by Keri Arthur
“Perfect.” He watched her walk into the kitchen and then said, “Define what you mean by use if you don’t mean in spells?”
“I can draw it into my body and direct its energy.”
“No,” he said, almost automatically. “That’s not possible. You wouldn’t be alive if you did something like that.”
“Except that I have—and a number of times now.”
“Fuck.” He swept a hand through his longish hair. “How?”
“Again, I don’t know.” I grimaced. “But I will say it almost feels as if the wild magic is a part of my soul—a part of my very DNA.”
“No wonder you didn’t want Canberra here,” he muttered. “They’d study you as thoroughly as a bug under a microscope.”
“Yeah, and this is one bug who has no intention of ever letting that happen.”
“Understandable. But there is a bigger question here—”
“Why would someone so notoriously underpowered as myself even be capable of using wild magic?”
A smile twitched his lips. “Yeah.”
“Again, I have no idea. We’ve only been here for a few months, and this is all very much a new development.”
“Huh.” He glanced around as Belle returned with the tray of lasagna. “There’s enough there to feed a goddamn army.”
“You did have quite an appetite, if I remember correctly,” I said.
“Still do.”
There was something in his eyes—in the way he was looking at Belle—that suggested he wasn’t talking about food.
Amusement twitched my lips, but before I could say anything, Belle said, Go there, and this dish of lasagna will end up in your lap.
Whatever happened to the motto of doing no harm to your witch?
Doesn’t apply when said witch is about to be evil.
I grinned but managed to restrain my evilness and, once Belle had placed the tray on the table, began serving everyone. The conversation moved on to other matters, but once the lasagna was eaten and dessert served, Monty leaned back in his chair and said, “Tell me about every encounter with the wild magic.”
I did so, only omitting any mention of the second wellspring. He’d no doubt find it once he’d been here long enough but we—Katie, Gabe, and I —could deal with the consequences of that when it happened.
“I’ll do a search through the archives and see what they have on wild magic—and don’t worry, no one is going to think twice about such a request given I was ordered to investigate the stuff.” His sudden grin was wide and filled with anticipation. “I have to admit, I’m rather looking forward to being the witch for this reservation now.”
“Meaning you weren’t before?” Belle asked, eyebrows rising.
“Well, no. I took it because I was bored to death with spell logging.”
“I’m sure there would have been a multitude of options open for Frederick Ashworth’s oldest—”
“But not, as you well know, for one whose power was deemed less than desirable.” He half shrugged. “I just needed to go somewhere different than Canberra. Something with a little more life and a little less restriction.”
I snorted softly. “It’s always wise to be careful about what you wish for—especially when it comes to an area in which a major wellspring has been left unprotected for a year.”
“Ashworth and Eli were filling me in on all that on the way up here. I hate to say it, but it’s probably going to get worse before it gets better.”
“That much we figured—”
I stopped as energy surged into the room. Its feel was bright and sharp, and filled with an odd sort of cognizance.
Not just wild magic, but the portion controlled by Katie.
And with it came an odd sort of urgency.
She wanted me to follow her. Now.
Monty drew in a sharp breath. “What the fuck is going on? That’s wild magic, and yet not.”
“You were told some parts had gained awareness. This is one of those parts.” I thrust to my feet. “It wants us to follow it.”
“What? Why?”
“I don’t know, but I’ve learned not to ignore it.” I ran behind the cake counter, pulled my purse out of the hiding spot, and tossed my keys to Belle. “You’d better drive.”
Monty thrust upright and swung his coat off the back of the chair. “Don’t think you’re going to leave me behind.”
“Not a chance—you’re the official witch here now, so you can goddamn deal with whatever horror we’re about to be shown.”
“Sounds like you’re expecting the worst.”
“That’s because when the wild magic turns up, it usually is.” I grabbed the backpack—which we hadn’t yet unpacked—and ushered him out the door.
“Where are we heading?” Belle asked, as she carefully reversed out of the parking spot.
I hesitated, and silently called the force that was Katie to me. Her energy rushed through me, but the intensity of it was not as fierce as previous times. Either she was learning control, or I was getting used to being inhabited—however briefly—by wild magic. But even so, everything around me suddenly seemed brighter—sharper. I could clearly smell Monty’s aftershave—it was musk based, with hints of orange, lavender, and geranium. Could hear the distant thunder of an oncoming storm, and feel the electricity of it in the air—a sharp force that had the hairs on my arms standing on end. Heard her words in my mind, faint compared to the other sensations, and yet nevertheless clear. And then she left.
But I had my directions.
“Left at Hargraves, and then continue straight down.”
“And how the fuck do you know that?” Monty said from the back seat. “The wild magic went through you—I saw that much—but please don’t tell me it’s aware enough to give directions.”
“It’s not.”
“Then what the fuck just happened? If that wasn’t the wild magic, then what the hell was it?”
I glanced briefly at Belle. What do you think?
