best at 2 a.m. “I’ve been running traces in the scanning data.” All magic used in Realm left a record, one they primarily used for repair work. Witches were good at breaking things. “I’ve found her entry, but the traces make no sense.”
He clicked a couple of keys, muttered a quick spell, and brought up what Mia called the holo-display. It was very Star Trek . “See here? That’s the spike when she entered.”
Nell frowned and poked her finger at thin air. “The data’s backwards, baby brother.”
He stuck out his tongue—the standard response to that particular nickname ever since he’d been Aervyn’s age. “It’s not. I quadruple checked it. The energy surge came from inside Realm.”
His sister blinked, cookie halfway to her mouth. “She broke in from the inside?”
That’s what the data said, which made exactly zero sense. “I traced all the users online when she showed up. Several witches, and plenty of them up to mischief, but none with that kind of power.”
Daniel’s eyes narrowed. “Power can be augmented by code. I looked for a hacker on the outside, but not one on the inside.”
Finally, points for the sleep-deprived witch. Jamie stretched his creaky back again. “I did. The best coder online when it happened was Ginia.” Who had definitely not been aiding and abetting a Realm breach—Mia had been ready to spit nails at the mere suggestion. “And even inside code leaves tracks. There just aren’t any.”
He shrugged, brain fighting the suck of exhaustion. Nell was awesomely smart, even in the middle of the night. Time to lay out the facts. “No coding. Lots of magic from the inside, but not Net magic. Unknown origins, unknown witch.”
Nell’s eyebrows flew up at the last two. “It wasn’t Adele doing the magic?”
He’d spent the last two hours making sure. “Nope. She had help. Help with some serious spellcasting talents.” The parallels weren’t lost on either of them. A baby and a glittery visitor, both coated in strange magic.
Time to go visit a Las Vegas medium.
Right after he got some sleep.
Chapter 5
Hell was at the door. Marcus sprang up in the dark, sleep fleeing as he prepared to fight the barbarians at the gates.
And realized, all too late, that the barbarian was still in his chair, screaming like she’d been run through. Gods. A tiny, flailing ball of mad with the lungs of a staff sergeant.
Smart men slept alone.
He squinted at the old clock on his mantel. 5:30 a.m. The time of the mists.
Shadows of terror still lurching through his nerves, Marcus reached for the baby, annoyed lullaby at the ready—and realized the fear he felt wasn’t all his. Her brain was frantic, a tiny maelstrom of fright.
It pummeled his heart. And then she did, little fists and heels beating into his chest as he cuddled her close. “Shh, sweet girl. Shh. It’s just the night. I’ve got you now. Shh.”
She was so cold. He grabbed one of Moira’s throws off the back of the couch, cursing his total incompetence. What idiot let a baby sleep half naked? Fire power wasn’t in his arsenal, but he pushed energy into the air around her, calling the molecules to a faster dance.
One last piercing wail and the five-alarm cries stopped, replaced by hiccupping sniffles that did funny things to his ability to breathe. “Shh, sweetheart, that’s it now.” Morgan snuggled close, soothed by the magic, warm wool, and soft words.
Marcus was soothed by none of them.
Guilt stomped across familiar pathways in his soul, kicking the occasional rock for good measure. What kind of utter moron couldn’t manage to keep a baby fed and warm for a few hours? He looked down into bright eyes, shaking his head in disgust. “This should be a lesson to both of us, girl-child.”
She only looked up at him, a stray hiccup all that disturbed the picture of wide-awake
He clicked a couple of keys, muttered a quick spell, and brought up what Mia called the holo-display. It was very Star Trek . “See here? That’s the spike when she entered.”
Nell frowned and poked her finger at thin air. “The data’s backwards, baby brother.”
He stuck out his tongue—the standard response to that particular nickname ever since he’d been Aervyn’s age. “It’s not. I quadruple checked it. The energy surge came from inside Realm.”
His sister blinked, cookie halfway to her mouth. “She broke in from the inside?”
That’s what the data said, which made exactly zero sense. “I traced all the users online when she showed up. Several witches, and plenty of them up to mischief, but none with that kind of power.”
Daniel’s eyes narrowed. “Power can be augmented by code. I looked for a hacker on the outside, but not one on the inside.”
Finally, points for the sleep-deprived witch. Jamie stretched his creaky back again. “I did. The best coder online when it happened was Ginia.” Who had definitely not been aiding and abetting a Realm breach—Mia had been ready to spit nails at the mere suggestion. “And even inside code leaves tracks. There just aren’t any.”
He shrugged, brain fighting the suck of exhaustion. Nell was awesomely smart, even in the middle of the night. Time to lay out the facts. “No coding. Lots of magic from the inside, but not Net magic. Unknown origins, unknown witch.”
Nell’s eyebrows flew up at the last two. “It wasn’t Adele doing the magic?”
He’d spent the last two hours making sure. “Nope. She had help. Help with some serious spellcasting talents.” The parallels weren’t lost on either of them. A baby and a glittery visitor, both coated in strange magic.
Time to go visit a Las Vegas medium.
Right after he got some sleep.
Chapter 5
Hell was at the door. Marcus sprang up in the dark, sleep fleeing as he prepared to fight the barbarians at the gates.
And realized, all too late, that the barbarian was still in his chair, screaming like she’d been run through. Gods. A tiny, flailing ball of mad with the lungs of a staff sergeant.
Smart men slept alone.
He squinted at the old clock on his mantel. 5:30 a.m. The time of the mists.
Shadows of terror still lurching through his nerves, Marcus reached for the baby, annoyed lullaby at the ready—and realized the fear he felt wasn’t all his. Her brain was frantic, a tiny maelstrom of fright.
It pummeled his heart. And then she did, little fists and heels beating into his chest as he cuddled her close. “Shh, sweet girl. Shh. It’s just the night. I’ve got you now. Shh.”
She was so cold. He grabbed one of Moira’s throws off the back of the couch, cursing his total incompetence. What idiot let a baby sleep half naked? Fire power wasn’t in his arsenal, but he pushed energy into the air around her, calling the molecules to a faster dance.
One last piercing wail and the five-alarm cries stopped, replaced by hiccupping sniffles that did funny things to his ability to breathe. “Shh, sweetheart, that’s it now.” Morgan snuggled close, soothed by the magic, warm wool, and soft words.
Marcus was soothed by none of them.
Guilt stomped across familiar pathways in his soul, kicking the occasional rock for good measure. What kind of utter moron couldn’t manage to keep a baby fed and warm for a few hours? He looked down into bright eyes, shaking his head in disgust. “This should be a lesson to both of us, girl-child.”
She only looked up at him, a stray hiccup all that disturbed the picture of wide-awake
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