Page 44 of Bewitched By the Djinn
“Do you remember how she got there? Where it was in the cemetery?”
Mimi frowns, rubbing her chin. “Not exactly. But I do remember her saying the spot is warded. The witches don’t want just anyone finding them. Only people with magic can see through the spells keeping the place hidden.”
“That makes sense,” I murmur. “Do you remember anything else?”
Mimi nods. “She said the portal only activates at certain times, dusk and dawn, when the veil is thinnest.”
“That’s good to know.” Relief washes through me. At least now we know Edward wasn’t bamming us. “I want to be here in the morning before Kevin goes to school, and just in case Jackie has a bad night. So we’ll have to get there tomorrow afternoon, early enough to find it in time for dusk.”
Mimi’s lips press into a thin line. “I wish I could do more.”
“You do so much as it is. I couldn’t function without you, and neither could the kids.”
“Not enough. Not like I used to.” She flexes her fingers, rubbing at her wrist. “Twenty years ago, I could have run around this city twice. Now? I can barely get up and down the stairs without feeling it the next day because of my damn arthritis.”
Bennet’s head tilts to one side. “What is this, arthritis?”
“It’s an inflammation of the joints. Getting old is a pain in the ass.”
“When did you start having this pain in your ass?”
I spit out my tea, sputtering into my hands and then getting up to grab a hand towel.
“Are you okay?” Bennet asks.
“Fine, fine.” I wipe at my face.
Mimi chuckles. “The pain isn’t in my ass. That’s just an expression. It started... I don’t know, maybe five or six years ago? It’s nothing to worry about. The doctors have actually said it’s a miracle it hasn’t gotten worse. Most people with the same condition do much worse so many years after diagnosis.”
I move back to the table and mop up my spit tea.
Bennet taps a finger on the handle of his cup. “And when did Jackie first start showing symptoms?”
Mimi’s head kicks to one side, considering him. “Also five years ago. Why?”
I stare at Bennet. “Do you think there’s a connection?”
Bennet’s tone is careful. “Perhaps. If she’s a healer.”
“But Jackie doesn’t have magic.” Mimi’s eyes are wide. “She’s always been so upset about it, being the only one in the family with no abilities.”
Bennet watches us both, steady and unflinching. “She might be using it without realizing it, for people other than Mimi as well.”
“That’s not possible.” But even as the words fall out, pieces click in my mind. “Kevin.”
Mimi’s hand shoots out, covering mine, picking up my train of thought. “He hasn’t been sick at all in years.”
“His baseball injuries always heal quick too, but he’s so young.” I gasp. “She knew. About me and you.” I look at Bennet. “She said we are connected, yesterday, is that how she knew?”
Bennet rubs his chin. “It’s likely. She can sense injuries in people. Even subconsciously, she may have recognized the curse. In Aetheria, healers are rare. They need magical replenishment frequently, even if they aren’t actively healing, and time to recover after using their magic. She needs to be trained to pull the power from external sources, to take from the land, from other living things, and not from herself.” His gaze drifts around the room, settling on the cold metal, the artificial light. “Here, it’s different. You have no pieces of the earth inside.”
The walls close in around me, tighter and tighter. “Jackie doesn’t even hurt bugs. She scoops them up and puts them outside, even when they’re in her bed. She’d never take from anyone else to heal herself.”
Mimi’s voice is thick. “If that’s true, how do we fix it?”
“She needs nature,” Bennet says simply. “Living things. Plants. Trees. The earth itself. Healing is based in water magic because all life is centered on water. She needs something todraw from that won’t hurt her. It is easy once you know what to do, like with the shields over our minds.”
“We don’t have plants,” Mimi says. “Because we have kids. And lives. And can barely keep up as it is.”
