Expensive - Amy Bellows Page 0,48
Medical Options to Prenatal Spells: Do You Need Magic, or Can a Doctor Help You?” on the cover. Another is entitled “How to Decide If Sacrificing a Personal Attribute or Body Part Is the Right Choice for You.”
The idea of sacrificing a body part for an abortion makes my stomach churn.
Howard slips in the door, closing it gently. He gives me a kind smile. “Welcome to my offices.”
I set the bag of money on top of the pamphlets and unzip it so he can see the contents inside.
He sits across from me. “Very good. Thank you. As you can imagine, not many of my clients can pay spell-casting fees, so I must collect them when I can. I hope you understand.”
“I’m not sure I do understand. Why don’t you just find a doctor who can help them under the table?”
Howard leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Many of my clients have discovered they were pregnant through a test done by a doctor, so their pregnancies are already legally documented. If those pregnancies were to simply end without any explanation, they would be investigated and prosecuted. This isn’t the kind of place you come if you have choices, Andrew. I understand that my work is unsavory. My clients pay a steep personal price for what they should be able to get from a doctor. It isn’t fair to them. But for most of the omegas I work with, I’m their last chance—their only hope.”
So this is why he decided to help me. Because he’s used to situations where people are down on their luck and backed into a corner. I’m just one of many omegas out there who have no control over my own body. Over my own life.
“Did you find anyone to help me?” I ask.
He nods and pulls out two business cards, setting them side by side next to the bag of money. Each of the cards only lists a name: Kim Denning and Sarah Denning.
“Are they sisters?”
“Mates. But they don’t live together anymore.”
That’s strange. I thought it was physically painful for mates to live apart.
“Which one would you recommend?”
Howard tucks the business cards into his suit coat.
“I don’t recommend either of them. Kim is pure evil and will likely take advantage of you while she ‘helps’ you. And Sarah… well, she’s very difficult to meet with. But they are the only two warlocks who I believe have the skill to remove a bond ache successfully.”
“How do I get a meeting with Sarah? Is she booked out or something?” I ask.
“No, it isn’t like that. She doesn’t have a schedule or anything. But visiting her is dangerous. She’s always in the same place, but she doesn’t always exist. It’s a side effect of the magic she’s used. She simply disappears much of the time, and if she disappears while a client is in her house, they disappear with her, and they don’t always come back.”
I guess that answers the question of why Kim and Sarah don’t live together anymore.
“Is there anything we can do to decrease my chance of disappearing?” I ask.
He pauses. “Yes. A binding spell. But it will cost you—”
“I can get you more cash if you give me a few days.”
“I’m not talking about money. When you purchase a spell, you don’t just pay the warlock, Andrew. You have to pay Magic. She requires a personal sacrifice that’s equal to what you’re asking for from Her. If you want to be bound to this plane for a few hours, I’d say that a beloved personal possession may do the trick. Something you’ve had since childhood or means a great deal to you. Or you could sacrifice your hair if you don’t have anything like that. Just understand that it won’t ever grow back if you give it to Magic.”
“My… my hair?”
He nods. “Or a few teeth.”
My stomach churns again. “No… I…”
Frankie. My heart aches at the idea of losing him. It’s hard for me to relax unless he’s in my arms.
But Timber bought me that stuffed ice dragon. Maybe I can learn to relax with that instead.
“I have something. Not with me, though. I’d have to go back home to get it.”
“That won’t be necessary. As long as the object belongs to you, all you need is a physical representation of the item. You could do a quick drawing of it, and that would be adequate. Magic is accustomed to claiming things that aren’t in the direct vicinity of a spell.”
I guess I shouldn’t