Free Defensive Magic: A Paranormal Urban Fantasy Tale (Lost Library Book 3) by Kate Baray Page A

blow myself up?”
    He laughed. “What exactly would I be doing?”
    “I’m not sure yet. I’m trying to figure out some offensive spell casting options. I guess brainstorming might be a good start?” She slumped in her seat slightly, a little of her enthusiasm waning as she considered what a responsible spell caster would do. Dejected, she said, “I should probably call Harrington. He’s sort of my casting mentor,” she explained. “Damn. I’m supposed to call him about that other thing—the drug and alcohol question.”
    She was convinced the moment she called Harrington, he’d either make her a tempting offer or wrangle her into some incredibly sticky situation. She waffled. Logan waited.
    After a few minutes and no phone call, she said, “I don’t really want to call Harrington.”
    Logan’s eyebrows lifted, and he said dryly, “I got that. So what exactly are your options? What can spell casters do exactly?”
    Lizzie ticked off the options on her fingers. “Wards. Manipulating objects. Geolocation—but I think guys usually have that talent. Reading spelled books.” She frowned. “I guess the last two are basically variations on warding.”
    “Manipulating objects—like missiles? Flying objects?” When she looked stupefied, he clarified, “I’m not talking about nuclear warheads. For example”—he dug a quarter out of his pocket and flicked it at her—“can you throw this?”
    She shrugged. Why not?
    Fifteen minutes later, she was getting a headache and feeling more than a little frustrated. “Grrr. Seriously? How hard can this be?”
    Logan rested his crossed arms on the table and looked amused, which didn’t help. “How about you just try to move it a few inches?”
    She blushed slightly. “That’s been the goal for the last five minutes or so.”
    She grabbed her phone and sent a quick text to her ever-informative buddy, Harry. Moving objects – any tricks or tips?
    Chewing on her lip, she waited for a response. She’d met Harry through the IPPC, when he’d been brought in as an expert to help an injured employee. And that was the beauty of Harry. He wasn’t an IPPC employee—refused more than one job offer, in fact—but he worked with IPPC and had a vast store of knowledge pertaining to magic and the magic-using community. Her phone beeped.
    Not likely. Stick to Fade.
    She frowned and thumped her phone down.
    “Okay, let’s give it a rest for now.” She gnawed harder on her lip. “There’s got to be a way to use warding in an offensive way, right?”
    Logan pursed his lips. “Explain to me how warding works.”
    “The general idea is that a physical object anchors a spell. But you know that already.” When he nodded, she elaborated, trying to remember some of the specifics she’d picked up over the last few weeks. “From what I understand, it might be helpful for the object to have something to do with the function of the spell—but that may also be tradition. For example, books typically anchor recording spells, and personal items anchor finding spells.” She stopped, considering what she’d left out. “There are also sensing wards that warn when a person comes within a certain distance or indicate a certain object or item is present. And the scent void—that one’s new. I’m not sure how it works.”
    “What are the limitations? It sounds like you can attach any kind of spell to an object.”
    “Well, I know I can do recording spells, but a lot of spell casters can’t. I’m not really sure what determines the types of spells a caster can create, but some casters can do certain ones and others can’t.” She wrinkled her nose. “My mentorship was cut short, and I’m pretty new to all of this.” She sighed. “I’m supposed to start teleconferencing with Harrington soon.”
    “Uh-huh. How’s that supposed to work when you don’t want to talk to him on the phone?”
    Ouch. She’d ignore that comment for the sake of good will, peace, and all that.