Lark opened the door as quietly as possible, stepped inside, and closed it just as quietly. He placed the thermoses on the table in the entrance hall and then, after quickly peering into the living area and not seeing Lynn, proceeded down the passageway.
The first room was his office. He had suspected he would find Lynn in his office. Her back was to him and she was muttering to herself angrily.
“Damn you… where is it? Where have you hidden it?”
Lark stepped into the study behind Lynn and watched her silently. She was going through book after book quickly, angrily, trying to cover as much ground as she could.
Then, from the corner of her eye, she noticed something out of place in the room.
She noticed Lark. She turned to look at him and dropped the book, surprised. She gave out a small shriek of surprise.
“Lark! What the hell? You almost gave me a heart attack!” she exclaimed.
“Looking for something?” Lark asked coldly.
“I… I was just looking for a book to teach myself some spells while you were out,” Lynn said.
Lark nodded. He realized then what Lynn was after.
She was after his magic books and knowledge. He realized she must have some magic skill of her own. It was the only way she could have done what she had done.
“It’s what you’ve wanted all along isn’t it?” Lark said.
“Excuse me?” Lynn said indignantly.
“You’ve been trying to get to my magic resources all along, haven’t you?”
“What are you talking about?” Lynn asked anger flaring in her eyes. She tempered it quickly and moved closer to Lark. “Why are you accusing me of things that aren’t true?”
“Oh, but they’re very true, Lynn if that’s even your real name. How did you know I have any magical resources at all? Did the witch tell you?”
“What witch? What are you talking about?”
“Really? You knew all along that I have access to magical resources. The witch was the only one I’ve visited in a hundred years. Or wait…” Another realization hit Lark as he spoke, “…you are the witch. It’s the only way you could have known. The drop of my blood… you never needed it.”
“Witch? Drop of blood? You really should see someone,” Lynn said. “Your writer’s imagination is getting the better of you.”
Lynn stormed towards him and made as if to pass Lark and leave his office. He caught her arm and pulled her back. He slammed her against the wall harder than he intended to. For a moment he saw an unearthly light flicker in her eyes and then they returned to normal.
“How did you do it? How did you know I transform and how did you make me believe I transformed when I was near you?”
Lynn decided the game was up then and in an instant, her disguise fell away. Lark stepped back as Lynn became the witch he had visited.
“There’s some honesty for you,” she said in her witch’s raspy voice. “You’re a very clever man. No wonder you achieved what you have. But you took things from one of my kind. It’s not yours. If nothing else I will take what you have from you so it can be returned to my kind where it belongs.”
“Your kind did this to me,” Lark said angrily.
“Shame,” the witch said sarcastically. “My heart cares nothing about your problems. My powers far exceed yours and I will take what is due to me. If you must know how I deceived you it was simply a spell. Once I had a drop of your blood, I was able to see everything about you. Almost everything. Enough. I saw the books, the knowledge, the scrolls, everything you took from the witch’s cabin. I conjured the spell and made sure I was in the right place at the right time. And you fell for it.”
“If your powers far exceed mine how is it that you haven’t found the knowledge when it’s been right before you all this time.”
“I may know nothing about how you have concealed the books but I assure you the powers I have are far more powerful than those used for concealing books and knowledge.”
“And what would you do with those powers?”
“How about I kill you?” Lynn whispered threateningly.
“And then, search for the knowledge for the rest of your life? Very clever I dare say. You have no idea of the extent of my powers. If you think my powers simply extend to concealing the knowledge I possess you are very wrong. If it is a battle you desire, I will happily engage you.”
Lynn hesitated for the briefest of moments saying nothing.
“I didn’t think so,” Lark said meeting her gaze coldly. His body was tensed, ready to react if necessary. Both of them could feel the magical energy in the study. It was almost palpable. “Get out!”
Lynn held his gaze a while longer. “How did you discover the truth? You found the real girl didn’t you?”
Lark shook his head his gaze not wavering. “No. You left too many gaps. All I had to do was stop and think a bit and when I did, it became obvious that the dots couldn’t be joined. You said you knew enough but enough is never enough. Enough isn’t everything. Now get out.”
Lynn looked at Lark angrily and stormed out of the study brushing past him as she went. When she was almost at the door, he stopped her.
“Pack your things now. When you leave, you leave.”
Lark followed Lynn to the room and watched her pack everything making sure she took nothing that didn’t belong to her. When she was finished, he followed her to the door, collected the spare keys from her, and let her out.
Then he set about calling a locksmith to change all the locks and called a security company to install the best security system he could find. It might help against a witch and it might not but he would leave nothing to chance. He had not had the luxury of determining how extensive Lynn’s skills were. He was not going to be caught unawares though.