Page 66 of Highballs & Hexes

Again, he sensed a watcher.

With one last try, he sent his feeler threads out toward the place where he suspected the person hid. They connected with a wall, similar to a magical force field, about twenty feet from their location.

“Sullivan?” he whispered with a hand signal toward the suspected watcher. “Anything, man?”

When Fintan sunk to the ground, eyes opaque and visage a blank mask, Noah gripped Fi’s hand, prepared to drag her away.

“He does that when the Sullivan ancestors are imparting a message,” she murmured. “He’s all right.”

“But I’m not. There’s another here, and I’m not happy not knowing who it is.”

“Where?”

“Twenty feet to your right.” Although he looked that way, he didn’t gesture, not wishing to give himself away if the cloaked person hadn’t noticed them yet.

“It’s Patrick O’Malley,” Fintan said in a hushed voice, scaring the bejeezus out of Noah when his body convulsed and he rejoined the conversation.

Sharing a what-the-fuck look with Fi, Noah stared hard in the direction of the hidden figure. “How can ya tell?”

Fintan threw up his arms and waved a hand toward the window.

“The second sight, man. How the feck do you think?” he replied at a normal volume, but with his tone expressing annoyance.

“Show yourself, O’Malley,” Fintan demanded.

Nothing happened. No shimmering light, no big reveal.

“Astral projection.” Fi nodded as if it were an everyday occurrence, yet as far as Noah knew, it wasn’t an easy thing to accomplish. “Patrick defaulted to it in the prison,” she explained before turning to Fintan. “I’m assuming you muted our noise, yeah?” When he nodded, she said, “Can they see me if I stand up?”

“Sure, if they bother to glance out the window, but it will be a shadow only. Like a cloud passing overhead.”

“Good.” Climbing to her feet, she peered through the glass. “He’s in there and speaking to them. Or part of him is.” Her lips firmed and she came to a decision of sorts. One Noah would probably despise because he hated recklessness. “Can you guide me to him with your magic, Noah? Make sure I don’t trip over or crash into anything?”

“What are you intending?” he demanded, not down for her putting herself in danger. “If Patrick has reverted back to a broken mind?—”

“He hasn’t,” Fintan assured them.

Fi waved them off. “I’m going to break through his wall. If he’s doing what I believe, he’s likely in a trance and unaware we’re here.”

“Why wouldn’t he just go inside?”

“He’d view it as too dangerous.” Fi positioned herself at the corner of the house. “Astral projection is his fail-safe reaction to sticky situations, or so I’m learning. Ready?”

CHAPTER 28

After Patrick left Fionola with the Seer, he cut through the alley to the Black Cat Inn. Halfway to his destination, his grandson Aeden appeared with a message from Anu. He’d become a Receiver from a young age and had developed a special connection to the Goddess in recent years. If the boy was dodging his parents and lurking in alleyways, he had a damned fine reason.

“Anu said she blocked the Guardians, but you’ll find the answer you seek at the Bohannon cottage,” Aeden told him in his raspy voice. His grandson had been injured in a car accident, and although healed by the Aether, he’d never lost the strained quality whenever he spoke. It was endearing but strange, as if the boy was a two-pack-a-day smoker who drank whiskey in place of water.

Aeden’s message indicated Patrick was the one meant to find the source and go it alone, though he couldn’t begin to guess why. He needed to trust the Goddess had a plan for him.

Patrick ruffled Aeden’s golden hair and conjured a slice of chocolate cake. “You’ll be sure to hide evidence of this, yeah? And brush your teeth when you’re done eatin’ it, or they’ll rot out of your head, boyo.”

“That doesn’t happen to witches,seanáthair.”

“You’ve proof of that?”

Aeden narrowed his eyes as if trying to decide if Patrick was pulling his leg. Finally, he shook his head. “No.”

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