I wonder what he’s like in bed, with that soft, lush mouth between my thighs, those dexterous fingers sliding into my?—
“Channel,” he announces, and I’m starting to think he’s a mind reader, that he’s following me headlong into a scandal after all. But then he grins again, like,ta-da! And goes, “That’s your innate gift. You’re a channel.”
“Oh. Oh! That sounds… great?”
“Great? It’s incredible! The spirits are speaking to you, Miss Bonnivarde. And while you may not be able to hear them clearly just yet, you’re absolutely sensing them. At first, I thought your innate power might be mediumship, but your mention of the visions of your mother led me down another track. I was doing some light reading last night, and…” He digs through his satchel, pulls out a leather-bound doorstopper of a book. Flipping to a page in the middle, he points and says, “Channel. You sense and perceive energy signatures, translating them into images and scents and other emanations your five primary senses can process.”
“I’m… translating the energy signatures of dead people?”
“Of a great many things. Souls leave signatures in the form of what most humans call ghosts or spirits, so yes, that explains your talent for spirit communication. With a medium, that would be the extent of it. But in your case, you can also sense thesignatures people have left behind on objects they’ve touched, like your mother’s Tarot cards, or the signatures of living beings in your vicinity, as we proved with our experiment. You’ll feel things like that even more intensely if the person is experiencing a strong emotion toward you.”
“Like… someone who loves me?”
He waves a dismissive hand. “Love is not an emotion.”
“Are you nuts? It’s the biggest emotion there is!”
“Come now, Miss Bonnivarde,” he says with a note of impatience. “You can’t possibly be serious. Have you never been in love before?”
I laugh, and it comes out all rusty and awkward, because in that moment, I realize Ihaven’tbeen. Not even with Brendan. His cheating didn’t break my heart, if I’m being honest. It just kinda wounded my pride and screwed up my plans. Those plans being to move in with him, quit my shitty job at the smoothie bar, and never have to work a day in my life.
I wanted to be a kept woman, and I thought Brendan was the man for the job.
That wasn’t love. It was a transaction.
There’s no point in denying it—he’s right. I have no idea what I’m talking about when it comes to love. The realization opens up a little hole in my heart.
“Have you?” I ask.
I don’t expect him to answer. And for a few beats, he doesn’t.
Then, that smile again. Quick, but genuine.
“Perhaps I’ve stumbled upon a subject neither one of us has any expertise in.”
“Finally. Something the illustrious Professor Sutherlanddoesn’tknow. I feel like we should mark the occasion.”
“A rare one, to be sure.” He tucks away the book, along with the smile. “Back to the point at hand, an emotion strong enough to leave a discernible energy signature would be somethinglike… like infatuation, perhaps. Desire, definitely. As well as rage, loathing, gratitude, fear, hatred, disgust, adoration?—”
“Lust?”
A dark sigh. “You’re doing it on purpose.”
“What?”
“Trying to distract me in order to avoid the assignment.”
“Well, you’re half right. Iamdoing it on purpose. But only to get a rise out of you, because this is top-notch entertainment.”
“Have you considered socializing with your peers?”
I think of Brendan. His douchebro friends. Their bored girlfriends. “Have youmetmy peers?”
“Fair point.”
We head back through the cemetery. I stop to see Calista, but this time I don’t get swept into any visions when I touch her grave. “Stop by later, if you feel like it,” I tell her, truly hoping she hears me. Then, to Dr. Sutherland, “That feeling in the woods… was my magic stronger there? Closer to the source, kind of thing?”
“Yes. That’s the case for all witches, regardless of where their magic originates. The closer to the source, the more undiluted and accessible the magic. As you gain experience and control, you’ll be able to channel it from greater distances. Eventually, it will become almost second nature to you. Casting a spell will feel as natural and easy as?—”
