The Kensington Chronicles

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The Kensington Chronicles by Arietta Charles

Death Dance

Sometimes you just gotta dance. Tonight was one of those nights for socialite Kensington Shaw and Ribbons was the place to do it. Unfortunately Kensington’s good time is temporarily cut short when she’s forced to flee the dance by a handsy creep. Not one to let a jerk stop her fun, Kensington uses a little magic potion on her hand to give her strength, goes back to the dance floor and breaks the creep's nose. Once she’s cleaned up, she heads for the dance floor again, and this time she dances with Freddy Stoddard, childhood friend and hottie.

Tonight is clearly one of those nights for Kensington because Freddy and a few other Ribbons patrons drop dead at the same time in the middle of a slow dance. Kensington may be a bit of a flapper but she is unflappable. Within seconds she is inspecting Freddy’s body and the other victims, and discovers that each has a blue powdery residue on their fingers. The only thing that does that is dal, aka Dallway, a very dangerous and expensive drug made from magic residue. Eventually the police arrive, most of the patrons have scrammed up but Kensington sticks around. Though Officer Stamp is easy to charm, Detective Kane is less impressed by the Kensington Shaw and her amateur detective skills. Though the detective dismisses her, Kensington was able to speak to some of the other ladies while they waited for the police to look over the scene. One gossip, Ruby, saw one of the victims leave a shady place earlier that day between a florist and a shoe repair shop.

Kensington is relentless, and with her friend dead and dal being her only clue, she heads to the Black Door Jazz Club to speak to her magical potion mentor, Betty. Betty doesn’t like dal, she knew its creator and frankly he was an idiot. Betty will ask a few questions, especially as Kensington is sure it’s a new kind of dal, one that freezes the victim, so there may be a way to save Freddy and the others. Continuing Kensington's luck this evening, patrons of the Black Door start dropping dead, too. With a bit of magic potions, Kensington slips through a wall before the cops arrive. 

The next morning, the incidents at Ribbons and Black Door are all over the papers and Kensington’s name and blurry picture are on the society pages. Her father won’t be pleased and her older stuffy sisters will be annoyed about it. Escaping before the phone starts ringing off the hook, Kensington leaves and takes her maid, Livvy, with her to continue her investigation. She’s asked Livvy to do something morally reprehensible. Fib. 

They head to the place Ruby at Ribbons mentioned between the shoe repair shop and florist and it is not the place you’d expect a socialite to come out of. While Livvy waits outside, Kensington heads up. Picking the door on the left first, Kensington walks into a dal farm. A magical automation system has been set up to shave magical objects to produce the dal. Hunting around, she finds a very detailed ledger with lovely penmanship, bingo! Just then, Kensington hears people in the corridor. She grabs the ledger and some interesting things lying around: a rock with a Celtic symbol, two coins, a button, and a couple of other small bits and bobs, and books it out the bedroom window and down the fire escape. It isn’t a clean getaway because the goons chase her. The application of a foggy magic potion keeps them busy allowing Kensington to meet up with Livvy. 

Detective Kane and Officer Stamp approach them. Kane isn’t pleased with Kensington's less than legal activities, but they have confirmed something. The Parlor Rats are the dal producers and distributors. Speaking of the Parlor Rats, gang boss Micky Ratta has just turned up with his goon, Choten, and wants his ledger back. When the situation heats up, Stamp takes Livvy to safety while Kane and Micky lay into each other. Choten runs off, Kensington chasing him, but unfortunately he gets away so Kensington doubles back to Kane and Micky. Kane is on the ground about to be shot by Micky when Kensington uses the stone she took from the apartment which releases a green smoke snake that takes Micky out. Before Kane sends Kensington home, he tells her Freddy was identified as the one selling the dal. 

Later, Kensington heads to her father's to straighten out the whole appearing in the society pages and being linked to multiple drug-related deaths in a seedy jazz club thing. Detective Kane is there, filling her father in about the incident with Micky and Choten, though his report contains some artistic license to protect Kensington and her magic use. Nicely done, Detective. Kane asks Kensington to please not investigate further, but really, what are the chances of that happening? 

