Witch's Bell Book One Read Free Page B

Point is rookie, Eb here is a witch.'
    Detective Nate nodded slowly, offering something halfway between a smile and grimace. 'We've covered this.'
    'Yep, she's a witch, and she works for us. Vale here is sitting on top of a... now let me get this right... a portal between worlds that somehow makes the energy here more charged.... Kind of like a storm, I guess,' Ben muddled through his words, hands flying about him as he tried to make sense of his confused thoughts.
    'Yes, how about I explain,' Ebony cut in. 'Vale is sitting on top of a Portal, that much is true. In fact, there are many such Portals all around the world; you just wouldn't know it. Vale's Portal, however, is unusually strong,' she said quickly, knowing that such detail would be entirely under-appreciated by the new guy Detective. He had no clue about magic, so the prospect that Vale was sitting on one of the biggest inter-dimensional rifts this side of the Milk Way, wasn't one he'd appreciate.
    She took a deep breath, and decided to continue trying to explain the incredibly complex to the obviously stupid: “while the Vale Portal itself is usually closed, things sometimes leak through. This usually isn't the problem, though. What is the problem is that being in such proximity to an inter-dimensional tunnel means that the city of Vale is highly charged with magical fields. Without going too far into the theory of Field Work, what happens is that being so charged it becomes much easier for people to unintentionally produce magic.' Ebony looked up to see Nate's face, a picture of pained confusion. 'You aren't getting this, are you?'
    'A magical bookstore just tried to kill me because I called it messy,' Nate said truthfully. 'I have to say, I'm having difficulty paying attention.'
    'Hmm okay, good point. Let me put it this way: when someone straps themselves to a metal pole on a bright summer's day, what is their chance of being struck by lightning?'
    Nate took a sigh, chest moving deeply. It was as if he was finally surrendering to the sheer ridiculousness of the situation. 'Low to none.'
    'Right, how about if they strap themselves to a metal pole during a violent thunder storm? Their chances increase measurably, right?' She waited for the detective to nod. 'Well this is Vale. Vale is a violent electrical storm of magic. Now, anyone who recites an incantation they find off the Internet, or buys a book on devil craft, or accidentally picks up a cursed rocking chair in an antique store – they are like that idiot strapping himself to a metal pole. In the ordinary, everyday world, magic is incredibly hard. Here, magic is easy to attract, but still hits you like a thunderbolt.'
    'The way I look at it,' Ben shifted a pile of magazines off the couch and sat down, 'is like this. Magic is like drugs. People use it to forget themselves, get high, get transcendental, whatever. But the stuff is powerful and addictive. It's cheap too, yet comes at a Hell of a price. As Eb said, any goon with an Internet connection can look up the dark arts, just like any idiot can go downtown and get wasted on drugs. The kids don't know what they're dealing with, but like the high. And we clean up after them.'
    'Junkies,' Nate raised an eyebrow, 'Vale is a city of magical junkies... right?'
    'No, no, you've got the wrong picture. There really isn't too much magical crime around,' Ebony made her way over to the counter and started shuffling around behind it. 'Honestly, there isn't. Vale is usually quite ordinary. However-'
    'On special occasions, we have to call in to see Eb. We bring her a biscuit, she steals our coffee, and goes and finds our bad guy.'
    Ebony finally found the book she was looking for. 'Ah ha, here you go, Detective Nate, here's some light reading for you.'
    Nate took the book and looked at the cover. 'A Brief History of Magical Crime in Vale? Ahh... who wrote this... and who published it-'
    'Oh no one wrote it, it wrote itself.' Ebony pulled out another book and threw it