my car again.

The person I was waiting for was a man who owed me a favor. He was going to watch my car for me. The other call had been to my lawyer. I briefly told him what I had discovered last night, and this mornings confrontation, and my actions. He told me to definitely NOT destroy the bugs. We might be able to use them for evidence in the future. In the meantime he would check around to see if warrants had been issued to bug my house or business.

Chapter 2

For three days I received calls from the FBI. Finally they stopped. I still didn’t know who planted the bugs, but I was now curious enough to do a little magic to find out. No new break-ins had happened. I beefed up the security a bit, but nothing too overt. The problem with doing spells off the cuff, is that it takes it out of you.

I did have some magical devices that were like storage batteries, but there had been no reason to use those. I had a ring, a watch, and a staff, that believe it or not, were all charged with energy for my use. I still had a cloak downstairs in the basement that had several different charms placed on it to repel knives and bullets.

Unfortunately, cloaks had fallen out of fashion early in the 20th century. Still, I sometimes dusted it off, and went out with it. It had been a gift from my mentor and friend, Markus Fellman. He used the name Mark Fellman now. He was the man who had raised me and trained me. I was seriously considering giving him a call to ask his advice.

A lot of magic was not the hocus pocus you saw on TV. Well, not if you were a strong practitioner anyway. At first I had to use spells, or chants to get something to work. That was just a training technique though. Most magic was a matter of thought and will. I do need to speak a few phrases sometimes. Particularly if I am preparing a spell, but not using it. It sort of reinforces things in my mind. Markus is a long time practitioner and just does it. He makes it look so easy.

There was a knock on my door.

“Enter.” I said loudly.

The door opened to reveal Vivian, my office secretary. She was a valuable employee and a no nonsense woman of fifty. She ran everything, including me occasionally, but I wouldn’t have changed her for the world.

“A Lt. Cosgrove to see you. Want me to show him the door?” She asked. She knew of my current problem with the FBI and didn’t like what she considered ‘hers’ to be bothered. Cosgrove was a different sort. I had a good relationship with him.

“I’ll see him. Thanks Viv.” I said and she left the room.

I stood and came around my desk as Terrance Cosgrove came in. We shook hands. He was a tall black man who exuded competence. He was also one of my few friends on the police force here.

“Hey Terry. How goes the crime business?” I asked.

“About the same. Auto theft is up, but we actually have a drop in burglary. Got a minute? I have a case that could use your special touch.” He asked. He knew I had abilities that were... unusual in nature.

“Tell me about it.” I said.

“Woman was kidnapped by her estranged husband. We managed to track him down, but he put up a fight and we had to shoot him. He is in the hospital, but we have not been able to find his wife. That’s where you come in. He has lawyered up and refuses to say anything. We need to find her, and soon. Can you help us?” Terry asked.

“Lets go.” I said, standing up and opening the door for him. I told Vivian I would be out for a while and she nodded. Terry and I went downstairs and out the door and we got into his car. We had only been traveling for a couple minutes when he broke the silence.

“FBI came to us a few days ago. They asked about a few of the cases you helped us with. They wanted to know if we thought you were for real.” He said, glancing at me.

“What did you tell him?” I asked curiously.

“I told em that you were legit as far as we could tell, and that you always delivered. They wanted to know if we suspected you of collusion in the crimes. I admitted we investigated you at first, but you had the perfect alibis. I have to admit though, if I hadn’t seen for myself some of the stuff you can do, I would be skeptical too.” He finished with a chuckle.

He didn’t know even a tenth of what I could do. To him, I was a private detective who happened to be a psychic. I chuckled along with him.

“Yeah, they have been calling me up until today. I keep telling them I am not interested, but they keep offering me a job of some sort.” I didn’t go into any details, but he nodded.

We pulled up to a two story house in the east side. Nice place, slightly run down. This part of town was where the middle class lived. We got out of the car and went up the steps to the door. It opened almost before we got there. There were several uniformed officers and a few men and woman in suits. I tagged them as FBI right away.

“Come on, this way to her room.” Terry told me and we went down a hallway and into a bedroom. He pointed at a dresser.

“That’s hers. Anything you need of hers should be in there. Anything else, and I will be here for you.” He finished.

I nodded. “Do you have the last thing she wore?” I asked.

“That dress jacket.” He replied pointing at a jacket hanging on a hanger on a door.

I got the jacket and closed my eyes. Yes, I could feel the energy coming off it. I sat down closed my eyes again, and concentrated on establishing a connection with the owner of this jacket. I focused my desire on seeing and being with the owner of this jacket.

I stepped out of my body. I saw a line of energy running from the jacket through the wall. I willed myself to follow the little energy line. It lead me next door. I entered the house next door on the second floor. There, sitting in a chair was the woman who was supposedly missing.

She looked at me as I entered. Not many people are able to see me in my astral body. She waved at me. I waved back and thought myself back to my body. I shuddered and opened my eyes. The room had quietly filled with several people, all in suits. It had been a set up, and I had fallen for it.

A man was holding his hand to his ear listening. I stood up. Several people moved to block my exit.

“Congratulations Mr. Lindsy. You are indeed one we would like working for us. You have passed this test with flying colors.” Said an elderly man with an old fashioned crew cut, an angular face, and an air of command.

“Funny. I don’t seem to remember volunteering for a test.” I said looking at Terry. He had the grace to look embarrassed.

“My name is Mr. Lauder. I work for the NSA, and we want you.” He said confidently.

“How do you do, Mr. Lauder. I am Mr. Lindsy, and I already have a job, thanks anyway.” I said politely. National Security Agency? Suddenly it made a lot more sense. I felt a vast sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

“Come now Paul. May I call you Paul?” He asked as if it were already a foregone conclusion that we would be on a first name basis.

I nodded. Why not? Wouldn’t hurt to hear what he was offering.

“I represent a branch of the NSA that has been in existence since the late 60’s. As a matter of fact, I am the departmental director of that branch. You sir, are a rare and talented man. The United States Government needs men and woman of your abilities.

“We are in a war, Paul. An undeclared war, but a war nevertheless. Most people don’t even believe in what we do. I have a lot of good people who work for me. Paul, we know you. We know when you were born, we know how long you have lived here, we even know all the aliases you have used up until now.” He paused.

While he had been talking, the woman I had been asked to find walked in. She saw me look at her and smiled. I nodded to her, and let Lauder ramble on. He might think he knew me, but he didn’t. I saw no reason to let this go on.

“I’m sorry. I really have no desire to work for the government at this time. I have a good job. I fill a place in my community. I pay my taxes.” I replied, trying to buy time.

“I understand. However, the government needs people like you. The US government is not the only government in the world with people of your abilities working for them, you know. There are even organizations with people of your abilities working for them. Private organizations.

“The US is under constant attack from spies with abilities beyond the norm. I am not here to threaten you sir. I do want to convince you to work for us though. You’re wasting your talents with this business you’re doing. You could be an instrumental force for good...” I stopped him.

“Mr. Lauder. You’re about to step off into an area of conversation that annoys me. Force for good. Whose good? The governments? My good? Your good? Will this good put food on the table of a poor family? Will it reinforce the Bill Of Rights? I have noticed over time, that when the government starts spouting the phrase, for the good, people’s rights seem to go out the door.

