Too many scenarios that end with him being taken away from Cass and Desi permanently.
When JJ comes home, he and Cass are going to need to have a long conversation about this—about their relationship, their family, their future. About why it bothered Cass that JJ left and how they can start to move forward from that.
Hopefully, they can still fix things.
Cass’s ringtone nearly makes him jump a foot in the air. Relief crashes through him as he fumbles out his phone, sees JJ’s name on the caller ID, and swipes into the call. “You okay, JJ?”
Silence is the only thing that greets him. He frowns down at the screen, making sure the call didn’t disconnect, before trying again. “Hello? JJ?”
More silence. Muffled noises in the background, too far away for Cass to distinguish. Uneasily, he ends the call, presses the redial button, and waits.
And waits.
And waits.
And—
“The person you are trying to reach is not available. Please?—”
Swearing, Cass disconnects the line, his mind racing.
JJ would never ignore a call from Cass. Couple that with the fact that JJ and Roma are currently headed towards a tactically disadvantaged location to meet with a hunter who has every reason to betray them and very little motivation not to?—
Yep. Cass is going to Lakeside. Even if he’s overreacting, it’s better than not reacting at all. He shoves his phone back into his pocket, snaps his fingers to open a rift?—
Nothing happens.
Scowling, he takes a deep breath, resets his stance, and tries to clear his mind. Ez always emphasizes how heightened emotions can affect spellcasting, and considering his current anxiety, he isn’t surprised that basic magic is eluding him. He closes his eyes, flicks his wrist precisely?—
And is greeted by a whole lot of nothing. Bewildered, Cass snaps his fingers a few more times, frowning down at his hands.
That doesn’t make sense. He’s been doing this spell for centuries with very few issues, and even if he’s worried and distracted right now, he’s opened rifts under much worse circumstances. As far as he knows, there’s nothing else that could interfere with a rift spell, except?—
Except an anti-rifting zone.
A prickle of unease runs down Cass’s spine. Why would there be an anti-rifting zone here? Is a summoner wreaking havoc nearby? Is theSanctumwreaking havoc nearby? Is that why Bryant chose today to sneak out, because the other hunters are busy? Or?—
All at once, Cass’s blood runs cold.
Could you rift me to you?
Was the Sanctum keeping tabs onRoma?Were they able to pinpoint Cass’s location through her? Or?—
Or was she never on their side in the first place?
He can figure that out later. Right now, he needs to get out of here and get to JJ.
And he barely has enough time to turn towards the front door before he feels the telltale buzz of an alarm spell at the base of his neck.
The one that means Ez’s defensive spells around his house were just breached.
39
Sparring is different from fighting.
In sparring, learning is more important than winning. Learning how to throw a punch, learning how to take a punch. Learning how to watch an opponent’s centerline to predict their next moves, learning how to take the skills from drills and apply them to a real-life scenario. Sparring matches can last up to a few minutes, depending on the competitors’ goals, and most of all, they can befun.
JJ always had fun sparring with his friends.
