He chuckled and jerked his head at the nearest burning house. “We need to shift positions. You’re with me.”

Despite having his weapon ready, he walked with a casual gait to a fence between the burning houses. They crouched and checked their sight lines.

“This looks like a bomb, like the ones downtown,” she said.

He glanced at her sideways. “Is that what InterSec thinks?”

She focused on a house across the street where someone watched the fire from an upper floor. “CNN, actually. They noticed the flames.”

“Well, that works in their favor,” he said.

“Whose favor?”

“Whoever intended to blow the house. You know who lived there, don’t you?” Sinclair asked.

She nodded. “That’s why I came down. Foyle wants me to go in and check for spell bombs.”

Sinclair peered over the hood of the car. “And you’ll find one.”

She gave him a sharp look. “How the hell do you know that?”

Sinclair ignored her, still scanning the area. “Foyle already had a spell senser come in. He made up an excuse to keep everyone away from the back of the buildings. I was in the tech bus. I guess they didn’t know one of the video feeds was already set up. An Inverni fairy went in. I went outside and stood close enough to the house when he came out. He hid his face, but I’ve seen the shape before at the Vault. Alfie, I think is his name. Nasty personality.”

Laura kept her eyes on the fire and not Sinclair. Alfrey, not Alfie, she thought. As far as she knew, InterSec and Foyle were the only people who knew about the Inverni. No one else knew he had been identified. She decided to keep it that way, and stayed silent about “Alfie’s” real name.

“I’m willing to bet if there’s a bomb in there, Alfie planted it. If they want you to go in there, someone wants you dead… Officer Crawford,” he said.

She smiled grimly. “Guess who’s my backup going in… Jono?”

He met Laura’s eyes with a flat stare. “I don’t think I want to work with you anymore.”

She shrugged. “And this is just the day job. Wait until we throw you some freelance work.”

He shifted on his haunches. “Looks like they’ve knocked the fire back.”

She shielded her eyes against the sun. The two side houses were no longer burning. Gray smoke billowed from the middle one, but no flames were visible. Without another word, Laura ran across the backyard to the burning house. The smoke lightened, steam mixing in with it as the fire trucks continued to shower water. Faint wisps of smoke came out the back windows. She dodged inside a door that led to a kitchen, out of sight from the rest of the SWAT-TEAM members and other police. Sinclair took up position at the entrance.

“I’m on the first floor. All clear,” she radioed for everyone to hear.

There’s an essence anomaly up ahead. It’s our trap, she sent to Sinclair.

“Check. Following into position,” Sinclair radioed. He joined her in the kitchen and signaled Laura to cut her radio. “What’s the plan?”

“It’s probably set to explode when it feels a body signature near it. I’m going to set a spell that should trigger the trap. I’ll put a delay on it. Then you’re going to save me from a medical emergency. Are you good with that?”

He nodded. “Where do you want me?”

“Right here. Don’t move. The timing’s going to be important,” she said.

“Got it,” he said.

She clicked her headset on. “Come again, Sinclair. I lost you.”

He turned on his headset. “Sinclair, here. I think there’s some interference. Reading you now.”

She moved deeper into the house. “I’m in a hall. I see a staircase. Still clear.”

The trap is in the middle of the staircase. It definitely has an essence trigger. When my field touches it, it’s going to go off, she sent.

“Coming in behind you,” Sinclair said.

“Negative. Hold position until I clear the stairs,” she radioed back.

Laura turned off her headset again. She cupped her hands and drew on her own body essence. Faint amber light welled up from her skin. It coalesced into a bright ball of orange light that hovered in the air. She tethered it to the essence of one hand and used the other hand to inscribe Celtic runes in the air. They glowed white as they danced around the amber ball and melted into it.

I’ll be right back, she sent to Sinclair.

She moved down the short hallway into more smoke and heat. At the staircase, she released the tether on the spell. The ball of light hung suspended at the bottom of the staircase. As she backed away, the activation delay initiated.

Dropping her body shield, she took a tentative breath. Acrid air burned the back of her throat. She said a short prayer, surprising herself. She still believed in honoring the Moon and the Lady, but had lapsed from real prayer long ago. She inhaled deeply and doubled over coughing. Tears sprang into her eyes, and her nose ran freely. She slapped on her headset and coughed loudly over the link. “Crawford 88. Repeat, 88.” She didn’t have to pretend that speaking was difficult as she transmitted the distress code.

“Crawford? Where are you?” Sinclair radioed.

She staggered to the kitchen. Sinclair stood silhouetted against the bright light of the open back door. She paused, as a memory bubbled up. A figure in SWAT-team gear surrounded by swirling smoke at the doorway in the warehouse. She tried to focus on his body, resolve the silhouette into someone she knew. The shadowed figure in her mind raised his gun, and the memory faded.

Sinclair rushed through the thinner smoke of the kitchen. She let him drape her arm around his shoulder. The air trembled and shuddered as Laura’s spell released up the hall, a short burst of her body essence expanding in a sphere. It touched the spell trap, and white light flashed as Sinclair yelled for a medic. He half carried, half supported Laura through the door as the staircase exploded. The force of the blast lifted them into the air, and they sprawled into the yard with debris raining down on them.

Laura landed roughly on her side, but her body shield absorbed the impact. She curled to her knees as coughing wracked her body again. The one inhalation had been enough for appearance sake. Oily soot smeared across her upper lip as she wiped at her running nose. Sinclair lay facedown about ten feet away.

You okay, Jono? she sent.

He stirred as her words touched his mind, raising himself to his knees. They faced each other in the same position, their faces covered with soot and scratches.

Okay, he sent back.

Emergency personnel rushed into the yard. Someone slapped an oxygen mask over Laura’s face. Two EMTs lifted her, one on either side, and carried her to the front of the house. In seconds, she was in an emergency van.

Foyle appeared. “Are you okay, Crawford?”

She nodded, letting the mask speak for itself. She watched Sinclair being led to another van behind Foyle. She pulled the mask down. “Too much smoke. I burned out my sensing ability.”

“Why the hell didn’t you use your mask?” Foyle said.

He confused her again. His concern was genuine. “I thought my body shield was good enough. I’m sorry.”

“Can you go back in?” Foyle asked.

She made a show of taking another hit of oxygen. “I’m sorry. You’ll have to get someone else.”

Over Foyle’s shoulder, Sinclair caught her eye. He nodded, impressed. Foyle was buying it. He believed she was overcome with smoke inhalation. She allowed herself a small inward smile. If there was one thing she was good at, it was appearances.