Jocelynn Drake - [Asylum Tales 02] by Dead Mans Deal Page A

room. I closed the door behind her, but didn’t lock it. Trixie wouldn’t enter unless it was an emergency. She knew of the dangers associated with my private storeroom.
    “Hang back until I call you,” I said as I knelt and pulled up the trapdoor in the floor. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sofie give a little nod as she sat a few feet away, her tail softly swishing across the floor.
    The basement was one of the reasons I had chosen this building when I decided to open up my own shop. After living several years with Sparks, I had been eager to get out on my own and a part of it had been because I thought I could set up a secret place to practice a little magic. I had been stupid. It was only recently that I discovered that Gideon had always known about my secret spot, though I was hopeful that he didn’t know about everything it contained.
    I paused while descending the stairs as a thought struck me. If Gideon was no longer the guardian who kept an eye on me, I would need to close this spot down or whoever was assigned as my parole officer would drag me in before the council in a heartbeat. I’d have to get rid of everything, or get Gideon to help me hide it better.
    The warped wooden stairs creaked under my feet as I continued to the dirt floor. I walked to the center of the pitch-black room and blindly reached up, feeling for the beaded metal cord that hung from the only light. I had been in the basement a thousand times, knew it blind, but my stomach still churned the first few seconds after entering. I had already checked it once when I first arrived at the shop, but it was only after I turned on the light and saw that nothing had been touched that I started to relax.
    Lifting my right hand, holding the open palm toward a symbol spray-painted on the far blank wall, I murmured a few words and directed a little energy toward it, disarming the protective spell.
    “It’s clear,” I called, leaning toward the stairs and the opening in the ceiling.
    A second later, Sofie poked her head in the opening, peering down before delicately descending the stairs on silent paws. She stopped halfway, the hair on her back standing on end. The cat gave a little shake, settling her fur back while narrowing her eyes on me. “Goodness,” she said, sounding a bit breathless. “You’ve got some powerful magic down here.”
    I smiled a bit stiffly at her. This was the first time I had allowed another witch or warlock to come into my secret dungeon. I felt the heaviness of the energy too, but I had grown accustomed to it after so many trips. I even felt it when I was on the main floor, but only slightly. I wondered if Sofie did as well.
    “I’ve got some dangerous items down here.”
    Sofie started to come down the rest of the stairs, but abruptly stopped when her eyes fell on the black symbol that covered the only blank stone wall in the room. Every muscle in her body had gone stiff and I could almost hear her heart pounding in her chest. “That’s a very strong protection spell.” Her voice was tight and barely above a whisper, as if she was afraid that the slight sound would awaken the dormant spell.
    “Like I said, I’ve got some dangerous items down here.” Sofie continued to stare at the wall, unable to move. “Sof, I wouldn’t invite you if I couldn’t properly shut down the spell. You’re safe.”
    “But it’s not shut down. I can see it . . . moving . . . underneath the paint.”
    I squinted at the symbol, but didn’t see anything. It might have had something to do with the fact that she was looking at it through the eyes of a cat, but she was right. It wasn’t completely shut down. I could feel the energy humming around it. “I mean, shut down against you, me, and Trixie. You’re safe.” To prove my point, I walked over to the stairs and gently picked her up. She growled at me, but didn’t move, her eyes locked on the symbol.
    Sofie was right. It was a dangerous spell and not very discerning. If