Lux

"How are you doing?"

Kitty's shadow drifted over Lux while she was sunning on the deck at the Willoughby's. Toes, painted neon pink, wiggled nervously in front of her face, and she contemplated reaching out to smash the little piggies with her fist. Violent reactions were not common to her, but she didn't feel the smallest ounce of guilt at the thought of Kitty howling in pain.

"How could you not tell me?"

Kitty plopped her pool bag down and spread out her beach towel before answering. She stretched out beside Lux, drawing attention to the emeralds shining on her bracelet. They seemed brighter, more intense than before she knew the truth, and she wondered if that was a trick of her mind or a result of the magic funneling through them.

Kitty picked at her fingernails. "I couldn't tell you. My family doesn't even know."

"Wait, how is that possible?"

"My great, great something grandmother was second in command in the First Circle, and she followed Emma's example and bound her the magic of her daughters. She hid the family grimoire and left instructions for the binding of future daughters. As luck would have it, I'm the first daughter born in several generations.."

Everything about this new world was confusing. She stared across the pond as she contemplated the explanation. A sudden thought struck her, and she turned to Kitty, asking, "So, is your father a sorcerer?"

"It doesn't work like that. Not in a witch family. Magic is passed only through the girls. If a son is born, they inherit nothing. Phoebe sought me out right before I turned seventeen. She said she'd been waiting to guide me into my powers because she knew there was no one else. She told me about you, and it totally made sense. I mean, we've always joked about you being a witch, but I would've never guessed I had such power."

"Memaw said your power is tied to the earth," Lux gestured towards the emeralds, remembering the sense of calm that had spread over her when she'd dug her hands into the soil. Could she also be an earth witch?

Kitty beamed. "It is. Which is crazy, right? Because I've always appreciated nature from afar, but I find it easiest to cast spells when I'm outside, my feet planted in soil."

"Show me."

"Here?" Kitty scanned the area. "I guess I can do something that's common to all Trueborns. A little telekinesis."

The blonde reached for a leaf twirling on the surface of the pond. The gems on her bracelet glowed, the shine burning Lux's retinas if she looked at them too long. The damp frond shuddered before lifting slowly into the air and moving toward the girls sitting on the dock. Kitty beamed as she made it dance and twirl before it settled into her outstretched palm.

"That was amazing," Lux whispered, touching the leaf, hoping to find something special about it, something to give logic to what she'd just witnessed. But the waxy service and the tiny veins revealed no secrets. "And I can do this too?"

"Yes. With a little training, you'll be able to call forth any object with just a thought. Oh Lux, you don't even know how amazing this world is. It's like I've needed glasses my entire life, and I finally got them." She cupped her cheeks and shook her head. "I'm not making any sense."

"You are," Lux replied, sitting up and placing her arms on her knees. "I just wish someone had been honest with me. My mother made me feel like what I did was wrong, and the entire time, she knew exactly what I was experiencing. She experienced it."

"I wanted to tell you so many times. I begged Phoebe, but she refused. And to add insult to injury, she made me make a Vow."

"A vow?" Lux asked, hating the seed of jealousy that was growing inside of her. Kitty held all of this knowledge that Lux now thirsted for, and her Memaw was the teacher.

"It's a spell-bound promise. I physically couldn't tell you about it."

The jealousy faded, and forgiveness set in. Being angry at Kitty was an easy out in this situation because she couldn't cut her mother and grandmother from her life. But she didn't want to lose her friend either.

"Does Travis know?"

"Girl, no. Your memaw is a sharp cookie. She made me promise to not tell anyone unless she approved it. Can you imagine how pissed he would be?"

They giggled together, the sound high and girlish and carefree. A breeze blew across the water, carrying the heady scent of magnolias and muscadines. Inhaling deeply, they leaned in to share a hug filled with forgiveness and promises.

"No more secrets?"

Kitty flinched and squeezed her tight. "No more."

"Good. Let's go. I didn't even want to lay out today, but I didn't know where else to go. No one wanted to give up their shift at work, and Mama and Memaw look at me like I've grown another head. In a world full of weirdness, I've apparently stumped them."

They packed away their towels and trudged across the field, waving at Mrs. Willoughby while she weeded her garden. Lux had walked from her house to the pond, so she stood on the pegs of Kitty's bike while they peddled down the street, her dark hair streaming behind her and tangling in the whipping wind. Lux's white house came into view but Kitty didn't slow.

"Where are we going?"

"Let's go out to Moss Creek."

The sun vanished behind a cloud, and Lux felt chilled all over. The ache in chest, constant since her birthday, pulsed powerfully, making her feel nauseated. "Don't you think it'll still be cordoned off?"

"Travis's oldest brother, the one on the police force, said they'd gotten everything they could and opened it back to the public a few days ago. I want to take our witchy senses over there and see what we can find."

They stopped at Kitty's house to trade the bike for the car. The ride out to the Moss Creek nature center took them past Amulets, and the sensation of evil remained as strong as ever. She said nothing, wondering why she was the only one that felt it.

After parking, they hurried into the nature center's single building. It housed a small gift shop filled with cards and knick knacks that represented the native flora and fauna found in the wildlife reserve. Normally, the girls would linger in the air-conditioned building admiring the newest trinkets and chatting with Ms. Beauchamp who'd been running the shop since their parents were children. But today, they were in a hurry to get out on the trails and start snooping.

