Page 64 of Match My Fall
No, that wasn’t likely.Themore likely scenario was that he wanted to get her away from me.
“I’llgo look with the others,”Isaid toCassandra. “Unlessyou want me to stay.”
Shefixed her gaze on me and pleaded, “FindPaige,Valen.Pleasefind my girl.”
Inodded and then swallowed, determined to do whatever it took to bring her home toCassandra.ThenIforced myself to walk out to track the fae responsible for hurting my family.
CASSANDRA
Ishook off the despair that threatened to consume me and forced myself to think clearly.Ifthis situation wasn’t happening to me and it was a client coming to me at theNetwork, what wouldIdo?That’swhen my brain started to function again.Insteadof panicking and fearing the worst,Ifocused.
WhileValenjoined the others in the search outside forPaige,Pandorajoined me in the small roomIused to practice magic.Weheaded over to my altar.Pandoraopened the circle.
Afterwe lit candles,Iadded herbs to my scrying bowl.
SinceIhad such a strong bond withPaige, it would be easier for me to lead the spell to find her.Holdinghands over the bowl, we closed our eyes.Ibegan to chant to shift into the proper mindset.Itwas difficult to clear my mind of worry.
Nothinghappened.Mymind was still too cluttered with fear. “I’mtoo distracted.”
“Letme help you clear your mind,”Pandoraadvised in a gentle tone.Shethen guided me in a meditation to clear my muddled thoughts.
OnceIwasn’t so distraught, it was easier to tap into the magical energy surrounding us.IvisualizedPaigeand attempted to connect with her.
Amilky white mist rose from the bowl and swirled around us.
Pandora’sgrip tightened on my hand. “It’sworking.”
Themist cleared, revealing a blurry image of a dark room.Afigure moving in the shadows. “It’sThorne,”Iwhispered.
Heapproached a smaller figure.Myheart pounded as the visual sharpened, andIsawPaige. “Hehas her.”Isearched the location for clues as to where they are.Thebland walls could be anywhere.Izoomed out, noting the matching beds with dated bedspreads side by side. “Ithink they’re in a motel room.”
Thatdidn’t narrow it down much since there were countless of them in the area.Aftersearching for more clues to indicate which particular one they were in and finding none, my energy was zapped.Welowered our hands.
WhenIopened my eyes,Iwas woozy.Ihad to blink to adjust to the room.Ittook a few seconds to steady my balance and reorient myself while we closed the circle.
Pandoraassessed a keen gaze on me. “Youlook pale.Whydon’t you sit down whileIshare the news with the others.”
“Okay.”Ilet her lead me to my living room sofa.
“I’llget you a glass of water,” she said.
“Don’tworry about me,”Iprotested. “FindingPaigeis more important.”
“Andthe baby,”Pandorainsisted. “Lieback and rest.Thattook a lot out of you.I’llbe right back.”
“Maybefor a couple of minutes,”Iagreed.Scryingdid take a lot of energy, and since the baby also took up a good share,Iwas feeling more depleted than usual after a session.
Shereturned a few minutes later with a glass of water.AfterIsat up, she handed it to me, andItook a sip.
“Everyoneis out looking.Volunteersare mobilized and the local police are all searching as well.
“Thanks.”Inodded with gratitude and then took another sip of water asIwas parched.Althoughour group was small, we had resources to tap in emergency situations like this.
Whenour phones buzzed, we pulled them out.Itwas a video fromZoe.Thetext readSecurityfootage from a neighbor.Shenoted the address and the direction the car was headed.WhenIviewed the clip, it wasThorne’ssilver sedan.
Myfingers curled toward my palms.IfIfound him,I’dcurse him into tiny shreds of himself.
Shesqueezed my shoulder. “We’regoing to find her,Cassandra.”
