When Moira entered Sabio's office, she was surprised to see Semra. "Where is Sabio?"
"He transferred to the archive." Semra held out her hand. "It's wonderful that you're back, Moira."
Only now did Moira notice the brass sign with "Commissaire Semra Jaman" written in dainty golden letters. "Oh, you've been advanced?"
Semra sighed. "Someone has to do the dirty work. I'd feel better if Sabio or Druidus would sit here."
Moira sat on a chair in front of the desk and explained the theories she and her father had come up with to Semra.
"Sabio and I thought along the same lines. Unfortunately, we couldn't build a conclusive chain of events." Semra dug a file out of the pile of folders on her desk and handed it to Moira. "Docs autopsy showed that, apart from Monsieur, the Ramasseurs died the same way as the homeless people before."
"The blood is missing?"
Semra nodded. "If you count five to six liters blood per person, there should have been twenty-five to thirty liters. I wonder where it all went." She bent forward. "By the way, the murders stopped since they took Druidus into custody. More than two weeks without new corpses. It gets you thinking, doesn't it?"
Moira fought to stay quiet. "I thought we agreed that Druidus isn't a murderer."
"I am only repeating the press' arguments. They say that he did confess to his father's murder, so why should it have been his first?"
Moira put the file back on the desk. "If it's only a question of no more murders, the reason could well have been Excelsior's death or that of Monsieur Ramasseur."
"We both know that the press earns its money with speculations like that. But as long as we don't have sound proof, there isn't much we can do." Semra stretched and yawned with her hand in front of her mouth. "Dear me, am I tired. How did Sabio survive this?" She smiled at Moira. "I'd appreciate it if you could work hand in hand with him. In his opinion, there is a homicide spell behind all the murders, because Druidus acted so strangely. Unfortunately, our lab couldn't find one even with the most sensitive spell detectors."
"What do you think?" Moira asked.
Semra shrugged. "Difficult to say. But I really hope Sabio is right. All other possibilities are really hard to prove."
Moira got up. "I'd better go and help him right now."
Semra nodded. "Get him to rest, too, at least for a little while. Since he transferred to the archive, he hardly goes home any more. I fear he's close to collapsing."
At the door, Moira turned once more because she had remembered something. "Have you found a clue to Pete Huudien's whereabouts?"
"Buds found a couple of people who think they might have seen him near several of the crime scenes. But there's no trace of where he could be now." Semra dug back into her files. "Take care of Sabio, Will you?"
"Done." Moira left. The closer she got to the archive, the slower she walked. Fear tugged at her nerves, and they vibrated like bowstrings. The gruesome scene was still too much alive in her memory. Her hands shook, and she felt cold. Reluctantly, she opened the door. Relieved, she noticed that the crime scene cleaning crew had cleaned the room well. Not the slightest trace of blood was left behind. It didn't help her to cope with her memory, but it made it easier to enter the archive.
The archivist's workbench had been moved right beside the entrance desk, and Sabio crouched over a sheave of paper lying on it. He looked up from his work, and a smile brightened his sunken face. "It's nice to see you're feeling better. I worried about you."
Moira was horrified about his exhaustion. "May I help you?"
"Sure." He pointed to a wobbly pile of files. "Could you take care of these? I'm very busy with an invention to prove Druidus' innocence." His gaze hardened. "Or do you believe he's a murderer too?"
"No." Moira picked up the files. But can I exclude you from the list of suspects? You would have had a motive. She walked along the corridors and placed the files where they belonged. On the desk Excelsior had assigned to her lay another file. A post it with Sabio's handwriting clung to it. It read, Find faults. Something doesn't fit. Moira opened the file. It held copies of every lab report connected to Excelsior's murder. Sabio had marked several places, for example "No sign for homicide spell," "No Suicide spell detectable," "Fingerprints from four people verified: Pete Huudien, Monsieur Ramasseur, Excelsior and Druidus van Steen" and "Remaining blood in corpse and on scene: roughly four liter". The last one had been underlined three times.
