“A question neither Alice nor I can answer.”
“Indeed.” He drew in a breath, his expression somewhat frustrated. “But at least it gives me a starting point. You ready to come out?”
I nodded and watched as he deactivated the protection circle; the golden threads of his spell quickly and silently faded into the sunshine. Once he'd picked up his spell stones and tucked them carefully back into the silk bag, he stepped closer and offered me a hand. I clasped it gratefully and let him pull me upright. Just for an instant, the world spun around me, and it was only his grip that kept me standing.
“You're looking rather pale,” he commented. “I wasn't aware that psi powers took such a great toll.”
“Any power, psi or magic, has a cost, Monty. They taught us that in school, remember?”
“Must have been in one of the many lessons I missed.” Amusement glimmered in his bright eyes. “Does this ability to share psi abilities come from the fact you're witch and familiar? Can you two also draw on each other's magical strength?”
“Yes, and yes,” I said. “But the latter isn't unusual—you've a familiar, so you must know that.”
“Mine's a cat, and a goddamn grouchy one at that. Not quite the same as having another witch as a familiar.”
“No one ever saw it as an advantage, Monty. Not even you.”
“I guess not.” He hesitated. “But now I can't help wondering why.”
I shrugged. The only reasons I could ever come up with was the fact it went against all tradition. Of course, if my sister had been gifted with a human familiar rather than me, it might have been a different story.
“Right,” Jaz said, as she slapped the lid down on her kit. “You two finished here? If so, we'll head back.”
My gaze automatically went to the spot where the skin had been dumped. Jaz must have seen it, because she added, “I was ordered to record positioning and collect all relevant evidence. There's really little point in doing anything else, because the actual crime didn't happen here.”
“You’re not going to collect the skin?”
“Ciara’s second—”
“Wait—when did Ciara get an assistant?”
“He arrived about a week ago,” Jaz replied. “He hails from the Raine pack up in the Northern Territory. His name is Luke.”
I grunted. “You were saying before I sidetracked?”
“There aren’t any scavengers around this immediate area, so the skin should be safe enough until he can get up here.”
I hoped she was right. Even though Alice had moved on, she deserved a proper burial—one where her body and her skin were present.
We followed Jaz down the hill. By the time we got back to her car, my head was thumping, weariness had settled into my limbs, and all the scrapes and bruises I'd gotten when I was pushed out of the car were hurting like a bitch. What I needed was several large buckets of coffee, a good dozen chocolate bars, and maybe even a painkiller or two. And while I didn't have the first or third of those, I did at least have three of the middle option stashed in the side pocket of my backpack. I offered one to Monty and Jaz, and was totally relieved when both said no.
Ciara’s second—who was a tall and rangy man with carrot-red hair, pale skin, and lovely dark brown eyes—appeared as I was finishing my second chocolate. Jaz gave him directions and then jumped into her car and drove us out of there. By the time we got back to Castle Rock, the headache had at least eased slightly even if the weariness remained. Jaz dropped Monty home first and then ran me around to the café.
I opened the door once she'd stopped and then said, “Do you want to come in for a coffee?”
She shook her head. “I’ve got to go write up a report, but thanks.”
I nodded and headed inside. Though it was close to lunchtime, there were only half a dozen people inside. Penny—a middle-aged woman with long gray hair tied back in a ponytail and a lined, interesting face—stood behind the counter making coffees and either Frank or Mike—our kitchen hand and chef—was whistling softly in the kitchen. I couldn't hear the rattle of pots and the dishwasher wasn't going, so obviously there wasn't much to do as yet.
Penny glanced up as I neared the counter and gave me a wide smile. “Everything's under control here. Belle's upstairs doing some research if you want her.”
I nodded. “Has the brigade come in?”
“Not as yet, but Mrs. Potts rang twenty minutes ago, asking if we could shove some tables together, as there was twenty of them.”
“What time?”
“Around two.”