Death Becomes You

It’s the end of October and it's cold in Chicago. As Kensington is hurrying to church through a park, she stumbles upon a dead body (Joe Billings) and, being a responsible citizen, she contacts the police straight away. The police, led by the dashing and stoic Detective Kane, have arrived. The last time Kensington saw Kane was February and by all appearances, his frown hasn’t moved an inch, or maybe that’s only the expression he gives her. Thankfully Officer Stamp gives her a bright smile. As Kane questions Kensington, not really believing she was on her way to church on a weekday, a shot is fired toward them. Kane and Kensington hit the ground, Kane pulling his gun and making a seemingly impossible shot, killing the gunman.

As the police are congratulating Kane on his marksmanship, Kensington uses the distraction to search the dead man for clues. His library card says he is Mike Dale from Wisconsin, and other items tell Kensington he is a hunter, one who senses magical objects. Kensington has dealt with hunters before, and like anyone else, some are good and some are bad, but all should be treated warily. Kensington also tries to use this opportunity to make her exit. She has an appointment to keep at the church. Just that morning, she received an anonymous note asking her to meet at the church. Cryptic, mysterious, and intriguing - Kensington couldn’t pass it up! Detective Kane has other ideas, however, and won’t let her leave, not with someone trying to kill her. He takes her to brunch instead. 

At the diner, Kensington is subjected to diner tea, if it can even be called tea. Thankfully another attack saves her from the weak, tasteless,  unsteeped beverage. A rock is thrown through the window followed by a couple of Molotov cocktails. The tea isn’t that bad! Thankfully no one is hurt, but the building is burned down. Kensington and Kane return to her house where she explains about the anonymous note and stumbling on Joe Billings' body on the way to meet the mysterious sender. Perfectly innocent. She of course does not mention the powerful waking death elixir she has in her purse. Kane disproves her of any innocence by pointing out the mob connections of the shooter. Someone is out to kill Kensington. They need more answers, so it's time to head to the Black Door Jazz Club to see its proprietor, Betty.

Surprising Kensington, Kane is known at the Black Door and not just as a policeman raiding the joint. As they sit in the VIP section, Kane spots Betty in a corner talking to William Choten, a dal dealing goon. Choten makes Betty go up to her apartment above the club and Kane follows. Moments later, and against Kane’s express orders, Kensington follows too. Kensington is whisper quiet and hides amongst Betty’s greenhouse-like entrance. She can see Choten holding a gun with a none-too-pleased Betty and Kane stepping out. 

Choten demands to know where Kane’s shadow is. When Kane asks if Choten was the one to try and kill her today, Choten swivels his arm and shoots Kane between the eyes. Kensington screams in shock, jumping from her hiding spot to hold Kane’s dead body. Choten tells Kensington she’s a hard one to find and even harder to kill, and demands his dal ledger back, convinced Kensington gave it to Betty. She did, but she's not about to admit that. Kensington slips her hand into Kane’s jacket, pulls out his gun, stands, and fires it into the ceiling as a distraction before using a vial from her clutch on Choten. When it smashes, a black, tar-like cloud of darkness envelopes Choten and pulls him into it. It disappears as quickly as it appeared. The cops arrive then to find Kensington with a literal smoking gun and dead detective at her feet. 

No one acts surprised when Kane comes back to life, Betty pointing out it’s a handy trick that vampires can do. Kensington is hecking surprised, though it actually answers a lot of questions about Kane’s personality. She doesn’t show any shock, though she does ask him if he drinks human blood. No, he has a dealer who is a butcher, essentially making him a vegetarian vampire. Later, at home and in her heavily warded and secured attic, Kensington checks that the waking dead vile is safe and it is. Her attic is filled with powerful and dangerous magic. The events of the day have her a little rattled so she’s going to reinforce the spells on her house. 