“For example. Everyone wants children to be safe. So, for the good, family rights have been suspended by the state for the good of the child. It is currently politically correct to take rights away from sex offenders. I have the perfect solution for these people. They get caught offending once, send them to jail and rehabilitate them.

“Let them know if they offend again, they will be executed. No second bite of the pie. If it is beyond a doubt that they did it, kill them. But no, the state takes a persons rights away, locking them away, even after they serve their time. Why? Because they might offend again. They are a risk. So they are committed under civil law. For no crime other than they might do it again. So much for a person’s rights.

“What about my rights? Are you people responsible for the bugging of my home?” I asked. He nodded.

“What was my crime? Did you have a court order?” I asked him.

“It’s not that simple. We had to be sure of you. No, we did not have a court order. But under executive order...” I interrupted him again.

“Do you hear yourself? The constitution and the Bill Of Rights mean nothing to you. The government is all. You have just admitted to breaking and entering, and violating my privacy. A man’s home is his castle, and you violated mine. I am sorry, but I have no respect for an organization or person that casually breaks the law, for the good. Also, what about secret laws? What the hell is a secret law? A person can be held responsible for a law he or she has no idea of at all? Yet the government has several of these laws, doesn’t it?” I asked. He nodded again.

“But those deal with persons within the government Paul. They are not applied against the average citizen. If a person signs the secrets act and violates it, the government can take action. The reason they are not well known is because of the secrecy they are protecting. Every government has something similar. We don’t abuse them or use them lightly.” he said.

“Really? Didn’t you just admit to violating my civil rights a minute ago?” I asked, raising my eyebrows.

“Touché sir. However the situation is covered, whether you like it or not. Look, at least give us a chance to talk this out with you. You’re a valuable resource. I would hate to think that you didn’t have all the facts and could not make an informed decision.” He implored.

I pondered the situation. I understood where he was coming from. I was not being unreasonable, at least in my mind’s eye. I understood his position. The government worked for the good of the majority, but I hated that people got squashed inadvertently or even deliberately. When that happened, it was never for the benefit of a person, but for the government’s benefit.

“Look, at least come out to our offices in New York. I want to show you what we are doing. I just ask that you keep what you learn confidential. I won’t even ask you to sign anything. What do you say?” He asked almost desperately.

I considered. What would it hurt to go out and see what they were doing? Also, they weren’t being the assholes I knew they could be. I nodded slowly.

“OK. I’ll come look. It’s the least I can do. But I am not making any promises.”

“Thank you! If you at least keep an open mind, I am sure I can convince you of our sincerity!” He said excitedly grabbing and shaking my hand.

I didn’t doubt his sincerity, I just didn’t want that kind of commitment on my time or my life. I really did not want a boss. I have not had a boss in decades.

Mr. Lauder followed me out of the house and back to the car I had arrived in. He told me that his office would be in touch with me with travel arrangements in a few days. I told him as long as it didn’t conflict with anything, I would be there. He was beaming as we pulled away.

“So, how long have you been working for the NSA?” I asked Terry as he drove.

“I don’t really work for them. They told me you needed convincing is all. Look, you’re a good man. If what I heard is any indication, you’re some sort of hot stuff. Don’t you think it’s your duty to protect your country?” He asked seriously.

I groaned. “Terry. I am not sure how much, or what you think you know of me, but I have already given to my country. Are you saying that a person has no right to say enough is enough? A person has no right to the pursuit of happiness? What if that happiness does not include working for the feds?” I asked angrily.

“Sorry man. You’re right. Forget I said that.” He said. We finished the ride in silence.

As I got out of the car he apologized again. I sighed and told him to forget it.

“Seriously, are we ok? I respect you Paul. I would hate to lose your friendship.”

“We’re ok. Just don’t try to manipulate me again, ok?” I asked. He nodded and drove off.

I went back up into my office. As I was entering the outer door a messenger was leaving. I looked at Vivian and asked her what she was grinning about. She held up what looked like a check.

“Cashiers check for 1,500.00 dollars. Nice bit of work Paul. But I didn’t have anything in the register for you. Are you moonlighting?” She asked me.

“Nope. I have no idea what it’s about. Unless it was over what I did this afternoon. If so, that was fast work.” I said musingly.

“Go ahead and deposit it, and set it aside in the pending accounts. Just in case.” I told her as I went back to my office. She followed me in.

“Roger called, and said he was on the road following Mr. Baylor’s wife. She’s apparently on a road trip. You have two requests from that divorce attorney. Outside of that, nothing since you left.” With that she left, closing the door behind her.

Three days later I was being driven in the New York countryside. I had been picked up by a small private jet. That had been an interesting experience. I had also come armed. Oh, not with a gun. I had readied several spells. I was wearing my power ring and watch. I had decided that when I made my decision that would be that. If it was accepted, well and good. If it came to a fight, they would know better next time.

I also had seven listening devices and two cameras in my carry on. I was going to return to the government what it had misplaced in my house. I looked at the countryside as it went by.

“Excuse me, but this is not the way to the NSA headquarters.” I said to the occupants in the front seat.

“Yes sir. We are not going to the official headquarters. We are going to a separate facility. That is where the department you will be working out of is located.” I raised my eyebrows at this.

Twenty minutes later we were pulling into a tree lined driveway that had to be a half mile long. It terminated at a three story building that looked nothing like what I would expect a top secret building to look like. Of course, that was the point, wasn’t it?

Chapter 3

I woke up with a splitting headache. I was puzzled, then I remembered! I was eating supper with Lauder when I felt ill. Damn, drugged! I sat up and immediately wished I hadn’t. Nausea swept through me. I silently willed myself better. Slowly at first, then quicker, I started to feel better.

I took stock of myself. I was sitting on a bed. Someone had removed my shoes, socks, and other clothing. I was sitting only in my boxer’s. I got up and went through the rooms. It was the same suite they showed me after I first arrived. An hour into the tour we had stopped by here, or a suite like it. A living room with a state of the art entertainment center, a bedroom and bathroom with shower only.

I tried the door. Well, if it had a handle I might have tried it. All that filled the doorway was a metal panel of some sort. As I considered what to do I finally felt completely well again. My ring, watch, staff which I had form-changed into a cane, and my cloak were also missing. I looked in the closet. Nothing there. I went back into the bedroom and checked the dresser. Still nothing.

“Ah, Paul. You have awakened a little faster than I had anticipated. I am sorry I was not available to you when you woke up. Speak normally, and I will hear you.” Spoke the voice of Lauder from the speakers of the entertainment system.

“What have you done? Why have I been stripped, and why can’t I get out of here?” I asked.

“All will be explained. First let me assure you I mean you no harm at all. Soon we will put this behind us and work together.” Lauder said then paused.

“Nothing to say Paul?” He asked me.

“Well, I guess I could try to break down the door, or throw some sort of fit, but what would be the point? Besides, I don’t feel to well.” The last was an exaggeration. I felt almost a hundred percent now.

“Yes, well, sorry about that. I couldn’t let you leave though. You are an enigma, Paul. You are probably the oldest man in the world, did you know that?”

I laughed. I couldn’t help it. “And you want to know my secret? If I discovered the fountain of youth? Discovered a special drug? Sorry to disappoint you. I have no idea why I am as old as I am.” Which was not true. I knew exactly why I was the way I was.

