"Yes, you are. I can feel—," I started.
"I'm not. It's manufactured. The Corporation was frustrated with how long it was taking and tried to force it with a chemical pregnancy. They weren't sure if you would take the bait, but they were desperate."
"So, you're fake-pregnant?" Brody asked. It was the first time I’d ever heard him use sarcasm.
"They're familiar with Zora’s genetic line. That gives them insight into which abilities she’s most likely to manifest. As soon as they saw signs that she’d gained this newest one, they acted, giving me all the indications of an early pregnancy, with the hope that Zora wouldn’t be able to resist.”
I shook my head. "I know the baby's gender and the due date."
"Hormonal injections."
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Because I think you’re right. Because I want to see things change. Because our system is broken. When all this is done, I want you to know I was completely honest about everything so we can move on."
Brody and I gave her matching questioning looks.
"Make no mistake - I still have to do my job to the best of my ability. But these circumstances aren't forever," she said as she stood and walked to the front door. "I've told you everything I can. Good luck."
“Wait, what was the loophole you put in the spell?”
“I made the spell dissolve when you were no longer a threat,” she said and with that Lucy closed the door behind her.
"That wasn't what I expected," Brody said and dropped heavily into the sofa. I was still on the ottoman, shocked at what I'd learned and at how easily I'd been deceived. I prided myself on being a good people reader, but even with all the hints she dropped, I hadn't seen Lucy for what she was.
"You didn't want to," Brody whispered, reading my expression.
"I should have. She took my key, she had her hands all over my laptop, multiple times, and she let her real personality slip out. I should have put it together."
"It doesn't matter now. What does matter is what you're going to do about it."
I gave a slow nod to his words. I'd already told Lucy I would finish the book no matter what. I had no idea how, but I knew it had to happen.
22
The still-warm evening air was a welcome change from the thick, stale air of the condo. Too much had happened in too short a time, leaving energy fragments to linger. It clogged the natural flow of the space and made me feel edgy. It also made working a warding spell to keep Lucy out more difficult. I was pretty good with wards, but the residuals in the ether made it hard to focus.
"We're walking," I said when Brody aimed himself at his car. "Amari has a computer I can use. He does The Laughing Cat's financials on it so it has a fantastic firewall. Or so he says."
"I'm sorry, why are we walking?" Brody heaved, trying to keep pace with me.
"Because I like it. It centers me, helps me think."
"Fine. Just slow down, will ya?"
"Can't. The pace is what helps clear me out. Keep up, slowpoke," I said with a smile. For as trim as he was, Brody was strangely out of shape.
The Corporation wanted to keep practitioners scared and hiding from nons. They wanted to keep the status quo. I had no idea why, but they wanted it so badly they’d stolen from me. Twice.
It only stiffened my resolve. I had to finish this book. I had to get it out there. I’d ward every computer in a ten block radius, and make a thousand backup copies if I had to.
It wasn’t right. And I wasn’t having it anymore.
Brody grumbled his dissent three steps behind me but kept my pace most of the way. He had to stop to catch his breath in the middle of the very circle the city was named for.
"We can't stay here too long," I said.
"Why not?" Brody asked in the typical hands-on-knees out-of-breath posture.
"We're almost there, and we're not supposed to be in the circle."
"Why not? We’re both walling our energy."
"Just come on," I said and tugged him out of the traffic circle. I wasn’t going to push my luck in the middle of the greatest convergence of magic on the eastern seaboard.
Amari was in the middle of his happy hour. The bar was packed - both rooms - but I caught his eye. Amari gave me a wink and tossed my keys at me.
"You left those the other night," Amari shouted over the heads of his patrons.
I smiled my thanks and trickled some energy at him. I didn't wait to see his reaction, I knew it well enough.
"He does pretty well here, doesn't he?" Brody asked when we were settled into Amari's loft.
"He's pretty ingenious with marketing. He has an early and a late happy hour that feature a revolving door of drink and appetizer specials. Plus, it doesn't hurt that this is the only place that exclusively caters to practitioners."
Brody took in my words as I set myself up at Amari's desk. "My finance guy is brilliant with diversifying and long-term investment. Tell Amari I can set up an appointment if he wants."
“He doesn’t want to work forever, right? My guy could set up his retirement—”
“You’ll have to talk to him about that. It’s his business.”
23
"He's got a lot of sci-fi, doesn't he?" Brody said as we searched through Amari's DVD collection for something to keep him occupied while I wrote.
"He's a big nerd," I said, and pushed aside a boxed set of an epic fantasy he'd tried to make me watch. I couldn't keep my eyes open through the first fifteen minutes. We stopped trying to watch movies together after that.
"Then call me a nerd too," he said while holding up a copy of Aliens. "This is my favorite!"
I did my best not to scrunch my face at Brody's choice.
"What? Don't tell me you don't like Aliens. It's a classic!"
"I'm not big on the sci-fi or fantasy genre."
"But you WRITE it."
"Technically, yes, but I know it's not fantasy."
"So you don't like sci-fi/fantasy because it's unbelievable, is that what you're saying?"
