Giga. Noto. Saurusby Alice Brook One. I can still taste electric anise when I open my eyes. Its been a week since that kid got himself killed and I came too late to do anything about it. An open and shut case. I light a cigarette trying hard to ignore the boy in my bed tonight. He snores and I kick him on the ribs, Out. I picked him up in Summers Night after Tiha knows how many glasses of gin. N.1055438631_9low.jpg' alt='The Magic Of Youth Plaid Academy Patch Jacket' title='The Magic Of Youth Plaid Academy Patch Jacket' />Welcome to Old Childrens Books, selling childrens literature and picture books online since 1994. We have a collection of more than 10,000 scarce and outofprint. Yahoo Gmail. Need Facebook Wheel of Fortune word puzzle answers, solutions and cheats Consult our quick reference chart. Then help us grow more Wheel of Fortune cheatsBy Alice Brook One. I can still taste electric anise when I open my eyes. Its been a week since that kid got himself killed and I came too late to do anything. Discover easy and unique ideas for home, decor, beauty, food, kids etc. Try the best inspiration from a list of ideas which suits your requirement. Question Answer Name something you would see inside a taxicab. Meter 56, Driver 15, License 8, Air Freshener, Ads Name something people do to get on their. Is engine braking with a manual transmission bad you might ask your disinterested friends at lunch. Well, Engineering Explained has an answer for you In his. On the back of his neck is a cluster of dark freckles I hadnt noticed the night beforemy gods, a damn Academy student. A scholar I bet, just an ignorant kid who thinks magics only use is a quick high. I get up and turn on the radio. A melancholy beat weaves itself around the smoke, edging by piles of filthy clothes, slithering into the wrinkled sheets until it reaches the boy. He squirms, pulling a pillow over his head. I tsk and have another drag of my cigarette. The flavour of anise is still stuck on the back of my tongue. If only I had gotten to that kid sooner, the bottle laced with a dreamwake charm wouldve never reached his lips and I wouldnt have magic jammed in my throat every time I woke up. Bloody dumb kids. I snag the pillow off the boys head, lean to his ear so he feels the ember warming his skin. I stub out the cigarette on the sheets. The way the tobacco falls it looks like my skin is flaking, sprinkling brown beige on greyed white sheets. A stray speck of ember jumps to the boy and he winces. Out. I make my voice sound like a growl. He only puts his hands over his head, groaning. I wish his neck wasnt on display. The smudge in the middle of it seems ordinary until you look closely and you realise its a puddle after a heavy storm, the boys Key. I harrumph at my stupidity for offering a place to crash. I tell him to hurry the fuck up and leave. The radios finished its meandering song and a man is signing off, wishing us a good night. By the sound of fists slamming at my door looks like my night is just beginning. I roll my eyes when I hear Sergeant Heartnell calling Open up, AngeI wipe the dust off the book I got for Lou, The Key Dictionary. I should give it to him soon, before the shiny giftwrap dissolves completely, but this time I drop it right next to the boy. He jolts at the sound and gives me a look of a cow whos just found out what a sledgehammers for. In reply, I point to the window. I assume hes smart enough to use the fire escape, otherwise a dumpster laden with Chengs sauced up garbage will cushion his fall. Hes none of my concern anymore. The boy mutters, shitshitshitshit, as he scrambles to dress himself. Keep your knickers on, Sarge, I yell as I pull on a loose blouse and a pair of pants. I wish they had deeper pockets though, not even basic charms can expand clothes by much. Like this, all I have room for are half a dozen ready made magicsfainter, healquick, motion, flaskthe necessities. The window slams shut behind me as I open the door. Soon enough theres a yelp and a thump. The boy should have known better than to follow a strange woman home. Sarge has a look on his face that makes his wrinkles seem like canyons. Nightmares getting to youI shake my head no. Not tonight, I didnt sleep anyway. Its 1 a. m., Heartnell. Inversion Update 1 - Skidrow there. I was sleeping, I lie to the pudgy pink face at the door. Like Im gonna believe that. His bulbous nose creeps up when he snorts. Gods, has that man ever heard of trimmingYou know, there are special scissors, theyre real tiny so you can get em up the nostril and just I make a snipping move with my fingers. Youll get a discount as soon as they look at you. I also give him a grin, for good measure. Cut the crap, Magic, he says with a ghost of a smile stuck to the corner of his lips. With that on his face he looks twenty years and a barrel of sadness younger. Well, gee, youre just no fun at all. I lean on the door frame and cross my arms across my chest. My no fucking way stance will be ignored, but, hey, cant blame a girl for trying to crawl back to bed and fall into blissful, alcohol induced sleep. Grab your bag. Weve got a shiner. I raise my eyebrow an expert achievement of snark that never fails to drive Sarge crazy. All he does is glare and burrow his fingers inside his palms. He knows he cant touch me. He and magic just dont get along, to put it mildly. Admittedly, I did once make a receptionist burn from the inside out, so maybe theres a smidgeon of fear somewhere in Heartnells anger. But the burning days are behind me now. Tihas honour. Sergeant Frank Heartnell, I dont get up for less than blazing sun. Dont play wise with me, kid. He turns to proceed down the decaying hallway. I tie on my bespoke boots, silver tipped with a mix of screetcher teeth and herbs under the heel, grab a coat and my satchel. I stuff Lous book in one of the pockets, too. Maybe Ill have some time on the way back. The door takes some banging before it finally shuts. I dont lock itthose who know where I am know who I am, and those whod dare steal would see only bare walls and one soiled mattress leaned to the radiator. Maintaining the concealer is a pain in the ass, but I can afford a few days of mild coma to keep it up for three years. When I rush after Sarge, the bag slips off my shoulder. Its not supposed to do that. Made of weathered leather and with a charm that enhances its pockets to untold depths, the bag is supposed to stay put as if glued to me. But then again, Ive never been the bookish type so I dont exactly know how it works. You never know with these bags, especially when you pick one off a stiffer. We drive to Gallows Lane. A scent of lilacs seeps through the windows of the car, overpowering the stench of old tobacco and stale sweat. Heartnells knuckles have already turned white gripping the wheel. I take a deep breath and stare on. Our strained ride ends at the edge of Verago, where centuries ago stood the Seventh Gate. Story goes its rock was black as the darkest sky, thicker than a giants midriff, and infused with magic that would spark the air blue, twisting it until it looked like billowing cloth. A row of gallows had flanked the door where the dead, while swaying in the wind, would howl and moan and wail. When Old Ellis did his jig, a couple of fellas went home with their ears bleeding and cheeks clawed raw. Old Ellis, the last man to hang, had given us a game of Telephone thats lasted for over eighty years. A crazy faction says he never really died, despite the hanging body, but they also believe bees are magic made surveillance. I dont trust the crazies, but Old Ellis is still called merlinesque at Tiha Academy. Whats left of the Gallows Lane looks like a discarded booger stained kerchief by the road. On a plateau framed by four lilac trees, bronzed gallows stand as though theyd emerged from the earth itself. Sometimes I wonder if the air is cleaner up there, when your neck is wrapped in rope. The hanged were lucky, in a way. I breathe in the lilacs, savouring the scent as it makes my chest swell, and not failing to take a good look at the splintering imitation wood of the gallows. I fake a cough as I adjust the bag on my shoulder and resist making any sort of comment. Heartnells sensitive about magic victims, and however we are to each other, I know where the line is. He leads me to the gutters below the memorial where they found the shiner. Despite the cold breeze pushing against us, the girl looks like shes just taking a nap. I suppose the chintz carpet shes wrapped in kept the chill at bay.