“It’s not a curse. It’s a misaligned spell. I’m going to try to burn it out,” Pierce said.

I jerked again as a stronger pulse of line energy lighted through me. Almost, I got a second breath, but it wasn’t enough, and my heart pounded, starved for air. I wasn’t going to make it. Trent had won. Son of a bitch.

“She’s turning blue,” Nick said, whispering. “Do something.”

“Rachel!” Jenks shouted. “You stupid witch! What have you done!”

Pierce was shaking. “My God, how much line can you hold, mistress witch?”

“She can spindle it,” Ivy said. “Give her everything you can handle, and then some.”

It was as if light sparked through me. Pierce dove through my soul, reaching for a line through me and pulling it into himself. Gasping, my back arched and my eyes opened wide.

“You’re killing her!” Jenks shouted, and I fell back into Pierce.

My arms moved, and my lungs expanded. Gulping the air so hard it hurt, I coughed.

“Catch them!” Jenks exclaimed, and my eyes flashed open as Ivy darted forward to catch Pierce and hold us both upright. His arms were still wrapped around me, and his head was beside mine. He was panting, lips parted and brow furrowed in pain. His breath came fast, and I could feel it on me, coming and going.

“I swan,” he breathed. “You can hold a considerable amount of line, Rachel.”

I shifted, and his eyes opened, finding mine. Something pinged through me again, painful in its exquisiteness. I recognized it, even as I tried to deny its existence. And I smiled, weak as a kitten as I rested in his arms. “Hi,” I whispered so I wouldn’t start coughing, concentrating on small, even breaths.

“Hi back at you,” he said, the modern phrase sounding funny with his accent, and then Jenks was there, spilling a green dust and looking panicked.

“Rache, are you okay?” the pixy demanded. “Was it a curse? Trent tried to kill you?”

“Looks like it,” I said, vowing to jam a curry brush down his throat the next time I saw him.

Jenks started swearing in one-word syllables. My thankful gaze went to Pierce. Damn, the man could hold a lot of energy. Maybe as much as me with a little stretching. And he was holding me. On my bed.

My expression became empty. I didn’t have time for this, and it hurt too much when it was over. “Phone,” I rasped, trying to untangle myself. The bed shifted as Ivy got off it, and the cooler air hit me when Pierce let go and moved to stand awkwardly beside me. “Where’s my phone?” I asked, then remembered it was in San Francisco.

Nick’s eyes were wide, and Jenks was spilling a red dust, but Ivy seemed to be thinking the same thing I was, and she handed me her cell. “Use mine.”