Chapter 2

Milady 

Milady hurls the backpack in a corner as she arrives back home, pours herself a drink and downs it. Drastic times call for drastic measures. She pours herself another one. Crossing the worlds. That was not the plan she had for her life.

Of all the folks he could have shown himself to, he chose her? What the fuck is that all about? It’s not like she has any choice now. As opposed to some hapless bougie who must have seen him as well. At least they could ignore him.

She slumps down on the worn sofa and stares at the wall. A month from now and she and Gullvi will thin the veil and cross over. God knows what shape they will return in. If they do return.

Damn her prying mind. She could have just let the tarot be. Gone on with her life. Pretended not to have seen him. And then it would have been too late…

She glares at the bricked-up window. They will need to come up with a payment.. The bribe for the Guardians. There will be a contract made, she knows. A deal with them to enter. She has no clue what they would accept. An infused amulet? Time of servitude? No freaking idea. But they won’t be able to cross the worlds without it and, if they are unlucky, will not even return alive.

Most of her knowledge of magic comes from intuition, books, and mistakes. But her intuition stays quiet at this moment, mistakes are non-existent in this area, and none of the books will give a damn answer to what would be a suitable price. No, they only go on and on about that it needs to be a fair deal. As if she couldn’t have figured that out by herself. She knows this much at least: Simply burning incense, as she has seen recommended in the occult magazines, pretending to know something, is not the answer. You might as well unlive yourself before even opening the portal. Must be less painful than what the Guardians will do to you.

She writes “Price!?” in the notebook next to her and circles it with a red pen. She’ll need to talk to Gullvi about it.

So that’s her month planned out: Find a way to keep herself alive, prepare brews and cast spells.

She sighs, pushes herself up and takes out a book from the tilting shelf. No time to waste. You bastard.

And thus her week passes, faster than she’d wished. She visits every single herb shop in the city, stays up late to make sure all the spells are noted down and then there is that freaking price… She’s looked through every book she owns, and trust me, she has quite a library being a self-taught adept, but not a single one will specify what would be good enough for the Guardians. In her notebook, she’s written down a list of potential suspects. A chicken? Probably not enough. A goat? There are those voodoo priests specializing in that. But to pull a tethered goat through the city and into the portal? As if she didn’t have enough to think about already. She crosses it off the list.

The answer comes from an unexpected direction when, one day, she’s on her way back from collecting herbs for the latest brew when she sees Rat in the park. He’s struck up some girl. A runaway, by the look of her fancy clothes. His latest victim, she assumes. He specializes in that the easy targets that will secure him another supply for the night. She continues her walk and has almost passed them when intuition whispers, “That’s it. That’s the answer to the price”.

She halts and looks at him. He leans over the bougie, and she giggles at something he says. The Star, and The Chariot. Yes, of course… That’s what they meant.. And Rat is the answer.

She hasn’t considered human sacrifice so far; it’s not part of her normal repertoire. After all, you need to draw a line somewhere. But the portal needs to be closed, and if this is the way, she’s not the one to question it. And anyway, he might not be an actual sacrifice. It could be enough with simply shedding some blood. In any case, no one would miss Rat would something go wrong.

“Hey, Jake!”

That’s his second street name, in case you wonder. The one used to make a living, aka woo unsuspecting victims, dodge the police or any other shady businesses where it’s better to keep low-key.

“Jake”

She’s surprised he remembers his name. You can never be certain about the state of his glue-eaten brain. He swears silently when he sees her approaching, but his latest victim is apparently important enough not to screw it up, and so he puts on his Jake face in her honour.

“Oh, Rachel! Long time no see. How are you?””

She never knows if he invents the names or simply doesn’t remember what she’s called. Doesn’t matter. The less time you spend with Rat, the better. She’s always suspected that his eroded grey matter can infect you simply by his mere presence.

“Jake, do you have a moment?”

“A moment? Well, it depends. I just met this lovely girl here. I’m helping her find a place to sleep. She's homeless, just like me. “

“Yes, a moment, Jake. Can you come?”

He glances at the girl. She smiles eagerly, probably happy she’s found a friend in this new city. She’d be better off wandering the highway than in any proximity to Rat.

“You just wait here. I'm just coming back in a little second.”

He knows his place in the pecking order. The street is built on reputation,n and in Rat’s case, his glue-infested mind made sure he ended up at the bottom. He saunters over to Milady.

“Whatcha want? I’m busy.”

“I have a favour to ask you”.

“A favour?”

Nothing makes Rat listen as the prospect of his next score.

“There is a small thing you could do for me”.

He glances back at the girl.

“Like what…?, he asks as he turns back. I’m busy tonight, he adds”.

“It's not for tonight; it will be for the next month.”

Rat’s eyes screw shut. Difficult concept for his disintegrated brain, understanding any time that is further away than tomorrow.

“But I can pay you tomorrow, okay?, Milady adds”.

“You better. What is it”

“You will help me with a little magic task.”

He starts to back away.

“Not a chance, not a chance…”

“I'll pay you good, Milady tries.

“Not a chance man, not a chance man. I need to go, ciao.”

He turns and hurries back to the girl, and Milady is left staring. That was not how it was supposed to go… He leans over and whispers something to the girl when it hits Milady. It’s not him! It’s the girl I need!

“Ra.. Jake! Wait!”

He turns and glances at her. He is most definitely out of glue because he walks back to her.

“Whatcha want?”

“I have a better deal for you, nothing to do with the magic”.

“Then what?”

“Sell me your prey.”

“Sell you my prey? Hmm…”

Sweet spot.

“So, what’s your price?”

He has already abandoned the girl in his mind, dreaming of what he can get tonight.

“A bottle of vodka and a hash cake?”

“Tss… I’m not that cheap.”

“50?”

Milady knows he lost the ability to count above ten a long time ago. She almost expects him to start to count on his fingers when he says,

“100?”

Oh, so we’re playing that game now? Never mind, I need the girl.

“Deal.”

Best deal he has scored in a long while. She opens her backpack to pay him, and she hears him mumble to himself,

“Maybe I can go and eat something and get a drink. Not the cheapest one, no, that makes my stomach turn. And stoned, I can get stoned. And what about something else? Some mushrooms. Yes, that sounds good. Mushroom and wine….”

She hands him the cash, and without even looking at the girl, he takes it and walks away. Probably to the closest liquor shop.

You can listen to the Audiobook version on my YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@maratellsstories