Interlude with Death

It’s the holiday season and Kensington has given Livvy, her maid, and Ruth, their cook, a few days off. She has declined joining her father performing his duties as the new mayor of Chicago and has the house to herself, so she’s lounging on the couch having just enjoyed a nap. Bliss! But then something catches her eye. The magical lights on her holiday tree are flickering. They were bought from the Underground and run on magic not electricity, so something is not right. A movement in the shadows catches her eye.

A man dressed in all black with the chiseled face of an angel introduces himself as Malachi and says he means no harm. He notes Kensington has an unusual connection with Death and says he is a reaper of sorts. He knows about William Choten’s disappearance, Micky Ratta’s death, finding the odd dead body, her connection to the vampire Detective Kane, and gestures to the window where the undead have started tapping and scratching. After some flirtatious conversation, Malachi reveals he is no ordinary reaper. He has pitch black wings and is clearly the Angel of Death. He’s there because Kensington has a gem from the Crown of the Redeeming Grace, and this gem has a piece of a soul in it. 

Malachi can only ferry complete souls so he can't do anything about the soul piece inside the stone, but he wants to talk to it because it is the soul of his sister, Sarah. The flirting between Kensington and Malachi grows, they’re standing in each other's arms, Kensington is stroking his wings and the kissing is intense. Eventually things get back to business and Kensington takes Malachi to her attic where she keeps all her magical objects and tools. 

Malachi is able to speak to the piece of Sarah’s soul. He asks Kensington to help him find the other pieces so Sarah may be made whole and he can ferry her. Kensington agrees. After more kissing, Malachi makes an offer to Kensington: in the long distant future when he comes to collect her soul she can choose to be with him. Kensington very much is in favor of this. In the meantime, Malachi tells Kensington to live her life, heck, even be with Kane  - what the heck, she doesn’t think about Kane like that, honest - but in the end, be with him. He also gives her a necklace which will summon him, but cautions to only use it if absolutely necessary. Kensington hopes only to use it when she has all the gems of Sarah’s soul. 

After Malachi vanishes, Kensington hears banging at her front door. It’s Detective Kane and he’s responding to reports of zombies attacking her house. The zombies are nowhere to be found now that Malachi and his spark that draws the undead is gone. Kensington invites him in so he can make absolutely sure all the zombies are gone. 

A Wild Death

Kensington and Betty are in the wilds of nature in the Underground foraging for ingredients when they come across a dead body. Kensington doesn’t know the dead girl, but Betty does. She’s Edith Whitmore, her family owns a chain of grocery stores. Edith is a busybody and on the museum fundraiser committee, she’s also not known to take hikes in the Underground wilderness. Because of course Kensington is going to investigate Edith’s death, she inspects the body. In Edith’s mouth is a blue cap mushroom and in her hand is an unusual coin and piece of paper. Time to let the authorities know. 

The next day, at Kensington’s new penthouse (after the whole zombie incident, she felt she needed a change), Detective Kane pays her a call. He was on a robbery case but reassigned to Edith’s murder. He would, in vain, like Kensington to not pursue her own investigation. Obviously, he is too late, Kensington has already volunteered to take over for Edith in hosting the museum’s fund-raising soirée that night. Resigned, Detective Kane asks Kensington to at least be careful.

Kensington heads to the committee luncheon at the museum, ready to assist in Edith’s stead and get some answers thanks to the truth perfume she is wearing. For the most part, the other committee members are a delight, especially Alice Monclaire who is a fountain of information. The only burr is Mrs. Molly Clark who, along with being a magical racist like her family, aggressively dislikes Kensington. She calls Kensington a harlot and throws water in her face. A bit too truthful perhaps, but the perfume is effectively washed off now thanks to Mrs. Clark’s dramatics. Everyone freely admits though that they did not like Edith Whitmore, she was a bully and a tyrant, but they appreciated her determination in helping the museum. They are also shocked she was found in the Underground woods, as far as Edith was concerned, nature was uncivilized and she wouldn’t even entertain going to the park!

