Of Witches and Warlocks: The Complete Series

Chapter 17

Chapter 17

"Sean asked me for some more information on the Cummingses' activities," Crispin said, glancing around at each of us as we met together in the keep. "Our coven has kept tabs on them for a long time, searching for some way to trip them up and expose them for what they really are.

"I can assure you that Douglas and Fiona are very careful individuals. Members of their coven extend from their household staff to corporate contacts in the community. They're very high-powered people, even without their magical influences.

"They have complete control over their followers, too. Some demon covens let their members run wild on bloodthirsty rampages, not Douglas and Fiona. They run a very refined operation that probably more resembles being a member of a wine-tasting society, than that of a typical demon coven.

"They prefer their coven members remain in human form as much as possible and that they do everything to maintain an appearance of normalcy. They are upper crust to the core. That, in itself, speaks to their control over their own powers, since most demon covens operate on a more crazed and bloodthirsty level.

"Most of their ritual dealings take place in their home, so it's made observing their practices difficult—if not near impossible. We've never ventured onto the property uninvited."

"You've been invited before?" Dad asked, surprised.

Crispin nodded. "Once or twice, when business dealings couldn't afford my being slighted at one of their functions. And those were dinner parties, where I was surrounded by many, many people—both of the human and magical variety—thus insuring my safety."

"Did you notice anything unusual during those times?" I asked curiously.

"No. Like I said before, they were the picture of propriety. Now, you say you're looking for a certain artifact, some type of box?"

"Yes," Dad explained. "It would be something that is, at the very least, several hundreds of years old."

Crispin scratched lightly behind his ear, pondering this for a moment. "I assume you're aware the son, Damien, was a very successful antiques dealer?" he asked looking back and forth between my dad and Vance.

Dad nodded. "We're aware."

"Well, I wouldn't even know where to begin searching for an antique box in that house." He gestured toward Vance and me. "As I'm sure the two of you know, there's hardly an item in that house that isn't an antique."

"You bring up an interesting point, though," Vance said. "Maybe my father is the one who originally came across the artifact in his line of work."

"I think that could be very possible," Crispin acknowledged. "I'm less familiar with his dealings, however, since he was around the world quite a bit. He wasn't around here until recently, after they brought his wife to Bell Tower Hall. He visited her frequently, which I found interesting since we were sure they were estranged. I understand the reasons now that we've met you."

A brief look of anger flashed over Vance's face, before he successfully shuttered his emotions again. If Crispin saw, he pretended not to.

"So have you ever noticed anyone in my family keeping a separate, or special, storage space somewhere else?" Vance asked.

"I've never seen anything that would suggest that," Crispin answered. "I think Bell Tower is a vast enough estate that they could store or hide anything they could possibly want and no one would find it for centuries, if ever."