Only four liters? Moira wondered where the rest of Excelsior's blood went. He had been a strong man, and she would have expected at least six liters. She closed the file and returned to Sabio who was still bent over his construction plans.
"Sabio? According to the file, there were nearly two liters of blood missing from the crime scene. Do you think a third person took it?"
"You think Druidus wanted to protects someone?" He looked up at her. "I can't imagine why he'd do that. The only people close enough to his heart to do something so foolish would be Aparta and you. And neither of you was anywhere near the crime scene."
Moira remembered Aparta's reaction and was sure that she had been just as surprised by Excelsior's murder as anyone else. "How else do you explain the missing blood?"
"I don't know. I've been pondering this ever since the first murder with not enough blood on the crime scene." He yawned and rubbed his eyes. "Somehow all these murders are connected – the homeless, Lif Borson, Leclerque Bastide, the Ramasseurs and Excelsior. And the one thing that could explain a series of murders like this would be a homicide spell."
Moira frowned. "It should be illegal to put a spell on a weapon that forces others to kill."
"It is illegal. Doesn't mean it won't get done." Sabio pointed to a pile of weapons on a nearby shelf. "These are all weapons with one killing spell or another. And there's a whole bunch more, further down in the archive."
Moira took a step backwards. Better to play it save.
"Also, you're forgetting that the sword is an antique. Back then, people were less demure with spells like this. I believe Druidus' only chance will be to prove there has been a homicide spell." Sabio stretched, waved her over, and pointed at his plan. "With this gadget, it should be possible to focus magic with an unprecedented precision."
Moira stared at the lines and labels. It didn't make much sense to her untrained eye. "What's it for?"
"I will explain but first, I need to fill in your background knowledge." Sabio poured himself and Moira a glass of water and indicated for her to sit. "What do you know about Wild or Untamed Magic, also called Magie Sauvage?"
"It's all around us but useless for humans, right?" Moira wasn't sure if her answer was correct. She felt as if she was sitting a test she hadn't learned for.
Sabio nodded and sipped his water. "Together with sunlight, plants use Magie Sauvage to turn water and air into carbohydrates. During that process, the magic changes. In the end, Unified Magic or Magie Généraliser is bound to the carbohydrates."
"Which can be used by humans," Moira said.
Sabio nodded again. "The amount of Magie Généraliser a creature can use depends on the species genetics and on the individual's personal talent. Unicorns for example use nearly one hundred percent, but humans only ten to three percent of this magic. The rest is released as Focused Magic or Magie Focaliser."
"Is that the kind of magic, nerls need for their survival?" Moira was relieved she knew a detail at least.
"Very good." Sabio looked at her with surprise. "Nerls digest Focused Magic, and the components rearrange into Magie Sauvage again, but that's not important for my gadget." He pointed to the dark blue, star spangled safety coat and the pointy hat with the same design, hanging beside his desk, ready for use. "With the proper safety measures, it is possible to amp up Magie Généraliser with a little bit of Magie Sauvage. It is very dangerous but worth the effort. The spells created like that are very durable and even harder to trace."
Slowly, understanding dawned on Moira. "Homicide- and suicide spells. Therefore the new invention."
Sabio tapped his drawings. "My magiskope should be able to determine and name even the smallest amounts of magic clinging to an object. I finished planning. Now, I need to build and test it."
With renewed vigor, Moira got up. "What are we waiting for?"
"We need living materials. Something best suited would be some sort of wood that's extremely flexible. A small tree or bush maybe."
"Semra has a bamboo plant in her office. I'll fetch it." Moira ran off.
When she returned with the plant, Sabio held a crying Aparta in his arm trying to calm her. With a jerk of his head, he indicated Moira to make herself scarce.
"It's not the end of days yet," he said.
"But the prosecutor demanded the death penalty!" Aparta's voice was hoarse from crying so much. Sabio patted her back and signaled to Moira again to leave.
