she said sharply, followed by a warning side-eye.
He shoved his hands into his pants pockets and looked down as if rethinking before getting in trouble again. “I was just thinkin’ about what Gar said last night—about laws and people being responsible for things even if they didn’t do them.”
“I was talking about a different situation,” Gar said quickly.
Peregrine crumpled deeper in his chair. “Yeah, I guess.”
A lump formed in Chandler’s throat. She swept her hand over her head, feeling the soft bristle of her hair. Peregrine was onto something. Along with covering up threats to the witching world’s anonymity, covens were responsible for policing illegal magic. There was nothing legal about the spell Rhianna had used on Lionel. Plus, just because they weren’t aware of a spell that could cause a non-witch to have abilities, it didn’t mean one didn’t exist. In this case, it was the only logical answer for Lionel having the sight. He didn’t have it before the spell affected his mind, but he did afterward.
Chandler rested her elbows on the table. Then she steepled her fingers and looked from Devlin to Gar and lastly to Lionel. She was the Circle’s high priestess now, and she knew in her heart the first step Athena would have taken toward resolving the situation. There was only one right choice, morally and by High Council law.
She lowered her voice and mustered an Athena-like tone. “It seems clear to me that the spell performed on Lionel affected his thought processes and somehow gave him the sight. As the current acting high priestess of the Circle, I feel we are obligated to find a way to reverse the damage done by someone illegally presenting themselves as a member of our coven.”
“I told you—” Peregrine started to say.
Chandler put a hand on his arm. “Quiet.”
“I tend to agree that helping Lionel is only fair,” Devlin said. “But we need to have a way to ensure his future silence.”
“Um”—Lionel blinked uneasily—“I don’t blame you, if you don’t trust me after what I did. But if you can straighten out my head, I promise I won’t ever tell anyone or write about the coven or heritage witches.”
“You’ll also need to sever all contact with our world,” Gar said. “And simply giving your word won’t be good enough.”
Chandler wasn’t sure she liked the sound of that. The type of pledges the High Council required came with major risks attached for violations—like deadly consequences.
Devlin shot a hard look at Gar. “As high priest of the Northern Circle, I say his word is good enough for now. We’ll figure something else out later.” He focused on Lionel. “I’m sorry about what Rhianna did to you. I promise, no one will force you into anything this time.”
“Thank you.” Lionel bowed his head, then looked back up at Devlin. “I’m sorry about your sister. That’s got to be rough. What Rhianna did to her was… I can’t even think of a word for it.”
“It hasn’t been easy,” Devlin said.
Gar chuckled. “At least Rhianna’s one thing we don’t have to worry about. She’s dead, gone, and never coming back.”
“Shh…” Chandler silenced everyone as a boisterous group of customers swarmed across the restaurant toward the table next to theirs. A second later, the waiter arrived with their drinks and the mountain of appetizers Chandler had unwittingly ordered.
Devlin frowned. “Maybe we should focus on eating for now and finish this conversation at the complex?”
Lionel nodded. “I would like that.”
“I agree,” Chandler said. Something else occurred to her, but she bit her tongue until the waiter left to get their meals. Then she leaned toward Lionel and whispered, “You should have a protection charm. A triskelion. Peregrine wears one. It doesn’t work against all fae and, judging by what’s happened lately, it may be less effective than I was led to believe. But it’s supposed to make the fae—things like the black dog—less inclined to attack the wearer. It wouldn’t take long for me to make one for you.”
He reached across the table and brushed her wrist with his fingertips. “I’d appreciate it.”
The warmth of his touch and wholehearted smile sent a ripple of joy threading through her. If only something as simple as a triskelion could keep him permanently safe from the fae. It might help, but unfortunately it was still a long way from a real solution.
Chapter 8
The triskelion, like the number 3, is sacred and powerful. Its root is ancient, appearing in cultures and religions around the world. It is a symbol of the never-ending cycle. It represents the aspects of the Goddess: Maiden, Mother, Crone…
—S. Jocelyn, “Numbers & Symbols” (lecture 2, Greylock Academy)
On the way back to the complex, Chandler took Peregrine and Devlin in her car, and Gar rode in Lionel’s cluttered VW Beetle.
Rather than waiting until later, she took advantage of the ride to give Peregrine a lecture on how his actions had endangered himself as well as the rest of the group. Devlin stayed out of it for the most part, but he agreed when she suggested Peregrine’s martial arts lessons should be preceded by an additional ten minutes of quiet time focused on learning self-control. Peregrine scowled at that, which made Chandler happy.
“Also”—she glanced at him as they stopped for a red light—“today’s TV time is going to be replaced by reading in the Book of Good Folk about the dangers of fae encounters.”
He didn’t scowl at that, which was good as well. The Good Folk textbook wasn’t easy reading. Chandler hadn’t tackled it until she was several years older than Peregrine. But he seemed to enjoy the challenge, the same way he enjoyed school in general more than she ever had.
Once they got back to the complex, they discussed with Chloe and Em the idea of looking in Merlin’s Book for a spell that would reverse the damage Rhianna had done to Lionel at the same time as they were hunting for one to heal Aidan.
As everyone started talking in more depth about the two issues, Chandler got to her feet. “If nobody minds, it’s time for Peregrine and me to head home.” She looked at Lionel. “I’m going to work on that triskelion.”
“I’d appreciate that,” he said.
It took only a minute for her and Peregrine to get back to their apartment. She hauled the Book of Good Folk from the cabinet under their altar and opened it to the section that gave an overview of hazards. “I want you to make a list of the top ten places you’re likely to run into dangerous fae. Before tonight’s full-moon ritual, we’ll go over the list. Tomorrow, I’ll have you do some reading on detection and protection.”
“Okay, Mom. I’ll be an expert like you in no time.”
She smiled. If only the expert part were true. She knew a fair amount about the fae, more than many witches. Between her and Brooklyn, they’d have no trouble getting through the basic and intermediate levels. Still, she wished they had more than book knowledge to rely on. Peregrine’s father was the obvious choice when it came to hands-on
