Page 68 of Magic's Rise

I drift toward the barrier, and as I near, I spot pinpricks of darkness where silver lines are broken. When I reach out to touch one, a silver spark drifts into the air. I catch it and return the magic to the barrier, tracing the break down to where it should connect.

The thread brightens, and I stare at the ground, watching as a slender line of spillover pulls back into the barrier, like I fixed a leaky faucet.

“Ha!” I fix another of the broken threads. “Take that, you stupid magical… hole thing!”

But when I move to the next break, this one higher, I look up at the sky and reality comes crashing back down on me. There are hundreds more black spots just within my view, rising toward the sky, far past where I can reach. A glance to the left and right reveals even more, slipping into the distance.

My shoulders slump as I realize just how bad the leakage is.

“Guys…” I call over my shoulder, my voice wavering. “We have a big problem here.”

“Can you fix it?” Aspen asks.

“Yes…” Then I shake my head, because…so many holes… But I can, so I nod, before shaking my head again. “Sort of?”

“Which is it?” Levi demands.

“I can fix it.” I repair another thread, bringing a little more magic back to the barrier. “But there’s so much damage. Even if I had wings or something to get to it all, it would take a while.”

“How long?” Resignation fills Levi’s voice, as if he already knows the answer.

“More than we have right now.”

A MEETING OF WITCHES

Rain starts to fall as we pile into the Jeep, a little discouraged by our first attempt to repair the barrier.

If I have to, I’ll patch holes every single day, as many as I can, but it will be like slapping Band-Aids on a severed limb. Eventually, the magic will bleed out before we can mend it.

Conversation is minimal as Levi drives us back to town, his hands tight on the steering wheel and his brown eyes focused on the road. Drops of water splatter on the windshield and bounce off the soft top of the Jeep, making me shiver.

Haut cuddles me against his chest, sharing his body heat, while Tris brushes dirt off my feet and slips my socks and shoes back on.

“We’re a little ahead of schedule, but not by much,” Levi announces as he pulls up to the Silver Hollow Library. “The local coven should be finishing up brunch at the cafe, and they’ll come over to meet with us.”

He hesitates before shutting off the ignition and twisting in his seat to face us. “Tell them what you need to, but keep in mind that one of them could be the person who poisoned our barrier.”

I glance at Aspen. “Does something like that constitute black magic?”

His lips press together into a thin line. “Only if they’re killing to do it.”

My hand moves to my wrist, where a dark squiggle marks my skin as a reminder that I used my powers to kill the man who tortured and hunted witches. “So ill intent isn’t enough?”

“Unfortunately not.” He grimaces. “There’s no gray area in that regard.”

I tug my sleeve down, though my wand sheath hides the mark. “Magic is stupid.”

“Sometimes, yes.” Aspen pops open his door and uses his new walking stick to climb out.

Not to be outdone by the invalid, the rest of us hurry to follow him.

Rain strikes the top of my head and my cheeks as we walk the short distance to the library’s entrance, where I admire a display of calligraphy pens and handmade paper in the front window. Delilah would like that, and I pat around in search of my wallet.

When I find my pockets empty, I shove my hand into Tris’s pants to grab his.

His brow arches. “Does this make me your sugar daddy on this adventure?”

I wave the wallet. “Your bank card is linked to my account.”

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