All this information is relayed to Kane later and as all Kane’s suspects will be at the museum gala that evening, they decide to go together. The museum looks wonderful, Kane disappears to casually interview Mrs. Clark and Kensington mingles with Alice. Alice introduces Kensington to Cyril Godwin. Cyril was due to be Edith’s cousin in law, but she died. Cyril is the man in charge of the music tonight and, Alice tells Kensington, a fountain of information as he has a friend in the Underground. Speaking of, when Kensington and Alice go to find Kane, they overhear Cyril talking very intensely with William Faust, his friend in the Underground. They’re talking about Edith’s death and how she actually believed a children's story Cyril shared about a dragon which seems to be what got her killed - she was hunting the Underground for it for the museum. 

Kensington and Alice try to find Kane in earnest, they have to give him the information they overhead, but they can’t find him anywhere. Unfortunately, Kensington runs into Mrs. Clark who berates her for sending that monster to interrogate her. That monster must be vampire Detective Kane. Mrs. Clark lunges for Kensington but falls into the museum atrium fishpond (which thankfully doesn’t have any fish anymore). This gives Kensington time to pull out another vial of truth potion from her purse to dose Mrs. Clark. Kensington, in front of a very interested crowd of people, asks Mrs. Clark if she killed Edith. Still irate, Mrs. Clark admits she didn't kill her but she did help her husband though. 

In between racist vitriol as Kane has now arrived, Mrs. Clark spills her guts. Edith had followed a children’s story about a dragon, Mrs. Clark and her husband followed Edith. They went into the Underground first where the welcome center (run by ghosts!) sent them to a creepy bookshop for a copy of the dragon’s story. They then followed Edith to the woods. Wanting nothing to do with the magic, because racists, they tried to stop Edith. Things got physical, Mrs. Clark stuffed a blue-cap mushroom in Edith's mouth to shut her up, except it was permanent because she choked on it. Mrs. Clark and her husband are taken away by the police. 

Two days later, after getting a copy of the dragon story, Kensington, Alice and Kane make their way to the place Edith died. Alice wants to lay some flowers for Edith and Kensington wants to see if Edith was right about there being a dragon. Kane is going in case Kensington finds another dead body. The key, according to the story, is the blue-capped mushroom, the dragon nests near them. 

After a bit of looking about, they uncover a cave behind a fallen tree. They go inside, but there is no dragon. Instead Kensington finds a chest. Inside there are more of the strange coins Edith was holding and a white stone. Kensington knows this is from the Crown of the Redeeming Grace and holds a piece of Sarah’s soul. Touching her necklace, Kensington sends a silent message to Malachi that she has found another stone then passes the chest of coins to Kane and Alice. While the coins will need to go to the local authorities, Kane gives Alice one of them. She’ll put it on display in Edith’s honor. 

A Deadly Garden Party

In a beautiful garden made with magic and filled with whimsy, Kensington finds a dead body. She didn’t mean to, she was there to meet a client; however, it looks like the client was murdered before she arrived with no obvious signs of how. Resigned, she calls Detective Kane. Resigned, Detective Kane doesn’t fight Kensington investigating the death too and directs her to the morgue and the new coroner Dr. Hinton. 

Dr. Hinton is an affable fellow, very chatty and very enamored with Kensington and Kane gracing the newspapers together - he has clippings of them in his desk drawer. This is a bit weird and Kensington is taken aback, especially by the articles from the gossip rags. Kane has already ordered Dr. Hinton not to say anything about the case to Kensington, but Kane never said the file couldn’t be left lying obviously on his desk, Dr. Hinton says as he places the file obviously on his desk. We never learn what the report says because Kensington is so bothered by the newspaper articles.

