3 - Plumber Paul

GILDEON

As soon as Arah drifted off, he slipped out and hit the road. Her Clover Wish tattoo and Plumber Paul's death might’ve been a coincidence, but he had to be sure.

“Where to now, Master?” Ghulik asked in his tiny, raspy voice. “Ghulik's tired, Master.”

“You wouldn’t be tired if you didn’t provoke the dog,” Gildeon shot back, glancing at the two-foot, gray-skinned creature beside him.

Barky's restlessness had kept Arah awake longer than usual, so he had to wait before leaving. His destination was opposite the tourist area, but the locals were early risers. There was always the risk of being seen even before dawn.

So far, the streets were deserted.

“But that mutt is wicked, Master. Always angry. It wants to eat Ghulik,” the goblin snarled, scratching the air with his sharp nails. “Can Ghulik eat the stupid dog once we're back home, Master?”

“No,” he said firmly, turning onto a dimly lit street.

Ghulik grunted, slumping against the seat.

“You’re supposed to hide when the dog's around,” he reminded him. “Arah's getting suspicious.”

“Why is Master worried? The Sylph Lady will not see Ghulik. No one can see or hear Ghulik but Master.” The goblin scrunched his wrinkled face and crossed his scrawny arms. “And Barky.”

Ghulik’s grudge against the dog ran deep, which was almost laughable considering the horrifying monsters they’d faced in the past.

But Ghulik had a point. Arah couldn’t see him. Still, the last thing Gildeon needed was for her to get curious and start believing in supernatural things. He had no idea how long her memory loss would last or if it was permanent, but it was safer to keep her away from anything that could awaken her true nature.

If she remembered, his entire plan could crumble.

The air reacting to her emotions, like what happened at dinner, was already setting off alarms in his head. Soon, Arah’s powers would start manifesting without her knowledge, and he had to find a way to keep them in check.

After a few more turns, Gildeon parked the car a couple of blocks from the coroner's office. He stuck to the shadows, walking along the side of the street that wasn’t illuminated by lampposts, with Ghulik trailing behind. When they finally reached the facility, he ordered the goblin to reposition the CCTV cameras to create blind spots.

Not a minute passed before he heard snapping gears and wires. When Ghulik returned, Gildeon shot him a disapproving look. “I told you to just move them,” he hissed.

“Forgive Ghulik, Master.” He cowered, ducking his head, but Gildeon heard him snicker.

Shaking his head, he strode toward the front of the building. With a flick of his wrist, his right hand morphed into its dragon form—golden claws gleaming, black and golden scales snaking up past his wrist. He conjured fire and grabbed the padlock and chains with his flaming hand, melting the metal.

Behind him, Ghulik gasped. “Master must not use power. Why is Master using power now?”

“It’s fine,” Gildeon reassured him. “This isn’t enough for the hunters to detect.”

As his hand reverted to normal, he put on gloves before pushing the doors open. He didn’t need to do so, since no human instrument could trace his fingerprints, but he’d rather not give the police something to scratch their heads about.

Inside, the cool air rushed out to meet him. It was dark, but his inhuman vision cut through the shadows. He navigated past empty desks and through hallways until he found the room where the corpses were stored. The smell of chemicals and decay grew stronger, and the chill hit him like a punch as soon as he entered.

Wasting no time, he pulled open one of the steel compartments with the name Paul Hernandez etched on a small plaque. He slid the tray out and removed the cloth covering the body.

Plumber Paul's skin was pale, with red welts crisscrossing all over. They looked like jellyfish stings, but Gildeon knew better. The air around the body had a faint, acrid smell of dark magic.

He hated to be right.

Searching Paul's body, he rolled it to the side and found the Clover Wish tattoo on the back of its right shoulder. The ink was faded and distorted, but he could still make out the image of a three-leaf clover atop a four-leaf one.

Arah got most of her flash tattoo ideas from dreams. Gildeon figured it was her subconscious slightly recalling the sigils she’d crafted for their sylph army. He recognized some of them from battles, though her tattoo renditions were more artistic impressions. They missed the precise details needed for the magic to work. Arah would have to regain her memories for them to get perfected.

But this Clover Wish... It was completely new. When he touched the mark, he sensed the residual magic still clinging to the skin, confirming his fear.

“Damn it, Arah,” he muttered with a sigh, shaking his head. “What have you done?”