"Magic?" Lillet asked, surprised. "What does magic have to do with these killings?" Her interest was twofold, now not only for Amoretta's sake but in her own right as the kingdom's ranking advisor on magical matters.
Inspector Ballatore slipped his notebook back into his pocket.
"In the experience of the Watch--and this, I may add, is the great benefit of having a professional police instead of an ad hoc militia like the Albionese--these kinds of sadistic crimes tend to be carried out by a single person. That isn't always the case, as even in lunacy there can be leaders and followers, but the kind of insanity that makes a person murder isn't usually a thing that can be shared. Do you follow?"
"I certainly can believe that."
"What bothered me as a Watch officer, then, was the third incident, last night's. There were two separate victims, both killed there in the alley. One can imagine, for example, a gentleman enticing a prostitute into the alley to conduct her trade, then surprising and killing her. What I can't see is a single man killing two at once in elaborate, ritualistic fashion. To meet with the killer's little 'game,' they had to die in a certain way and no other, and that demands control of the situation. The alley isn't even an enclosed space; the second girl could run or scream...it just isn't likely that a single killer could accomplish these crimes under those circumstances."
"I see," Lillet said, still cradling Amoretta against her. "With magic, a single person could act as many, by summoning familiar spirits to give him or her extra sets of hands."
"That's it exactly," Ballatore said. "Ms. Riesling investigated the scene, and found the residue of sorcery." He glanced at his companion. "Why don't you explain it to her, so we don't have to bother with layman's terms?"
"I doubt that I need to give Mage Consul Blan a lesson in elementary spell-tracing."
She didn't, although Lillet didn't understand why she had to be so snippy about it. Employing magic exerted control over the natural laws, and this distortion left traces that another magician could examine, determining what kind of magical Runes had been created in an area. The effect did not last long--a few hours at most--but it did exist. Certain familiars left similar traces for the same reason. Those of Glamour did not, since they were expressions of the natural law, and neither did those of Alchemy, which art manipulated nature in artificial ways but was still subject to it. Necromancy and Sorcery, though, involved summoning spirits from other existences into the world, and they, too could be traced. Unfortunately, none of this gave any information about the magician who had done the summoning.
"No, you don't. You're a magician, Ms. Riesling?"
"Yes. There are a few of us that work for the Watch. It helps to show the people that magic can be used to protect and help them."
"Oh, are you related to Royal Magician Manfred Riesling?"
"He's my father," she answered stiffly.
Lillet knew the elder Riesling from her own days at the Royal House of Magic, but his daughter did not seem to be in any mood to exchange pleasantries--and given Amoretta's distress, neither was Lillet.
"So what kind of sorcery did you find? The traces of familiars?"
"Yes, definitely that, but there was something more besides extra hands."
"A Rune?"
If at all possible, Riesling looked even more disconcerted than she had before.
"No, not a Rune...It was similar, but something else, some very definite trace of sorcery being performed, something powerful."
A shudder ran through Lillet. Sorcery was the magical art of employing the power of devils. Ordinary sorcery kept the creatures under tight control, for even a minor imp or demon given free reign could do terrible evil. Lillet's own experiences, though, had given her hard lessons in the risks that came with treating with infernal powers.
That something involved with the diabolic had fixated on Amoretta, though, made Lillet's terror acute. To a devil Amoretta was all but irresistible: an angelic soul with the purity of Heaven, but placed into a fleshly body that was subject to temptation.
Oddly enough, it was this revelation that seemed to break through Amoretta's sorrow and let her regain control. Her tears slowed, and she looked up at Riesling.
"If there is a devil involved, then we have to stop it," she said flatly. Her voice held no lingering traces of her previous sobs the way a human's would.
"I don't know what was done," Riesling said, obviously frustrated. "It was definitely sorcerous magic, but it didn't match any of the ordinary Runes."
"You should investigate it, Lillet," Amoretta said. "You might be able to identify something she couldn't."
"It's too late now," Riesling said. "The traces will be gone."
"Of the familiars or an ordinary Rune, yes," Lillet said, "but you know that the stronger the magic, the greater the distortion in the world and the longer it takes to repair."
"That is a point...and, of course, you're far more skilled at sorcery than I am. With your interest in Miss Virgine, I'm sure that you have motivation to know all the answers."
Lillet's blood ran cold.
"Are you trying to imply that I'm responsible for this?"
"Lillet would never do something so horrible!" Amoretta said fiercely.
"No, of course not," Ballatore said at once. "Look, I'd be grateful for any help you can offer, Mage Consul, in explaining what might be happening magically. As for you, Miss Virgine, if you can remember anything that might be relevant, some overzealous admirer perhaps, please let us know." He stood up, gave a little bow to them both. "We'd best be going. I apologize if the circumstances and our lack of sleep have made us a bit snappish."
