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Ysandra looked around. “What are you doing?”
Luna faced her squarely. “I’m going to cast a Locate spell.”
Ysandra cocked her head. “What tradition are you using?”
“Family. My family has several innate abilities, and one is to find lost people. We go through our ancestors for the energy.” There was something about the way she said it…I couldn’t catch the meaning, but Ysandra seemed to understand, because the Consortium member blanched, pulling back.
“Ancestor magic…you realize how much those spells can cost you?” Ysandra almost sounded afraid.
Luna let out a slow breath. “I know. Trust me, I know. But this is the only way. We can’t afford to let another night pass without finding Rhiannon. They want Cicely to show up tonight in the town square by eight o’clock or they’ll turn Rhiannon. You know they’ll do it, too.” Luna shrugged. “I’m not going to let that happen. Since the Consortium won’t engage a seer for us, it’s up to me.”
Ysandra pressed her lips together, a thoughtful look in her eyes. After a moment, she gave one short nod. “As you wish. What backup do you need? This isn’t one of the spells in my repertoire, but I can provide energy to help. Just let me know what you want me to do.”
Luna laughed softly. “Be prepared in case anybody comes through whom we don’t want in here. You know what these spells can conjure up.”
“Are you in danger if you do this?” I broke in. No matter how much I wanted my cousin back, I couldn’t let Luna put herself in danger in order to rescue Rhiannon and I was getting the distinct impression this spell was far more powerful than I had first thought.
Luna shook her head. “Don’t sweat it. There’s always danger when you run family magic and you’re yummanii. Magic for our people works different than for the Fae or the magic-born. It’s more unpredictable, and we are more easily possessed and entranced.”
I had heard this but had never had the opportunity to really sit down with any magic-using yummanii to discuss it. And since I’d met Luna, our lives had been focused on fighting Myst and not much of anything else.
“I didn’t know that. Then how do you get up the courage to use your magic, if it’s so chaotic?” But even as I asked, I realized my question was moot. My mother had run away from her heritage, but most of the magic-born embraced their gifts. There was no reason why the yummanii wouldn’t do the same. “Never mind. What do we do next?”
Luna motioned to Ysandra. “I don’t usually work in a magical circle unless it’s a powerful ritual, like the one my sister did for Grieve. But for this spell, I think we should call the veils of protection. Can you do that without interfering with the resonance of my magic?”
Ysandra nodded. “Yes, protection grids and veils are pretty standard across most magical systems. Especially since my magic is of the pure form, as in purest sense—while I can call the lightning, my energy tends to be that of magical force, untouched by any specific elemental nature.”
“Then set up a veil that allows spirits from my past to come through but no others. I’m a good medium, although I don’t often talk about it, but I don’t want to fight off all the ghosts looking for someone to give them a voice.” Luna turned toward the stairs. “I’m going up to take a quick ritual shower. If you would ring the table with salt, then cast the veil of protection, that’s all I need.” With that, she was off.
Grieve and Chatter had moved to one corner of the room and were talking in low, soft tones. Ysandra motioned me toward the kitchen.
“Show me where the salt is. I don’t care for poking around through others’ drawers. You never know what you might find.”
At first I thought she was joking, but as we entered the kitchen, I glanced at her and realized she meant every word.
“We had twenty-pound bags of salt until the Veil House burned, but I believe it was ruined in the fire.” I began rifling through the cupboard, coming up with a box of sea salt. “Will this work?”
“Yes, that will be fine.” She paused before turning back to the living room. “Cicely…did Luna explain what the spell might do to her? The way payments work in the yummanii magical world?”
I shook my head. “No, but she seemed pretty solemn when she first told me about it.”
“When did she bring it up?”
“When we were at the Consortium, while we were waiting for the Council to come back with their decision.” I frowned. “Ysandra, just how dangerous is this for Luna?”
Ysandra paused, the box of salt in hand. She let out a low breath, then gave me a little shrug. “The danger with this type of magic is that every time one of the yummanii seeks the help of their ancestors, they run the danger of being possessed by the spirits who come to their summons. If the spirit is determined, they can take over the body—walk in and set up shop.”
“Is that the only danger?”
She headed back into the living room. Over her shoulder, she said, “No. If the spirits don’t possess them, there’s a chance the magic will. And there are no guarantees what that will do to them. Kaylin’s night-veil demon? That demon can be tame compared to what the magic can do to the yummanii if it claims them. Luna’s a powerful bard, far stronger than she realizes. But I don’t think she’s done this sort of spell before. I suppose,” she added, “we’ll just have to see what happens.”
As she began to pour the salt in a circle on the hardwood floor, I backed away, letting her focus. We needed all the protection we could get, but now my worry was for Luna. I wondered…did Luna have any inner demons that would leave her prey to the magic coming through her? And even if she couldn’t withstand it, did we really have a choice at this point?
Chapter 14
When Luna returned, she was wearing a long black dress, belted with a silver belt. It was off the shoulder, velvet, and hugged her curves. With her hair trailing down her back in black ringlets and her dark eyes ringed with silver, she looked positively magical. Luna was around thirty-five, and for once she didn’t look vulnerable but experienced and softly aware.
She motioned to the table, where two chairs were waiting. Ysandra took her place in a third seat, in the northern quarter of the Circle. Peyton, Grieve, and Chatter sat outside the Circle, where they wouldn’t interfere with the flow of energy. I sat opposite Luna, my back to the east, while she sat in the west, facing me. The crystal ball rested in front of her, and as she lit the black candle, the flame sputtered and caught fire.