“We took blood samples already. As well as DNA from you.” He said.

“I see. Well, good luck with your samples. If you don’t mind, I would like to leave now.” I said.

“I’m sorry. But I can’t let you leave. You’re to valuable a resource. If you feel up to it, I will send a team to let you come to my location. Once you eat something, you will feel much better.” The speakers said, carrying a voice I was really growing to hate.

“Sure. But I seem to have left my other suit somewhere.” I said.

With a laugh, Lauder answered, “We will provide you with something appropriate.”

Ten minutes later I watched as the metal panel on my side of the door slide into the door jam. It was now disguised as trim. No wonder I didn’t see it before. The door handle turned and the door opened inward. A cover all came flying into the room.

“Please put this on.” A voice from outside said.

I checked it out with my second sight. Nothing. I put it on, and was soon on my way to a meeting with Mr. Lauder. A meeting I was sure one of us would regret. I slowed us down with my fake limp. Had to stay in character after all. I arrived with a fake limp, from a supposed twisted ankle from a jogging mishap. That was why and how I brought my staff, now disguised as a cane.

Shortly I was escorted into a room. It was completely glass enclosed. A long table stood in the center. Two guards stood along the wall farthest from me. Mr. Lauder was sitting on the opposite side of the table, close to my ring, watch, cloak, and cane. The woman I had been asked to locate during my so called test was also there.

I was led to a seat and handcuffed in place. I looked at Mr. Lauder.

“Simply a precaution, for your own safety, Paul.” Lauder said.

“I see. People fall out of chairs here a lot, do they?” I said, putting a little sneer into my voice.

“Now now. There is no reason to take that attitude. I would like to clear up a few misconceptions and some curiosities if you don’t mind.”

“I am sure you would. So would I. Which part of the constitution does not apply to me? Or the Bill Of Rights?” I asked curiously.

Lauder waved my question away. “Come now, we are all adults here. We all know how the world works, don’t we? Let me tell you what we have. We have your birth certificate. Your original one. You were born in 1865. Went missing until you turned up in 1877. Have assumed various identities since then. You served for 3 years in the army from 1883 to 1886.” I tuned him out and concentrated on my spells. I was glad I prepared what I had.

I mentally touched the knot of the first major spell and released it. It flared and I could see it as a wave rolling away from me. Everyone except me paused in what they were doing, then went to sleep. The spell had a radius of 200 feet. It traveled in a full 360 degrees from the center of the initiation, me.

I concentrated on my restraints and they released me. I stood. I grabbed my cane and connected with the energy it held. I concentrated and released a second major spell. It was a spell of my own creation called EMP. Electro magnetic Pulse. Every electrical component in the complex failed. Every computer in a half mile radius was totally wiped with no hope of restoring what had been lost.

I quickly changed back into my clothes which had been folded in my cloak. I put my ring, watch, and cloak on. I felt much better having all my items back. Now it was time to go on some serious offensive. I pulled some energy from my staff, just a trickle really, and woke Lauder.

“Secure yourself at the table with the cuffs.” I told him with a bit of compelling in my voice. He sneered at me at first, but found himself moving to the place I had vacated just moments ago. He got a panicked look on his face as he started cuffing his feet. It was a stretch, but he managed to do his hands too. I released the compelling.

“What have you done! Are you insane? Release me at once!” He sputtered.

“Come come, Lauder. We are, after all, men of the world, right?” I said in an amused tone.

“What do you want Mr. Lindsy.” Lauder asked in an aggrieved tone of voice.

“My freedom. Since I can’t seem to have it with you living, I guess I can always take care of that.” I said as menacingly as I could.

“Might I ask how you accomplished what you were able to?” Lauder asked with great curiosity.

“Magic.” I replied simply.

Lauder snorted. Obviously, Lauder did not believe in magic, or was unable to recognize the truth when it attacked him. I grinned at him.

I concentrated on yet another spell. I looked at Lauder and released it. It sped to him and struck and sunk into his mind. He moaned, then his face went slack.

“What were your intentions to me, and who else knows about me?” I asked the now Geas laden Lauder.

I listened with a sick feeling as he relayed everything he knew about me, what he was going to have done with me, and what he had done to others. This was one sick bastard. A lot of those working for him were doing so under threat of death. They had implanted devices into the unwilling and promised a very painful death for disobedience. I was unnerved to hear that this facility was under telemetry from yet another location, and when they went off air, a task force would be converging on this place soon. Everything I did was for nothing. Well, not nothing. I did get the names and locations of a lot of forced slave labor, and that’s what it was.

I pondered what to do. I got the name of Lauder’s boss, and where his office was located in New York City. I gave Lauder instructions, which he would follow. There was no way he could disobey me. I looked at him and left him locked up. I walked out to meet the reinforcements.

I expanded the sleep spell and soon everyone within half a mile of here was asleep. The spell would stay in place until I left, then it would unravel and allow everyone to awaken on their own. It was far more humane than what they had planned for me. I also placed a spell into the computer, hiding it carefully. It would not really activate until they re-programmed this computer.

I left the building and started walking down the long driveway. Far to the southeast I heard what sounded like a helicopter. I take that back. Helicopters. I stood and waited. While I did, I prepped a couple more spells. Since I had all my power items with me, I was not worried at all.

Sure enough a copter swung along and hovered a short distance from me. A spot light shone at me and illuminated me. A very large amplified voice advised me to throw down my arms and to surrender. I saluted them with a gesture that has been most popular in America for some years now. It involved one of my fingers.

An automatic weapon went off, stitching the ground in front of me. This was followed by another demand for me to surrender myself immediately. I was also informed I was in violation of numerous federals laws, and they actually quoted trespassing as one. It really is amazing how the government thinks it can break any law with impunity, but at the same time make others adhere to them religiously, or else.

More helicopters arrived and contributed to the noise level. I grinned evilly. I did a small spell which gave me what I call my great voice. It would carry and be heard over everything within a quarter mile area.

“THOU ART IN VIOLATION OF THE PEACE OF THE NIGHT. BE SILENT FORTHWITH.” My voice boomed and I cast my spell. Every helicopter engine stopped and they had no choice but to land. About this time several vehicles arrived at the entrance to the driveway, just a couple hundred feet from me. They stopped too.

Several people got out and I was being covered by a lot of weapons in a short time. I wasn’t worried. Besides my cloak which was bullet proof, I had also cast a spell which would protect me from anything they cared to shoot, throw, or fire in my direction.

A man stepped forward and said, “Mr. Lindsy, lets talk about this. You know you can’t win this.”

So, they knew who I was. Obviously he was one who was privy to the telemetry that had been coming from this facility to where ever.

“THOU SHALT NOT KILL.” I boomed and sent a blast of fire from my staff to the first tree at the beginning of the driveway. It burst into flames satisfactorily.

“THOU SHALT NOT STEAL.” I blasted the other tree.

About this time, someone started shooting, which kicked off everyone else who had a gun out. So much for trained men. Little twinkles of light flared on my shield and went out as the bullets were turned into energy and absorbed by my shield. The more they shot, the more my shield replenished itself.

Finally someone over there got control and the firing died down.

