“What do you mean?”
“My magic is no longer acting like everyone else’s. I can affect the real world without clocking in.”
“What?” He went stone-faced, his usual pallor became ghostly.
“When Wayne and I were at the police station, for the wish. Outside of time. . . I broke something in the real world. I don’t even know how, but I did. Then, when I tried to implement my code, the USB exploded in my hands. It seems erratic and inconsistent, usually breaking things, but not always.” Jo left out Charlie. He had his secrets, and Jo would keep hers—for now. Besides, if she needed to lean on Charlie again, Jo didn’t want Snow getting in the way.
“Wayne knows?”
The sudden question caught Jo a bit off-guard—given that she would’ve thought the USB to be the most pressing matter—but still she nodded. “I don’t think he’ll say anything to anyone else. . .” Jo omitted the fact thatshewas the one to have said something to someone else.
Snow thought it over a moment, and though there was noticeable conflict in his expression, he seemed to come to the same conclusion. “We must be even more careful now. I have been the one carrying your magic all this time, wielding it to destroy the worlds of wishers so that I may rebuild them. I fear our proximity to one another may be drawing it out.”
“But couldn’t we use this to our advantage?” Jo finally asked. “If I can destroy things, I could bring an end to the Society, and set us free.”
“If you destroy the Society and revert the world, Pan will also be set free, which is something we’re not prepared to deal with yet. But we’ll find a solution this time. I promise you that.” With a much less sad smile now, Snow leaned in and placed a kiss on her forehead. When he spoke, she could feel his lips moving against her skin. “And until then, to the best of my ability, I will make sure your magic hurts neither you nor anyone else. As much as I detest restraining you in any way. . . I will do what I can.”
“Restraining me?”
“We’re . . . natural counterbalances, I guess you could say.” Heavy as the words were, his voice was soft, almost reverent. “Once upon a time, at least. Destruction and Creation.”
“Creation,” she repeated. Something about the name echoed deep within her. It was as if she saw him for the first time. The sound of his name—his true name—on her lips brought a smile to Snow’s. “So does that mean you. . . cancel me out?”
Snow frowned, not quite following. “I suppose?”
“So if you needed to, you could keep my magic from going haywire?”
Snow’s eyes widened just a hair, as if finally making the connection. “I can. . . temper your magic, yes.”
“Temper how?”
“Once more, proximity.” His gaze flickered about her face before finally capturing hers. “My magic is the opposite of yours; we’re two frequencies that both cancel each other out and stay in harmony. It’s how I am able to control the magic you gifted me at all, even marginally. Your magic seeks out mine, as mine does yours, to be balanced.”
“So then you can make these odd happenings stop?”
“If I could, I already would’ve.” Snow sighed. “We can’t risk things further.” The word “things” suddenly seemed to take on a lot of meaning—Jo’s magic, the Society itself, Pan’s impatience. “For now, sit back on the wish.”
It wasn’t as if she hadn’t already been doing so. The thought of staying away from working on the wish brought her back to the idea of destroying the Society, an idea she wanted to explore further. “Snow—”
“We really should return,” he said apologetically. But quickly added. “I promise, we will speak more on this.”
His promise would have to be enough, as much as she wanted to object.
“Thank you for telling me,” Jo whispered.
“If I’m honest, I should’ve told you from the beginning.”
One statement, and she had never felt more drawn to the man.
Chapter 20
Off the Wish
Snow and Jo stepped through the door and into the dim lighting of the unoccupied briefing room. Slowly, the mysterious light source in the ceiling came to life, emitting a soft glow just for the two of them.
“Do you control that?” Jo couldn’t help but ask.
“Not quite. . .”
