someone else—a
stronger witch—who can do it.”
“Two reasons,” she said. “One is that you have excellent investigative skills—more
so than others older than you. You’re intelligent and resourceful. The other reason . . .
well, if another witch goes after her, she might very well kill Veronica.”
“Would that be such a bad thing?” I didn’t like violence and killing by any means,
but this might be a case where it was justified, if it could save other lives. “You
said you were going to ‘take care of her.’”
“If I have no choice . . . if I must kill her, then I will.” She looked dejected,
and I had a moment of empathy. I loved my two sisters. What would I do if I was ever
in a deadly conflict with one of them? Of course, it was hard to imagine Zoe or Carly
committing this kind of atrocity. “However, there are other ways of neutralizing and
subduing a magic user. If there’s any way—any way at all—I can do that, I will. My
coven sisters won’t feel that way, which is why I need your help.”
“I can’t.” I pushed the stool back and stood up, nearly stepping on a cat in the
process. “There must be some other way you can do this. You know I’m already bogged
down in supernatural affairs.” I actually couldn’t bring myself to admit the real
reason I wanted to dodge this. It was about more than just risking my life. So far,
all my magical interactions had been with Ms. Terwilliger. If I signed on for this,
I would be plunging into the world of witches, something I’d sworn I would never do.
Ms. Terwilliger tapped the article, and her voice was quiet when she spoke. “Could
you let this happen to other girls, knowing there’s a way you could stop it? I’ve
never heard of any of her victims waking up. The way this spell works, Veronica needs
to renew it every few years, and it requires five victims within one month. She did
this once before, and it caught me off guard. This time, we have warning. Four more
people could suffer this fate. Do you want that?”
There it was. She’d called me on the other part that had been nagging me because she
knew me too well. I couldn’t let innocents suffer, not even if it meant risking myself
or facing the fears that haunted me. If I could stop this, I had to. No one deserved
the fate of that girl in the paper. “Of course not.”
“And let’s not forget that you could soon be one of her victims.”
I touched the garnet. “You said I’m hidden.”
“You are, for now. And I hope against all hope you’ll stay that way.” I’d never seen
her so grim before, and it was hard to watch. I was used to her prattling, bumbling,
no-nonsense nature. “But here’s something I’ve never told you about how magic users
sense each other.”
Something I’d learned over the years: it was never a good thing when people said,
“Here’s something I never told you. . . .” I braced myself.
“Untrained magic users have a particular feel that’s unique from the more experienced,”
she explained. “There’s a oh, wildness about the magic that surrounds you. It’s easy
for advanced witches to sense. My coven keeps track of novice magic users, but those
are tightly guarded secrets. Veronica won’t have access to those names, but there
are spells she can use that can pick up on some of that untamed magic if it’s near
her. It’s how she probably found this poor girl.” Ms. Terwilliger nodded toward the
article.
The idea of me having some “wild” magical aura was as shocking as her saying I had
magic in my blood.
“When she absorbs a victim,” Ms. Terwilliger continued, “she gets a burst of that
wildness. It fades quickly, but when she possesses it, it can briefly enhance her
ability to scry for another untrained victim. The more victims she takes, the stronger
that ability will grow. There’s a chance,” Ms. Terwilliger said gravely, “that it
stronger witch—who can do it.”
“Two reasons,” she said. “One is that you have excellent investigative skills—more
so than others older than you. You’re intelligent and resourceful. The other reason . . .
well, if another witch goes after her, she might very well kill Veronica.”
“Would that be such a bad thing?” I didn’t like violence and killing by any means,
but this might be a case where it was justified, if it could save other lives. “You
said you were going to ‘take care of her.’”
“If I have no choice . . . if I must kill her, then I will.” She looked dejected,
and I had a moment of empathy. I loved my two sisters. What would I do if I was ever
in a deadly conflict with one of them? Of course, it was hard to imagine Zoe or Carly
committing this kind of atrocity. “However, there are other ways of neutralizing and
subduing a magic user. If there’s any way—any way at all—I can do that, I will. My
coven sisters won’t feel that way, which is why I need your help.”
“I can’t.” I pushed the stool back and stood up, nearly stepping on a cat in the
process. “There must be some other way you can do this. You know I’m already bogged
down in supernatural affairs.” I actually couldn’t bring myself to admit the real
reason I wanted to dodge this. It was about more than just risking my life. So far,
all my magical interactions had been with Ms. Terwilliger. If I signed on for this,
I would be plunging into the world of witches, something I’d sworn I would never do.
Ms. Terwilliger tapped the article, and her voice was quiet when she spoke. “Could
you let this happen to other girls, knowing there’s a way you could stop it? I’ve
never heard of any of her victims waking up. The way this spell works, Veronica needs
to renew it every few years, and it requires five victims within one month. She did
this once before, and it caught me off guard. This time, we have warning. Four more
people could suffer this fate. Do you want that?”
There it was. She’d called me on the other part that had been nagging me because she
knew me too well. I couldn’t let innocents suffer, not even if it meant risking myself
or facing the fears that haunted me. If I could stop this, I had to. No one deserved
the fate of that girl in the paper. “Of course not.”
“And let’s not forget that you could soon be one of her victims.”
I touched the garnet. “You said I’m hidden.”
“You are, for now. And I hope against all hope you’ll stay that way.” I’d never seen
her so grim before, and it was hard to watch. I was used to her prattling, bumbling,
no-nonsense nature. “But here’s something I’ve never told you about how magic users
sense each other.”
Something I’d learned over the years: it was never a good thing when people said,
“Here’s something I never told you. . . .” I braced myself.
“Untrained magic users have a particular feel that’s unique from the more experienced,”
she explained. “There’s a oh, wildness about the magic that surrounds you. It’s easy
for advanced witches to sense. My coven keeps track of novice magic users, but those
are tightly guarded secrets. Veronica won’t have access to those names, but there
are spells she can use that can pick up on some of that untamed magic if it’s near
her. It’s how she probably found this poor girl.” Ms. Terwilliger nodded toward the
article.
The idea of me having some “wild” magical aura was as shocking as her saying I had
magic in my blood.
“When she absorbs a victim,” Ms. Terwilliger continued, “she gets a burst of that
wildness. It fades quickly, but when she possesses it, it can briefly enhance her
ability to scry for another untrained victim. The more victims she takes, the stronger
that ability will grow. There’s a chance,” Ms. Terwilliger said gravely, “that it
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