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Now she had only an hour before her shift started She’d try Seph’s Aunt Becka’s, then move on to the waterfront If he wasn’t at either of those places, she’d have to go on to work

Nothing could have happened to hi up Like usual He had to be safe within the sanctuary There was a boundary up, after all No attackthat, within the sanctuary at least, the biggest threat to Seph McCauley was Madison Moss and the ers

A memory surfaced, the battle at the inn at Second Sister, a scene painted in lurid orange hues Gregory Leicester s death at Seph Maddie had stepped between the the full force of the attack She’d reeled in the led on the end of her line like a bluegill at Jackson Lake Leicester had fallen, along with all of his captive wizards

She’d been left contaered on the back of her tongue and seeped out through her pores, a virulent and deadly poison made just for Seph

After their return from Second Sister, he’d coue He broke out in welts and rashes, and grew thin and pale and hollow-eyed, as if he had soht it was the aftermath of the ordeal on the island She assuot worse His hands shook and his changeable eyes went cloudy and dull and twice he fainted at school

Seph’s parents took hiland for Christain when he came back to Trinity His mother, Linda, fussed over him and called in the healer Mercedes Foster, who prescribed fresh air and sunshine and good food and potions and aood When Mercedes finally put hi to hiuessed she wasn’t roeaker

Then Madison went ho fall break When she ca better He looked like a different person,And that hen she knew

Sometimes she wondered if she was possessed She could feel so evil inside her react to Seph’s presence, like a serpent uncoiling Her touch was toxic No one else seemed to make the connection, least of all Seph And if they found out…

So she began avoiding hi inside every ti the icy bricks Jefferson was lined with tall oaks and gracious "painted ladies" That’s what they called these Victorian houses iced with turrets, spindles, and wraparound porches Jack shared an elegant green-shingled Queen Anne with his mother

Jack’s mother, Becka, and Seph’s mother, Linda, were sisters in a family full of secrets Linda was an enchanter, a master of charisma--seduction, soical, and she knew nothing about theon all around her

Madison paused at the foot of the driveway Seph’s car was parked next to the side entrance

She knocked on the screen door No answer Pounded on the inside door Nothing She tried the knob, and it was unlocked

"Anybody ho her head into the foyer

He was in there somewhere She could feel his presence in the acceleration of her heartbeat, a faint vibration in her bones

Witch boy

She crossed the foyer and passed down the hallway to the family room at the rear And froze in the doorway

Seph lay sprawled on the rug in front of the hearth His face beneath the dark curls was pale and chiseled as porcelain, save the dark s, lips parted, as if he’d succuht he was dead, until she saw the faint rise and fall of his chest

"Good day, Maddie" The wizard Nick Snowbeard half-rose from his chair in the hearth corner and draped a quilt over Seph, then settled back into his seat by the fire "It is a pleasure to see you, as always"

She dropped to her knees next to Seph, her heart cla she was somehow responsible "What happened? Is he … ?"

The old caretaker tilted his head, looking surprised "Why, ray dear, he’s sleeping, of course, though he isn’t particularly happy about it"

Madison looked at Seph, as if he ht have a comment, then back at Snowbeard Worry turned to irritation "He’s taking a nap? We were supposed to o"

"The boy is exhausted He’s overextended hi the boundary twenty-four hours a day" The old wizard pressed his fingers between his briared eyebrows, as if he had a headache Old Bear, the gifted called hihtly rumpled bear rousted from his den in midwinter

"It was a breakdown in communications," Snowbeard went on "Too s is away, and I was … unexpectedly delayed I had no idea he’d been on his own so long, and it’s not in his nature to ask for help But now I’ve relieved him, and I put hile" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>