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Her pen hesitates over the paper. “What’s a symbol for death and dog that won’t interfere with the spirit’s intention to create death?”
“Yes, we don’t want to exclude the creature we’re hunting.” I take the notebook from her and draw a link to a new circle. My eyes unfocus as I map out a spirit of death that inhabits a dead body not its own.
It’s similar to how I create zombies, though writing it out is more complicated. It’s been a long time since I put into symbols the type of magic I perform.
“Brilliant,” Savannah breathes, and I can’t help but feel a surge of pride in our collaboration.
This is why the Conservatory is so important. It brings together witches from all walks of life to work in ways unheard of in the past.
Xander takes my design and adds his own tweaks, refining the concept. “We should make a practice run. We don’t want to flub it at the crime scene and ruin the most viable source.”
“There’s still the reverend’s backyard, too.” Reese frowns down at the spell. “The Bone Yard would be a last resort. I don’t know that we could eliminate all the variety of beings within that area for a clean sample.”
“So…” Xander looks around at us. “Field trip to a graveyard?”
Savannah claps. “Now, that’s what I’m talking about.”
“I was thinking of something a little closer and more secluded. And also more relevant to our current situation.” At my words, questioning gazes turn to me. “The site where the Fox God vanished.”
“A being not from this plane, the same intent to kill…” Xander frowns in consideration. “What about the dead body?”
“She killed Darius, but he’s still here. That should work for our purposes.” Reese nods eagerly. “Better than the graveyard, since there are no beings from beyond our planes there.”
I stare down at the spells. This should work. We just have to hope it turns the tide in our favor. Because, so far, we’re losing.
In the end, only Savannah and I head out to collect the essence while Xander and Reese stay behind to craft their tracking device. It’s going to take a lot of small parts with the spells meticulously engraved in miniature to make the final product portable.
It’s fortunate that Reese’s hand is steady enough for that kind of stuff, and Xander has experience with tech to merge the magic with whatever device they settle on using.
Reese’s first-time tracker was as big as a bowling ball and hard-wired to the reader that stayed on this side of the veil. But he and his brother kept making smaller and smaller prototypes until they got it down to the size of a watch.
I have faith they can knock this one out of the park on the first try, so long as Savannah and I can do our job.
We drive as close to the location as possible, then leave the car on the shoulder of the road and walk the rest of the way on foot. Happy to stretch her legs, Orianna races ahead of us through the forest, then circles back to yip at our ankles before racing off once more.
As the trees peel away to expose the clearing, my pulse quickens. I haven’t been back here since I woke up trapped within a circle of magic while a child god prepared to cut out my heart. Darius took my place and lost his life.
At the time, we all thought he had died, and I shoved down my feelings about his sacrifice.
Savannah shrugs off the bag she carries and glances around. “This is the place?”
“Yeah.” Swallowing my discomfort, I walk to the northwestern edge and drop one of the two plastic jugs I brought onto the ground. “The altar stood here, and the Fox God vanished after taking Darius’s heart. His body disintegrated here, too.”
“That must have dredged up all sorts of feelings.” Savannah kneels and pulls out the ingredients we need to perform the spell. “How are you doing now?”
“Rainbows and roses.” I pull the plug on the jug and tip it, pouring out the fine white sand. It falls to the grass as I walk backward, creating a circle a foot wider than the altar had been. “We’re even sharing a bed now.”
Savannah wiggles her eyebrows. “Sounds hot.”
“Temperature-wise, yes.” I toss aside the empty jug and fetch the second one to keep going. “Sex-wise, I’d rather not think about it.”
“You put Pen in the middle, don’t you?” Savannah shakes her head. “Such a missed opportunity.”
“We’re happy with how things are, thank you very much.” I finish closing off the circle and toss the empty container out of the way. “We’ll be even happier once we have separate rooms again.”
“I do not know how you haven’t killed each other yet.” Savannah sets a brazier on top of a stone tile, fills it with a fire starter kit, and lights it. “If I shared every night with Troy, I would smother him in his sleep.”
“I’d smother Troy, too, if I had to share a room with him.” I pull a vial from my pocket with a containment spell etched into the glass. “Ready to do this?”
