Midnight Predator

Chapter One

A lone figure stood in the shadows on the rooftop, gazing on the twinkling lights below. Candles burned in every window and an ornamented Christmas tree stood proud in each house. Footfalls rang loud as a much larger figure approached. The figure halted and squinted into the darkness. "Are ye here?" a man's voice said gruffly in a thick Irish brogue.

"Aye," was the soft reply, spoken in a woman's voice, automatically adapting to the dialect of the man. A small woman stepped into the light just ahead of the man. "And who might you be?" she inquired quietly.

"Names ain't none of yer business," he growled. "I don't ask ye and ye don't ask me. Me mistress wishes to speak to ye. If ye would follow me..."

The dark-haired woman gave a quick nod. A brisk wind arose and she wrapped her arms around herself, as if cold. In reality, though, she was checking the knives sheathed on her arms. Once she was reassured that she could easily access the weapons if the circumstances warranted, she nodded to the burly man to lead the way.

While they walked, she reflected on how she went to being an assassin in America to being a hired, possibly Dark, witch in Ireland. The note had appeared on her doorstep addressed to Shade, her nickname in the European Wizarding World. As like most of her clients, it was courteous (most people did not care to irritate her, they knew it was a mistake only to be made once), but arrogant enough to put a king to shame. Her presence was requested on the tenth of December, on top of some unknown building in an obscure Irish town at exactly twilight. The name was mentioned in the note; she remembered vaguely, she just didn't remember it at the moment. The building was left unlocked for her convenience, she had noted upon arrival. That led her to believe that her prospective client was fairly high up on the chain.

The man led her down the stairs. As they prowled the dark hallway, she ventured a question. "Can I know the name of your...mistress? After all, I'll be working for her soon." The man just grunted in reply and rudely motioned her to be silent. Feeling her pride had been offended, she stalked behind the lackey, figuring the 'mistress' would be annoyed if she killed the man.

An hour and three exchanges of men later, she had finally arrived at the doors of a seemingly abandoned building. On the trip, Shade had developed a new respect for her potential employer. This was a woman who did not take chances. Each man probably didn't know anything other than where he was supposed to pick her up and drop her off.

The latest leader rapped on the door smartly and it opened just a crack, not enough to see into the darkness of the room beyond. "Are ye th' one th' mistress be seekin'?" came through the crack.

She was getting tired of this. "If your mistress is seeking an assassin, then yes, I am she," Shade snapped, tired of disguising her voice. "I've got better things to do than run all over Ireland looking for this 'mistress'."

The person behind the door actually had the nerve to laugh at her! "Well, ye won't be in Ir'land fer long, lassie. Yer almost there." The door swung completely open to reveal a tall, thick bear of a man. He beckoned her to follow and led her through the empty building. They walked in silence, the assassin long since discovered this woman valued discretion in all of her underlings and paid well to maintain it. They passed two hallways and had turned down a third when the man turned to her. He pointed to the end where a large door was the only interruption on the vast white wall. "That door will take ye t' where ye need t' go."

Shade didn't move. The little woman stared at the big man until he began to shift under her flat gaze. "Bad things happen to those who open doors," she said finally just before he opened his mouth to complain. "You do it."

Still looking fearful, the man drew his wand. Visibly, she did not twitch an eyelid, but mentally she was checking all her knives and protective charms. However, the Unlocking Charm "Alohomora!" was the only spell used before he returned his wand to his pocket.

The door clicked open and with a soft sigh it swung open on its hinges. She moved closer only to discover the room was bare except for an unfurnished table set up in the center. Upon further examination, however, she noted a piece of parchment partially hidden by a large flat copper disk. Resting on the dark surface of the table, the disk was practically invisible--only the creamy corner of the parchment revealed the disk's location.

Careful not to touch the disk, she slowly pulled the parchment free and scanned it for any of the key mercenary words: kill, murder, political, and her favorite, compensation. When she didn't encounter any of the hot four, she reread the missive.

My dear Shade,

I am delighted that you were intelligent enough to read this before you touched my little present--as you may have guessed, it is a Portkey to my home. If you had not, you would have instantly been sent to my manor without any of the knowledge you need to survive.

After you use the Portkey, you will find yourself in my garden. Walk to the entrance and wait for my man. He may come immediately, he may not, but if you are not there when he arrives, I will know you did not follow the directions and therefore useless to me.

You shall be dealt with according to your actions.

Shade took a moment to admire the mistress once again and wrap one hand around her wand before she touched a finger to the Portkey. She felt the familiar tug of the forced transportation spell on her and was soon lost in the blackness.

True to the letter, she had indeed landed in a garden. Monstrous plants towered over her while the nighttime lullaby of crickets and bugs pervaded the darkness. A faint silhouette of a barred gate shone faintly to her right--that must be the entrance. Walking at an exact pace, without hurrying or dragging her feet, she made her way to the entrance. After all, hurrying would make her seem nervous, strolling would make her seem foolish. Neither the nervous nor the foolish lasted long in her profession.

As luck would have it, Shade reached the gates half a step ahead of a cloaked man carrying a lit wand, approaching from the other direction. "Are you Shade?" he asked hesitantly. She merely looked at him. Who else would wander this dark land at the dead of night? "Al-alright. If you won't answer..." He sized her up carefully prior to pointing his wand at her. "I need to check your identity," he said in almost apologetic tones.

Shade merely showed her teeth in a mockery of a smile. She knew how he was going to do it and it was not a pleasant experience.

"Revealus Persona!"

The Revealing Spell hit her like a car. A big, fast moving, train car. She wanted to scream--the pain as her very molecules ripped from her body and showed themselves to the man was nearly unbearable. Each separate DNA strand felt like it was unraveling to show its patterns to this stranger. The pain seemed to last for hours even though she knew from observing that the spell only lasted for a few moments.

Through pure willpower, she kept her body steady. "That was fun, but next time it's your turn," she spat through gritted teeth. It may have been only her imagination, but she thought she saw a spasm of fear vibrate though the man. Clearly the mistress didn't choose her personal servants for their courage. That particular quality must be reserved only for her henchmen.

"Madam said she would see you as soon as you arrived. We shouldn't keep her waiting." With an odd movement, a half bow while simultaneously stepping back and partially turning around, the anxious man scuttled back the way he came. Shade directed a scowl to him, not surprised when he flinched and scuttled faster.