I thrust my hands into my pockets, a little unsettled by the certainty of that thought, and quickly followed Mathi across the road. Aram’s premises was narrow, with one metal-framed window sitting either side of the entrance. “Spells For All Occasions” was blazed in gold letters on the top part of the door and, underneath that, “Appointments Not Necessary.”

Mathi tested the handle, but it was locked, so he peered in through the window. I did the same but on the other side of the door. Getting too close to the man wasn’t advisable, given the thawing was nigh on complete.

With the deep darkness that now haunted the interior, there wasn’t all that much to be seen. I could make out a service counter on the left, and two shelves—one freestanding, one against the right wall. If he followed the setup used by other practitioners, they’d both be filled with an assortment of ready-made potions and minor spell scrolls, while at the back of the room would be a screened-off area where the private consultations and spells would happen.

“It’s too dark to see if there’s any stairs, but it might be worth checking the rear of the building, just to see if there’s a rear door or external access to the upper floors.”

Mathi nodded. “This way.”

He set off at a good clip without waiting for me. I hastily caught up, and we strode past the remaining shops in the row and then down the side street. As he’d guessed, there was a loading lane at the back of the building and concrete stairs that gave first-floor access to all the shops lining the main street.

Mathi walked along until he found the rear door into Aram’s. It, too, was locked.

“Well, that puts an end to adventures today,” I said.

“No, it does not.” He motioned me back several steps. “Use your lovely body to block anyone passing by seeing what I’m about to do.”

“It’s dark and it’s about to piss down. I doubt anyone will.” I nevertheless crossed my arms and turned around to watch the street—a dangerous move where he was concerned. “I take it you’re about to break in?”

“Breaking isn’t the right term. I’m merely unlocking the door with a pick rather than the key.”

“Law enforcement would still call that breaking and entering.”

“My father would argue it depends entirely on the situation.”

A couple walked past the lane. I tensed, but they moved on without pausing. The street remained too damn busy for my liking, however. “I take it that means your father occasionally allows his people or their sources to side-step the law as a means of getting information?”

“Warrants can take forever to process, and that can sometimes be detrimental to certain cases.”

“And to making charges stick in court, no doubt.”

“That would depend on the case making it to court. Some don’t.”

“Meaning he’s keeping the Complaints Commission extra busy?”

“No more so than usual.”