“So, have you thought of a new name yet?” I asked.
“Actually, I think I’ve decided to keep ‘Tarvish.’ It would feel odd to change it. I may change my mind later, if I hear one I particularly like. I do find that, in your world, not all names are unique. That was a surprise.”
I started to say that was due to his dungeon master, but then realized he wouldn’t understand what I was talking about. I smiled and turned back to the house.
Chapter Nineteen
I had finished making the gravy by the time Rowan arrived. I figured a gallon should be plenty, but you could never have too much gravy when it came to Thanksgiving. Especially when you had invited as many people as I had, and several of them were men with big appetites. I marked down on my seating chart that Alicia would be there and made a place card setting for her.
Rowan bustled in, her arms filled with packages. I helped her carry them over to the dining room table and watched as she quickly began to unpack a number of electronic devices.
“Are those the wires?” I asked.
“We found the smallest ones we could. And while I doubt that Sheryl is going to be frisking you, these easily hide inside a bra. If she searches there, well, you’re in trouble.”
“If she tries to search me there, she’s going to get slapped in the face.” I looked over the other things. “What are all these?”
She held up two small bottles. “These are potions that should help deflect the energy drain in case something goes wrong. I’ve been working on the spell since yesterday. I was up all night perfecting it. The Court Magika didn’t have anything like it, but now we do. It will also deflect energy drain from astral creatures. So if we ever have to fight an astral demon, we’ll be ready.”
“Does it deflect a vampire?” I asked, thinking that it would be nice if it could deflect any sort of drain.
“Unfortunately, no. Garlic is still your best bet for that.” She paused, then said, “Val Slater asked about you last night. I saw him when I was at Ruby’s, getting takeout. He wanted to know how you were doing.” She gave me a long look. “Have you been talking to him lately?”
Val Slater had been off my radar for a while, thank gods. “No. I’m trying to stay away from him because it bothers Killian when I talk to him. I hate this feud they have going, and I know that for a while it had smoothed over, but lately Killian’s been bristling again. Those two just rub each other the wrong way.”
“It’s you. Val likes you a lot. Too much, in my opinion. I think he thinks Killian’s not good enough for you.”
“It’s not his place to think about me at all. I’m not about to start dating him.”
“I know. Killian’s a good man, and I like him a lot. But you could do worse than Val.” Rowan paused, and looked up at me. “Just be cautious. When you talk to Val, don’t be too friendly. I think he feels he has some hope, and it’s never good to lead a vampire on. Even when you aren’t deliberately doing so.”
I glanced at the clock. It was four-thirty, so we had about two hours before Ari was due. I turned to Rowan. “What’s going to happen to all the consultants who are part of the Majikoil system? Are they all going to be arrested?”
She shook her head. “Systems like this, pyramid schemes, lure people in with the promise of easy money. Usually, they attract two types—those who are greedy and who know what they’re getting into, or those who are desperate. We’ll dissolve the company, and notify people as to what happened. We’ll also send out a warning about how to identify multilevel marketing scams.”
“So some people will just be out several years of their lives.”
“There’s not much we can do. We don’t know how much life she drew off of each person. At least we’ll catch her before the operation becomes huge.”
“What’s going to happen to Sheryl?” It wasn’t that I particularly cared about what would happen to her, but I was curious.
“She’ll be sentenced, although I’m not sure what the punishment will be. All the extra life she has siphoned from others will be drained from her and formed into healing potions. They’ll be delivered to various Otherkin doctors to use on patients who are in need.” Rowan glanced over at me, giving me a partial smile. “You’re doing the right thing, never doubt that.”
I brushed a stray hair back from my face. “I don’t feel sorry for Sheryl at all. But I can’t help but wonder if she came up with the scheme herself. She doesn’t seem smart enough, Rowan. I can’t help but feel like there’s somebody else behind this.”
“You could be right. She could have a silent partner. Unfortunately, to nip this in the bud means we go after the visible face of the company. We don’t have the luxury to infiltrate this on a deeper level. A movement like this can get out of hand faster than you might think, and it’s imperative that we put a stop to it before it reaches critical mass.”
“The Court thinks this could spiral out of control, then?”
“Yes. I bet you anything that very shortly, a one-time life-energy donation won’t be enough. In fact, we expect her to start requiring monthly donations. And that will trickle down through the organization. It hasn’t been around long enough to form into the monster that we can foresee, and we want to stop it before then.”
I suddenly read between the lines of what she was saying. “Are you telling me that someone sees Majikoil becoming a bigger threat? An oracle?”
Rowan held my gaze. “You didn’t hear that from me. I didn’t say a word.” But by the tone of her voice, I knew I was right.
After we had set out all the equipment, Rowan and I went down to my studio in the basement. We still had ninety minutes before Ari was due, and Rowan wanted to put me through the paces of my last lesson.
“First, I want you to deconstruct this stone.” She motioned for me to hold up my hand, and when I did she placed a petal-pink stone on it. The crystalline structure looked fragile. I recognized it as halite, commonly known as rock salt. “Now focus on this and deconstruct it.”
I stared at it, holding my palm as steady as I could. As I began to lower myself into trance, I connected with the mineral. I could almost taste salt on my tongue. I probed the crystals, looking for the cleavage. Using the force of my energy, I visualized the fractures breaking, falling apart my hand. I drove all my force into it, like an invisible lever, prying the crystals apart.
A moment later the rock salt began to shiver on my hand. Then, two of the crystals on the top fell off, onto my palm. I drove the energy forward, focusing on the heart of the cluster. Another moment, and the halite crumbled. I was left with a pile of rock salt in my hand.
“Very good,” Rowan said. “Now, I want you to melt it. I know that you aren’t as connected to the water magically as you are the earth, but I want you to raise the temperature in your hand.”
I focused on my hand, driving heat out of my body, into my palm. The center of my palm became hot, sweaty, and damp. Another moment and crystals of the rock salt began to melt.
Rowan clapped her hands. “You’re doing exceptionally well. I know these exercises seem silly, to an extent, but you have to start somewhere. And you have so much potential. Eventually, I’m guessing you’ll be able to occasionally break rocks with your mind.”