"Well, hello girls. I've usually seen the two of you before now," Ms. Beauchamp said, lowering her reading glass to the bridge of her nose to peer at the young women. Sweetwater had few amusements to offer, which meant the nature center enjoyed a steady business from the locals. Lux and Kitty had held season passes for as long as they could remember. "Though I can't say I'm surprised, what with the terrible tragedy that happened and all."

Kitty practically trembled as she replied, "It really is. Corinne was in our year, you know. Is it safe to be out here?"

"Well, you have to be out before sundown, but..." Ms. Beauchamp patted at imaginary stray hairs before leaning across the counter, "I heard the murder didn't even happen here. This was just the dumping site."

Lux and Kitty shared a look before scooting closer to the woman. "Have you been out there?"

"My bones are too old to walk those trails safely, but my nephew was the one who found her. We'd had some complaints about the smell out there, so he went out there to see what was going on. Thought it was an animal, but there she was. Just bloated and smelling. Cut to bits. He's still waking up with nightmares."

Lux grimaced and held her stomach, the vision she had when Kitty had told her the news returned in full force, but she didn't banish it. Instead, she absorbed the details, finally understanding the marks carved in the girl's skin, and that knowledge left her cold. Giving Ms. Beauchamp an apologetic smile, she tugged Kitty out the door.
"Lux! She was giving us all the details."

"She wasn't giving you anything but gossip, and we can find that out anywhere. I just remembered something important. You said someone had carved Corinne up with symbols, and I saw them in a vision the day you told me about her."

Her friend folded her arms, but there was no skepticism in her expression. "Go on."

"Well, you said it was related to cult business, but what if it's related to witchcraft? I saw books in Amulets that had some similar symbols in them. I mean, I only looked for a minute, but it could be."

"That wouldn't be Trueborn magic though so I don't know what it is. We'd have to ask Phoebe."

They walked deeper into the woods. Ms. Beauchamp hadn't told them which part of the nature center Corinne had been discovered, but Lux felt as though someone had switched on a GPS system in her mind. Kitty followed obediently, and Lux wondered if she felt it too. The trail twisted, and the incline increased. Only the most serious hikers took this trail, and neither girl wore the appropriate shoes. By the time they reached the top of the hill, they were panting, sweat rolling down their cheeks and dripping from their chins.

"Damn girl," Kitty huffed, "I am out of shape."

"You should've thought about that before we hiked into the middle of nowhere, with a killer on the loose, and no one to hear us scream."

"Why you gotta put it like that?"

"Honesty is the best policy."

"Yeah, you can be honest when we're back in the car. Right now I need disillusionment."

"You're just going to have to work with what you're being offered," Lux joked, pressing on her side to ease the stitch that had developed while surveying the area. "She said they found the body off trail."

They looked at the heavy summer foliage. Yesterday's rain had been heavy enough that the ground sucked at their feet, and the heavy litter carpeting the floor was dark and limp and possibly hiding all sorts of creatures.. Lux was just thankful they cleared away the kudzu. Nothing was worth going through kudzu.

"I can do this," Kitty mumbled as they pushed through the bushes, following the internal radar that was still going strong. "I'm an earth witch, right?"

"Yep, big bad earth witch. You're in your element right now."

"Yep," she replied, but that didn't stop her from reaching for Lux's hand, which she gladly accepted.

The girls walked in silence for the next few minutes. The air was balmy but pleasant beneath the shade of the canopy. Sunlight dappled the ground and plants, reaching through the cracks above them, and rainbows glistened off water droplets, reminding Lux of the endless hours she used to spend imagining this place was full of fairies and magic. Glancing over to where her hand clasped her friends, she couldn't stop the smile that formed on her lips. The fairies could be real; magic had turned out to be, right?

"There," Kitty hissed, coming to a sudden stop and pointing to where the ground sloped and then dropped off.

Making their way slowly and at a slant so as not to go sliding down the hill, they peered over the edge to discover it was only a small drop into a deep ditch. The ground was angry and broken where someone had dug a shallow grave, clearly not caring to hide Corinne's body completely. Fresh footprints circled the grave and disappeared into the woods.

Lux looked at Kitty. Pursing her lips, she asked, "Didn't you say the police finished with this place days ago?"

"I mean, that's what Travis said."

"So, should anyone else be out here poking around? Those footprints look new."

Kitty shrugged and pushed her hair from her face, her blue eyes heavy with concern and fear. "This is public property."

"True, hey, look at this." Lux reached for something shining in the underbrush, recognition tearing through her as her fingers brushed against the smooth, warm surface.

"Lux!" Kitty screamed, causing her to lose her balance and tumbled face first into the muddy tomb.

She scrambled to right herself, spitting out the gritty dirt and wiping at a stinging spot on her forehead. Fingers digging into the hillside, she pulled herself back up only to see Kitty scrambling away from a familiar figure. Both bore signs of a struggle, but Kitty looked the worse for wear, her right coverup strap torn so it hung down and displayed the pink of her bikini top.

"And just what the hell are you doing here?"

"I could ask you two the same question."

A new voice joined the conversation. "I could ask all three of you that question."