“No wonder your spells go nuts when you try to cast them,” Bitty said.“Both your magics are trying to respond to the spells, and they’re basically fighting each other in the process instead of working together.”
“You’re definitely a rare witch,” Lorene said.“Your magic is unstable because you have no anchor.It’s like you’re walking between two roads, and you need a bridge between them.”
“How do I get a bridge?”
“You need a catalyst,” Lorene said.“Something or someone to align the two parts of your magic.Until then, your magic will always fight against itself, and your spells won’t work.”
“How do I find the catalyst?”
“You don’t,” Gwen said.“It will find you.”
“That’s… not as comforting as you might think,” Kaeli said with a grimace.
Lorene put her hand on Kaeli’s shoulder and gave a gentle squeeze.“Sorry, but it’s true.Your magics are not going to work until they are brought together and bound to work as one.Until you find the catalyst that unites your magics, you are essentially a boat adrift without an anchor.”
Her eyes stung with tears.It sounded so final.How could she figure out what the catalyst was?And why had her own coven never tried to help her figure out what was wrong with her magic?No one had ever suggested a revealing spell or attempted to get to the bottom of her screwy spells.
“When your magics are aligned properly and not fighting each other,” Gwen said, “you will be more powerful than you can imagine.But you’ll have to start training again, because you will essentially have double the power that a normal witch would have.Fortunately, you’ll have the knowledge of the spells you trained on in your early life; you’ll just have to practice.”
“But there’s no way to know when the catalyst will show up in my life?”
Gwen shrugged.“Sorry, but no.The fates will bring your magics into alignment when they wish, and not a moment before.All you can do is be ready and willing.And patient.”
“And once you have the dual magics aligned,” Bitty said, “You can visit the wolf pack’slygisa.Her name is Cinder, and she’s the alpha female, a rare and powerful wolf-witch, with lots of practice having a dual nature.”
Kaeli nodded, feeling numb.She’d see whoever she needed to once her magics were synced up, but in the meantime, all she could do was wonder when the heck that would happen.
Lorene put her arm around Kaeli’s shoulder and led her back to the main room.“You’re safe here in Cleveland, with our coven.Do you have a car?”
“No, I came here by taxi from the bus station, and I haven’t had a chance to think about where I’ll stay tonight.”
“Lulu will drive you to one of the empty homes we have in our coven’s neighborhood.She can run you by a market to get what you need.Tomorrow is the Equinox, and you’re welcome to join us as a guest.For obvious reasons, you won’t be able to join in our spell casting, but perhaps as you spend time with us, your catalyst will reveal itself to you, and you can gain the use of your magics as nature intended.”
“Thank you for being so kind,” Kaeli said.
“It’s what we are called to do as Corners,” Lorene said.“Rest tonight, and then tomorrow, Lulu can bring you to the store so you can spend the day with us as we prepare for the ceremony.You’re here for a reason, Kaeli, and I believe that your life is going to change immensely now that you’re with us.”
“I hope so.”
Lulu smiled brightly at Kaeli and shouldered her purse, her keys tinkling with the motion.The wordcatalystswirled in Kaeli’s brain like a whirlpool, but she didn’t know what to do about it.
What—or who—was the catalyst that would bring her magics in alignment?
ChapterFour
Solan hadn’t been to a Wiccan celebration as a security escort in years, but the bluffs still looked the same.Torches lit the path from the dirt parking area up to the flats that overlooked Lake Erie.It was a cool evening now that the sun had set, but the wind off the lake made it seem even chillier.
Solan and Linus walked up the path and greeted the shifters around the perimeter of the open space—two bears, two falcons, two white lions, two dragons, and two tigers.Then he and Linus took their places on the lookout for danger and turned away from where the witches would be performing their spells and blessings for the coming few months.
Linus shivered.“Do you feel that?”
“The wind or the power?”
“I don’t know,” he said, rubbing his arms.“It’s like static.”
“It’s the power of this place.The witches call it harmony, as if the land holds memories of all the spells cast, and it makes the ground hum.It feels like pressure to me, like the air before a thunderstorm.”
“It’s wild.”Linus blew out a breath.“What are we looking for?”
