“Are you serious, or are you just using this angle to twist things up so I come out being a jerk?”

There was no arguing that however geeky he might be from time to time, his mind was a scalpel that cut through all the bullshit in one swipe. “The jerk part’s just a side benefit. I shouldn’t have jumped on you that way. Taken jabs at you and your work. I’m sorry for it.”

“Now you’re apologizing. I have to sit down.”

“Don’t milk it, Booke.” But she went to him, laid her hands on his arms. “Why don’t you get us those beers, then while I’m taking that hot shower you can explain to me what all this stuff’s for. Maybe I’ll let you use it on me.”

“I can do that.” He reached up to take her hands before she could slide them away. “But I have a question first. Why are you considering it now?”

“Because it’s like you said. It’s your work, your deal. I respect you, Mac. So it looks like I’m going to have to start respecting what you do.”

Not one of his professional or academic accolades had ever given him such pleasure as that one hard-won statement did. He stepped closer to her, framed her face with his hands. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. You’re still a jerk.”

“Understood.” He felt her lips curve into a smile under his when he kissed her.

“Paranormal science—”

“Now, see, there you lose me, right at the kickoff,” Ripley complained. “Because to me that’s an oxymoron.”

They were in her bedroom, with her sitting cross-legged on the bed while he set up his equipment.

“There was a time when astronomy was considered outside the mainstream. If science doesn’t push the accepted scope, study the possibilities, it stagnates. We don’t learn anything by standing still.”

“Science and education are part of what turned magic from the acceptable into the condemned, then into the dismissed.”

“You’re right, but I would add ignorance, intolerance, and fear to that mix. It’s science and education that may, in time, turn the tide back again.”

“They hunted us down, slaughtered us and countless others.”

It was in her voice, he thought. Cold rage, hot fear. “You can’t forgive that?”

“Could you?” She moved her shoulders restlessly. “I don’t dwell on it, but it pays to remember what can happen when fingers start to point.”

“You’re worried about what might happen to you if outsiders look too close.”

“I can take care of myself. Just as the sisters took care of themselves. Do you know how many witches were hanged in Salem Town, Mac? None,” she said before he could speak. “All were innocent, powerless victims.”

“So you’re a cop,” he said, “because you’ve chosen to protect the innocent and the powerless as others once weren’t protected.”

She started to speak, then just hissed out her breath. “You don’t have to be a superhero to keep order on Three Sisters.”

“That’s not the point, though, is it? You protect, Mia educates—books—and Nell nurtures. You’ve all chosen to do what you can to heal old wounds. To balance.”

“That’s all a little deep for me.”

He ran his hand gently over her hair before he bent down to hook up cables. The gesture, the simple gentleness of it, loosened every muscle in her body.

“Have you ever been hypnotized?”

Just as that question tightened all her muscles up again. “No. Why?”

He glanced back at her. Briefly, casually. “I’d like to try it. I’m licensed.”

“You didn’t do that weird stuff with Nell.”

“I’ll ignore the word weird . No, I didn’t use hypnosis with Nell. I didn’t want to push it. But you and I have a different relationship and, I like to think, a different level of trust. I wouldn’t hurt you.”

“I know that. It probably wouldn’t work on me, anyway.”

“That’s part of what I’d like to see. It’s a simple process, based on relaxation techniques, and perfectly safe.”

“I’m not afraid—”

“Good. Why don’t you lie down?”

“Just wait.” Panic ticked at her throat. “How come you can’t just follow the same routine you did downstairs with Nell before dinner?”

“I could. I’d like to add a few tests, if you’re willing. First, I’m interested in seeing if your gift makes you more, or less, susceptible to hypnosis. And if you can be hypnotized, if you’re able to demonstrate power in that state.”

“Have you considered that in that state I might not have perfect control?”

He nodded absently while he nudged her back on the bed. “That would be interesting, wouldn’t it?”

“Interesting. Jesus. You’ll recall that Mia fried one of your toys when she was a little miffed.”

“That was cool. But she didn’t hurt me,” he reminded Ripley. “And neither will you. I’m just going to hook you up now. I explained what the machines are for.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“You need to lose the sweater.”

She glanced toward the camera, smirked. “So do you and your fellow geeks watch these tapes at stag parties?”

“Absolutely. Nothing like watching a video of a half-naked woman to break up the tedium of lab work.”

He kissed her forehead before affixing the first electrode. “But I’ll keep this one in my private collection.”

He took her through the same steps as he had Nell. Casual questions, monitoring and recording her resting vital signs. There was a slight shift when he asked her to do a small, basic spell. Anxiety, he noted. She wasn’t completely comfortable opening herself to power.

But she obliged, and the lights in the adjoining bath switched off and on rapidly.

“I used to do that when Zack was in the shower, when we were kids,” she said. “Just to piss him off.”

“Give me something bigger, more demanding.” Her heart rate was up more than Nell’s had been. Anxiety again, he decided. But the brain-wave patterns were remarkably similar. She cupped her hands, lifted them. He saw the ball of light glow, then shoot up to the ceiling. Another followed, still another. As he watched them take position, he grinned.