Page 61 of Fool Me Twice

Cass snorts. “See you at dinner on Wednesday.”

“Stay safe,” JJ adds.

“Will do.” Ez waves back at them before snapping her fingers, opening a rift back to her house, and stepping neatly through.

It’s only after the rift vanishes behind her that she lets her smile fade. Sighing, she collapses onto her couch and kicks her feet up on the coffee table, delicately reopening the spell book to the proper page and analyzing it with a critical eye.

The spell iscomplex,but it’s not tricky or complicated. Ez is perfectly capable of casting it, and she’s confident that Roma is, too. Really, the only wild card right now is Roma herself‍—specifically, if she’s ever going to show her face in public again.

Scowling, Ez turns to sprawl sideways across the couch, staring up at the ceiling. She doesn’t want to admit to her friends just how worried she is, but frankly, she’s getting more and more restless as she waits for a sign that Roma is evenaliveout there.

After all, the last time they spoke, she wasn’t exactly in the best headspace. Ez is actively trying not to think about the possibility of Roma panicking and telling the Council about the Sanctum’s most infamous dissidents resurfacing. Under normal circumstances, she knows Roma wouldn’t be that rash, but‍?—

But the part of Ez that remembers Roma’s pale face and unsteady hands and hollow eyes knows that these aren’t normal circumstances. She was clearly shaken by seeing her sister again, and learning why Naomi left definitely didn’t help matters.

And Ez isn’t doingwellwith the revelation that the Chain might be working with the Sanctum, but at least she has some emotional distance from it. She has an intertwined sense of respect and disdain for the Chain‍—par for the course for any bureaucracy, really‍—and her only interactions with it until recently were paying her membership dues and occasionally filling out TX-203s to head abroad for some dictatorship-toppling.

But the Sanctum has been Roma’s entire life. Ez has gotten hints of the hunters’ indoctrination from both Roma and JJ, and from what she can tell, it’s a carefully constructed identity of pride and hatred all wrapped up in one fervent ideology. She can only imagine how it must feel to be faced with the prospect that‍—not only is that ideologywrong‍—but that it never really mattered in the first place. That her entire life has been for nothing, beenworthnothing.

That she’s been a marionette on a string since the day she was born.

Ez can only imagine it, mostly, because she has no way to get in contact with Roma. They never took that final step to exchange phone numbers, and it’s not like Ez can just break into the Sanctum to pay her a visit.

Or… can she?

The idea instantly piques her interest, and she pushes herself up to sitting, turning it over in her mind. Obviously, it would be reckless and dangerous, but not disproportionately so. And considering how important this spell is for Redwater’s general well-being, it just makes sense for Ez to prioritize bringing it to her spellcasting buddy. The benefits clearly outweigh the risks.

Besides, Cass has broken into the Sanctum loads of times. How hard can it be?

27

You believe that your spell destabilized the Deep.”

Councilwoman Nasir doesn’t phrase it as a question, but Roma answers anyway. “Yes, ma’am. Or‍—or Esmeralda Laguerre suspects that the Deep is responsible for the epidemic, at least. I’m inclined to agree.”

“And when did Laguerre notify you of this… suspicion?”

Roma resists the urge to fidget. She never really enjoys her mission reports in Nasir’s foreboding office‍—especially when, like now, she doesn’t have her strike team by her side‍—but today’s feels especially uncomfortable. Partly because Roma requested this meeting instead of the councilwoman, partly because of its subject matter about Roma’s catastrophic failure‍?—

And partly, she thinks with some confusion, because Councilwoman Nasir looks much more intent on this update than Roma expected her to be. Swallowing hard, she squares her shoulders. “Approximately six days ago‍—just before Strike Team Kappa was sent out on our most recent mission. I wanted to research the topic personally before bringing it to your attention, which is why I didn’t ask to meet with you sooner.”

Plus, Roma needed to figure out how to tell Councilwoman Nasir the pertinent information‍—namely, that the Deep is responsible for the mega-rifts and needs to be dealt with as soon as possible‍—without telling her theotherpertinent information.

The part that Roma is still trying not to think about.

“I see.” Nasir laces her fingers together on the desk in front of her, fixing Roma with a calculating gaze. “And how do you plan to remedy this situation?”

“Well‍—‍” Roma’s throat feels dry. “Laguerre’s friend Obadiah Smith is searching for a spell that’ll let us confirm whether the Deep is truly involved. If that comes up positive, then we’ll have to create a point-by-point counterspell for theMagic-Weaver’sspell and use the Deep to activate it. That should break the endless loop of mega-rifts.”

“Hm.” Slowly, Councilwoman Nasir nods. “Very well. I’ll expect a full report once you confirm whether the Deep is involved, as well as a copy of your intended counterspell before you cast it. In addition, I want a detailed analysis of any information you obtain about the Deep during this process‍—its dimensions, magic volume, limits, idiosyncrasies. Anything and everything that differentiates it from a standard magic reservoir.”

Roma almost starts with surprise. She anticipated the first two stipulations, but a detailed analysis of the Deep’s properties? As far as she knows, understanding Redwater’s quirky magic reservoir has never been a priority for the Sanctum, much less Councilwoman Nasir. “Um. Yes, ma’am.”

“I would advise you to take this research aspect particularly seriously,” Nasir continues, her steely eyes sharp and precise. “When you were first assigned this mission, it was with the understanding that success would earn you a match with Kenneth Long. While that reward is still on the table, yoursupply of goodwill with the Council is rapidly running dry. Tread carefully.”

A wisp of resentment curls in Roma’s chest. It’s not resentful of Councilwoman Nasir, not exactly‍—no, it’s more resentful of the entire situation.

Resentful that she was given this impossible assignment in the first place. Resentful that getting paired with Kenneth Long, a bona fide purebred, is both her most fervent desire and a constant source of dread. Resentful that she’s spent the past few months doing almost nothing but close mega-rifts, resentful that the epidemic is entirely her fault‍?—

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