Kensington is in a tea house when Kane finds her still put out about the newspaper clippings. It’s one thing to report her helping the detective, quite another to spread rumors and lies about them being together and making Kensington out to be a dim-witted girl when she is anything but. Kane wants to cheer Kensington up so he takes her on a trip to meet a man of dubious character in the Numbers, a place easily described as the other side of the tracks and vastly different to Kensington’s everyday. They find Timmy Top but before they can get any information from him, Timmy Top makes a run for it. Thankfully, Kensington is quick with a stun vile. 

Kane is curious, dubious characters don’t usually run at the sight of a beautiful lady. Kensington decides to spill the beans about her magical entrepreneurship and real estate business (she doesn’t just live in the penthouse of the opulent Grand Hotel, she owns the Grand Hotel) and how that comes with a particular reputation. Kensington also suggests going to the Underground for answers in this particular mystery but Kane does not want to go there with Kensington, it’s far too dangerous despite her protests of having been several times before and having friends there. When Timmy Top becomes unstunned, he says he recognizes Kensington and her kind don’t mix with his and he won’t talk. They let him get away. 

On the way back to the Grand, Officer Stamp informs them that another body has been found in the magical garden. They head over. Dr. Hinton is already there and the body again shows no clues as to how they died. Kensington is convinced the garden is a witch's creation and blood magic must be maintaining it. Betty might be able to help advise them, this type of magic is outside Kensington’s usual work. Kane is reluctant to bring Betty in, so it seems Kensington is getting her way, they’re going to go to the Underground. Agreeing to meet at the Grand in an hour, Kensington heads home. 

On the way, Kensington runs into a greater horror than a murderous blood-magic witch… her oldest judgmental, elitist sister Esme. Of course Esme gives Kensington her unvarnished opinion of fraternizing with a common detective despite the reality of their relationship. Their entire conversation would be a frustrating waste of time if not for an incidental comment about courting Kane which sparks something in Kensington’s mind. Stunning her sister, and the society gossips and grand dames who were listening in, Kensington uses a phone in a dressmaker's shop to call Kane. Kensington wants to know about Dr. Hinton, how did he know to get to the park? Is he an actual doctor? Kensington is sure Hinton is the killer. Leaving her embarrassed sister and the nosy onlookers, Kensington leaves for home. 

Before Kensington can reach the Grand, Dr. Hinton kidnaps her at gunpoint. She is one hundred percent right, Hinton is the murderer. Hinton takes Kensington to the magical garden and waits for Kane to join them. Hinton pulls a crossbow on Kane when he arrives and keeps his gun on Kensington. Hinton goes on to explain that Kane is responsible for murdering his mother’s mother as a child which ruined his mother’s life and she passed a year ago after a troubling history with alcohol. His mother was an artist and the garden is a memorial to her, created using blood-magic by a witch who was the first of Hinton’s victims. 

After Hinton’s badguy monologue, the situation explodes. There is a rapid succession of gunfire as the police arrive. Hinton fires his gun, Kane protects Kensington with his body taking most of the gunfire, but one bullet goes through him into Kensington. Kane is also shot with the crossbow. As she removes the crossbow bolt, Kensington screams to get Kane to the Grand and to her personal doctor, and then everything goes black. 

Kensington doesn’t remember much except for Livvy taking charge. The doctor removed the bullets from Kane, Betty fixed her arm, she took a bath, and now she is sitting by Kane’s bedside. When Kane wakes up, he finds he’s hooked up to a blood IV. Kensington lies down next to him and he tells her it wasn’t him, he didn’t kill Hinton’s grandmother, it was his brother who could almost be his twin. They took very different paths in their unlife. He also warns Kensington if she should ever meet him, she needs to get away. For now, Kane kisses her hand and they rest in each other's arms. 

Underground Ghosts

To go into the Underground, you need either a day pass which expires at midnight, or to obtain identification as a recognized “visitor,” granting you access to come and go as you please. It isn’t surprising that Kensington has identification, nor is it a surprise she owns an apartment in the Underground. Today, she is going into the Underground with Kane as her escort to attend an estate sale. She is hunting for a very specific item, a volcanic elixir she made when she was first practicing magic and setting up her business. It’s a dangerous potion and she doesn’t want it falling into the wrong hands. 

