Sudden understanding dawned. “You mean Chandra?”
Jade gave a short meow. You catch on quick.
We walked in silence for a time, the wind picking up speed and howling ominously around us. A shower of leaves drifted down around us, something I normally would have found delightful, but I couldn’t help fixating on Jade’s words.
Who was this Chandra person? Was she a Farrow? Was that why she hated my grandmother?
But Jade said they had once been friends, so what caused such a huge falling out?
My steps slowed as I walked up the porch stairs. I felt so tired of not having answers. I’d enhanced the protections on the house, making sure to include the basement in my calculations this time, but it still didn’t make me feel completely safe.
“Jade,” I said, a new worry occurring to me, “are there limitations to how much magic a person can do?”
She leapt up on the back of the couch as soon as we went inside. Yes. They can be hard to define, though. The more powerful a witch, the larger her threshold for magic.
I walked into the kitchen and checked the food in the crock pot before opening the fridge and grabbing a bottle of lemonade.
“What happens if a witch overextends herself?”
Jade nosed at the cupboard with the tuna cans.
She dies.
Chapter Nine
“Oh, great. Something else to worry about.”
I got out a can of tuna and put it in a bowl. Jade began eating before I’d even set the bowl down on the floor.
“Could you elaborate a little bit?”
She snatched up a large bit of tuna and swallowed it whole, licking her lips. There are signs you can watch for long before you die, of course. Sudden headaches, muscle fatigue, a burning in the chest, those sorts of things tell you that you need to take a break.
“You could have said that to begin with.”
I pursed my lips as I watched her eat, wondering if she actually liked being cryptic. She’d answered my question well enough, I supposed. I hadn’t felt any of the symptoms she described, despite keeping up a shield on the house and on myself, so I must not be using much of my power.
Think of it like an electrical panel. Just like you can’t have too many things plugged into one circuit, you can’t have too many spells running at once, or use large spells that may overwhelm your abilities. As you practice your magic, you’ll learn your limits and get an idea for the depth of your ability.
I nodded thoughtfully as I scooped a spoonful of chicken and rice out of the crock pot and onto a plate. Seasoning it with a little salt, I headed to the table, but stopped when I saw Jade staring at me.
You got any extra?
“I have a crock pot full. Are you still hungry?”
She gave a loud yowl. Tuna is fine, but it does get tiresome. I would never say no to a hot meal.
“Feel free to ask. I’m not stingy.”
Taking the tuna bowl, I ladled some of the chicken and rice into it, blowing some of the steam off so she wouldn’t burn her tongue.
Again, Jade attacked the food, her pointy little cat teeth deftly tearing the chicken apart. “What have you been eating since Grandma died?”
My heart filled with unexpected sympathy for the little creature. Jade could be mean and totally blunt, not to mention she’d murdered someone, but I felt sad thinking of her being so hungry.
Sometimes people in town fed me, but I have to be careful which parts of town I hang around in. Most of the time, I foraged.
I wrinkled my nose. “You mean like for mice?”
Jade gave a low purr. It’s better than starving.
With a shrug, I sat down at the table and started eating. Jade made tiny smacking noises as she chewed. I tried again to look for potion ingredients on my phone, with no luck.
Jade suddenly curled around my ankles. I smiled down at her. “You’re acting awfully cat-like.”
She purred again. The food was good. Thank you.
“You’re welcome.”
I tried not to let my surprise show in my tone. By this point, I knew it was better to let Jade take the lead in whatever weird friendship we had between us.
“There’s more where that came from,” I reminded her as I rinsed the dishes and put them in the washer. “I’m happy to share whatever I’m cooking.”
When I finished cleaning the kitchen, it was only seven-thirty. I was wondering what to do with myself when I remembered Theresa’s wand in my purse. Her instructions for spell work had been basic enough, requiring only visualization. My protection spells seemed to be holding up, so I figured I’d give some other spells a try.
One of the chairs in the living room was comfortable, but an ugly shade of brown. Sitting in the couch opposite the chair, I held up the wand and concentrated. I noticed Jade leaping up onto the arm of the couch, but I ignored her, putting all my focus into my desired outcome.
I stared at the chair, imagining it into a lovely sea green color. Closing my eyes, I gave the wand a flick and felt a barely noticeable tingle flowing down from my shoulders to my hands, then out through the wand.
