Page 64 of Fool Me Twice

She really did it. She managed to gain Ez’s trust. She’s closer than ever to completing her mission, closer than ever to having everything she ever wanted‍?—

But can she really go through with it?

And, more importantly, does she even want to anymore?

28

You know, Gutierrez,” Ez says, eyeing Roma across their picnic table at Lakeside, “that spell book is centuries old. It’s a priceless artifact, a one-of-a-kind rarity, something I didn’t even knowexisteduntil yesterday. Obie will have my head on a stick if I damage it.”

“Uh-huh,” Roma says, still absorbed in jotting down notes about the spell on a pad of paper off to the side. Idly, she reaches for a fry from her to-go carton. “What’s your point?”

“Then why‍—‍?” Ez impatiently yanks the spell book away when a gravy-coated cheese curd falls perilously close to the delicate pages. “Then why are youeatingpoutinewhile you read it?”

“Because I’mstarving,”Roma fires back, wrestling the book back towards her with her non-poutine-covered hand. “We’ve been working all day, Laguerre! I need sustenance if we’re going to cast a varsity-level spell!”

“And you canhaveyour sustenance,” Ez says emphatically, “at a socially appropriate distance from the fragile spell book.”

And, for once, they can actually have their sustenance without being interrupted by the mega-rifts. Ez texted MaggieKhan early this morning to secure the evening shift’s spellcaster for six p.m. sharp, and somehow, she wasn’t surprised when a Public Safety demon showed up within a few minutes of a Sanctum hunter.

After they left, Roma said in a low voice that she told one of the Council members that their Deep-checking spell was planned for today, so they probably just knew she would need the backup. She didn’t look like she entirely believed the words, though.

Now, Roma rolls her eyes at Ez’s fretting, but she moves her poutine marginally farther away from the spell book. “How much longer until sunset?”

The sun is already starting to drift towards the horizon, but Ez checks her phone for the exact time. “About eighteen minutes. Will you be ready by then?”

“I mean, I have the incantation memorized,” Roma says, scribbling another quick note on her pad. “I’m just triple-checking to see if there are any other quirks I should know in advance.”

“You’re comfortable with the Marseilles base, right? And you saw the syllable change on line nineteen?”

“Check and check,” Roma says, and her eyes flicker up to Ez’s. “How about our magic stances? The spell doesn’t specify a preference, but since the book was written pre-WMSA, there might’ve been an obvious option at that point in history that we’re missing.”

“I asked Obie about that, actually,” Ez says, faintly impressed that Roma thought to consider the historical context of the spell. “Similar spells recommend a seated stance, so we’re as close to the ground as possible‍—allegedly, it helps to connect to the Deep itself.”

Roma nods slowly. “A bit unorthodox, but we can make it work.” Decisively, she closes the spell book and pushes it backtowards Ez; gratefully, Ez drops it into a pocket dimension for safekeeping. “I think I’m ready. Want to check my notes?”

Strangely touched by the offer, Ez grabs Roma’s notepad and skims over the short, neat lines of handwriting. Given what she’s seen of Roma’s spellcasting, she doesn’t think she’ll find any glaring errors or omissions in Roma’s analysis, but, well‍?—

Objectively speaking, Ezisa better spellcaster than Roma. It’s through no fault or lack of skill on Roma’s part; she simply hasn’t had the centuries Ez has had to hone her craft. It makes sense for Roma to get feedback before performing a varsity-level spell.

Knowing their limits is the mark of a good spellcaster. “Looks solid to me,” Ez says eventually, and she passes the notepad back to Roma before snapping open a rift. “You ready?”

Roma lets out a slow breath. “As ready as I’ll ever be,” she says, and she crumples up her empty poutine carton and tosses it in the nearest trash can before following Ez through the rift.

They emerge on the opposite side of the lake, hidden behind the row of trees that signals the shift from the shoreline to Redwater’s western forest. It’s an area Ez is familiar with‍—she’s come here plenty of times to study, relax, and just enjoy the fresh air‍—but she can tell that Roma has never noticed this little clearing.

So Roma looks around, fascination sweeping over her face, and Ez looks at Roma. The early days of June are starting to unleash summertime warmth in all its glory, the smell of blossoming flowers livening up the air, and the streaks of fading sunlight filtering through the tree branches make Roma look like she stepped straight off an artist’s canvas.

And, for almost the first time, they’re alone in a secluded location, free from prying eyes. But instead of feeling anxious or wary about that, Ez just feels a strange sense of contentedness. Peace, even. There’s no way she should feel this calm and thiscomfortablewith no one but a hunter by her side, but somehow, she feels safer than ever.

Fleetingly, she wonders if this is how Cass feels with JJ. Just as quickly, though, she shoves the thought down. “Let’s do this,” she says briskly, leading the way to a patch of grass and plopping down cross-legged. “Maybe two or three dry runs, and then we’ll cast the spell for real?”

“Slowly for our first time,” Roma says, easing herself onto the ground in front of Ez. “I don’t want to rush and screw it up.”

“We won’t,” Ez says firmly, and she rolls her shoulders back, touching her fingertips to the ground. Roma mirrors the position, closing her eyes. “On three. One, two, three‍—from the depths to the sky…”

“From the depths to the sky…”

Roma’s voice blends easily with Ez’s, the syllables combining together in a quiet harmony. Even though they’ve never attempted this particular spell before, the words still sound just as intricate andrightas they always do, somehow made more powerful by the fact that they’re using the same incantation.

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