Read Online Undercover Magic by Judy Teel - Free Book Online

present was as good a time as any.
    Hoverbuses were tightly monitored, so I sprang for a cab and got out three blocks
     from my destination to walk the rest of the way. The neighborhood was surprisingly
     pleasant, making me wonder if this was what the world would be like if paranormals
     had never made their presence known.
    The house where Falcon's mother lived was a compact and orderly Cape Cod painted white
     with blue trim. It had well tended shade trees surrounding it and window boxes all
     along the second floor with yellow flowers overflowing from them.
    Even though the property enjoyed the relative safety of a prosperous neighborhood,
     a state-of-the-art paranormal fence surrounded it, humming with magic and electricity.
     A bit of overkill, but I had to admit that if my mother was still alive, I'd probably
     have done the same thing.
    With sundown still an hour and a half away and plenty of people scurrying about their
     business, the gate still stood open. I went through like I belonged there and knocked
     on the door. A short, plump woman with a round, scrubbed-clean face answered.
    "I'm here to see Mrs. Hallford," I said, keeping my expression and tone innocently
     pleasant.
    She gave me a disapproving scowl and I reassessed my impression of her—pleasant on
     the outside, steel on the inside. Maybe not the housekeeper.
    "Don't you people ever give up? Miss Marilyn doesn't see visitors."
    "I'm doing a story on local business owners who have come from nothing and gone on
     to be successful." Why did Falcon's mom need a watchdog?
    "You're not another solicitor from those nasty vamps?"
    "I'm a freelance feature writer for the Charlotte Observer," I answered, putting plenty
     of friendly into it. "Falcon Hallford is one of the owners we're highlighting. I'm
     talking to family and friends to give the article a stronger human interest slant.
     Childhood stories, proud moments, that sort of thing."
    The watchdog searched my face and I hoped I looked sincere enough to gain entry.
    She smiled and I knew I was in. "No." She slammed the door.
    I blinked at the blue painted metal. What the hell? I pounded on the hard, cold surface
     and was summarily ignored. Very inconvenient.
    I started around back and the door popped open. The sweet little watchdog pointed
     an old M16 assault rifle at me. "Git," she snarled.
    "Yes, ma'am."
    I raised my hands and backed down the lovely stone walkway and out to the sidewalk.
     She reached back inside the house and the gate swung closed with a "don't call us,
     we'll call you" kind of clunk as it locked.
    Great. Now I'd have to find another way in.
    I headed off down the street. When I got out of sight of the house, I doubled back.
     Taking the street that ran behind Mrs. Hallford's neighborhood, I hoped I'd be able
     to find a way in.
     
    *  *  *
     
    I lobbed another pebble at the window above me, and ignored the feeling that I'd stepped
     into a two-bit movie from a hundred years ago. In my line of work you had to focus
     on doing what worked, not what made you look good. Sometimes that meant enlarging
     a hole under a dangerous fence and throwing rocks at a magically booby-trapped window.
    A few moments before, I'd seen a woman with grey hair look out the window while she
     hugged a thick lavender sweater around her shoulders as if to ward off some hidden
     threat. It had been nearly seven years since I'd seen her, but I recognized Mrs. Hallford
     immediately.
    If I wanted my answers, I had to speak with her. Since I couldn't come to her, the
     next best thing was her coming to me.
    A movement in the room caught my attention and I quickly tossed a handful of small
     rocks at the window. They hit the glass with a sharp shower of sound and tumbled into
     the window box below the frame. The shadow flickered and Mrs. Hallford appeared.
    Stepping away from the trashcan where I'd been hiding, I waved my arms over my head,
     hoping to get her attention and praying no one else would