"No, I'm saying I think the genre has built-in loopholes for lazy writing. You don't need to worry about explaining things logically or reasonably because aliens did it, or there’s techno-babble no one understands."
"Right, and that never applies in your genre? The 'because magic' trope has never happened."
"Maybe we should drop this."
"Everything OK up here?" Amari asked from the doorway. I hadn't heard him come up the stairs or even open the door.
"Brody and I were just having a heated debate."
"About deus ex machina, I heard. It happens in all genres, not just sci-fi and fantasy. So that can't be why you don't like it."
He was right.
"So why don't you like it, Z?" Amari prodded.
They both stared at me expectantly, preparing to squash whatever reason I gave with why I was wrong.
"Moving on," I said, "my neighbor has stolen my manuscript again. I need to use your computer to write."
"Sure, whatever you need. What does your neighbor want with your manuscript?"
While I caught Amari up, Brody put in the DVD and made himself at home on the sofa.
"Well, as I said, use whatever you need," Amari said when I'd finished recounting the day's events. "My only question is, why keep writing it if you know she's going to try to steal it again?"
Amari knew he'd misspoken as soon as the words left his lips.
It was too late to take it back. "I can't believe you said that. Why make your bed in the morning just to mess it up at night? Why do anything, for that matter? Because you want to, that's why. I'm writing this book because I want to. And the fact that the Corporation is trying to keep me from publishing tells me that I'm doing exactly what I should. That you don't see that really surprises me."
"I just meant that it would be easier for you to write something else."
"Easier. Yes. But that's not what I want. And I can't believe you don't know that about me. I spent almost a year of my life a
broad, collecting research and interviews for this book. That alone would be enough to make me want to keep writing." What I couldn’t tell him was how much I wanted to keep other practitioners safe from energy abuse.
I absently touched my ribs.
"I know that, and I'm not saying you shouldn't use all that research. But consider using it differently, in a way that wouldn't make the Corporation want to steal it. Maybe something more aligned with what your publisher is expecting. I'm just suggesting you make less work for yourself. Is that so wrong?"
"It's not. But I can't do that."
"Then by all means," he said, and pulled out the desk chair. "Whatever you need, consider it yours. I just came up to say hi - I was so busy I couldn’t before - but I do have to get back to the bar." Amari kissed the top of my head, and left.
The loft was full of uncomfortable tension. The weird alien breathing noises did nothing to dispel the thickness.
Brody paused the movie. "He only wants—"
"Nope. You don't get an opinion on this."
"Yes, I do. I'm an impartial third party; my opinion counts the most. Consider it repayment for helping me and Pilar through our stuff."
I begrudgingly spun the desk chair to meet Brody's weird green eyes. Stretched out like a cat, Brody looked at me over the back of the sofa.
"Amari wants you to have everything you desire and clearly supports whatever decision you make. He didn't know it was the subject matter itself that was important to you."
"He should have."
"Maybe, but can you fault him for not knowing? Is mind-reading one of his abilities?"
"No, but to know your partner you shouldn't need practitioner abilities. Should you?"
"Zora, he thought he was doing right by you, but you're stuck on his wordage."
I had to agree to disagree with my so-called impartial third party.
Brody saw as much on my face and pressed the play button to refocus his attention on the tank-top-clad Sigourney Weaver.
24
"Brody, call your tech guy," I said, sweat dripping from my forehead.
"Peter told me he'd call when he'd cleaned your computer," Brody said with only a sliver of his attention. The machine-versus-alien gore had him enraptured.
"This isn't about my computer; it's about this one."
That got his attention.
"What's wrong with that one?" he asked and vaulted over the back of the couch to hover over my shoulder.
"I don't know, but I can't write on it until I make sure the firewall is secure. I don't think I could handle it if I had to rewrite again. I want to be extra sure. Please call him."
Brody took in my sweaty face and panicked tone. "Are you alright?"
"If you call him."
Like two magnets with the same charge, the more I tried to force my fingers to touch the key, the more resistance I felt.
"Are you sure this isn't a magical thing? Peter can't help with that," he asked mid-dial.
The thought hadn't occurred to me.
I slipped a piece of my awareness into the keyboard and the hard drive. Nothing felt out of place or magically sabotaged. Pulling out of the computer, I slipped into the space around me as well as the desk and chair. Again, nothing struck me as odd.
"Not sabotaged," I said to Brody's ever-widening eyes.
"What was that?"
I shrugged. "I don't have a name for it."
"It felt terrible. Like a part of you was missing or detached."
"Well, that's exactly what happened."
"I didn't like it. Don't do it again."
I shrugged again.
Brody, still unsettled, called the tech guy.
"Hi Peter, it's Zora from earlier," I said when Brody handed me his phone.
"Is that your name? You never mentioned it." Peter said, snark dripping from his tone.
I deserved it. I was an ass to him. "How incredibly rude and self-involved of me,” I said as an apology.
Peter sighed, and I could hear a slight smile in his words. "Don't worry about it; we all forget our manners in stressful situations. What can I help you with?"
