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I ai the cheery little cherry red light dance over ht to ai I could take either shot and have a perfectly clean kill But that was not my objective My job was to injure, not kill So I lined the sight up with the victiht shoulder, an injury that would be painful and debilitating but not fatal I pulled the trigger, waking with a screaht in bed, panting, ht shoulder of the T-shirt I’d worn to bed with my left hand

Holy crap, that had felt real "It was just a dreaie," I told led sheets and shae out of ht about it, theto tellSo I slid on my shoes and went for a walk on ht and starlight reflecting off of the ocean, letting the sound of the waves lapping the shore sootheht shoulder with a rifle The only spots suitable for a sniper had been close enough that even an amateur could have made the shot

So asn’t she dead? Had it been, asht about it, the more I believed I shouldn’t ask Dottie to scry about it It would be the easy solution, but it wouldn’t be right to risk her health Maybe I could have Eive it a try Now that she had the mirror to use as a focus, she was able to do a lot more thanand healthy Yeah,I could ask Eot me

Okay, say the sniper had deliberately missed Why would somebody shoot if not to kill? If he wanted Michelle dead, why not just kill her?

Bio saic DNA can be deter uys weren’t positive she was the right target and needed to make sure? What if they wanted a DNA sample so that they could do a spell that affected an entire fa)? It would ht was her blood to target the spell and got it wrong, the effort would be wasted I wasn’t sure they’d care, but innocents would be wiped out And in either case, the police would be on their trail

Too, the type of spell that would target a faes couldn’t pull it off once without draining the That was one of the main reasons spells like this were so uncommon Self-preservation is a basic instinct Fortunately for hues willing to work together

If I was right and Connor Finn was behind this whole thing … well, it see pain The spells he’d used against the Garzas before going to prison twenty-three years ago had been hideously violent Leaving ail’s death hadn’t been clean Slugger’s punishment had been torture as well, capped by his death Just shooting Michelle wouldn’t be enough for someone like that He’d want her to suffer

Michelle was just a kid She didn’t know about Connor Finn She didn’t know about the feud, hadn’t done a daht now she was in the hospital, afraid and in pain The only

I’s I’ too hard about But if I letwoman, whether she hired me or not--if she died because I didn’t shield her fro her--I wouldn’t be able to live withto do didn’tBut I’d face that when the ti at the ocean, I confirmed the choice my subconscious had alreadyto stop Connor Finn

The question was how

I needed advice fros One na to mind: Isaac Levy I knew just where to find him, too He’d be at his shop at ten o’clock sharp

I dressed conservatively, choosing a nice blue suit with a plain white silk top My good sheaths had disappeared with the knives, so I strapped on a backup set They were just a little less cohtly Still, once the jacket was on you’d never know they were there And even with the chafing, I was glad because, hey, I had my favorite weapons back Sad to ad in front of Isaac’s shop, reading Kevin’s text, when Isaac arrived He strode up to the SUV, his expression curious His face broke into a genuine smile when I opened the door and he saasood to see you Have you been waiting long?"

"No, just a couple of minutes" I smiled at him Isaac and his wife, Gilda, are dear friends of randparents, and sometimes they act like the set I lost when ray suit, but instead of his usual snohite shirt, he’d chosen one in dove gray with silver striping It looked very good on hi special going on?"

"Gilda’s birthday We have reservations at her favorite restaurant for lunch" He sift in the safe inside Would you like to see it?"

"Does it sparkle?" I was teasing hie her