Page 77 of The Heart of Moonlight Falls

“I think so, at least for now. I don’t exactly need a paycheck. Nelson Power is going to keep me and any future Storms fed and clothed for a while.”

James pulled into the parking lot behind the diner. He liked the idea of future Storms. He let himself imagine having a family with Sebastian, and the possibility tugged on his heart. Sebastian would be a wonderful father.

They found Eli by the stone, a familiar portable magical energy flow meter in his hand.

“Hey, guys.” Eli waved them closer. They maneuvered around the signs and flowers on the grass to reach him.

“You don’t let anything keep you from studying, do you?” James teased.

“No.” Eli gave him a look like, why would I? “I had the longest video call with my supervisor last week, explaining the veins and everything I couldn’t tell him before. He thinks I should change my enrollment and transfer to a PhD. I have more than enough for a research proposal at that level now.”

“Wow, that’s great.” James clapped him on the shoulder.

Eli brimmed with excitement, smiling widely. “I’m going to do a complete study of the vein intersection and see if I can publish an article on the imbalance. There’s so much to do. I’m testing out a new theory now.”

Sebastian eyed the magical flow meter. “Is that why you wanted to see us?”

“Yeah.” Eli gestured to the stone. “I was trying to see what the deal was with this.”

James frowned at the large rock, unable to quell his suspicion. He’d never see it the same way after the shades used it in their attacks on Moonlight Falls. “Does the stone have magic?”

“No, it doesn’t have any of its own, but I think it can conduct magic.”

“Like how some things conduct electricity?” James asked.

“Yeah, I guess.” Eli shrugged. “The vein running below the stone must make contact with it. I’d love to dig and see how deep the stone goes, but it seems like it’s conducting magical energy from the vein, bringing it to the surface. I’ve been able to detect trace amounts in the air around the stone, which is something you wouldn’t normally see. Vein energy is always contained within the earth.”

“Huh.” James frowned more severely at the rock, Sebastian doing the same.

“But that’s not my theory.”

James returned his focus to Eli. “What’s your theory?”

“You know how everyone says they can feel the magic of Moonlight Falls?” Eli waited for James and Sebastian to nod. “Well, maybe they can. If the stone brings the veins’ magic to the surface, people could very well be feeling it. And I’d bet money that it being magic from a fixed vein intersection with a rare straight formation makes it special. That’s why Moonlight Falls feels like nowhere else.”

“So the stone is like a beacon?” Sebastian asked. “That actually makes a lot of sense. People aren’t the only ones drawn here. One of the shades said they’d been called. What if the stone bringing the unique magic to the surface attracted shades as well as people. They may have been able to sense it through the gateway.”

“That’s a great point.” Eli pulled a notebook out of a backpack, discarded the bag on the ground, and began writing. “I can’t wait to record all the unique properties of this vein intersection. Even with the imbalance fixed, it’s an extraordinarily rare magical formation.”

James caught Sebastian’s eye, surprised to find Sebastian frowning. “What’s up?”

“I was just thinking about my connection to the veins.” Sebastian rubbed his head absently. “It’ll be totally gone, right? I mean, I know it felt like it was ripped away that night, but I don’t trust anything I was feeling. There was too much pain and confusion.”

James had assumed the connection was gone, though he supposed they didn’t know for sure. “Do you want to check?”

“Kind of.” Sebastian studied the stone. “I was still able to use the veins after making my sacrifice, but now that the veins are restored, that connection should be severed.”

“I’d say you’re right,” Eli cut in. “The energy at the intersection looks normal now. I’ve been monitoring it. The veins are behaving how I’d expect now that the missing pieces have been returned. You’ll no longer be part of the unit.”

Sebastian closed his eyes. He concentrated for a long few minutes before he opened his eyes and smiled. “Yeah, it’s gone,” he said in relief. “Thank fuck for that. Now I can just be drawn to the magic here like everyone else and leave my link to Moonlight Falls there.”

“As it should be.” Eli patted Sebastian on the shoulder.

James eyed the rock beside them once more. “Hearing you talk about the stone makes me feel like a moth flying into a flame.”

Sebastian laughed. “I’m going to think of that every time someone talks about being drawn to the magic here. Moonlight Falls, calling us home like moths to a flame. Aren’t we all clever?”

James snorted, shoving Sebastian playfully in the shoulder. “So clever.”

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