Chapter 11
A week later, I got the opportunity to hide an undetectable bug inside Martin's office. I'd have to grab the device before he found it. I used a charm to make myself invisible. Unfortunately, you still had to open the doors. Lara placed a few files in Martin's office. I entered the room before the door closed. She sat at Martin's desk to leave a message on the top of the file.
When Lara opened the drawer, she kept it open until she finished writing. It was easy to slip the bug into the top lip of the interior. I managed to pull my hand free when she replaced the notepad. She looked around the room and smiled. I wasn't sure what Lara was hoping to find. Lara could be trying to oust him for all I knew. The door closed as I silently cast the change environment spell after placing the tiny pin camera on the door frame. I heard the rain as I exited the reception area.
Returning to my office was easy. I had left my door partially open. The camera inside my office was broken and awaiting repairs. It took the technician a few days to fix broken equipment in the building. Camera repairs took two weeks.
I was surprised as I listened to the bug in Martin's office. His receptionist, Lara, entered to find the noise. She screamed, "Finite incantatem." The spell didn't work. I watched the hidden camera as she changed her appearance to none other than Eliot Martin. He cursed as he pushed an invisible button on the bookshelf behind his desk.
The case swung into the room to reveal more shelves containing spellbooks. Martin grabbed one of the advanced spells, similar to the one Hermione owned. He found the correct spell and reversed the environmental effects.
Summoning my Patronus, I sent an urgent message to the minister of magic. He arrived within a few minutes with a team of Aurors. They took Martin into custody. His business partner, a muggle named Elaina Hutchinson-Martin, resumed control of E E Martin. She had married Martin's brother twenty years earlier. Her husband, Emmet, had passed away a few years ago.
I knew there were still issues at the company and got ordered to remain in its employ. The company engaged in illegal business practices. Getting caught in the crossfires when it went south became a concern. Elaina had pulled the team together to announce her intention to sell the company. A company-wide audit was required before she could meet with the investor group to sign the documents.
My job at the ministry of magic placed me within organizations where one or more upper management displayed the actions of potential magical threats. I know it's basically babysitting adults in worthless, mindless jobs, but someone had to do the grunt work. Since I got along with many people, it became my job.
When I got home, Tank and a couple of other men were waiting outside of my apartment. "Is something wrong?" I asked as I unlocked the door. The men followed me through the door.
"No, ma'am," the tall man with spiky blond hair stated. "We need to escort you to Rangeman Miami. Boss said you can't apparate."
"I can apparate," I snapped before I realized it wasn't wise to apparate while pregnant. The sensation was unpleasant. It felt like I got squeezed through a tiny hole, and I was dizzy on the other side. Hermione hated that method of travel. She'd rather travel the muggle way. "Oh, right. I probably shouldn't apparate. How are we travelling?"
"Floo network, Stephanie," the third man stated. I knew I could trust the other men with Tank. They didn't make me feel anxious or send my spidey sense into overdrive.
"I've travelled that way before. If I'm not mistaken, we need a fireplace. I hate to tell you, but my apartment doesn't have one," I said, shrugging my shoulders. "Before we create a fireplace, do you mind introducing yourselves? It's obvious you know my name."
"Sorry, ma'am," the blond stated. "Lester Santos. The other man is Bobby Brown. You already know Tank Sherman. We're Ranger's partners at Rangeman, and we're wizards."
"Okay then. I have one request," I said, grinning.
"Name it," Lester quickly replied.
"There has to be fettuccine with grilled chicken waiting for me on the other side," I stated as my stomach grumbled.
Tank entered my bedroom to create the fireplace we needed for travel. "It will disappear once we're through. Look for the room with the black leather sofa with the silver bowl on the coffee table," Tank stated. "Say 'Rangeman Miami'."
I took a pinch of powder to toss into the temporary fireplace. "Rangeman Miami," I said. When the black sofa and silver bowl appeared, I stepped through the grate to exit.
It took a few more seconds before the others arrived. I brushed the ash off my clothes as I looked around the room. The decor was distinctly masculine. "Whose office?" I asked, trailing my finger across the oak desk. I lifted the picture frame. Ranger and I smiled at each other. It looked like we were dancing. Taking a closer look, I realized it was the photo Maria took at New Year's Eve. "Never mind. I know where I am."
"Follow me, Stephanie. We need to register your wand," Santos stated. He guided me to a room on the second floor. The short man with glasses held out his hand. I placed my wand on his palm. He put it on a device that weighed, measured and tested the core.
"Hawthorn, eleven inches, six ounces, Thunderbird tail feather core," he announced, smiling. "Same core as Ranger. Feathers are a genetic match."
"Hot damn," Bobby stated.
"You may use your wand to access the seventh floor. However, I would prefer that you use this fob," the IT man stated, passing me a small black device. "Press and hold the button for two seconds before you press the elevator button."
"Thank you," I replied.
Tank, Lester and Bobby accompanied me to the seventh floor. They got me to use the fob to move the elevator car. My fob also opened the apartment door. "The spell volumes are through here," Tank said, guiding me to the office. "Use your wand to open the safe."
I pulled my wand from the back of my pants and tapped the safe, thinking alohomora. The locks tumbled, and the vault opened. I reached in to lift a heavy volume from the interior. Tank grabbed the book to place on the desk. "Gabriella will bring your meal. Don't spill any on the book," Lester said. He leaned into me and whispered, "Gabby is Ranger's special friend."
