Lifting my chin, I searched the dome of the net. The sun glowed within a hazy ring. Specks of glittery red joined the shredded plants. I shook one foot.
Wait.
Listen.
Tanner punched his arm through the magical bubble and grabbed my wrist. My dance came to a sudden stop. I stumbled, arms akimbo. The energy emanating off the interior surface of the bubble kept me upright and the little bits suspended. Tanner’s eyes were open and glowing as he stared at me. Looking to my other side, Maritza’s lips were still moving. Her eyes remained closed until Tanner’s shout jolted her into action.
At Maritza’s clap, the net dissolved. The last of the tiny dots and ragged flecks floated downward and the full weight of the dress pulled on my shoulders. The witch nodded at Tanner.
I couldn’t hear very well.
Tanner stepped close, cupped my chin, turned my head to one side then the other, and asked me a question.
“I can’t hear you,” I said. My feet began to sting. Tanner said something to Maritza. She stepped in and took hold of the dress straps. Tanner covered my ears with his palms.
I grabbed his wrists as the pressure in my head increased, then popped. A sensation of warmth flooded the inside of my ear canals.
“Can you hear me?” he asked.
I nodded, mouthed, Yes.
“Calliope, we have to get you out of the dress. Now.” Maritza’s voice snapped me into action. I wiggled my arms, rolled the damp fabric over my chest and hips, and shimmied until I was surrounded by a pile of bloodied cotton and glinting, red-tipped needles. A rash banded the tops of my feet and each ankle.
Maybe I was allergic to the oils in some of the plants.
“What happened?” I shivered in the sunshine and showed Maritza my foot.
“Malvyn’s magic has always exhibited a wild side. I’m afraid something in this batch of metal has developed a thirst for blood.”
“Do I have to wear it again?” I asked, surveying the dress with greater respect. And trepidation.
Maritza shook her head. “I’ll take it back. It’s incumbent that my brother creates magical objects that are stable. We can’t let our baubles and bits start thinking on their own.”
She held my gaze and continued, “Well, most of us cannot.”
Tanner took a step back and held the dress away from his front. “What would you like me to do with this?” he asked Maritza.
With a sweep of her hand, the witch took charge, directing the dress to float toward her. “I’ll put it in my car and drive directly to my brother’s. He’ll want to have a look at the garment while residual traces of magic are still active. I will be in touch.”
With that, the witch and necromancer shouldered her large leather bag, said goodbye, and walked toward her car.
“Calli? Would you like to put your clothes back on and let me tend to your feet?”
“I sure would.” My limbs quivered from the sustained physical exertion of twirling in place and from the waves of magic that had danced through me, the ground, the dress, the flowers, all of it. The net overhead had served to contain all that magic, perhaps intensifying its effect. My feet throbbed; my cells hummed.
I was very thirsty, and lightheaded, and struggling to understand what had just happened. I got Maritza’s teaching point about using locally sourced materials. What I didn’t get—or like—was the needles wanting to shred my feet.
Tanner had a hand on my shoulder and was brushing particles off the backside of my body, shoulders to ankles. He finished, led me to the nearest flat rock, and went to get my clothes.
Dressed, I sat and rested my forearms on my knees and my forehead on my arms. Tanner rolled the bottoms of my pant legs so the fabric wouldn’t touch the tops of my feet. I liked the sureness of his hands.
“Can you get me more lemonade?” I asked.
“Sure,” he said, petting the top of my head. “Anything else?”
“Chocolate chip cookies fresh from the oven?”
“Coming right up.”
Chapter 8
I’m not sure how long I sat on the rock in the sun. Shaky muscles suggested I had been in movement longer than an hour, but time had a way of warping during magical exercises.
Feet skimmed grass, footsteps came closer, and the smell of chocolate prompted me to lift my head. Tanner appeared, carrying a tray loaded with a pitcher of lemonade, a plate piled with cookies, and first aid supplies.
“How the heck did you do that?” I asked, reaching for the offered refill and downing half the glass in a series of swallows.
“Magic.”
I rolled my eyes, held out my hand, and waggled my fingers. “May I?”
Tanner lowered the plate. I chose the thickest, most chip-laden cookie. The first bite had me closing my eyes and groaning aloud.
“Leilani made extra cookie dough and saved it in the freezer. All I had to do was cut slices and speed up the baking process.”
“You can do that?” I caught a dollop of melted chocolate at the corner of my mouth and urged it back with my pinky.
Tanner grinned and set the tray on the rock beside me. “You’ve been sitting here long enough for the oven to preheat. Maritza called and advised I let you come down at your own pace. She also said if you fell over, you’d probably been on your own long enough.”
I crooked a finger and drew Tanner closer. “How long was she here?”
He brushed a kiss across my temple. “An hour and a half, maybe a little more. Have another cookie and finish your drink. I want to take a look at your skin.”
I did as instructed. I wasn’t the expert here and I needed the fluid and the hit of sugar to set me back on track. The alcohol-soaked wipes stung. The comfrey balm quickly soothed. I rested my other foot on Tanner’s knee and looked around.
The ground inside the stone circle was carpeted by a thick layer of
