The Good, The Bad, And The Undead

'Look,' I said, pointing at the blurring print. 'I was right. If I want to send their pop flies foul, I need a noncontact spell.' For an earth witch such as myself, noncontact meant wands. I'd never made one before, but my eyebrows rose at the ingredients. I had everything but the fern seed and the wand. How much could a dowel of redwood cost?

'Why do you do it?'

His voice had a touch of belligerence, and blinking, I closed the book. Disappointed, I went to put it away, turning to face him with my back against the island counter. 'Make spells? It's what I do. I'm not going to hurt anyone. Not with a spell, anyway.'

Glenn set his super-sized cup down. His dark fingers loosened their grip and slid away. Leaning back in his chair, he hesitated. 'No,' he said. 'How can you live with someone like that? Ready to explode with no warning?'

'Oh.' I reached for my drink. 'You just caught her on a bad day. She doesn't like your dad, and she took it out on you.' And you did ask for it, dickhead. I slurped the last of my drink and threw the cup away. 'Ready?' I said as I got my bag and coat from a chair.

Glenn stood and adjusted his suit coat before crossing in front of me to throw his stuff away under the sink. 'She wants something,' he said. 'And every time she looks at you, I see guilt. Whether she means to or not, she's going to hurt you, and she knows it.'

Affronted, I gave him an up-and-down look. 'She's not hunting me.' Trying to keep a lid on my anger, I headed down the hallway at a fast pace.

Glenn was close his hard-soled shoes a heartbeat behind mine. 'Are you telling me yesterday was the first time she attacked you?'

My lips pursed, and the thumps of my boots went all the way up my spine. There had been lots of almosts before I figured out what pushed her buttons and quit doing it.

Glenn said nothing, clearly hearing the answer in my silence. 'Listen,' he said as we emerged into the sanctuary, 'I may have looked like the dumb human last night, but I was watching. Piscary bespelled you easier than blowing out a candle. She pulled you from him by simply saying your name. That can't be normal. And he called you her pet. Is that what you are? It sure looks like it to me.'

'I'm not her pet,' I said. 'She knows it. I know it. Piscary can think what he wants.' Shoving my arms into my coat, I pushed my way out of the church and stormed down the steps. His car was locked, and I yanked at the handle. Angry, I waited for him to unlock it. 'And it's none of your business,' I added.

The FIB detective was silent as he opened his door, then paused to look at me over the roof of the car. He put on his shades, hiding his eyes. 'You're right. It's not my business.'

The door unlocked, and I got in, slamming it to make the car shake. Glenn slid softly in behind the wheel and shut his door.

'Damn right it isn't your business,' I muttered in the closeness of his car. 'You heard her last night. I'm not her shadow. She wasn't lying when she said that.'

'I also heard Piscary say if she didn't get control of you, he would.'

A flash of real fear tightened me, unwanted and unsettling. 'I'm her friend,' I asserted. 'All she wants is a friend that isn't after her blood. Ever think of that?'

'A pet, Rachel?' he said softly as he started the car.

I said nothing, tapping my fingers on the armrest. I wasn't Ivy's pet. And not even Piscary could make her turn me into one.

Ten

The late September afternoon sun was warm through my leather jacket as I rested my arm on the car's window. The tiny vial of salt on my charm bracelet shifted in the wind to clink against my wooden cross, and reaching out, I adjusted the side mirror to watch the traffic hanging a car length behind. It was nice to have a vehicle at my beck and call. We'd be at the FIB in fifteen minutes, not the forty it would take by bus, afternoon traffic and all. 'Take a right at the next light,' I said, pointing.

I watched in disbelief as Glenn drove straight through the intersection. 'What the Turn is wrong with you!' I exclaimed. 'I have yet to get in this car and you go where I want you to.'

Glenn's expression was smug behind his sunglasses. 'Shortcut.' He grinned, his teeth startlingly white. It was the first real smile I had seen on him, and it took me aback.

'Sure,' I said, waving a hand in the air. 'Show me your shortcut.' I doubted it would be faster, but I wasn't going to say anything. Not after that smile.

My head turned to follow a familiar sign on one of the passing buildings. 'Hey! Stop!' I shouted, spinning halfway around in my seat. 'It's a charm shop.'

Glenn checked behind him and made an illegal U-turn. I gripped the top of the window as he made another, pulling up right before the shop and parking at the curb. I opened the door and grabbed my bag. 'I'll just be a minute,' I said, and he nodded, moving his seat backward and leaning his head against the headrest.

Leaving him to nap, I strode into the shop. The bells above the door jingled, and I took a slow breath, feeling myself relax. I liked charm shops. This one smelled like lavender, dandelion, and the bite of chlorophyll. Bypassing the ready-made spells, I went straight to the back where the raw materials were.

'May I help you?'

I looked up from a posy of bloodroot to find a tidy, eager salesman leaning over the counter. He was a witch by the smell of him—though it was hard to tell with all the scents in there. 'Yes,' I said. 'I'm looking for fern seed and a dowel of redwood suitable for a wand.'

'Ah!' he said triumphantly. 'We keep our seeds right over here.'

I paralleled his path from my side of the counter to a display of amber bottles. He ran his fingers over them, bringing down one the size of my pinky and extending it. I wouldn't take it, indicating he should put it on the counter. He looked affronted as I dug about in my bag, then held an amulet over the bottle. 'I assure you, ma'am,' he said stiffly, 'it's the highest quality.'

I gave him a weak smile as the amulet glowed a faint green. 'I was under a death threat this spring,' I explained. 'You can't blame me for being cautious.'

The doorbells jingled, and I glanced back to see Glenn come in.

The salesman brightened, snapping his fingers and taking a step back. 'You're Rachel. Rachel Morgan, right? I know you!' He pressed the bottle into my hands. 'On the house. So glad to see you survived. What were the odds on you? Three hundred to one?'

'It was two hundred,' I said, slightly offended. I watched his gaze dart over my shoulder to Glenn, his smile freezing as he realized he was human. 'He's with me,' I said, and the man gasped, trying to disguise it with a cough. His eyes lingered on Glenn's half-hidden weapon. The Turn take it, I missed my cuffs.

'The wands are over here,' he said, his tone giving me clear indication he didn't approve of my choice of companions. 'We store them in a desiccation box to keep them fresh.'

Glenn and I followed him to a clear spot beside the cash register. The man pulled a wooden box the size of a violin case out, opened it, and turned it with a flourish so I could see.

I sighed as the sent of redwood came rolling out. My hand rose to touch them, dropping as the salesman cleared his throat. 'What spell are you stirring, Ms. Morgan?' he asked, his tone going professional as he eyed me over his glasses. The rims were wood, and I'd bet my panties they were spelled to see through earth magic disguise charms.

'I want to try a noncontact spell. For…oh… breaking wood already under stress?' I said, stifling a tinge of embarrassment.

'Any of the smaller ones will do,' he said, his gaze shifting between Glenn and me.

I nodded, my eyes fixed upon the pencil-size wands. 'How much?'

'Nine hundred seventy-five,' he said. 'But to you, I'd sell it for nine.'

Dollars? 'You know,' I said slowly, 'I should make sure I have everything before I