She sat the bamboo on the ground beside the door and withdrew. She only returned when she was sure Aparta had left. Sabio had already started to build his magiskope. The bamboo proved to be the ideal building material. It was soft enough to be twisted into different shapes and bound with twine, but strong enough to support the construction.
Moira realized she couldn’t help Sabio right now. "What shall I do as long as you're busy?"
"Well, I should be working on destroying the cursed weapons. Would you mind taking care of that? The list with the numbers of the shelves we need to see to first lies in the topmost drawer of the reception desk." Sabio spoke without looking up from his work.
Moira found the list without problems. She crouched to pull out the arm long burning box from under the desk. She stopped before her fingers touched the glass. "Sabio?"
"Yes?" He looked at her.
"Did you use Wild Magic for the burning box too?"
"Of course. Wild Magic can only be destroyed by Wild Magic."
"Can I still use it without trouble?" Pensively, Moira watched the multicolored swirling of the glass.
"Of course. You just put the weapons in and activate it. The lid will close automatically."
"What I meant was, will the spell suffer if I touch the glass? You know how little magic and I go along."
Sabio smiled. "Don't worry. The spell is only triggered when the lid closes."
Hesitantly, Moira pulled out the burning box. Then, she went to look for the first weapon on the list. It was a spear, and it lay in a shelf near Sabio's workbench, sparkling slightly.
"We'll need a much bigger burning box for this." She took the spear from the shelf.
"Moira, no." Sabio shouted and jumped at her.
A tingle ran up her arm Moira spreading though her body in mere seconds. She pulled the spear aside before Sabio could grab it. He slammed into her, and she closed her arms around him without letting go of the spear. Sabio smelled of coffee and ink. Moira leaned her face against his chest. The smell woke memories of a man she had a wild relationship with. She felt her nipples harden. Why did I never notice that Sabio is really good looking? Unbearable longing made her pant. She pushed her free hand under Sabio's shirt and stroked the skin on his back.
"Moira, what are you doing?" Sabio fought her – without success.
The spear filled Moira with unknown strength. With the hand holding the weapon, she pulled his head toward her.
"Please, Moira, remember Druidus." Sabio stared into her eyes with plain fear.
She hesitated. Deep down inside, she knew that this compelling desire didn't mirror her true feelings. It's the spear. The thought shot through her fogged mind like lightning. She fought against the urge to kiss Sabio and rip his clothes off. With her eyes closed, she clung to Sabio. She gathered all her strength and concentrated on Druidus. Her breathing was irregular and fast, but she managed to recall his beloved face. She felt the tingling in her arm intensify. I need to get rid of the spear. With all her strength, she pushed against the spell coming from the weapon. A wave surged through her and washed away the desire. Finally, Moira understood that it was a kind of magic, too. Her own kind of magic, the one she wasn't supposed to have according to her handicapped ID. She laughed happily.
Without opening her eyes, she let go of Sabio and turned toward a wall. She gathered her churning magic and catapulted it out of her arm into the spear. The wood groaned. When Moira opened her eyes, the weapon lay on the ground split in three parts. She turned back to Sabio. He was sitting on his chair, his back to his desk, staring at her open mouthed as if she came from a different world. His face was pale as death, and he didn't seem to breathe. For a moment, Moira thought he'd died from a heart attack.
But then, he breathed out audibly. "Dear me, Moira, what was that?"
"I forgot the safety gloves. Sorry."
"No, I meant that there." He lifted his hand and pointed to the splintered spear. His arm shook.
"Is it bad that I broke it? I thought we were meant to destroy it anyway."
Sabio got up, walked to her, and put both hands on her shoulders. Slowly, color returned to his face. "Don't you realize what this means?"
"I sure do." Moira beamed. "It means I'm not disabled, regardless of what the examinations say."
Sabio shook his head and looked into her eyes. "The doctors couldn’t find magic in you. They were looking for the wrong kind."
Moira frowned. The wrong kind?
