Chapter Eight
Cadmus was seated in the Gardendale Bakery and Coffee Shop, a few doors down from where Resting Witch Face had failed him. She kept insisting that she had the ingredients he needed, just that they weren’t in the backroom of the store after all, and she had called to see if they were at her stall at the Faire. With far more detail than he cared for, she finally got to the point and said that it was in her storage space at home, in something she called a root cellar.
She’d have it for him tomorrow, if he’d like to come get it. Then she batted her eyelashes at him, saying she’d waive the fee and give him the Soulmate Finder special reading on the house.
Cadmus had shuddered, and reminded himself that he needed her alive to supply the ingredients he required. It wasn’t exactly something that he could get on Amazon Prime.
At least he learned about root cellars. When he returned to his rental house he would check out the one there and see if that would be suitable for the next ritual. He had initially dismissed it, wanting to surround himself in the energies of the earth in that area, which had meant letting Billy Bob guide him to the abandoned mine-shafts and caves deep in the woods. But perhaps the energies were strong enough where he was as well, given how hismagickalsenses were still somewhat muddled.
“Enjoying your cake?” He addressed the young female seated across from him, tucking into a slab of frosted Black Forest cake that had never been anywhere near Bavaria. She was a promising candidate, even if her choice of attire was a tee shirt emblazoned with a raccoon and the wordsTrash Panda.
“This is yummy,” she said, her cheeks full and a smear of frosting on the corner of her mouth. She stabbed her fork towards him. “Want some?”
He gave his most charming smile. “Oh, no, that’s all for you.”
“Yeah, cool,” she said, stuffing another bite into her mouth.
It was so easy. Once he realized what she planned to do when she told Resting Witch Face the ingredients she wanted, he offered to teach her how to do something even more effective. “Binding spells are for children,” he had said, arching his brow meaningfully. And then he gave her an alternative.
Her face had lit up right away, possibly because she recognized that it was forbiddenmagick, harnessing dark forces that had nothing to do with lavender fabric, wind chimes and dreamcatchers.
This girl Jordy was pathetic. Which made her perfect for his purpose. Another lost kid who couldn’t —or wouldn’t—accept how absolutely ordinary they really were. That made them ripe for any promise of power, any route to feeling feared and respected. After learning that all she wanted to do was move a rival out of the way, he upped the stakes for her.
“Dare to dream bigger,” he had encouraged her, watching her eyes widen with the unfamiliar encouragement. She was hanging on his every word. “With my help, my tutelage, you can do so much more. But in the meantime, I will help you with this.”
She had babbled about how she had pulled the Hierophant card earlier, and how he was the very embodiment of what that meant to her. He evened out his smirk, so it would appear as an encouraging smile instead.
“I will consider taking you on as my acolyte, but the path will be arduous and not for the weak-willed or faint of heart.” The girl had sat upright at that, all but ready to prove her worth.
“I’ve never had it easy, I’m not about to start now,” she said, puffed up with the arrogance of the deeply insecure. “Bring it on!”
Cadmus let his chortle escape. With her as his first recruit—the idiot Billy Bob was never meant to be more than hired muscle—he could build a small army in this location, and be prepared should His Terrible Majesty choose this for relocation. He would be ready to wipe Micah’s smugness off his face, when Cadmus was restored to his rightful place by the side of His Terrible Majesty.
His reverie was interrupted by the scraping of Jordy’s fork against the plate’s surface. Irritated, he looked up just as she stuck the last piece of frosting into her mouth.
“Want anything else, Jordy?” He could afford to be magnanimous, this was in some ways a celebration.
The high pitch of her voice was almost as grating as the sound of her fork scraping. “Actually, could you—could you call me Hadeez?” So hopeful, like a child playing at being a villain.
“I will not.” He felt a tiny thrill as the girl almost visibly deflated, the surprise widening her eyes. He knew exactly how to play her. “You will earn a name, a designation of my choice, which is to be conferred upon you only if you satisfactorily meet expectations. And I warn you, they are quite high.”
She pondered that a moment, and then squared her shoulders, responding exactly as he had predicted.
“Meet them? I’ll blast through them.”
“Really?” He took a calm sip of his water, letting his skepticism float in mid-air, watching her immediately try to dispel it.
“I’m not afraid.” Jordy said, lifting her chin up. “Tell me what to do.”
He did, and her eyes widened again, not in surprise but in malicious glee. A nasty smile spread over her freckled face.
Cadmus sat back, pleased with the results of his efforts. Such eagerness to prove how much darkness she was capable of, enthusiasm in doing what most would find morally reprehensible.
What a fine recruit she would make.
After the kids had been given their dinner, Lily had collected the last of the emptied juice boxes, and thrown all of the used napkins and paper plates into a large lined garbage can, which would be picked up by someone from Ops at the end of the night. The brightly colored plastic utensils would be returned to the Staff Caff, to be washed and reused for the next meals for the children. The kids had already moved onto coloring books or reading books, depending on their age, and she had already moved the toddlers out of their high chairs and into the small enclosed, padded area where TraceyAnn was ostensibly keeping watch.
Apparently with the eyes on the back of her head, as the woman was at the window, watching some drama play out in the parking lot by the security booth.
