The Magician's Assistant

20

Rachael and Gramps walked up onto the roof. Anderson, Fitzgerald, Lowry, and a eclectic collection of hired security crowded the stairwell behind them.

"Are you sure you should be up here? You could destroy the crime scene before the investigators get here," Fitzgerald said.

"Crime scene? I doubt there's any evidence up there to find. This is a waste of time. No doubt Anderson wants a show," Lowry said.

"I am taking action, and I am criticized for it. Typical," Anderson said.

Another argument broke out in the stairwell. Rachael and Gramps ignored the conversation and walked out onto the ceiling.

The only sign that anyone had been there was a single opening in the skylight. Everything else was seemingly normal. Rachael wouldn't have been surprised if the burglar had even taken the time to close the window behind them.

"Didn't leave much behind, did they?" Rachael said.

"No, it doesn't seem like they did," Gramps said.

"Any ideas of where to start looking?"

Gramps bent down. There was a layer of dust on the roof.

"They may have left a trail behind. Let's look around,"

Gramps created two small balls of light in his hand. He offered one to Rachael, who took it. She was surprised by how cool to the touch it was.

It only took a minute or two of searching to find signs of the intruder. Footprints were left in the dust, leading to and from the open skylight.

The footprints were in two nearly perfect straight lines. One started in the middle of the rooftop, and terminated at the skylight opening. The other started at the opening, then led right to the edge of the roof. It looked as if someone had jumped off.

Rachael peered over the railing. There was no sign of any ledges, ladders, or anything else that could be used to get down safely. Not only was the only way down a potentially fatal fall, but jumping from this part of the roof would lead someone to the front entrance of the building. They'd probably be spotted as they tried to escape.

"Did anyone see them leaving?" Rachael yelled towards the stairway.

Anderson, Fitzgerald, and Lowry stopped arguing for a moment.

"No. No one saw them," one of the guards replied.

Rachael looked down into the street again. There were several people milling around below. She decided to follow the footprints again.

On the ground, an object caught Rachael's eye. It was a large, black feather. The feather was easily as big as a dagger.

"Gramps, over here," Rachael said.

Gramps walked over.

"Not from a local bird, is it?" Rachael asked, pointing to the feather.

"No, not any I'm familiar with," Gramps answered.

"It must have been huge,"

"Indeed. There are species of bird large enough to ride on,"

"Or it's a volitant, like we talked about,"

"That's also a possibility,"

"I saw them jump up a few stories while they escaped. It was like they could fly,"

"Magic can do that, too. We need to stay open minded. Didn't you say something about them dropping a tool on the way up here?"

Rachael produced the cylinder she collected from the lounge and gave it to Gramps.

Gramps inspected the object for a moment.

"This is a lock picking tool, and a very complex one at that. Criminals often use them, though they are quite expensive," he said.

"Aren't they illegal, too?"

"It depends on the type, and where you are. This one does look quite complex. I don't think you'd be able to acquire it by legal means,"

Rachael spotted a small engraving on the cylinder. She held her light close to it.

Itara Hardware Model 22 #004326, the engraving read.

Rachael ignored the serial and model numbers, only the company name mattered to her.

"Itara? That's a Northland name, right?" Rachael asked.

"That's a town up in that part of the world with that name. It's got all sorts of companies like this in it. Either it was manufactured there, or there's a local business with a similar name,"

"Does anyone know an Itara Hardware?" Rachael yelled to the still arguing group.

The bickering died down. It was replaced by murmuring for a moment as everyone searched their memory.

"There's a ship filled with their merchandise stuck in port. They had some kind of cargo that is banned here." Fitzgerald said.

"When did they arrive?"

"A few weeks ago, just before the robberies started,"

"We'll have to go talk to them. I think they may have lost one of their products,"