but this inner one is limestone butting up against the kitchen wall. Tracy is some kind of earth carver. I ordered in the limestone to use as a wall in my lab out back, but he started using it in here. And in a few short hours, he had two walls up.”
“Earth carver.” I frowned. “Dad said something about an earth affinity, but he didn’t know what it was. Did you ask Tracy?”
“I mentioned he built walls quickly. He never said a word, but the stones kept flying. The adobe was the same way. He set the bricks as straight as though he’d carved them from a single rock.”
I walked over and touched the wall. Solid. Humming. “It’s happy.”
“Happy?”
“It’s all in alignment as if...there’s mortar here, but it’s all one piece. I suppose it could be because it all came from the same quarry. Whatever he did, it’s positively a work of art.”
“He was amazing to watch, I can tell you that.”
I traced my fingers along the limestone. “I bet I can learn a thing or two from him.”
“When you’re not off figuring out how to shoot silver? Maybe we should use plexiglass in the windows in here.”
I grinned. “Progress is progress. Have you eaten yet?” I checked my watch. “We better make sure Tracy eats before Dad shows up, or I’ll never hear the end of it.”
“Tracy’s in the shower. If you warm up the food Mom sent home with us, I’ll take my shower, and then we can eat.”
White Feather’s mom had sent us home with enough food for three days—until Tracy got a whiff of it. He ate more than Lynx on his hungriest days. The magic must have drained a lot out of him because he polished off half of a loaf of bread, all of the casserole, with the exception of the two pieces White Feather and I ate, and four glasses of milk.
A trip to the grocery store was in my very near future.
Chapter 15
First thing next morning, I hurried over to visit Mat. Surely by now she’d be ready to talk.
Her shop door was locked tight again, but this time there was a “Back in Fifteen” sign, one she displayed often. I frowned. Jim, aka Gordon, could be in there. If that was the case, I didn’t want to be the next visitor.
As I turned away, there was a very loud clank from within the store. Before I could imagine what caused the noise, the sound of something else heavy and fragile shattered against the tile floor.
Not good. There were a lot of spells in there and any physical fight—or magical fight—would be a disaster. Been there, done that, and the results hadn’t been pretty. Somewhere out there was a guy who still had petunias growing out of his arm as a result of mixed spells firing all at once.
I leaned in close to the door, struggling to peer inside. Not even shadows shifted within, but at least one deep voice or...was that a growl? Jim didn’t growl, did he? And he wouldn’t hurt her, right?
Sound didn’t carry well enough through the glass, but it wasn’t Mat making that noise. The high-pitched scream, however, was probably her. It rattled the windows and maybe even damaged the casing.
“Moonlight madness.” It definitely wasn’t in my best interest to visit, but I wasn’t about to stroll away and hope for the best either. “Can’t call the cops. He’s probably already in there.” For the second time in as many days, I ran for the alleyway. I didn’t hide my tracks this time.
If the noise turned out to be a domestic dispute, I’d...well, Aztec Curses. If I weren’t married to his brother, there would be no question. Between the two of us, we’d blast Jim into the next century. Of course, White Feather hadn’t said I couldn’t take action. He just said I had to leave Jim alive. There was a lot of room between alive and not alive.
I skidded around the corner, yelling to announce my entrance. “Mat? You okay in there?” My attention was on the open door, but I sidled close to the side of the building. I very nearly tripped over a pile of clothes strewn along
“Earth carver.” I frowned. “Dad said something about an earth affinity, but he didn’t know what it was. Did you ask Tracy?”
“I mentioned he built walls quickly. He never said a word, but the stones kept flying. The adobe was the same way. He set the bricks as straight as though he’d carved them from a single rock.”
I walked over and touched the wall. Solid. Humming. “It’s happy.”
“Happy?”
“It’s all in alignment as if...there’s mortar here, but it’s all one piece. I suppose it could be because it all came from the same quarry. Whatever he did, it’s positively a work of art.”
“He was amazing to watch, I can tell you that.”
I traced my fingers along the limestone. “I bet I can learn a thing or two from him.”
“When you’re not off figuring out how to shoot silver? Maybe we should use plexiglass in the windows in here.”
I grinned. “Progress is progress. Have you eaten yet?” I checked my watch. “We better make sure Tracy eats before Dad shows up, or I’ll never hear the end of it.”
“Tracy’s in the shower. If you warm up the food Mom sent home with us, I’ll take my shower, and then we can eat.”
White Feather’s mom had sent us home with enough food for three days—until Tracy got a whiff of it. He ate more than Lynx on his hungriest days. The magic must have drained a lot out of him because he polished off half of a loaf of bread, all of the casserole, with the exception of the two pieces White Feather and I ate, and four glasses of milk.
A trip to the grocery store was in my very near future.
Chapter 15
First thing next morning, I hurried over to visit Mat. Surely by now she’d be ready to talk.
Her shop door was locked tight again, but this time there was a “Back in Fifteen” sign, one she displayed often. I frowned. Jim, aka Gordon, could be in there. If that was the case, I didn’t want to be the next visitor.
As I turned away, there was a very loud clank from within the store. Before I could imagine what caused the noise, the sound of something else heavy and fragile shattered against the tile floor.
Not good. There were a lot of spells in there and any physical fight—or magical fight—would be a disaster. Been there, done that, and the results hadn’t been pretty. Somewhere out there was a guy who still had petunias growing out of his arm as a result of mixed spells firing all at once.
I leaned in close to the door, struggling to peer inside. Not even shadows shifted within, but at least one deep voice or...was that a growl? Jim didn’t growl, did he? And he wouldn’t hurt her, right?
Sound didn’t carry well enough through the glass, but it wasn’t Mat making that noise. The high-pitched scream, however, was probably her. It rattled the windows and maybe even damaged the casing.
“Moonlight madness.” It definitely wasn’t in my best interest to visit, but I wasn’t about to stroll away and hope for the best either. “Can’t call the cops. He’s probably already in there.” For the second time in as many days, I ran for the alleyway. I didn’t hide my tracks this time.
If the noise turned out to be a domestic dispute, I’d...well, Aztec Curses. If I weren’t married to his brother, there would be no question. Between the two of us, we’d blast Jim into the next century. Of course, White Feather hadn’t said I couldn’t take action. He just said I had to leave Jim alive. There was a lot of room between alive and not alive.
I skidded around the corner, yelling to announce my entrance. “Mat? You okay in there?” My attention was on the open door, but I sidled close to the side of the building. I very nearly tripped over a pile of clothes strewn along
Similar Books