"I want to double-check the security on the computer I'm now using. The thing is, I don't know where to begin."
"That's an easy fix. First I need your IP address. Do you know how to open a command prompt?"
"No."
"I'll walk you through it. Do you know what OS you're using? Mac, Windows?"
"It's Windows."
"And do you know what version?"
"The machine is brand new, so I'd guess it's the latest version."
"OK. All you need to do is press the windows key and the X key at the same time. Then select 'command prompt' from the menu."
"OK, done," I said when the black window with a blinking white cursor appeared on the screen.
"Great. Now just type in ipconfig. A bunch of information should pop up, but I'm looking for a grouping of four numbers."
"There are lots of groups of four numbers."
"Look for the grouping after IPv4; that's the one I need."
Moments after I read him the numbers, Amari's revolving background of our travel photos disappeared. "Oh, no! Did I do something wrong?" I asked, and furiously shook the mouse back and forth. If I'd screwed up Amari's computer…
"Nope; that's just me taking control of the machine. So now that I'm in, I'll take a look at what you've got on the system. Please stop moving the mouse, Zora."
"Sorry," I said, and let go of the mouse.
"You've got a pretty decent firewall set up. I'm just going to add some code that will patch up the few weak spots I see."
Command menus appeared and disappeared so quickly that the text Peter typed, at speeds that rivaled my own, blurred into nonsensical cuneiform.
"OK, I think that does it. You're safer than a bunny in a blanket."
That was the oddest metaphor I'd ever heard, but I was able to take a full breath for the first time since sitting at the computer. "Thank you so much, Peter."
"You're very welcome. Just remember what I said before. Back up twice, once on a portable drive and again in an email to yourself."
"Absolutely," I said and handed Brody his phone.
"Satisfied?" Brody asked with his lopsided smile, stuffing the phone in his pocket.
I nodded.
"Good. Can I go back to alien carnage now?"
"By all means."
Amari's desktop returned to normal, and the first photo to appear was of us at The Temple of Kukulcan in the center of Chichen Itza. Our faces were dirty and my hair was nearly three feet wide, but that was one of my favorite photos of us. Travel was our thing. We were both so wrapped up in our careers that we rarely did more than screw, work, and talk about our days. But for three weeks a year, Amari closed the bar and we went away together. We alternated who planned the trips, and we always kept it a surprise for the other. Chichen Itza was my idea, and Amari said it was his favorite so far.
We decided not to go away this year because I'd already been out of the country for so long. So, instead of going somewhere exotic when I came back from my research trip, Amari closed the bar for one week and we holed up in my condo. We hardly left the bedroom.
I smiled at the picture of us, remembering the cocooning bubble we created the week of my return. The world didn't exist, only us, reacquainting ourselves with the other.
25
Techno-spells were not my thing.
They were complicated and particular, and I was not that kind of practitioner. Still, I wanted to make sure my work was safe. I wanted to do something besides relying on someone else’s word that the machine I was about to use was secure.
I did my best at a makeshift ward. I was getting better with wards, thanks to Pilar, but warding a piece of technology was much different than warding a space.
It was the most inelegant piece of magic I’d ever worked; it actually felt awkward coming out of me, but I hoped it would be enough to at least set
tle my mind.
When I’d resettled myself at Amari’s desk, the work I'd lost poured out of me. I was a faucet with the spigot completely open. Words tumbled out faster than my fingers could make appear, partly due to already having written it. Twice. But also because I wanted to write it. This was never work for me, and when it felt that way, I knew I was doing something wrong. I knew the moment writing became laborious or difficult that I need a perspective adjustment.
I'd just finished three chapters of new material when I caught movement in the periphery.
It was Brody, waving and jumping up and down like a rodeo clown.
"Yes?" I asked after taking out one earphone.
"Food," he said and pointed to the dining table.
Three places were set with a burger, fries and a beer at each.
"Pilar! When did you get here?"
"About a movie and a half ago."
Once we were all settled in front of our plates I noticed these weren't just any burgers and fries. These were Amari's specialty burgers.
"Who ordered these?" I asked.
"No one; that pretty bartender brought them up," Pilar said.
I couldn't hide a small smile. Amari had been working on a new burger; that he was trying it out on us meant he'd figured it out.
"You guys are in for a treat," I said and dug in.
No one said a word. Only the occasional smacking lips or hard swallow was heard.
The meat was expertly cooked, slightly charred with a smoky flavor on the outside but juicy and well-seasoned inside. The hand-cut fries had a hint of spicy heat that perfectly complemented the slightly sweet ale he'd chosen.
The ale reminded me of the sweet brown ale I'd had in the south of England. I hadn't stayed there long, as I was already familiar with their magical systems, but the beer there was incredible.
"That was fantastic," Brody said, hands on his middle and reclined as much as the dining chair would allow.
"I've had sex that wasn't that good," Pilar agreed, holding her own belly.
"Told you," I said, willing myself to eat the last bite. I was so full, but it tasted so good. That bite was one too many; I had to adopt the same position as Brody and Pilar. "He likes to say he was a chef in a former life."
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