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His mustache twitched. "I can see you're both determined to be difficult about this.
Very well. Yes, I'm here to seize possession of the Tear. We received reports from
several citizens who sensed a strong magic in the area, so we decided to do some
investigation. The Tear is a level five artifact, clearly too powerful to be in the hands of a
citizen. We will compensate you with a sum of forty-thousand shakas, as I've been trying
to explain to this young lady. I think it quite generous."
Julie scowled. "She could get twice that much if she found the right buyer, but even
if you were offering her a hundred-thousand, it wouldn't change anything. It's hers."
"Nonsense," said the man, and puffed out his chest like an irate turkey. "It belongs to
the proper authorities. You two would have no idea how to use it, anyway."
Wendy clenched her fists. "Do you have any idea what sort of hell I went through to
get that thing?"
"As I said, you will be duly compensated. We're prepared to negotiate "
"I don't care how much you offer me. I'm not handing it over."
"I don't think you realize the position you're in, Ms. Martin. You have no choice in
the matter. If you don't cooperate, we'll have the police here in a few hours. They'll search
the place from top to bottom. They'll find it, wherever you've hidden it, and then you'll be
looking at a fat fine for disorderly conduct and refusal to cooperate with the law. You
might even get some jail time. In the long run, you won't accomplish anything by
resisting, so why don't you just make this easier on both of us?"
Wendy took a deep breath. She wanted to scream curses at the man, but getting
pissed wouldn't help anything, and it would probably hurt. Think. If she could just hold
onto it long enough to find and help Zander& "Listen. Can I keep the Tear for just a little
while longer? Say, six weeks?"
His brow furrowed. "What exactly do you need it for?"
"It's not for me. It's for someone else, only& I don't know where he is right now. Just
give me a little time, and then I'll turn over the Tear without any complaints, I promise."
Of course, at that point its powers would be gone, but they didn't need to know that.
"I'm sorry, but I simply can't accept that," said Bridle. "I have my orders. I came here
to retrieve Eloria's Tear, and that's what I intend to do. Now, where is it?"
She scowled. "You can have it over my dead body."
"Well!" The man placed his hands on his hips and sniffed. "I see we're going to do
this the hard way. I'll give you one last chance to cooperate. I warn you, Ms. Martin, you
do not want me as an enemy!"
"Oh, please. There's nothing you can do. You don't have a warrant to search my
place."
"No, but I can easily get one."
"Fine, then get one. But until you can show me a warrant, you have no right to be
here. This is my store, so get out."
"I'll be back, mark my word!" He shook a finger at her, then walked out of the shop,
huffing and muttering under his breath. The coach door slammed, then the horses broke
into a trot, and the coach rolled away.
"Snooty bastard." She kicked the wall, stubbing her toe, and winced.
"I'm so sorry, Wendy," said Julie. A tear ran down her cheek. "After everything you
went through, to think they could just& "
"They aren't getting the Tear."
Realization dawned on her face. "You're going to hide it somewhere outside the
house before they get back, aren't you?"
"No. I'm going to take it and leave the city."
Julie's eyes widened. "Where will you go?"
"I don't know yet. I just know that I can't let them have it, not after everything I went
through& and I don't trust those Bureau guys. Who knows what they're planning to use it
for?"
"But& "
"Wait here." Wendy ran up the stairs and pulled the wooden box out from under her
bed. When she d first hidden the Tear inside, she d carved a ward into the lid to mask its
power, but apparently it hadn t been enough.
She flipped open the box to confirm that Eloria s Tear was still inside. Then she
snapped the lid shut, tucked the box under her arm, threw some clothes into a pack,
grabbed her broomstick, and went downstairs. Julie waited, wringing her hands. "When
they come back, tell them you tried to stop me," said Wendy. "There's no reason you
should get in trouble for this, too."
"Are you sure about this?"
"Yes. I'm sure. It'll take him a few hours to fill out all the paperwork he needs for a
warrant. I can be well out of the city by the time they get back here."
"I can see I'm not going to change your mind about this." Julie hugged her tight.
"Just be careful. Please."
She returned the hug, gave Julie a reassuring smile and left the shop, wondering if
she'd gone crazy. They'd probably send patrols after her. They'd track her down. Even if
they didn't, she'd have to come back to the city at some point, and when she did, she'd
probably be in a lot of trouble.
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