“As you can see, I am unharmed. You have absolutely no idea what you have done. Do you want me to do to you as you have done to others? As you would do to me?” I asked almost gently. I raised my staff and brought it down sharply, teleporting out as I did so. I found myself back at the airport in New York, where I had arrived from my home yesterday, which is where I wanted to be.

Ok, one more stop. I went out to the cab stand and gave the driver the address I wanted.

“Say, you an actor?” Asked the cabby.

“Why do you ask?” I queried him.

“Well, that staff, and what you’re wearing, um, cape? No, not a cape.”

“Cloak.” I corrected him.

“Right. You look like an actor from the, Lord Of The Rings, maybe.” He finished.

“No. Just trying to make a fashion statement is all.” I said with a grin.

Twenty five minutes later I was at the place I wanted. I cast a spell and waited. Sure enough, despite it being night and after hours, people were going in and out of the building. I bided my time then went in with someone who pulled the door open for someone else and I followed them in.

It didn’t take me long to find the office I wanted. I evaded the security with ease. Not hard when other people are doing there best not to notice you. I found the office I wanted. There were already people within. I opened the door and stepped inside, closing the door behind me. The conversation broke off as I had entered.

“Good evening gentleman. I think we need to talk.” I said.

“That’s him! That’s the guy!” I heard one man say.

“Yes. I am he. I am also very pissed off. You people have your nerve.” I told the assembled persons mildly.

“See here. Do you know the trouble you have caused? The money spent? The laws you have broken?” This was from a man seated by the window.

“Do you know what a disruption you have made in my life? Do you know you people drugged me illegally? Held me prisoner? Kidnapped me?” I countered.

“If you like, we can go to court. I imagine the people would be astonished to hear what their government does in their name. A lot of illegal things.” I continued.

“Mr. Lindsy. I assure you that if we ever went to trial, you would lose.” The fat man behind the desk said.

“I don’t think so.” I pointed at everyone in the room except him, and spoke a word of release. A spell that compelled the truth was now in place.

“Consider. I will be the defense attorney. This man will be the witness I am cross examining.” I addressed a thin elderly man with stooped shoulders.

“Sir will you tell the court your name?” I asked.

“John Wallace.” He replied, a look of horror on his face.

“Does your office ever break the law?” I asked him.

“Constantly. We could not work as we do unless we did so.” He replied with a stunned look this time.

“Ever commit murder?” I asked him.

“Yes. I have.” He responded with a very panicked look on his face.

“As you can see, a person who is under a truth spell has no choice but to be as forthright as a judge could want. Imagine what the press would do. Imagine what Congress or the Senate would do if they heard of this organization breaking the law routinely.

“This is only a small sample. I have other abilities too. For example, how would you like all your files transmitted from your computers to all the major newspapers? Every dirty little thing you have in your files open to the public. I don’t think you would see the light of day. Computers are so... literal. They follow orders, and I could order yours to do as I say, easily.

“Then there is the matter of what I could do if I really get pissed off. Check out what I did to the facility that was holding me. How would you like me to cast a truth spell on every government worker. It would take a while, but it can be done. Do you think the people would appreciate how you really feel about them, or the law?” I paused, letting this sink in.

So we sat and talked. An hour later we had an agreement. I warned them that I had already set certain things in motion and that if they tried to attack me or even succeeded, they would regret it. Then I told them all that remained were the oaths. Being who and what they were I knew oaths normally would not mean anything. So I had to make sure that they knew this oath had teeth.

I asked them to all stand on one side of the room. I stood on the opposite. I then spoke a few non sense phrases and raised my arms to the sky. What I actually did was call forth a computer program I had created when I was curious about computers a few years ago. I called it Arch Angel.

Shortly, a being shimmered into place between us. It seemingly filled the room. It had wings that brushed the ceiling. It glowed with beauty and power. You could feel it! Hell, I felt it, and I knew they were feeling it too. It was what I thought an arch angel would look like if I had ever met one. It was beautiful to look at.

“We shall swear before this great one our oaths. And the first to break the oath will be destroyed, and his soul sent to burn in hells fire for eternity. Are we agreed?” I asked, trying not to laugh. With terrified looks and a little of awe, the three men and I swore not to betray one another. They swore never to attack me and not to treat me with other than honesty. I swore never to harm them or theirs if they swore similarly.

Actually, it was nothing more than a magical computer interface. But there was no way I was going to tell that to the people assembled in this room. After all, my job was to get the government to leave me alone. In reality, the government did a lot of good, but sometimes I felt they needed reminding they were not the final authority. This would be such a reminder.

“SO MOTE IT BE. LET THE FIRST WHO BREAKS FAITH DIE AND BURN FOR ALL ETERNITY.” Said the voice of my computer interface with the voice of doom. It faded away. The three looked at me in shock.

“Now, I will bid you all a good night. I am going home. Remember your oaths. Break it, and I will know.” I said. I bowed and using the rest of the power in my staff, I teleported to my house, over 900 miles away. I sagged when I got there. Teleporting that far really takes it out of me. I felt like I could sleep for a week. I staggered into my bedroom and was soon fast asleep.

Chapter 4

Opening my eyes, the first thing I noticed was that I was still tired. It takes a lot out of a person to use magic, even with a stored power source. I called the office and left a message for Vivian telling her I would be taking the next few days off, but if she needed me for something important, to call me.

I made coffee and started going over in my mind everything I had learned. Something was nagging at the back of my mind, but it would not solidify into something useful. I went down into my basement and opened a door that convinced everyone else it was not there. Spells were handy things, indeed.

I went in and set my staff into the small bracket that was set in the exact center of this little room. I reached out with my mind, and found energy lines. They were glowing, faintly. I tapped into them, forming a connection between them and my staff. I watched as the power slowly entered my staff, recharging it. I estimated it would take a full day at this level of charging. I reached again, found another line, and diverted more power to the task at hand.

Good, my staff would be refilled in just a couple hours, at this rate. I left the room, closing the door behind me, and saw that my spell re-established itself. I went back upstairs and poured some coffee. I sipped it, still trying to remember what I had heard that was driving me crazy. Something Lauder had said to me.

I puttered around the house, doing some cleaning, and a load of laundry. I kept going over what had happened to me during the visit. Finally it hit me! First they had drugged me, and usually I could avoid that type of thing. Second, Lauder had said and even quoted the time I had been in the army back in the 1800’s.

I had enlisted in a the army under an assumed name. I had not entered it under my own name. Shit! I went to my safe —which was also spelled against detection—, and examined the spell guarding it. There was a very subtle difference to the spell from when I had first laid it. That shouldn’t have happened at all.

I opened the safe and knew. When I was learning magic, Markus had pointed out that each person brought a bit of uniqueness to a spell. It was almost like a DNA match, or a finger print. No two people did magic exactly the same. I had become familiar with the style of magic Markus used, as he had became with mine. I knew that subtle use of magic. He had tried to disguise the fact that he had interfered with my spell. But it was definitely his. Once I knew to look, it was like reading a sign saying, “Markus was here.”

I never would have noticed it, if hadn’t been for Lauder. Damn it! Markus had to be the leak who had informed Lauder and the government of my identities and life. But there before me, was proof positive that Markus had been in my safe. I knew his magic as well as I knew my own. Damn damn damn!

