AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“How long?” Oliver gulped. He felt the blood drain from his face and his head swam.
“Minimum? Twenty years.”
Oliver wanted to curl up in a ball. “What if I plead guilty?”
“Magic stripped, they still take Rill, and three years’ probation.”
Oliver slumped in his chair, then he leaned forward, elbows on the table and pressed his face into his hands. His life was over either way—if he lost, or if he pled guilty. He looked at Rill. The bird was so small, so delicate. Could he condemn him to a life of experimentation or immediate death? He was an animal. A bird. Heck, a magpie, most people thought of those as skyrats. He shook his head. No. Rill was special. He’d only known him for two days, and he was ready to fight for him.
Geoffrey watched his nephew, a pensive look on his face. Oliver looked up and his eyes were steely. “OK uncle. We will plead not guilty and hope you can save us both.”
Rill added his “beep.”
Geoffrey nodded once and brushed his hands down his thighs. “Let’s go check out your greenhouse situation. Would you accompany us Rill?” he asked the bird politely.
Rill hopped over to Oliver’s shoulder, a definite yes.
“What did Rill tell you?” Oliver kept asking but so far, his uncle had put him off. He wished with all his heart he had the ability to speak to birds like his uncle.
“I don’t know if you want to know.”
He reached up and brushed a finger along Rill’s breast. “I do.”
“If I tell you this, and the Guild does a mind search of you, it could mean they send out their goons and make you disappear.”
Oliver swallowed and rubbed the back of his neck. “That stuff is really true? They make people disappear?”
Geoffrey shrugged. “Yup.”
Oliver thought he should rethink his goals based on that statement, but he’d probably burned those bridges already. “It’s fine. I need to know how to protect him.”
They climbed the stairs to the roof and headed out.
“If you’re fine then you should know Rill did belong to the Guild. He was part of an ongoing experiment to increase the intelligence of common familiars. But they were basically using magic to manipulate their genetics. They did something else, but Rill’s explanation was vague. Because of how traumatic it was, some of the familiars weren’t right, mentally. Rill has a few horror stories. They were also tortured to bring forth new abilities. Rill was lucky to be so smart. The second he had a chance; he escaped the Guild. He said he found you because your spirit was bright and loving.”
Oliver found that statement very touching. He had to blink back tears, as he looked at Rill. “Thanks, buddy.”
Rill beeped at him.
Geoffrey looked around the greenhouse, at the coins and other items. But he didn’t say much, probably because Rill had already told him all he needed to know.
“So, we should be heading out in thirty,” Geoffrey said.
Oliver led them back to the apartment, and he hurried to get in the shower.
Chapter Eight
Clean, and in his only suit, Oliver was as ready as he could get. According to his uncle, this would be a simple, go in, they read the charges, he would plead not guilty, and they’d get a court date.
He left the window ajar for Rill and followed his uncle to the Cadillac. Even though the Guild court was its own entity, a lot of what they did mirrored the mundane world, so just like Geoffrey said it would happen—did. The Guild building was intimidating. All marble and authoritative. They went into a room, where a wizard sat in formal robes, with the flat square hat that declared him a judge. He pled not guilty, and after a calendar search by the judge, they were given a date.
After court, they walked out. They had dropped the theft charge, but the illegal familiar stood. Now, it was up to his uncle, and whoever his investigator was to prove the rest. Until then, he wasn’t allowed to use overt magic, but he was free to go to work and run the building. They assumed Rill would remain locked up and he didn’t disabuse them of that option.
He didn’t know what they expected would happen to his familiar if he were locked up with no food or water, but they probably wanted Rill dead anyway. He was glad Rill was too clever for them.
Geoffrey dropped him off, and he dragged his feet up the stairs to his apartment. He hadn’t had time for more questions, and Geoffrey seemed to have it well in hand. He probably didn’t know the why behind anything anyway. He was just lucky that Geoffrey knew the law. He had to leave for work in an hour, but until then, he could have a little break. He stopped a few feet from his door, because there was something in front of it. He approached and picked up another plate of cookies.
He frowned. She was definitely flirting. What did he do? Just the thought of speaking to the pretty woman made him sweat. He stuck a finger in his collar and tried to pull it away from his throat. When that didn’t work, he loosened his tie, and unbuttoned the top button. He picked up the plate and unlocked his door. He saw that there was a note under the cellophane, so after he set it down on the kitchen counter, he picked it up and read the note.
