Archie stands in the mudroom doorway in a T-shirt and lounge pants, scratching his head. “I don’t understand why I can’t ride over with you. If you want, I can wait in the kitchen while Agnes gives you some tips.”

“I’d be distracted knowing you were in there. You’re not even dressed yet.” I finish tying my sneaker and shift next to him, wrapping my arms around his middle.

“Give us about an hour. Frankly, I’m not impressed with her suggestions. I mean, she usually wings it when she’s practicing the craft. But she really doesn’t know what she is doing. It’s a bit funny to watch her falter when she’s always so competent.” If Seamus would show me some of his intuition secrets, I wouldn’t need her help.

He kisses me. “Agnes prides herself on figuring things out even when they fail. I bet she comes through for you.”

“Maybe. See you in an hour, honey.” I kiss him goodbye and slip on my fleece jacket over a long-sleeved tee.

As I walk to my Prius, I bask in the warmth of the sun’s rays. Mid-50 isn’t the spring-like temperature we had on Samhain, but I’ll take the cloudless blue skies over the deluge we had yesterday. After the short ride to Agnes’s farmhouse, I knock on the front door and enter.

“Hey, Agnes.” I peek into the living room and kitchen.

She shouts from the magic room in the back, “In here, Gwyn! Trying something new!”

I amble in to find her lying on the rug Leslie bought to brighten the space. A bluish-green crystal rests on her forehead. She’s dressed in a loose blouse and knit pants for the practice session. How did she mange to lie down on the floor? Surely she won’t get back up.

“What are you doing?” I ask, setting my purse on the wooden table. “Is that labradorite?”

She hisses at me and closes her eyes. “Shhh. I’m trying to activate my third eye chakra.”

I tiptoe to my mentor and kneel on the ground while she continues with—whatever she’s doing. She turns her hands over, her palms facing up, and summons her magic. But she shakes out the amber glow and grumbles. She removes the crystal and sits up on her elbows.

“Why do you think it’s not working?” I ask.

She twists a side of her mouth, adding to the wrinkles on her sun-damaged skin. “I don’t fucking know. You need a fuck ton of patience to meditate and align your chakras. Never worked for me. Who has time for this shit?”

I snicker. “Someone with patience.”

“Are you mocking me? Ungrateful witch. Here. You try.” She passes the labradorite to me.

“I hope the nightly meditation I performed with the amethyst geode helps. How do I facilitate this? Should I clear my head? Mediate for a few minutes first? Call on my ancestors? Should I—”

“For fuck’s sake, Gwyn. You talk too fucking much. I’d forgotten how frustrating it was to teach you.” She rolls onto her side and supports her upper body on an elbow.

I laugh and lie down next to her on the rug. “Oh, you love the admiration, you old hedge witch.”

“Yeah, yeah,” she says, quashing a smile. “Place the crystal on your forehead near your eyes and close them. Try to empty your head of everything. I fail at this part, but maybe you’ll have more success.”

I attempt to clear the junk from my brain as random thoughts continually invade the solitude. The clutter exits through doors…no, portals into different dimensions. This is amazing.

Agnes continues to offer guidance. “Take deep breaths and hold them, letting the air pass through your lips slowly. Again. And once more. Summon your witch energy and meld it with the labradorite.”

I face my palms toward the ceiling, concentrating on the connection. A magnetism pulls my hands toward my head. I want to look, but I’m afraid I’ll lose the connection.

“Fuck me,” Agnes whispers.

I peek through slits, glimpsing the swirl of energy above me, and open my eyes completely. “Holy crystals.”

A faint swirl of amber and white dances above me, connecting the magic from my fingers to the labradorite. And just like that, it disappears.

Agnes moans as she pushes up off the floor. “Fucking beginner’s luck.”

“Well, it doesn’t mean my witch’s intuition will be any stronger. Could the daily meditation have helped?”

Knocking on the front door echoes down the hallway, and it creaks open.

“We’re out of time, anyway,” she says. “Everyone is here to work on the database.”

Spence, Skye, Tyler, and Zoe shuffle in. My son walks across the room and hugs me. Richard may have caused me immense grief, but at least he gave me this compassionate man.

“Aww,” Spence says. “I’m sorry I caused that rift.”

Skye shakes her head. “If you could control what spews out of your orifice, this shit wouldn’t happen.”

“People like us can’t help it.” Zoe nudges Spence. “It takes a nanosecond for the words in our brain to transfer to our tongues. It’s a curse.”

“I have a spell for that, you know,” Agnes says. “The incantation is in the fucking database.”

Archie and Leslie enter the room in deep discussion with Trinity. Their expressions are wrinkled with concern.

“The coven may want to attend the next meeting,” I hear Archie say. “This will affect all of us.”

The Elder lifts her chin. “Indeed. Trinity, you’ll need to send a group text. We don’t have time for a circle.”

“What’s wrong?” I ask, my eyes jumping from Archie to Trinity.

Our coven leader puts a hand on her hip. “Elijah called. He says Alys Morgan has convinced John Erickson to introduce a short-term ordinance under emergency rules. They want to close off city-owned spaces and…institute a curfew for minors.”

“What the fuck?” I ask. “How will we entertain the Seelie Fae?”

“Exactly.” Archie brushes fingers through his hair. “They want extra police patrolling the town to enforce the curfew.”

Spence crosses his arms. “That’s fucked up. I mean, the night is just getting started at 10:00 p.m.”

“It is for the Seelie Fae, anyway,” Skye says.

Agnes grumbles. “Hmph. Fucking police can’t stop the kidnappings if a rogue witch is involved.”

“No,” I say. “But they will sure get in the way. If we don’t show up to play with them on a regular basis, they’ll become antsy like before.”

Zoe chuckles. “Yeah. Who knows what mischief they’ll start?”

“We’ll have to cross that bridge if it happens,” Trinity says.

“What about our allies on the council?” Archie asks, rubbing his goatee. “Can we rely on them to block this?”

“Trinity, you and I should contact Jessica Devine.” Leslie glances at me. “But that only gives us three votes.”