Lillet noted that Riesling didn't apologize, but she didn't push the point.
"I'm glad that you came and told us, Inspector. If some lunatic is obsessed with Amoretta, I need to know."
He nodded.
"Good day, Mage Consul, Miss Virgine."
Ballatore left, Riesling in his wake.
"Lillet, what are we going to do?" Amoretta asked as soon as they were gone. "I...I'm inspiring someone to murder!"
Lillet held her close.
"I'm going to do what I promised. I'm going to keep you safe no matter what the threat."
Ballatore was fuming as the hired carriage took himself and Riesling away from Lillet's townhouse.
"Janice, just what did you think you were doing? You as good as accused the Mage Consul to her face that she's butchering women in honor of her lover."
"I didn't say that."
"You implied it!" Ballatore crashed his fist against the carriage door. "Damn it, Janice, you've been stewing ever since Saint told us where Miss Virgine lives. What's the problem?"
"Maybe she did do it! I wouldn't put anything past that deviant!"
Ballatore gave her a cool, assessing look.
"So you think that because she's a lesbian she's capable of sadistic murder?"
"That isn't what I meant!" Riesling snapped.
"Then what do you mean? What exactly is it that has your nose out of joint?"
"It's that girl, Amoretta. How old would you say she is?"
"Eighteen or so?"
"Then would you be surprised to know she came to the capital with Lillet Blan some five years ago and she hasn't aged a day since?"
Ballatore was momentarily stunned.
"What?"
"You heard me. Blan herself grew up from a teenager to a young woman, but not her lover. Amoretta Virgine doesn't age. Do you know why?"
"Obviously not. Go on."
"They don't exactly shout it from the rooftops, but most of the Royal Magicians know; I heard it from my father. She's a homunculus."
"Wait, isn't that some kind of--"
"Artificial life, created by alchemy. She's incredibly advanced; I can't even begin to imagine the level of knowledge and the sheer power it took to make her. That isn't the point, though. The point is that Lillet Blan cooked up a love doll for herself in the lab, built to her own specifications. And if that isn't disgusting enough, remember that a homunculus is an alchemy familiar, bound to serve its creator as part of the magic." Riesling snarled and looked aside. "And that is the kind of person who is the public face of magic in this kingdom. There are still parts of the country today where local lords and fundamentalist priests will burn magicians at the stake. Oh, I'm sure Blan is a powerful magician, but public acceptance of magic is too new to risk having a sexual pervert as Mage Consul."
Ballatore felt his gut twist in revulsion. A career in the Watch had taught him far too much about what men and women did with one another in private. It had left him jaded about others' sexual practices; so long as no one was unconsenting--force, youth, or chemical state--then he cared only if it was relevant as a motive for crime. But this was different. Who made something that could walk and talk and think like a person for their own gratification?
Did Amoretta Virgine count as a victim, he wondered? She hadn't acted like one. When upset she'd clung to Lillet for comfort and protection. On the other hand, Lillet had refused to leave them alone. Was she being protective--or controlling? Was a homunculus even capable of thinking rebellious thoughts? Or was her mind enchanted, perhaps even from creation? Everyone had heard stories and myths about love spells.
No, it might not have been legally actionable, but it sickened him.
"Do you think she's guilty, Janice?" she asked quietly.
"Maybe. I just don't know," Riesling snapped, clenching her fists in her lap in frustration. "The murders have something to do with that homunculus; they have to. And there's magic involved, sorcery--but I don't know what. It might be her."
"Or it might be some enemy of hers. You can't get to be that powerful without making a few--the ones she stepped on and the ones who are jealous or resentful. There's a twisted kind of revenge gained by attacking a person's loved ones. Torture certainly isn't beyond the kind of person who could do this..."
He let his voice trail away, then gathered himself and looked directly at Riesling.
"Janice, I have to know one thing. We'll be interacting with the Mage Consul one way or another from here on out. It's certain that Miss Virgine is at the heart of it, and where she is, Lillet Blan will be. I need to know if you can deal with her civilly."
"Raoul--"
"I mean it, Janice. We have one goal, and that is to catch the monster that's committing these murders. If Blan is innocent than picking a fight with a powerful government minister isn't going to make our investigation any easier. A word in the right ears and we could be off the case, perhaps out of our jobs. And if she's guilty...well, you know how important it is to have ironclad evidence when accusing the Powers That Be of crime."
Riesling scowled in annoyance, but she knew the Inspector was right.
"Oh, I'll bite my tongue right enough, though it won't be easy. I hope she did do it, so I can be a part of bringing her down."
"So long as you don't let that wish get in the way of the evidence."
"I won't--if we have any evidence. Where do you plan to get any?"
"Well, Miss Virgine couldn't--or wouldn't--tell if there was someone obsessed or overly interested in her. If there's someone who's been lurking about, though, the staff at the City Theater will have noticed."
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