"Didn't I tell you a minute ago that a spell containing Wild Magic can only be destroyed with another one containing Wild Magic?"
Now, Moira understood. But could it really be Magie Sauvage? Was that the reason why the clairvoyante had called her Katie Féroce? Moira's kneed buckled. Sabio helped her to sit on his chair. She looked up at him. "Magie Sauvage?"
He shrugged. "There is no doubt about it, although I haven't got a clue how you survive it." He picked up the pieces of the spear and weighed them in his hand. "No trace of a homicide spell any more," he said. "I was quite surprised to see that it affected you like a love spell." He walked to his workbench and put the pieces on the counter.
"Strange things have always happened to me." Moira told him about her driving school carpisto that hit the ground after she had accidentally touched the carpet, and about Mona Beth, who stuck out her tongue, and about the many small incidents that had turned her into a misfit as a kid. She put her hands over her face. "What am I going to do now? With this kind of magic I might be a walking danger to all those I care for."
"Why do you think that?"
Moira told him about the clairvoyante's reaction. "Somehow, Madame Suzanka noticed the Wild Magic in me. She was terribly afraid of me."
Sabio sat on the rim of his desk and observed her. "Well, I can't see anything unusual."
"It said on her sign that she could read auras, and Aparta de Frees said that my aura had a strange rainbow colored quality to it. She thought it was a wrong setting on her machine. And there's more." Moira told Sabio about the seal on the stone urn that she thought could be a combination of Hern's and Wild Katie's sigil. "If the hammer and anvil belong to Hern, the rainbow would be Katie Féroce's. It makes sense, doesn't it?"
Sabio beamed at her. "That's incredibly interesting. We'll definitely have to examine your skills more closely soon. But first, we'll rehabilitate Druidus, all right?"
The memory of Druidus' pending judgment the next day sent a pang through Moira's heart. She didn't want to think about it just now. Work would help. She got up, picked up the list of the weapons scheduled for destruction, and scanned it. "We need a much bigger burning box. Swords, spears and lances won't fit in this one." She pointed to the arm length box standing beside the entrance desk.
"I'll bring a man-sized box tomorrow. It's been finished for a week already but I didn't get a trailer for the transport until yesterday."
"In that case, I'll fetch the smaller weapons first."
"Please remember the gloves this time." Sabio took a pair of dark blue gloved from his workbench and flung them at her. "I won't stand another attack of love delirium."
Laughing, Moira set out into the oldest part of the archives, where daggers and pistols waited for their destruction, and where the victims' screams slept under the dusty covers of the files of enquiry.
When the shape of the magiskope was finished, Moira managed to convince Sabio to call it a day. Together, they walked up the stairs to the entrance hall.
Sabio yawned. "You were right. I urgently need to sleep."
Semra left Sabio's former office and hurried after them through the hall. "Wait, Moira. We need to talk."
Moira stopped.
Semra put a hand on her arm. "I'm sorry, but I have to suspend you from work until further notice."
Moira stared at her. "Why that?"
Semra blushed. "It comes right from the top, and there's nothing I can do about it."
"Didn't they give any reasons for the suspension?" Sabio asked.
"Bureaucratic buck shit." Semra snorted. "The mandatory time frame for the performance test has passed. Moira is only allowed to work if she passes the test. I insisted they'd set another date as soon as possible."
Just when I finally discovered my magic. Moira hung her head. "I'll miss you," she said quietly since it wasn't a good idea to ignore an order from high up.
"Thanks for understanding." Semra forced a smile.
"Don't worry." Sabio patted Moira's shoulder encouragingly. "I'll make sure to finish the magiskope fast. I'm sure it will give me the desired results. Meanwhile, you could cheer up Druidus and give him hope."
Sabio was right. Druidus would surely be delighted to see her. Moira's mood improved considerably. Also, she could surely bust Druidus from jail with her newly discovered powers should Sabio against all expectations not finish the magiskope in time. Consoled, he said her farewells and went home.