I take a breath, struggling not to let my voice shake. “Second, do you think you can bring me a copy of the coven’s oath and all the paperwork I signed when I was inducted?”
Her brow furrows.
“Natalie, let’s go!” Fiona snaps.
“I will,” Natalie says to me. She backs away slowly, like some magnetic force is holding her to me.
And then I’m alone in the bowels of C.S.A.M.M., the quiet settling in, a chill running through me. The walls seem to inch closer, constricting my chest until it’s hard to breathe.
I set my jaw, refusing to panic. Time to rehearse a really fucking good argument to present at my trial. Because between Natalie, Hazel, Ethel, my family, my degree, and my whole future… I’ve got way too much to lose if this all goes wrong.
From the Journal of Hazel Okada
Another crisis, another day as the powerless sidekick while Katie faces a magical catastrophe. There was a time when being Katie’s best friend meant I knew everything about her, but now there’s this whole other side of her life that unleashes fresh hell every time I visit.
Her family chat blew up, her parents and sisters all asking whether she’d arrived yet. I pretended to be her, though the lie made me sick. Just a quick message saying everything was great and she was spending the day with me. No need for them to know that couldn’t be further from the truth.
Shortly after that, Natalie called. At first, seeing her picture pop up on Katie’s phone and hearing her voice gave me a small glimpse of what Katie must feel whenever she calls—like my heart jumped up my throat and into another solar system. Finally, some news.
But my heart sank right back down when she updated me. Prison. A trial tomorrow. Meanwhile, I’m here with my laptop and algorithms, trying to use logic to fight against something that defies every rational explanation.
I told Natalie about my chimera map that’ll help build a case for Katie. Her response? “Hm, it’s worth a try.” Translation: cute that the normal human thinks she can help. But what else can I do? I can’t sense magic like Katie or control it like Natalie, and I can’t convince a jury of witches to see reason. Coding is my weapon, and maybe an outside perspective is what they need to solve this problem.
Ethel’s curled up next to my laptop, purring away like nothing’s wrong. Must be nice being a cat. Though sometimes, I swear she knows more than she lets on.
“Unusual Animal Tracks Found Near Cultus Lake”
“Exclusive: Photos of Winged Creature Captured at YVR”
“Video: Gazelle Seen at Crescent Beach”
Nearly midnight. Eyes burning from staring at headlines. Mere hours before Katie’s trial. Even if I stay up all night working on this, I’ll be sending Natalie an incomplete app with incomplete data, and I’ll risk looking like an idiot with a half-baked plan.
But my other option is to not try at all. To give up.
What would Katie do?
PROJECT STATUS
Create interactive web map – DONE
Log all strange animal sightings and paranormal incidents since Feb – IN PROGRESS
Pattern analysis algorithms
Chapter 4