After a quick stop to drop off their bags at her apartment, Kensington and Kane head to the preview for the estate sale, and Kane is surprisingly chatty about his family. He’s from an affluent family, attended the same schools in London as Kensington’s father, but was a year ahead. This blows Kensington’s mind, her father and Kane were old school pals! Though his mother and father are dead, Kane’s younger sister still lives, she’s in London married to an aristocrat, and her children are grown and starting families of their own. At the sale preview, they encounter a shady character, Connie, a busy-body gossip who will no doubt be spreading lies about Kensington and Kane being lovebirds. They also come across an actual criminal, aptly named Marvin the Jailbird. He flees when he sees Kensington and Kane, Kensington sure he’s after her elixir. As this is just an early preview for the sale, they make plans to come back later that night to ensure the elixir doesn’t fall into nefarious hands… they’re going to steal it. Making things worse, Kensington is sure she got a glimpse of Choten who she disappeared into another dimension. 

After getting into the house with no issue, Kensington takes a few dangerous magical items and a random gem that hummed, part of Sarah's soul?, for safe keeping, but the elixir is not there. The only option now is to head into a less-than-reputable area of the Underground, the dark market, to see if Marvin or the elixir is there.  

After visiting a couple of shops in the dark market, they go into one that is all white with red accents and a clerk in a red dress she could go dancing in. The clerk introduces herself as Cheryl, and after a few moments of letting Kensington and Kane look at the potions on sale, Cheryl assumes they’re there to buy a potion to help with the human-vampire physical relations (wink). She stuns Kensington enough to sell her a potion of some sort. Outside the shop, they spot Marvin and Kane chases after him. Kensington stays and window shops until she spots Cheryl sneaking out of the shop. She’s suspicious of the shop clerk because she knew Kane was a vampire, so she decides to follow her.

Cheryl goes to Carnival Street, which is exactly as the name suggests. Sneaking behind her, Kensington loses Cheryl in the crowds. She does however find a very familiar looking stranger who introduces himself as Nicholas Kane. Oh, this is Nathaniel’s brother! Nicholas isn’t the scary creep Kensington was expecting, in fact he's nice and friendly and helps her find Cheryl who was just going to a private transaction with a woman who has a vampire lover. Well, damn.

With Cheryl leading to a dead end, Kensington wants to find Kane. Nicholas offers to help because he needs to speak to his brother. Nicholas has a fantastic sense of smell and they follow it behind a tent where Kane may be ruffing up Marvin. As Kane is shocked to see Kensington with his brother, Marvin tries to escape but Kensington is quick with her stun elixir. This gives her the opportunity to search Marvin and get her volcanic elixir back. Phew! Suddenly Choten appears, but before Kensington can throw another stun elixir, Nicholas knocks him out. 

With Marvin and Choten unconscious at their feet, Nicholas explains that Claudine died six months ago and he needs the investigative powerhouse of Kensington and Kane to find out who killed her. After Kane reports Choten and Marvin to the authorities, he and Kensington talk. Claudine is Kane’s ex-wife. She and Nicholas started having an affair because she claimed he worked all the time and paid no attention to her. 

One night, a vampire turned Nicholas, intent on keeping him for herself, but he immediately left her and turned Claudine, wanting to be with her forever. Nicholas had extraordinary self control but Claudine didn’t and revelled in the blood. She went through the house and killed everyone, piling up the bodies on the dining table. Claudine wanted to have both Nathaniel and Nicholas and they both turned him. He went to Betty for help, and she contained him in his first days, feeding him animal blood. Kane has never tasted human blood thanks to Betty. Kane’s father knew what happened and set fire to the house and the pile of bodies inside, and Nicholas and Claudine disappeared to start a new undead life together. 

The conversation turns to them. Kane wants her and Kensington doesn’t object. Kane is so worried about death, but Kensington tells him they need to live.