“Terrible,” Minias said, and I moved back when he picked up my chalkboard and set it on the counter. “Your names backward will be the first one Al tries, and if he figures it out, he can do untold mischief under your name. And nix on the birthdates, hobbies, favorite ice cream, movie stars, or old boyfriends. No numbers or weird characters that can’t be pronounced. Stay away from the backward theme. It’s too easy to run through the dictionary and find you.”

“That would take forever,” I scoffed, then blanched when Minias set his red eyes on me.

“Forever is just about what we have.”

I felt something shift, and I watched him, ready to move if he did. But he turned away, glancing at my kitchen clock above the sink.

“You need to leave,” I said, hearing my voice shake, and Jenks’s wings clattered as he took flight to hover between us.

“Mmmm.” Minias inclined his head. “I agree. We’re done now, but with this mark between us to settle up, I will be talking to you. It’s my God-given right to try to pay it off.” Touching the side of his hat, he vanished in a cascading sheet of ever-after.

I tightened my grip on my line as I felt him use it to cross into the ever-after. Numb, I stared at where he had been. What in hell have I just done?

Immediately Ceri broke her circle, almost knocking me over as she gave me a hug to be sure I was still alive. “Rachel.”

Crap. What have I done?

“Rachel!”

Ceri was shaking me, and I blearily looked at her. Seeing my awareness return, she sighed in relief, and her hands fell from my shoulders. “Rachel,” she said again, softer. “I don’t think you should do demon magic anymore.”

Jenks lit on her shoulder where he could see me; he was scared. “You think?” I said bitterly, wiping a hand under my eye. It came away wet, but I wasn’t crying. Not really.

“Actually…” Ceri dropped her head, clearly worried. “I don’t think you should do any ley line magic either.”

Sliding down from the counter, I looked past Ceri to the dark garden lit with the occasional flicker of pixy dust. My dad hadn’t wanted me to have anything to do with ley line magic. Maybe…maybe I should have a talk with Trent as to why.

THIRTEEN

“Rachel, hand me the hammer, will you?” Ivy said, her voice raised so she could be heard over the pixies yammering in the corner loud enough to make my eyeballs ache. “I’ve got another popped nail,” she added as I puffed to blow a curl that had escaped my ponytail out of my eyes.