I still had my ring and watch on, which had not been drained of power at all. I started out by canceling the spell on the safe. I then cast a new one. I looked at the items in my safe carefully. The papers were not in the same order I had placed them in. Just one paper out of place, but it was enough for me to know someone had gotten a good look at my papers too. They contained all my past identities and fake birth certificates.

I carefully placed everything back in the safe, and locked it. The new spell flowed over it, concealing it. I then reinforced the security spell on the walls and house in general. I placed several spell traps, carefully disguised, and then started on a new series of major spells.

I was just getting ready to cast the first new major spell when the phone rang. I let the machine answer it. I heard my voice telling whoever it was to leave name, message and number at the tone.

“Paul? Markus. I am going to be in town later today. I will be staying at the Hamilton. Why don’t we get together? I think we have a couple things to talk about. Call me back.” He left the number for the front desk of the Hamilton and hung up. Well, what a coincidence.

With my new major spells finished and in place I stepped outside and looked around. I circled my house. Ok, no one was close enough to observe anything. I grabbed at a handful of energy lines and placed a serious spell of defense on my house. I also made it impossible for anyone to enter my house unless I let them.

I re-entered my house and tied the last two spells to my easy chair. Now it would be impossible for anyone with any magic abilities to tamper with or change the spell. The key for the spell was inside the house. Of course, a powerful enough wizard could blast his way in. That meant I had to make a few offensive spells.

I had just finished doing a particularly nasty spell when the phone rang again. This time it was Vivian. I went over to the phone and grabbed it.

“Whats up, Viv.” I asked her.

“We got the copy of the will for that young man. He was right. His family is withholding his inheritance.” Vivian told me.

“Ok, I will swing by and pick it up, and then swing over to his place. How much money are we talking about?” I asked curiously.

“He was supposed to receive two thousand dollars a month and tuition. While he remained in school, he would receive a full ride, plus the two grand a month. When he turns twenty five, he would receive the remaining two hundred and fifty thousand dollars or upon graduation from college, which ever came first.” Vivian said with a bit of contempt in her voice.

“Ok, thanks Viv. Looks like he was right to suspect something. I’ll be in shortly.” I hung up.

Well, well. I got into my car and drove to the office. No one followed me. I went in and Vivian handed me the file we had received from the county court house. I read the terms of the will. Over the years, I had educated myself a bit about the law.

My client had upheld the terms of the will, but the executor had not lived up to the instructions contained in the will. The instructions were most specific. My client had graduated from college last year at the age of twenty three. According to the terms of the will, he should have received the bulk of his inheritance within a month after graduation. Plus he had not received his two thousand a month. I remembered that from my conversations with him. He had told me he’d had to work his butt off to meet some of his bills.

Apparently the executor had not only not informed my client of the terms of the will, but was keeping it totally secret from him. Well, I knew enough about probate law in this state to know my client had a good case if he desired to go to court. Taking family to court was a nasty business. It caused all kinds of hard feelings, but then, so did theft.

I called the young man in question, and we made arrangements to meet. He could not get off work, but said he could take a break in about thirty minutes. I packed up the will and went back out to my car. As I got in I noticed a man across the street who was trying awfully hard to remain inconspicuous.

I started my car and pulled away. Sure enough, he was behind me very quickly. He was not very good at what he was doing, so I doubted he was associated with Lauder. Or Markus for that matter. He was an enigma, but I had no time for him now. I would just keep my eye on him and take appropriate actions when and if it became necessary.

I pulled into the parking lot of the biggest warehousing complex in town. My client, John Peterson, was warehouse manager for three of the nine warehouses located here. It was a very busy place. Tractor trailer trucks were pulling up to the security fence. They handled a very large volume of various items.

Mostly it was storage, but they also handled transshipments, too. It was an impressive operation, really. I got out, locked the door to my car and casually glanced around. Yup, there was my shadow. I kept a firm grip on my folder and entered the office. As I went in I turned and sure enough, my shadow was hurrying in my direction.

I went to the front desk and asked to speak with John. A few minutes later he came in through a door in the back. He saw me, and came towards me. As he did, my shadow, who had entered and was trying to stay out of my sight, came forward. I moved to intercept him.

“Excuse me. But who are you?” I asked.

“My name is Carl Birch. I am with the Law Offices of, Mabry, Harrow, and Williams. I have been instructed to inform you, John Peterson, that if you will sign this document, a sum of fifty thousand dollars will be sent you by the executor of your parents will.”

He paused, opened his brief case, and got a paper out of it. Then he tried to give it to John. Well, that explained who he was.

“As you can see, it is pretty straight forward. All you have to do, is sign this this power of attorney, and a quit claim, and your older brother has agreed to waive the terms of the will stating he must wait for your twenty fifth birthday to give you your share.”

“Definitely a grab for your share, John. I have the terms of your parents will, and you were right. You were supposed to be paid tuition, and a payment of two thousand dollars a month, while you were in school. Also, upon your graduation —or your twenty fifth birthday, whichever came first— you were to receive the bulk of your inheritance, two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. If you sign that, you will be signing away about two hundred thousand dollars. Plus the difference of what you should have been paid while you were in college,” I stated.

“Sir, I have no idea what this gentleman is talking about. All I can do is extend the offer to you that my firm has been retained to do,” Mr. Birch said.

I opened my folder and handed the will to John. He started to read it. It didn’t take him long to come to the same conclusion I had. The wording was all straight forward. There was nothing in it that said the executor could change the monetary amount given to John. I watched as John read it and saw a sick look cross his face. I felt badly for him.

“Tell your bosses I refuse the offer. Come on, Paul,” John said, leading me to an office in the back.

We sat down and John held his head with his hands. He finally looked up after a minute, the anger evident on his face.

“I can’t believe my brother Jeffery would treat me like this. I am the youngest. He was supposed to take care of me. Well, he sure took care of me.” He said bitterly.

“Listen. I know a pretty good lawyer. He won’t charge you an arm or a leg to straighten this out for you. He is retired and works pro bono mostly. He likes to sort of ‘right wrongs’. He understands that sometimes the legal system is not so fair,” I said.

He nodded, and I gave him the name of my friend. Shortly, I was back in my car and headed back to my house. I started thinking about Markus again. Damn. This was the man who had basically raised me, and trained me in magic. Well, trained me until about seventy years ago. He then said I had learned about as much from him as he could teach me. Which was not true, as I had learned much more, and knew he had been capable of teaching me much more.

I never did call him on that because, well, he did raise me. He was like a father to me. But now I might have to seriously re-evaluate our relationship. What did I know about him. I mean, really know. I thought and remembered. I was just twelve years old when mom had told me I had to leave. She had handed me over to Markus. He had been a trusted aid to my father. She had hugged me, kissed me on my cheek and was gone.

There had been some sort of trouble, but try as I might, I couldn’t seem to remember what it was. I frowned. I should be able to remember why I had been sent here! A war! Yes. Insurrection. But why had I had that trouble remembering? I shivered. Someone had tampered with my mind, and I never suspected! That was the only answer!

I pulled over. I started shaking.

Markus had been in my house. I had never even guessed, until now.

Also, for some reason, I was having a real hard time thinking about my mother and what had brought me to this world. I had a very good memory. I remembered the people that lived next door to me while I lived with Markus. Yet I could barely remember my life before age 12.