They left me to do my research. A beautiful woman entered the apartment with food. "Hi, you must be Stephanie," Gabriella stated.
"Yes. And you are Gabriella?" I asked.
She giggled. "I am. Ranger doesn't have women in his apartment," she replied, providing information I never requested. I felt slightly jealous of the woman. Why would Ranger be with me when this woman was around?
"I'm Ric's cousin," Gabriella announced. I visibly relaxed. "No doubt this was Lester's way to initiate you."
"He has no idea who he's messing with," I snapped.
"I see a payback plan in your future," she joked. Gabriella kept me company as I ate the delicious meal she had prepared.
It was a simple plan to pay back the jokester. "Don't leave this room," I said, grabbing her fob to access the fourth-floor apartments. She gave me the blue food colouring that she conjured from her kitchen.
I moved through the building to get to Lester's apartment. Using a spell, I determined the apartment was empty. His shampoo bottle was where Gabrielle said he kept it located. I was relieved when I saw the bottle was a solid colour. After tampering with his shampoo, I put a hex on his hair gel. It would make his hair flop.
Gabriella asked what took me so long. "I'm sorry, but I used all of the food colouring," I said, passing her the empty container. She vanished it into thin air.
"No worries. I wasn't using it," Gabriella said, shrugging.
Twenty minutes later, I heard banging on the apartment door. "What did you do?" Lester asked. He was wearing a towel around his waist. His hair was a brilliant shade of blue, and the carefully spiked hair had frizzed, making him look like a troll.
"Oh my gosh. You look so funny," I replied. I used my phone to take pictures.
"I know it was you. Nobody ever pulls a prank on me," Lester stated.
"Have you never heard that payback was a bitch?" I asked, tilting my head to the side to see if his hair could look slightly less ridiculous.
"I may have heard that a time or two," Lester admitted.
"Were you ever going to tell me that Gabby and Carlos are cousins?" I sweetly asked. He shook his head. "The next time you prank me, I'll make you go bald."
Lester's mouth popped open. "You wouldn't do that," he stated.
"I dare you to try me. You messed with my emotions and pregnancy hormones. Don't ever forget that you got warned," I calmly said. My tone seemed to scare Lester more than the threat.
"I promise never to prank you again," Lester said. "Could you please fix my hair?"
Rolling my eyes, I pulled my wand from the back of my pants. I used the reversal incantations to remove the hex and transfiguration to return his colour to normal. "Why didn't you reverse the spell and remove the colour?" I asked.
"I tried, but it made my hair grow," Lester confessed.
I doubled over in laughter. "Please tell me you didn't use a strengthening charm," I laughed.
"Um. I didn't use the strengthening charm?"
"Wow. For future reference, if you suspect a hex got placed on you, say the general reversal spell," I stated. "You should return to your apartment to get dressed."
"Ya, right," Lester said before turning around. I shook my head as I closed the door. "You are an evil woman, beautiful."
The ancient spells book contained incantations to bind using magic, binding souls, unbreakable charms, among others. I read the bind souls spell and noticed the asterisk for wands. In the footnotes, it referenced a book on wand lore. Luckily, I saw that book in the safe.
When I retrieved the book and checked the reference, I noticed the handwritten note. "Wand properties are not an exact science. However, if the cores contain a genetic match, and their owners interact physically, emotionally, or with duelling, it strengthens the bond between the owners and their wands. History has proved the connection exists. I don't understand why a wand would cast a spell without witch or wizard influence. My theory is the wand core recognized the other witch or wizard's wand as their mate and cast the soul binding charm to ensure their owners remain together forever."
"Interesting theory," I mumbled. "If only the wandmaker knew how right he was." I checked the time and locked the books back into the safe. I've been awake nearly all night. Thankfully, I didn't have to work in the morning.
I dreamed of Carlos and Hermione as we fought the evil witches and wizards. My little boy got hidden away for safety. We were standing outside of Hogwarts castle. Carlos and I stood side by side, flanked by Tank, Lester and Bobby. They protected our backs as we protected theirs. Hermione was somewhere with her friends to help Harry Potter. A piercing scream ripped through the air, waking me from the dream.
Chipper sat on the windowsill in the dining room. He had a note attached to his left leg, patiently waiting to get it removed once I woke up. Gabriella left a message on the table. "Found the bird outside the building. He wouldn't let me remove the note."
"Good boy," I said, ruffling his feathers. He held out his leg for me to detach the parchment. Hermione sent me a letter. I read her tiny script to see that she planned to stay at Hogwarts for Easter and asked me to pass along the message to her dad, Carl. Hermione cited the reason was extra time to study. I had a strong feeling she wanted to keep Harry Potter company.
Carl hoped that Hermione would visit during the Easter break. I thought it was ridiculous asking her to travel that distance for the one day he was available. Hermione nipped it in the bud. She didn't want to spend precious time getting from Britain to New York. Using her studies as an excuse was numerous. She'd visit in the summer for nine weeks.
I wrote a reply to Hermione before taking the elevator to the first floor. Chipper left my shoulder when I opened the lobby door. Tank patiently waited for me in the elevator. He saw me leave the seventh floor and joined me. "Did you find what you were looking for?" Tank asked.
"Yup," I replied. "It confirmed what I had already assumed."
"What was that?" he wondered.
"Old magic and wand lore combined. Things happen that nobody could possibly explain. It's something we need to accept without question," I stated.