Page 58 of Siren Problems

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Subject line:

“Congratulations, Dr. Wilder: Westwind Fellowship Award”

At first, I think it’s a mistake.

Then I see the sender. The seal. The watermark. The signature.

Not a scam.

Not a dream.

Real.

I stare at the screen.

Mouth slightly open. Mug frozen halfway to my lips.

And then I do something incredibly mature and professional.

I say, “Holyshit,” and nearly spill coffee all over the ley line energy stabilizer.

Mira bolts into the room like a spell just detonated. “Did the field specter come back?”

“No,” I croak, spinning the laptop toward her. “Look.”

She blinks. Gasps.

“You got it.” She clutches the back of my chair. “Luna. Yougotit.”

“The Westwind,” I whisper. “They pickedme.”

“Top-tier research freedom. Full magical archive access. Travel budget with artifact pursuit rights. You could build your own damn department.”

“I could publish every sea-magic theory we’ve proven here tenfold.”

“You could rewrite the ley code protocols.”

I nod, eyes still locked on the glowing screen. “I could... everything.”

And then I see the attachment.

Fellowship Terms and Clauses.

My heart jumps. But I click it open. Because I’m a scientist. I follow details. I double-check my blessings.

The clauses scroll like a glittering red carpet—until I reach the one that makes my stomach turn.

“The recipient agrees to full cooperation with the Department of Magical Integrity in cataloging all anomalous magical artifacts, energies, andentitiesencountered during grant-related research. Evidence must be turned over in its entirety for classification and containment purposes. No exceptions.”

I stare.

And stare.

Because “entities” doesn’t mean ghosts or ley surges.

It meansCalder.

It means his curse.

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