I snarled and hit the steering wheel. The bastard was playing me, even back then, and I never knew! A cold feeling settled over me. I checked my spells. I had 5 major spells ready and 9 minor ones. I had my ring and my watch, full of energy. My staff should be recharged by now, and if I was going to go toe to toe with a wizard like Markus, I wanted as much help as possible.

I got back on the road and got back to my house just before four. I got out of my car, locked it, and went up the steps. I had already collected my paper this morning, but my mail was waiting for me. I went through it, but it was the normal bills, and ads.

I went downstairs and retrieved my staff, and changed it into a flashy looking walking stick. I picked up my cloak. I did take time to do a couple more spells on it though. If it came to a fight, I wanted some extra protection. I then placed a final obfuscation spell over it to confuse anyones ‘second sight’. No one would be able to tell what spells were on it, not even Markus.

The Hamilton was a first class 5 star hotel. So I dressed in good clothes, and went to a meeting I was dreading. It took me almost twenty minutes to get there. As soon as I entered the hotel, I could feel magical probes. I slipped them easily, and tracked them back to their source. I was surprised, as the person doing the probe was none other than the supposed victim I had found for my police friend, and who turned out to be a test for that department of the NSA which was ever on my mind, now.

We made eye contact. She gestured at me, and I saw a rush of something coming at me. It broke on the new spells that were on my cloak. Her eyes widened. I started walking in her direction. She got up from the couch she had been sitting on, and made a beeline for the Ladies Room. I stopped. At that time, the elevator opened, and Markus came out.

“Paul! It’s a pleasure to see you again,” he said loudly, jovially.

“Markus,” I replied, nodding.

“Come on. I am about to go to dinner. I will buy you a first class meal,” Markus said, coming over and trying to take my arm.

“Not just yet. I am waiting for a young lady to come out of the ladies room over there,” I said, pointing at the ladies room door.

“She won’t come out until I call her, Paul,” he said quietly.

“So, she is your creature. She cast something at me. Didn’t get a make on it before I broke it. Care to tell me what your... thing... was trying to do?” I asked.

“Come to dinner with me. I will try to explain everything to your satisfaction,” he said with a sigh.

I looked at him closely. He was a walking spell factory. Two of the three rings on his hands were actually spells. The spell ring on his left hand was a fire spell. The one on his right hand some sort of dark spell I was unfamiliar with. It made me nervous just seeing it. Dark spells always were deadly and were used for killing. I noticed that he had checked me out too. He could see the power ring I wore on my right hand, and the power watch I wore on my left wrist. I didn’t have any prepared spell items as he did, unless you counted the watch ring and staff. But those just held power, not specific spells.

Chapter 5

We went into The Hamilton’s dining room. It had quite a few customers. I had to admit, The Hamilton’s had very good food. I usually didn’t eat here, as it was a bit over-priced in my opinion. I looked at Marcus sitting across from me as he read a menu.

He was a very distinguished looking man. His hair had gotten more gray. There was almost a sheen to it. His eyes were still piercing. He had a firm jaw. Women found him handsome when I had been living with him as a child, and it seemed as though nothing had changed. I saw the covert and out right looks he was getting from a woman... and from at least one guy.

“How about the fish? They serve a very good Salmon here,” Markus asked me.

“Sounds good. I haven’t had Salmon in ages,” I replied.

We ordered and I tried a couple times to get the conversation going. He wasn’t having any of it, though. He looked at me, and told me we should eat first, then talk business. I raised my eyebrows at this. Business?

He considered this business?

So I sat there and fumed in my chair. We were seated towards the back of the room, giving us a good view of the door to the dining room. I was keeping an eye out for the mysterious lady who was beginning to annoy me to distraction. While we waited for our meal, Markus made small talk of anything and everything, except why we were meeting.

Finally our meal arrived. Actually, it was quite good. The salmon was done superbly. The whole meal was excellent. It had been a while since I had eaten like this.

“An outstanding meal,” Markus said to the waiter. “Please bring us some coffee.”

“Allright! You phoned with a request for a meeting. I am here, we have met, and I still have no idea what you want,” I said to Markus with a look.

“I think we both know what this is about. I felt you change the spell on your safe. I realized fully well what that meant. I am not the enemy, Paul,” he said earnestly.

“Funny you should say that... You break into my home. You supply governmental employees with information concerning me, you supply them with a way to test that information, and you are not the enemy? You know what they did to me?” I asked, more than just a bit outraged.

“Your attitude is very understandable,” he said. He hesitated, then went on. “Exactly how much do you know?”

I choked on the coffee I was drinking. The nerve of the man!

“Know about what?” I asked him.

He waved his hand at me in a dismissive gesture. “Come now. I am asking how much of whats going on do you truly understand?”

“Do you deny breaking into my house? Do you deny providing my documentation to this NSA spin off organization? Do you deny providing them information that let them drug me? Do you deny providing them with a way to test the information you supplied to them? Finally, do you deny tampering with my memories?”

The final question carried a lot of anger as with each question asked, my anger kept rising.

That was not a good thing, and I willed myself to calmness, as he sat and considered me. He was looking at me like he did when I was a child who had made a mistake. He had a way of making you feel small. Only now, I was a grown man, and I recognized what he was doing. I just stared back.

“It is hard to known where to begin. Let me take the questions as you asked them. No, I do not deny breaking into your house, and your safe. No I don’t deny providing, Deputy Director Lauder, with information about you. I told them how to drug you or persons like you, and how to make the test.

“As for your memories... You’re here because your parents wanted you safe.

“After we came through the gate from Morwon, I did what I thought was necessary to ensure your safety and happiness. I raised you, trained you, had you educated, and provided for you. Yes. I tampered with your memories. I did so to allow you grow up happy,” he finished, with a sad sound in his voice.

“Please,” I said, rolling my eyes, “You’ll have me in tears, in a moment.”

“During the 60’s, the United States government, as well as a few other governments, did research into what they call ‘psychic abilities’. You’re familiar with that, right?” he asked me.

I nodded.

“Good. I became involved with a group in the CIA back then. I came forward, and let them think I had some minor talent in that area. They became very excited. It is laughable, really. They assumed I had no idea of how I was doing what I did. There were several of us being, ‘trained’, by the CIA.

“They actually found a few people with abilities. It is much more common than they think. The ability I came forward with was a little exotic, even for them. But I proved beyond a doubt I had it, and that I could do it. Far seeing, or scrying. The problem is, give someone a new toy, they want to play with it. They used me, us.

“The Soviet Union had similar groups, as did the Chinese. We were sort of a ‘psychic black ops’ group that did a clandestine war behind the scenes. I met and fell in love with a woman there. Don’t look so surprised. I do have feelings you know.

“Anyway, she was a natural witch. She connected to earth, air, fire, and water elements, easily. I subtly directed her to a better ability.

She was magnificent. The government was very excited over her. She was able to use sympathetic magic; crudely, but effectively. We married and had a child. My wife died during an operation against a Soviet operational group that the Soviet’s had snuck into the US.

“I felt her death.

“I went a little mad, I think. I reacted.

“I killed the Soviet team, and I killed all our immediate supervisors who let this happen. I had warned them that something was coming. They chose either to not believe me, or ignore my warnings. I still, to this day, don’t know why.

