She felt both Gwyn and Elaine squeeze her hands, and it gave her the courage to take a deep breath and say, “So fuck Gryffud Penhallow. The Jones Witches are taking this back.”
Vivi could feel the power surge beneath her feet and both Gwyn’s and Elaine’s hands were suddenly so hot they almost burned, but Vivi kept holding tight, kept sending every bit of magic she could muster into the circle made of the three of them, and then down into the ley lines themselves.
It was like trying to push a boulder uphill, and there was something pushing back. Whether it was the remains of the Penhallow magic or the curse itself, Vivi didn’t know, but she pushed just as hard right back, feeling sweat break out on her brow as she concentrated.
And then she heard Gwyn cry, “It’s working!”
Opening her eyes, Vivi looked down at the ley lines, watching as purple light sparked, strengthened, the black sludge receding, and she held on tighter to her aunt and her cousin, thinking of Aelwyd, thinking of Piper McBride, even thinking of the college witches, all of whom had power and just as much of a claim to the magic of Graves Glen as anyone.
There was a sudden flash of light, so bright that Vivi gasped, dropping Gwyn’s and Elaine’s hands to cover her eyes, and then, just as quickly as it had appeared, it was gone, leaving her vision a little distorted and dazzled.
But in front of her on the cave floor, the lines ran straight and clear and purple, humming now.
“Rhiannon’s tits,” Gwyn breathed, and then turned to Vivi with a blinding smile. “You did it!”
“We did it,” Vivi corrected, and then threw her arms around both Gwyn and Elaine, laughing even as tears sprang to her eyes.
“I love you girls,” Elaine said, dabbing at her own eyes. “And now promise me you will never, ever mix vodka with witchcraft again.”
“Solemnly swear,” Gwyn said immediately, and Vivi nodded.
“Lesson more than learned, trust me.”
“So . . . it seems like I won’t die?”
They turned to see Rhys poking his head in the cave, and Gwyn pointed at him.
“Hair still does The Thing.”
“It does,” Vivi agreed, earning her a wink from Rhys before he jerked his thumb at the entrance of the cave.
“In that case, can we get out of here? Uncursed or not, this is not where I’d like to spend what’s left of Halloween.”
Chapter 34
Vivienne was glowing as they drove back into town, and Rhys had trouble keeping his eyes on the road and not on her.
“It was just like . . . like there was a river inside me, only the river was magic, and I could feel it, actually feel it as it left my hands, like whoosh,” she enthused, gesturing with both hands, her cheeks pink, her eyes bright, and Rhys laughed.
“So you’ve said, cariad, so you’ve said.”
Dropping her hands, Vivienne grinned at him. “Sorry. I’m getting a little overexcited, aren’t I?”
“I mean, you saved an entire town and my life with your magic,” he reminded her. “You’re allowed.”
Tipping her head back against the seat, Vivienne laughed again. “I did. I did that. I am a certified badass witch.”
“The baddest of asses,” Rhys agreed, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel, “and also possibly a little Magic Drunk.”
“That is a distinct possibility, yes,” she agreed, and then smiled at him again, a smile Rhys felt warm every inch of him.
He was more than a little euphoric himself. Cheating death had that effect on a man, and even though he wasn’t sure how his father was going to take the news that Graves Glen was no longer Penhallow territory, he didn’t really care right now. That was a problem for Future Rhys, and surely that cheeky bugger would be able to work it out.