Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 92996 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92996 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)
“Like?”
“Like dyeing stones and selling spell kits that were ridiculous and couldn’t possibly work based on the ingredients in them.”
“But you’ve changed your mind?”
“I’ve never been in here before, and though there’s nothing beyond universal magic that I can perceive, from the things I see on the walls, she was clearly a believer.”
“So she believed in magic, but she wasn’t a magic user.”
“As far as I can tell, yes.”
“But that’s hard to define, isn’t it?”
“How do you mean?”
“I mean, if I burn a candle and get a positive result from that, isn’t that magic?”
“Yes. Because maybe magical rituals and thinking influence the physical world, and maybe they just give hope that things will change. Either way, that’s real magic.”
“Okay,” he said softly. “But I need to ask, what is the main difference between you and anybody else, not only Kathy?”
“The difference is thaumaturgy and the—”
“What was that?”
“Thaumaturgy,” I repeated as I lifted my hand and fire filled it, “means the ability to make natural forces work with you through intentional, or active, magic.”
“That is always impressive,” he murmured, and I saw how full of me his eyes were.
“Please show me any workings that linger here,” I whispered gently to the flames, making a fist at the same time, waiting several moments, allowing the fire to dance over my skin, imbuing the magic with my intention, my request. Once I opened my hand, releasing the flames, they broke away, sailing quickly through the air, flying everywhere at once, beyond what I could see from where I was.
I knew they were searching the house, checking every nook and cranny, and I stayed quiet, trying to sense anything amiss. They returned fast, the whoosh and vibration making both me and Lorne unsteady for a moment, causing a quick bout of shivering.
“That’s new, and I did not love that.” Lorne was adamant, petting Argos, who was still draped over his shoulders like a scarf.
“But you see, the flames all returned to me. Nothing remained for us to find.”
“How do you know?”
I had to think a moment. “It tugs at me,” I said, putting my hand on my chest. “Inside. I can feel it even if I can’t see it.”
“Okay.”
“Last year, I asked the fire to illuminate that area for us so we could see.”
“I do recall.”
“This time, I was looking for any remnants of spells or root work, anything crafted at all, and there’s nothing magical here beyond the tools we can plainly see by walking around.”
“But you could already tell she wasn’t doing active magic, so why check?”
“To see if I missed anything. I’m not infallible, and I am biased because I didn’t like her. It’s always best to double-check.”
Deep exhale from him. “Agreed. So we haven’t narrowed down anything.”
“No. She could still have been killed by something magical; it just means that she herself, as I always suspected, had no power beyond that which is granted by the natural world.”
He threw up his hands. “Then what the hell made the fire so big in here? Schwartz didn’t see anything that made him think the fire was deliberately set, but I’ve got an arson inspector coming anyway because looking at that.” He gestured at the side of the house that was gone. “There had to be something.”
“Where’s the inspector coming from?”
“Jamestown. Lieutenant Amy Gedrick, and she’ll be here first thing in the morning with her team.”
“Good. And I’m sure when she gets here she’ll notice all the remnants of glass over there on what’s left of that side of the house.”
“Glass?”
“Yeah. Kathy had a thriving business—both online and brick and mortar—where she sold wet specimens. Lots of dead insects and animals, and they’re normally preserved in ethanol. I bet if you check her store, you’ll find lots of them there as well.”
“Ethanol?”
“Yep.”
“Holy crap, it’s a wonder this whole place didn’t burn to the ground, then.”
It certainly was.
“Does she have family here?”
“Her parents are in Westfield, I think. I’m sure Pete knows, or his mother does. Just have him call them. We all went to high school together.”
Stepping into me, he took my face in his hands. “How come Kathy didn’t like you?”
“I’m a weirdo. It’s a wonder you like me.”
“Lots of people like you,” he murmured, drawing me close, kissing my forehead and then easing me into his arms, wrapping me up tight for a moment. “I have to stay until the CSI team gets here and then through them processing the scene.”
“Which will take hours.”
“Yes, it will.”
“And you said Gedrick, the arson inspector, will be here in the morning, so does that mean you have to stay here all night? If you do, I’ll stay with you.”
“No, I called over to the state police, and they’re helping us out by putting two officers on the house. Until I know what happened, I don’t want either Pete or Victoria here alone, and I could stay, but I need to be ready to talk to the ME tomorrow and get all the information from the director of the crime lab, so yeah, I need help, and I got it.”