You have to tell him at least part of the truth, she said. Otherwise he’s going to go searching—and that could be bad news, as I’m not sure how Gabe will react to the intrusion. He seemed pretty intent on keeping the second wellspring a secret.
Good point, I said, and then added out loud, “From what we can ascertain, it appears that parts of the wild magic have been infused with the soul of a werewolf.”
Monty laughed. “That’s not possible.”
“You keep saying that,” Belle said, amused, “despite evidence to the contrary.”
“But a soul can’t—” He cut it off. “Do you know how?”
“No.” Which wasn’t a lie because I had no idea just what spell Gabe had used—although I did suspect it hadn’t come from any known spell book. “But I do know the soul is that of Katie O’Connor—the youngest sister of Aiden O’Connor, the head ranger here. She’s appointed herself the reservation’s guardian, and I appear to be the only one she can communicate with.”
“Because of your connection to the wild magic?”
“I suspect so.”
“Which only deepens the mystery of your connection.”
I didn’t bother replying because there was nothing I could really say. I concentrated on the darkening countryside, looking for the next turning point. After a couple of minutes, I said, “The road curves to the right up ahead, but there’s a dirt track on the left that goes into the old dry diggings area. We need to head into that area.”
Belle immediately slowed and then pulled off the road. The headlights swept across the scrubby-looking forest of eucalypts and then pinned a less than pristine track.
“We’re not going to get this car through that,” she said. “That’s four-wheel drive territory.”
“Then we’ll walk. I don’t think we’re far away.”
She stopped just short of a ditch that had at some point been created by water runoff and then switched the engine and lights off. The night closed in but held no threat.
I grabbed the backpack, then climbed out of the car and studied the nearby trees. The gentle breeze stirred through the leaves, making them rustle gently, but there was little other sound to be heard.
“I don’t suppose either of you has a flashlight,” Monty said, as he stopped beside me.
“That’s what flashlight apps on phones are for.” I moved forward without bothering to retrieve mine. Right now, with the stars so bright and clear, there was little need for it.
We’d barely entered the forest when Katie’s energy spun around me again, leading me away from the main track. As shadows grew deeper, I finally used my phone. Its bright light ran across the nearby trees and briefly highlighted a large mound of rocks—tailings from a disused gold mine.
“Is it safe to be walking around an area like this?” Monty asked.
“If we stick to the trail, most likely,” I said.
“A statement that doesn’t comfort me much.”
It didn’t comfort me much, either, given I’d almost fallen to my death down a disused mine shaft only a few months ago.
The path gradually grew steeper and rockier, forcing us to slow down even further. Frustration ran through the energy guiding us, but there was little urgency. It was a point that had trepidation stirring, if only because it meant what we were being led toward was death rather than life.
Something that was all too quickly confirmed as the scent of rotting meat began to taint the air.
“I’m not liking the smell of that,” Monty muttered. “And I’m seriously hoping its source is a dead animal rather than a human.”
“Katie wouldn’t be leading us to an animal,” Belle commented. “So you’d better prepare yourself for the worst.”
Energy tugged me left, off the smaller track and into the trees. I paused briefly, running my light across the ground, and then followed her in.
The smell of death was sharper. We were getting close.
Up ahead, light began to glimmer. It wasn’t starlight or even the pulse of wild magic. It was, I suspected, a will-o’-the-wisp—or ghost candles, as they were more commonly known around these parts. Wisps weren’t actually ghosts, despite their nickname; they were spirits, and very fragile by nature. Wind could tear them away, rain could wash them out, and they couldn’t stand the touch of sunshine. Sometimes they were helpful, and other times they weren’t. The myths of them leading travelers astray were very much based on truth. I’d encountered them a couple of times over the last few months, and each time they’d chosen to help me. I very much suspected the one up ahead might be doing just that—that it was standing guard over whatever it was Katie had led us here to find.
“Is that a wisp up ahead?” Monty asked, a hint of surprise in his voice.
“Yes.” I glanced over my shoulder at him. “You’ve never seen one?”
“I’ve lived in Canberra all my life,” he said, expression amused. “Opportunities have been few and far between.”
“You’d better get used to seeing all manner of weird, wonderful, and often very deadly things in this place,” Belle commented. “In fact, you may find yourself longing to be back at the capital.”
“No matter how bad it gets here, Canberra will never be a better option.”
“At least we agree on that,” I muttered.
I flicked off the phone’s flashlight app and, after a moment, Belle and Monty did the same. The wisp’s light immediately grew brighter, its blue-white light washing through the small clearing and highlighting the figure it hovered above.
That figure wasn’t moving.
It also wasn’t clothed.
And, like Mrs. Dale, it had very obviously been skinned.
“Oh fuck,” Monty said softly. “Is that what I think it is?”
“Yeah, it is.” I paused on the outskirts of the clearing, my stomach churning as I scanned the area. The wisp’s light was bright enough to view the immediate area; there were no clothes or personal items to be seen. Once again, it appeared as if this woman had been killed elsewhere and simply dumped here.