“I took over the group. There was a rocky period of where the US government tried to kill me, us, but I eventually made my point by countering everything that the government did. They finally appointed me director of special operations of the group. My section is designated as: The Bell Tower,” he paused, lost in thought.

I signaled the waiter for another two cups of coffee. After we were served, Markus continued.

“I kept a closer watch over you than you realize. Believe it or not, I took my oath to your parents very seriously. I am sorry you’re angry about your memories; but I believed then, as I do now, that it’s for the better. You have nothing to go back to, believe me.

“As for the government finding out about you? That too is my fault, though indirectly. Lauder was an appointee that I was stuck with. I’m sorry you have been revealed. I was collecting the information on you for myself, really. However, he got into my files. Rather, he was helped into my files.

“My daughter, in her zeal (and I admit, in a little jealousy), gave Lauder the key to your file. Let me assure you that if I had known what was happening, I would have taken steps. However, now that they know about you, you should really work with us. I can intercede for you, if you would like?” Markus looked hopeful.

I shook my head.

“To many things have come to my attention, Markus. The tampering with my memories is the worst. Betraying me to the government takes a close second. I understand everything your telling me, and I hope you understand my position. Someone I trusted betrayed me, from the beginning.

“Breaking into my house does not fill me with confidence of your intentions. Breaking and entering into someones home is the mark of a criminal, not someone who has the best of intentions for the victim, especially since my history is now property of the US Government.

“You want to regain my trust? Send me though the gate back home. Let me see for myself what happened there. Let my family there tell me what happened...”

Markus was already shaking his head no.

“I am sorry. I can’t do that. I destroyed the gate we came through. It was too dangerous to leave it, even closed. No, it’s just not possible, I’m sorry, Paul,” he said regretfully.

“Then teach me how to make a gate, and I will do it myself,” I said to him.

“No,” he stated with finality.

“That’s ok. I will find a way to do it myself. I trained myself in magic after you stopped teaching me, you know. What did you do to my memories, and how do I reverse it, or cancel it?” I asked

“I don’t think now is a good time to be doing this. You’re in a very stressful state. It would be just adding to it if I did that,” he told me flatly.

“I see. And withholding something of mine from me won’t contribute to this state?” I asked disbelievingly.

He had the grace to blush.

“There is truth in what you say. But I still believe now is not the time.”

“I see,” I said, getting up. “Thanks for the meal. I would suggest you never try to enter my home again. You will find it hazardous to your health. Also, you’re a thief of the worst sort. Memories are precious. I do have a few memories of my parents; but it seems, in your godlike opinion, that I do not deserve any others. Well, screw you. They are starting to come back, and I will HAVE them!” I forcefully said as I left the table.

He called after me, but I closed my ears. The nerve of that man!

While he might have problems, contributing to mine as he did and was doing, did not make me feel charitable towards him at the moment. I stormed out.

I did keep my eye open for the woman who had cast that spell at me, but I didn’t see her.

I got into my car, and started driving home. I was in a bad mood. I did understand his reasons for almost everything he did. But keeping me from my memories was not something I could, or would, understand. There had to be a way to get my memory restored.

I contemplated this, as I was weaving through downtown traffic. Then, out of the blue, I saw it. St. Anthony’s Church. It had been build over one hundred years ago. It was a vast reservoir of power. Of course! If I could just shape a spell, and tap into that conduit of power, it should be more than enough to meet any possible power needs I would have.

Messing with a persons mind took a lot of energy, and St. Anthony’s had a huge amount to spare. I pulled into the parking lot of St. Anthony’s church. I knew what I wanted to do. I started linking a spell to the few memories I had. I released the spell, and tapped into the power the church was releasing. It didn’t matter if I used it at once, or in a controlled, slow release. There was power to spare, here.

I finally finished my spell. I got out of my car, and locked the doors.

I even cast a spell of protection on it, just to be safe. I walked to the church’s main doors, and entered the building. With few exceptions, I generally stayed away from churches. I went on holidays, and special occasions. Other than that, I avoided them.

I sat, a few pews up from the back. It was huge inside. Since it was not Sunday, or a regularly scheduled time for service, it was mostly deserted. A few people were inside praying. I switched to my second sight, and almost gasped at the power that was here! What enormous power there was, in faith! The spells you do do with this power! Well, that was what I was going to do. Just tap into a minuscule bit of the power here, and hopefully clear my memory.

I sent up a silent prayer of hope, and asked for forgiveness for diverting what I was about to divert. I reached out for the power and I felt a tingle enter my body, from that connection alone. That had never happened before. As a matter of fact, I felt like I was vibrating or buzzing, I had so much power. I started to dump it until I had just a small amount coming into me.

I cast the spell I had prepared outside, and joined it with the power. I felt my spell sink into my head along with POWER! I clenched my teeth at the feeling. Now it felt like my head was vibrating. I also felt amusement coming, as if from a distance. Now what was that? I put aside these distractions, and started thinking about my mother and father.

It felt as if something were stretching inside my head. I lowered my head and rested it on my hands, which were on the back of the pew in front of me. I fed a bit more power to the spell. I remembered everything I could. Then I stated to get flashes of things I had NOT remembered previously!

Riding in a horse-drawn sleigh towards a huge castle. That was new! More and more, the stretching was now getting uncomfortable. Finally I felt a ‘snap’, and an avalanche of memories burst into my consciousness! I knew!

I knew who and what I was! I remembered the fighting going on. I remembered the reason for my mother sending me here to this world! I remembered all and I wept at the remembering. I was more than I had thought I was.

I could have sworn that I felt a comforting hand on my shoulder. I looked, but no one was there. Still, I felt a feeling of being comforted, and of caution. I shivered. There was no mistaking that feeling. I looked with both my ordinary eyes, and my ‘second sight’. Almost, I could see something with my ‘second sight’, but no, it was gone. With it that feeling of comfort started fading.

I stayed and remembered. I had a sister I hadn’t remembered until now. I wept for not having remembered her. A whole list of cousins, aunts and uncles I was just now seeing as if for the first time. These too, I wept for. I am not sure how long I stayed, but finally I decided I had to go home. I wrote a check to the church and dropped it in the box at the front of the church. Twenty-five thousand dollars was little enough for my memories.

I went back outside, and went over to my car. It was very dark now. I quickly checked the spell on my car, and it was undisturbed. I canceled it, and unlocked my car and entered it. Starting it, I pulled out to the street, decided to stop by my office first. It was only a quarter mile from where I was, anyway.

Since it was late and most businesses were closed, I was able to get a parking space in front of my business. My offices were located upstairs, over an auto parts store. He had the downstairs, and I had the offices upstairs. I went up and found my offices locked for the day.

Unlocking my front door, I entered and relocked the door behind me. I walked over to my personal office door, and went in. I found a note from Vivian stating that the check had cleared from my little fiasco with the government people. Well good. I deserved it, as far as I was concerned.

I got out an Atlas of the United States, and looked up Colorado. That was where I had gated through into this world, from when I had left Morwon. It was located outside of Boulder Colorado. I pondered my next few moves. I picked up the phone and called the local airport. I asked about commuter flights to the closest airport that provided flights to Boulder Colorado.

