A Hidden Witch - By Debora Geary Page 0,65

call to the elements, and Lizzie’s eyes went big as the power pulled by twelve witches surged around the circle.

Elorie watched Kevin, cheering him on silently. They’d all been surprised and pleased when he had tested as the obvious choice to partner Mike—normally channelers only worked well with one or two spellcasters—but he was young to channel a full circle. Far more experienced witches had panicked when it was time to link into the circle’s massive energy.

He’s okay, Lauren sent. He’s nervous, but he’s handling it.

It was nice to have a monitor who worried about the trainers in the outer circle, too. Uncle Marcus was a skilled monitor, but he never spared a thought for trainer nerves.

Mike laid a hand gently on Kevin’s shoulder. It was time.

Kevin closed his eyes and slowly reached his arms out. Wind and misty light whipped around his body as he called the elemental powers in to the circle’s center. Elorie gasped as his feet rose slightly off the ground.

He’s doing beautifully. Marcus connected in with quite the thunderbolt—he’s not used to having Aervyn in his trio.

Kevin reached his arms to the sky, and moments later, so did Mike. Hand off. Now the power was in Mike’s hands, and he could go to work moving the algae further out. Finicky but straightforward work for an experienced spellcaster.

Elorie waited with quiet patience. She was so very proud of her two witchlings.

They’re very well trained, Lauren sent. Lizzie held steady, and Kevin handled the channeling absolutely beautifully. Mike’s almost done, I think.

Done? Surely not. The last circle they’d done to move the algae had taken almost an hour.

Moments later, Mike dropped his arms, and the shimmering energy hanging over the circle dimmed and disappeared. He lifted Kevin to the sky and spun him around. “That was some superb channeling, my young friend. I’ll work with you again—any day, any time.”

Then he looked toward Marcus with a half grin. “Were you trying to blow us all up there?”

Marcus flushed. “My sincere apologies. I asked Aervyn to push me more power, and I couldn’t fully control the surge.”

Aervyn looked dismayed. “Did I do too much? I’m really sorry. Lauren says I have to be carefuller about that.”

Marcus rubbed his head. “You did exactly right, my boy. You should always do exactly what your trio point asks, and you did. It was my fault for not remembering how much power you have.”

“It was all to the good,” Mike said. “Kevin handled it cleanly, and thanks to Aervyn and Miss Lizzie over there, we finished the spell in record time.”

The circle broke formation as everyone moved to hug the various witchlings.

Lizzie beamed as Elorie walked over. “Did I do good?”

Moira leaned down and kissed her head. “Child, I haven’t had that much energy in my trio in a very long time. It was a beautiful thing.”

Lizzie grinned and wandered off in the direction of her parents. Moira reached out for Elorie’s hand. “I think she should take point in the trio this evening. She’s well used to working with our Sean, and I’ll be right at her shoulder, should she need me.”

Gran was passing the baton. Elorie’s heart ached at the thought. Then she realized Gran’s face shone with something akin to joy. “I’ve waited all this time, darling girl. And now there’s a child of my heart, young and strong, ready to stand in my place.”

Elorie hugged her tightly. She wasn’t sure she could accept the change with nearly so much grace, but she would try. For Gran’s sake, she would try.

~ ~ ~

Lauren snuck into her room at the inn and quietly closed the door. The place was overrun by witches and their families, and privacy was at a serious premium.

She grabbed her laptop and debated one last time. It wasn’t that long ago that she’d been a new witch, fighting to accept the change and responsibility that came along with her power. Smoothing out a bump in Elorie’s road wasn’t necessarily the best way to help her.

Then again, it wasn’t always necessary to leave obstacles in place when they could be easily fixed. At least she hoped it would be easy. Only one way to find out. She pinged Jamie on instant messaging.

Jamie: You called?

Lauren: Hey, you got a minute?

Jamie: I do. Shay and Mia took Nat shopping for gooey baby things, so as long as you don’t need me to shop, I’m your guy.

Lauren: Ha. You’ve bought more cute baby things than Nat has.

Jamie: I buy necessary