My gaze returned to the body and, after a slight hesitation, I forced my feet on. The wisp pulsed in response but it didn’t flee. Part of me wondered if it was the same wisp that had helped me previously—it was certainly the same size—and whether Katie’s presence within the wild magic was enabling her to influence or at least call on those beings who existed alongside it. Either way, the wisp’s presence needed formal acknowledgment.
“I appreciate you staying to highlighting the area for us,” I said, as I stopped short of the body.
One thing was very obvious—this death wasn’t new. The remains had the look of meat left too long out in the sun, and smelled like it too. I pinched my nostrils together with a hand and started breathing through my mouth, but it didn’t seem to help any. The smell clawed at the back of my throat and had my stomach churning even faster.
The wisp spun lightly, as if in acknowledgment, and then moved back several feet as Monty stopped beside me. It was uncertain about his presence, but not enough to flee.
“It’s a female,” Monty said, shoving his hands in his pockets. “Married, too.”
My gaze leapt to her left hand. A silver wedding ring gleamed brightly on the raw remnants of her finger.
“Why would anyone bother skinning a body and then go to the trouble of putting a ring back on?” Belle asked. “That makes no sense at all.”
“I guess until we understand who or what we’re dealing with, making no sense will continue to be a problem,” Monty said.
Katie’s energy stirred around me again, lightly tugging at my fingers. “There’s something else here—something else we need to find.”
“What?” Monty said.
“That I don’t know.” I glanced at Belle. “Could you ring the rangers while I go find whatever else there is?”
She nodded, and as she made the call, Monty and I followed Katie’s lead. We took a wide detour around the body and walked across to the clearing’s other edge. The wisp followed us into the trees, highlighting the faint trail.
Twenty feet in, we discovered another death.
But it wasn’t a body. Or, at least, it wasn’t a full body.
It was instead the skin of one.
Four
I briefly closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Big mistake. While the smell of decay had been bad enough in the clearing, it seemed ten times worse here. My stomach lurched and rose, and it took every ounce of control I had not to lose the dinner I’d only recently eaten.
“Is that what I think it is?” Monty whispered, horror filling his voice.
“Yes.”
“Why the fuck would anyone go through the arduous task of skinning a human, and then simply dump the skin a few yards away?” He shook his head. “It makes no goddamn sense.”
“As you noted only a minute ago, until we know what is doing this, it probably won’t.” I swallowed heavily. It didn't ease the bitterness of bile in my throat or the churning in my gut. “One of us will need to guard the area until the rangers get here, just to be sure a stray dog or cat doesn’t wander in and start eating the evidence.”
The thought of that happening only helped to increase the intensity of the churning.
“If it hasn’t happened yet, I doubt it will, but I’ll stay. It’ll give me a chance to look around and see if whatever did this left behind some sort of energy spore or tell.” He glanced at the wisp still hovering nearby. “You might want to return with Lizzie, my friend, as I’ll be raising a light sphere.”
The wisp immediately retreated, and Monty smiled. “Who knew they could understand us so easily?”
“Spirits have been in this world as long as we have,” I replied, amused. “So it’s not really that surprising.”
“It is for someone like me, who has only ever read about such things.”
Which I guessed could be said about a lot of those in Canberra. My parents might be the capital's power couple and very sought-after mentors a
nd advisors to both political parties and private business, but even they had never stepped outside Canberra's confines—not since before I was born, anyway. And I couldn't help wondering just how different their worldview would be if they’d done so.
Probably not a great deal, Belle commented, mental tones dry. I think your dad was born a set-in-his-ways, overbearing stick in the mud.
They wouldn't have remained at the top of the witch tree if they were unwilling to bend with new ideas and ways.
True, Belle said. I do think, however, that the more power and influence they gained, the more determined they became to ensure they and their family kept it.
And the latter they ensured by arranging marriages for their children that forged strong magical alliances. Whether or not said children had actually wanted them.
At least Cat did love the man chosen for her, Belle said.
That she had—and in that, she’d at least been lucky. But Charlie had been yet another who'd held me accountable for her death, and that had perhaps hurt me more than anything my parents had said or done, if only because he and I had actually gotten on well until that point.
Grief does strange things to a person, Belle said softly. I think there was a chance he would have seen sense if we'd hung around.
Maybe. And maybe not. It wasn't like I could afford to actually hang around and find out.
Belle squatted several feet away from the body, a slight haze of energy surrounding her. Not wild magic, but rather the energy runoff from her spirit guides. “Do you think the skin you found belongs to this poor soul? Or does it perhaps belong to Mrs. Dale?”
“I really have no idea.” I stopped beside her and did my best to breathe shallowly. The wind was at our backs and blew the worst of the smell away, but that didn’t stop it from lodging in my nostrils or churning my stomach. “Why?”
She pushed upright. “The spirits think we might be dealing with some kind of skin walker.”
“The spirits actually offered helpful information? Color me shocked.”
She lightly whacked my arm—twice. “That’s one from me, and one from the spirits.”
I grinned. “Even they have to admit helpfulness is a rarity.”