I pick up the amethyst and grasp it in my palm while he opens the black box at his side. He removes a piece of clear quartz and lays it in my other hand. The cut gem sparkles in the candlelight.

“You said you had a minor success with combining another crystal at Agnes’s home. None since then?”

I shake my head. “Only with the labradorite. I’ve tried others but didn’t even get a spark. My brain is too full of junk.”

“We’ll try connecting these two while I trigger the focus. When you have success, I will pull back. Be prepared for a powerful force.”

I swallow again as I examine the stones. Am I in the correct mindset for this? Oh, fuck it. I can’t back out now. “I’m ready.”

“Focus as you did before, and I will touch your fingers lightly to trigger a reaction. If you feel overwhelmed, continue to breathe, inhaling as deeply as possible.”

I nod, and we begin. I stare into Seamus’s eyes, my face reflecting in their glassy surfaces. He strokes his fingers against mine, and my magic seeps out and engulfs me. My entire body is aflame with an amber glow, intensifying until I imagine I may explode. But I suck in air, filling my lungs until they’re full and expelling my breath slowly. My head becomes dizzy, and just when I think I’m going to pass out, white fingers of energy discharge from the geode and the clear crystal, merging into an enchanted frenzy.

My lips part, but I’m unable to speak. Seamus pulls his hands away, allowing me to relish in the spectacle of my achievement. He grins at me, rejoicing in his own success. But it’s short-lived. My breathing becomes erratic, and I can’t sustain my focus. My dizzy head wins, and I fall forward, dropping the crystal onto the floor. He catches me before my face smacks into the brick hearth.

“Gwynedd,” he says, concern heavy in his voice. “Can you hear me? Are you aware?”

I peer up at him, unable to form a complete sentence. “Oh, Seamus.”

He never takes his gaze from me while I recover my lost energy. I want to say so many things to him. In particular, how grateful I am he’s willing to share these secrets of his cath sith magic. When I’m nearly able to speak, my mouth falls open—he kisses me. His lips are full of pent-up passion and months of longing, and a noticeable bulge below his waist presses into me. But I push him back.

“Stop, Seamus. Why did you do that? You know I love Archie.”

He stares at me, wrapping a trembling hand around the other. “My deepest apologies, Gwynedd. Your expression appeared to invite me. Then how you spoke… I must have misinterpreted your reaction as affection.”

“I care about you, but not in that way. I should go.”

When I try to stand, I lose my balance. I get up on the second attempt. I grab Agnes’s geode and retrieve my puffer jacket from the hall closet. While I’m tying my shoelaces, Seamus approaches me with the clear quartz in his hand.

“I think we should take a break from our research meetings.” I glance at the painting of my mom over the fireplace. “Your affections are misguided. You fell in love with the woman on that canvas. She’s not me. It’s not healthy, Seamus. I took advantage of your affections, and I was wrong to continue meeting with you.”

“Please, don’t tell Archie. It was a mistake on my part. No need to for everyone to be uncomfortable.”

“I can’t promise that. I won’t lie to the man I love. But I’ll make certain he understands nothing happened.” I slip the geode into an outside pocket of my backpack.

He stands there, a yearning unfulfilled, and my eyes fall to the floor. This is my fault.

“When will you come again, Gwynedd? Your training isn’t complete without the next step, and I don’t want this flaw in my social skills to affect the friendship we have.”

I return my gaze to him. “It already has. Whatever comes after will have to wait. Let’s take a break. It’ll be good for the both of us.”

“But you still haven’t found the being in your vision. How will you discover who he is without my assistance?”

“I guess I won’t. But I assure you. He’s gonna find me.” I open the front door.

“Wait, Gwynedd.” He opens his hand, offering me the clear quartz. “Please, take this crystal. My gift to you. It’s one of my strongest. You needed more training to increase your intuition to its fullest extent, but you are capable.”

I pick up the gemstone and put it in my backpack with the geode. “Thank you for everything.”

With a slam of the door, I run to Archie’s one street over, shaking from the blast of chilly air. I enter through the front and kick off my sneakers, then hang my puffer jacket on the hall tree. Archie shuffles in from the kitchen as I drop my backpack onto the wooden floor.

“You’re here sooner than expected,” he says, embracing me.

I pinch my lips, mulling over the decision to tell him the truth or not.

“What has happened?” he asks. “Weren’t you with Seamus? For research.” His jaw drops. “You found the monster in Irish folklore?”

“No. Not even close to what transpired.” I walk into the living room and stand in front of the fireplace. “You’re not gonna like what I’m about to tell you.”

“What am I not going to like, Gwynedd?” he asks, crossing his arms.

“I was with Seamus.” I pause for a moment. “At his house. I asked him to instruct me in his cat sith ways of intuition. He agreed. And—”

“Did you get hurt?” He checks my body from my head to my feet.

“No. Stop fussing over me. I’m fine. The magic made me a bit dizzy. I recovered in minutes. Not like my reaction to the crystal grid. The results were fucking amazing.”

He frowns. “What were you thinking, witch? He’s a cat sith. His magic could have damaged you.”

“Agnes wasn’t much help, and I found out Ronnie is experiencing a sense of dread daily—her mother’s intuition mixing with her witch energy. I wanted to test if his witchcraft art could strengthen mine enough to help catch the Baby Nabbers. And the rogue witch, if there is one.”

He shoves his hands in his pockets. “I don’t understand. If you were successful, why are you so upset?”

“I lost my balance when the magic stopped abruptly, and he caught me before I hit my head on the fireplace hearth. When I looked up at him, he misinterpreted my expression of delight at my success and—”

Archie’s brow furrows. “And what, Gwynedd?”

“He kissed me.” I clench my teeth.

“Fawk, Gwyn. What did you do?”

“I pushed him away, of course. He realized he’d made a mistake and apologized profusely. I told him his affections were misguided and that he’d fallen in love with an image in a painting. We’re taking a break from research. I won’t be seeing him for a while.”

He runs a hand through his locks. “This will make working together very awkward. You’ve made a mess of things. I wish you had asked me first.”

“Because I need your permission? You don’t own me.” I stomp to the foyer in my socks and shove my feet into my shoes.

“Where are you going? Aren’t you eating and staying the night?”

I put on my jacket and zip it up. “No. I’m going home to sleep in my own bed.”

He strokes my arm. “I’m sorry. Please, don’t leave.”

“I need a break from the both of you.” I open the door. “Give me some space. I’ll call you in a couple of days.”

“Whatever you want, Gwyn.” He kisses me on the cheek before I leave, but the pained expression on his face as the door swings closed stands in stark contrast to his words.

On the way home to Leslie’s house, the stress of everything escapes in a scream, and I howl at the moon in the twilight sky. I can’t use the grid to expand my vision, and my intuition remains useless. The gray-skinned monster invades my thoughts like an uninvited voyeur. I don’t have time for you now, asshole.