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“Yes. As I said, the energy that gathers at wellsprings is neither good nor bad, but it can be stained—influenced, if you like—by either. The wellspring in High Ridge was newly formed and rather small, but the darker forces became aware of its existence before a witch could be assigned to its protection. The wellspring was irrevocably stained, which is why life in that town remains untenable for all who follow the light.”
“And this is what you think will happen here?”
“For everyone’s sake, I hope not.” I stoppered the water bottle and shoved it back in the pack. “But whether you like it or not, Karen’s murder might just be the first play in evil’s takeover of this place.”
“Which is an overly dramatic statement, I’m thinking.”
“Perhaps.” I shouldered my pack and continued on. “But it might be wise to go read the police reports from that time. As a ranger, you should have access to them.”
“I very much doubt those reports will even mention your wild magic.”
“No. It’ll just show the sudden and dramatic upswing in offenses.”
He didn’t immediately reply, and for several minutes the only sound to be heard was the rasp of my breathing. His, I noted with annoyance, had barely altered.
I studied the tree-lined road ahead. The caress of wild magic was definitely stronger, but there was nothing yet in that sensation that suggested I was close to the source. Knowing my damn luck, it would be on O’Connor land.
“There hasn’t been a witch on this reservation for over a year now,” he said. “Surely if our wellspring was going to draw evil, it would have done so.”
“It would depend entirely on what protections the last witch placed on it before you ran him out of town.”
“We didn’t run him out of town,” he bit back. “We may have revoked his residency, but he disappeared before we could serve notice. There’s still a warrant out for his arrest.”
“Have you contacted the Regional Witch Association for assistance? If he’s wanted, they would surely—”
Aiden’s snort was loud and disdainful. “What? Give away one of their own?”
“If he’s suspected of a crime, they would have to.”
“And yet they have been spectacularly unhelpful in the past.” He shook his head. “We’ll take our chances and let the law do its job without the interference of any damn witches.”
“We’re not all bad, you know.”
“I never said you were. I merely said I don’t want to associate with any of you.”
“And yet, here you are, associati
ng.”
Once again his smile held very little in the way of humor. “I’m doing my job. Nothing more, nothing less.”
I harrumphed and continued to plod up the final bit of the incline. By the time I reached the top, it felt like I’d run a damn marathon. Any impression that I might have been in okay shape had been well and truly shattered.
The road plunged downward again and was quickly consumed by the regimental lines of green. The mountain that rose on the other side of the valley was rugged and stone-filled, a place of shadows and old, old power.
Mount Alexander, I presumed, and home to not only the O’Connor pack but also the wild magic. It could be nowhere else, of that I was certain.
Which meant it was basically impossible for me to access the area without first getting permission from the pack’s leaders. As Aiden had already noted, I was a far from silent walker, and while I did know invisibility and scent containment spells, werewolves were capable of picking up the distortion shimmer that was one of the few telltale signs of both.
The flip side, of course, was the fact that it would be just as difficult for anyone else to access it. And that at least gave me some time to come up with a way to convince the councilors that the wild magic’s source needed some protection—and that it would be better if it came from a more powerful witch than me.
A sharp ring broke the silence and made me jump. Aiden dug his phone out of his pocket and walked down the hill several yards.
I spotted a largish rock on the other side of the road and walked over to sit down and catch my breath. The only sound that broke the silence was the melodious tune of a magpie. Aiden wasn’t talking, but it was rather obvious that whatever he was hearing, he didn’t like.
After several more minutes, he hung up and met my gaze. His annoyance spun around me, as fierce as it might have been had he been standing right next to me.
“What?” I immediately said.
