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"The char in common," Cia said, "except the fact that they seem to have old blood on the that soht use, and some are stone--combined with the old blood, and the fresher blood in the est that a blood witch set up a conjure in this rooered it"

"Your mother didn’t run off," Liz said "Or at least not of her own free will"

"Your mother was kidnapped by a practitioner of the black arts," Cia said griht, she was taken fro her coat tighter, the sea, her face white "Like, transported out? Like Star Trek?" Her voice rose "You can do that?"

"We can’t," Cia said

"And we’ve never met a practitioner who can"

"The police won’t believe it," Cia said

"No But Layla will need to tell the case itchcraft eleet someone in here to read the roo will that take?" Layla asked, see to understand that it would take far too h for law enforce," Cia said with a faint shrug, holding Liz’s gaze, "like we planned"

"It just won’t be easy" Liz pointed to the clothes on the floor "But the left boot isit when she was taken"

"We could find the left boot with the right one Give the cops soet started on the case"

The twins turned to Layla as one and said, almost in unison, "It’s up to you"

"What’s up toto find your mom," Cia said, "or return your money and let the cops take over"

Layla looked back and forth between the too fast between perfectly parted lips "I guessfound with both the police and you working to find her" On that happy note, the goat raced back down the hallway and skittered to a halt in front of Layla, her hooves dancing

Her diaper filled the rooled

--

The sisters couldn’t do the finding inside the house, not without both contaies left over fro their oorking skewed or corrupted by the black ic on the scene would tick off any PsyLED investigator It ic witch To be safe, the twins had to start somewhere else, which meant interviews, phone calls, and computer research They had seen Jane Yellowrock track down a ative y, if not access to the specialized databases that the security specialist used

Rather than further contairls retired to Layla’s exquisite three-bedrooe apartment It was one of the luxury corner units, and like Layla herself, the apartant and refined Unlike her mother’s place, Layla’s ho in perfection had paid off in a neat freak

Though painfully worried about her mother--or maybe to keep occupied--Layla served therapes on the side And gave them access to her electronic tablets and an older laptop and her phone while her stinky goat raced around the apart the people on the floor beneath crazy

Between talking to Layla, talking to Evelyn’s office assistant (in a phone call placed by Layla when they asked), and doing a bit of Internet research, the Everhart sisters discovered quite a bit In just ninety ood solid lead on where to cast their working