Shortly I had the information I wanted. I sat there in my office and remembered. The implications of what I was remembering were staggering.

I had the blood of a divine being in my veins. It was diluted a lot, but it was still there. My father was the grandson of a Demi-god. He had married a woman from earth, this earth. My father was, himself, the offspring of a diluted marriage.

A war had broken out between several of the Demi-gods of my homeland. My great-grandfather had gone missing. It was rumoured that he had died in battle with another being such as himself. An uncle of ours decided that it was time to purify the family, and had started to kill off all whose blood had been diluted by impure marriages. This was why my mother sent me here, for safety.

That was over a hundred years ago by my homeworld’s time. One hundred and twenty eight years, to be exact. I had no clue as to what had happened, but I wanted... no, needed, to find out! Markus was directly in my way. I had a feeling that if Markus knew what I was about to do, he would try and stop me. He had not wanted me to know what I was remembering. It was time to find out what happened to my family.

I did a little work, since I was here. I reassigned cases so they could be handled in a timely manner. I was going to be gone for some time, and I wanted to be sure that everything was covered. I left a note for Vivian to hire the part time investigator we had used before, since we had a couple more divorce cases to do. I didn’t want my primary employee doing those. I shifted him to an unsolved murder, and wrote some notes on the case which should allow him to solve it.

After having this done, I went out. Locking up as I did, I and went downstairs and out to my car. Getting in, I drove back to the house. I kept a close eye out for any suspicious vehicles following me. Nothing.

Pulling onto my street, I again was at a heightened sense of awareness, but I didn’t see anything that was out of the ordinary. Shortly, I was in my home, and enjoying a good brandy. It had been one of those days.

Chapter 6

Colorado was a bust. I had been so sure that he’d lied about the gate. Unfortunately, he was being totally truthful. I did learn something about gate’s construction, though. I flew back home, and got my car out of long-term parking. I checked it of course, but it was clean.

I pondered what to do next. I had family in another reality, a secret government organization on my ass here, and my friend and mentor was one of the heads of that same secret org. Could life get any better?

I drove back to my office and found parking, for a change, in front of my building. ‘First come first serve’, after all. I cast a quick spell on my car, locked it, and went into my building. Opening the outer door to my office, I noticed the quietness.

It was the middle of the day, and Vivian was not at her desk. The door had been unlocked, but no one was here. I quickly reviewed spells and lightly touched them all, getting them ready for casting. Just in case I needed them.

I turned the knob on my private office door silently, and pushed it open with my staff. I hadn’t even realized I had returned it to its natural state as a staff, from the camouflaged configuration. That was startling.

I entered cautiously. Nothing. The outer office was empty of people, as was my own private office. Where the hell was everyone? Someone should have locked the door. I frowned, and tried to figure out what was going on. I went to the source of all information in my office: Vivian’s desk.

Nothing. The computer was on, and she had been typing up a report for a client. Nothing serious, just a routine piece of business. I checked the desktop carefully. Ok, I did everything one could do, and found nothing. It was time to get creative.

I had just one more thing to check. I picked up the phone, and dialed my landlord, downstairs. He picked up on the second ring.

“Pasquale’s Bikes. How may I help you?”

“Hey, Pasquale. It’s Paul. Have you seen any of my people around lately? I am in my office and there’s no one here,” I asked in a feigned amused tone.

“Really? No, not a clue. Saw Vivian about an hour ago, I guess. She was carrying a sack of carry out from that Chinese place down the street.”

“Ok, sorry to bother you,” I replied and hung up.

I was really starting to get worried now. Vivian was a very responsible lady. She would never leave the office like this. I looked with my ‘second sight’, but saw nothing suspicious. Well, that just told me there was nothing magical in the area. No residue of power, anywhere.

I called the cell number for my only full time employee, but received a recording that the customer was out of the area that serviced the phone. So he was still following that lady. I sighed. Ok. I looked around for something personal of Vivian’s. Ah, the umbrella she had brought in a couple days ago, perfect. I locked the door to the office, and put a small spell on it to keep out all but the very determined.

I sat on the couch and held the umbrella in my hand. I closed my eyes. I concentrated on establishing a link with the umbrella first, and through it, to Vivian. I saw the connection as a thin glowing string flowing from the umbrella, through the door.

I left my body and followed it. I went as quickly as I could. I caught up to a late model sedan, with Vivian sitting in the back seat. She was sandwiched between two men. A woman was driving, and another man was sitting up front.

I stayed with the car until it pulled into an area of the suburbs I was familiar with, but hardly ever went.

They all got out and entered a house that must have cost in the low seven-figure range. I memorized the address. I followed them inside. Vivian was led to a room that appeared to be a study. A man was seated behind a huge desk.

I concentrated so I could hear, if muffled, what was being said.

“Thank you for coming. I trust your trip was comfortable?” the seated man asked Vivian.

“Considering I didn’t request this trip, no,” Vivian responded.

“Sorry about that. I have little time, and it was necessary that you accept my invitation,” Seated Man said.

I was really starting to dislike this guy. Vivian looked a bit frightened, but otherwise was her normal self.

“Yes, well if you will call me a cab, I will be getting back to the office,” Vivian replied.

Seated Man smiled and said, “I am afraid I can’t let you do that. I have need of the services of your employer, and I am afraid he might refuse unless I have a bit of leverage. You’re that leverage.”

“Did you think about making an appointment? I am sure that once Mr. Lindsy returns to town he would be glad to discus business with you. If I remember correctly, kidnapping is a federal felony,” Vivian told him.

“You have not been kidnapped my dear. You are here to enjoy a few days of hospitality. In the meantime, let’s discuss your employer. He seems to have a very good record in getting the impossible done. I have need of this service.

“Unfortunately, from everything else I have learned about your Mr. Lindsy, he would not agree to work for me. Ergo, I am sorry to say, you’re my insurance policy. I am sure after this is over, and all have been compensated, this will be just an... unusual memory, shall we say?” Seated Man made it more of a statement than the question it was.

“Funny. I seem to have misplaced my invitation,” Vivian said sarcastically.

“You will not be harmed. You will have free run of the house and grounds. You will be escorted if you leave the house. You may not use the phones. However, feel free to use any of the amenities of my house. For the time being, my house is your house,” he said as he stood.

I drifted over to his desk and looked at the phone number on the phone, and memorized it. I watched as they led Vivian out of the office. I was not worried as they were using her as leverage.

One of the remaining men approached the Man, who was now standing behind the desk.

“Mr. Lancing, are you sure about letting her run around? What if she gets away, or warns her boss?” I pegged this guy as muscle.

“Now, Robert, surely you and your crew can keep one middle aged woman out of my hair? Just keep an eye on her, and disable all phones except for this one, and the one in the security office. As long as she doesn’t leave the property, she will not be a problem,” Lancing said.

I had a name!

I withdrew, and was soon back in my body. I stood, and stretched. I always felt slightly out of sorts after doing the ‘out of body’ thing. Almost felt like I didn’t fit myself, somehow. Strange, really.

I made plans as to how to retrieve my office manager. I was really pissed that someone would go to this length to retain my services. I had checked the house out carefully, and there was no hint of magical power there at all.

That was a preview of P I and Magic. To read the rest purchase the book.

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