Can you read my mind?

The air inside the wizard's apartment was thick with the scent of to exotic incense and burnt popcorn. Alric stood before the robed figure, trying to maintain a composed visage. 

Every inch in the wizard's apartment was adorned with shelves upon shelves of books, reminiscent of a child's quaint rendition of a library. The bookshelves, fashioned from dark walnut, lent an air of sophistication, while every possible surface in the room was draped in cloth. Alric couldn't help but sense a tinge of insecurity emanating from the wizard who had adorned his apartment so as to make it clear that he was in fact a wizard.

The wizard, wearing clothing straight out of a bad Renaissance fair, stroked his long beard thoughtfully. "So, you want me to bring your brother back from the dead?" he said, raising an eyebrow skeptically.

Alric nodded, trying to ignore the fact that the wizard's hat seemed to be drooping to one side. 

"Yes, but, preferably without any dark rituals or sacrificing goats, if possible."

The wizard chuckled, causing a cloud of dust to puff out from his sleeves. "Don't worry, my friend. I specialize in the more...unconventional methods of magic."

Alric did not like the sound of that. He was tired of half-baked magic, the kind that only did half what it was supposed to do and baked the other half. Last time, he had paid an Italian wizard twelve thousand dollars to time-reverse his beat up 1967 Chevy Corvette, and while the outside had been refurbished perfectly, the guts of his beautiful car were instantly turned into actual spaghetti. By the time he realized what was happening, the wizard was gone, and since the cash was always paid upfront in the supernatural community, so was the money. Alric figured that's what he deserved after finding that wizard through the advertisement section of a supernatural magazine.

The wizard leaned in with a twinkle in his eye. "I can bring your brother back, oh yes I can…for a million dollars...upfront."

Alric cringed on the inside and turned to leave. He barely even had a hundred thousand saved up. 

"Wait, wait, fine!" cried the wizard from behind him. He continued in his raspy, asthmatic voice, "how about a hundred thousand dollars?"

Alric narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

"Can you read my mind, you dirty old dog?" Alric asked with a cheeky grin. 

"No, I swear! Father Allesandro would never read his clients minds," he said in a way that indicated he always read his clients minds.

"I can do a hundred thousand dollars and that's a final offer."

"Deal," the wizard said, holding out a shaky hand, not hesitating to seal the pact. 

Alric acquiesced and clasped the old wizard's hand in his. 

"Thank you sir."

"No worries, Father Allesandro always meets his clients demands," he said, referring to himself in the third person for the second time in their conversation. 

The wizard's hands briefly flew to his lips in a quick flash of self-reproach as if he was listening to every thought of Alric's, which in fact, he was. The wizard hastily hurried him out of the apartment. 

"Oh, and bring your brother's body to the parking lot behind CVS on Sunday at noon. Don't be late."

The old man practically pushed him out the door which slammed shut behind Alric. 

He felt the presence of the wizard's soul abruptly withdraw from his mind as the magic ward that was placed on the apartment activated with the closing of the door. 

He would never get used to the feeling of other people snooping around in his mind, although it often worked to his advantage as creating false thoughts could give him the upper hand. In this instance, the wizard had been effectively played. 

To his name, Alric had about seven million dollars saved up from his work as a private contractor. He'd signaled in his mind that he only had a hundred thousand to spare and the old crank had fallen for it. 

As Alric rode the elevator down to street-level, he was surprised to feel the presence of the wizard enter his mind again. No, it was someone else, and through the link, they were tracking him.

Alric stepped out of the elevator and exited the apartment lobby. From the street, he hailed a taxi to a home that wasn't his, but which he purposefully chose to misremember at that moment. Fifteen minutes later he was standing in front of a home that he'd never seen before. 

Alric expanded his senses to encompass the full entirety of the dwelling but luckily it was empty. He then fished out his enhanced adaptive key from his pocket and unlocked the door to the stranger's home. 

Shucking off his shoes, he searched for the kitchen to hopefully whip up a sandwich, but unfortunately, the owner of the home hadn't stocked up on food save the box of truffle chocolates laying on a pantry rack. He found the television remote in seconds and made himself comfortable on the living room couch. 

Alric appreciated the homely atmosphere of the abode with its tasteful decorations and inviting furniture. It was a shame he'd gone and broken in, but the person tracking him couldn't know where he actually lived. 

After another ten minutes, the intruder in his mind slowly withdrew their presence, apparently content with the discovery of Alric's house. Little did they know. 

He let out a sigh of relief and the tension that had been built up in his muscles slowly dissipated. There was a good chance that the snooper had fallen for his trick, but he couldn't be too safe, so Alric decided to stay another ten minutes. He sank further into the couch and lay there in his thoughts.