Witch's Bell Book One

She'd gone over this, surely. She was starting to regret getting in the car with Mr Curious Questions. 'Because that was the punishment that they had determined,' she rubbed at one of the bracelets, half-wondering whether it would just pop off one of these days, and Ebony would realize this was all just a big, bad, joke.
    'You haven't explained anything. Why would they take away your magic - why not slap you with a fine, or make you do some time? If it's anything like ordinary police work, it's like they've impounded your car for doing one kilometer over the limit.'
    'Impounded my car for speeding,' she repeated, voice brimming with disbelief, shocked at the analogy. 'It's nothing like that. There simply isn't a connection.'
    'Okay, so you are saying they randomly assigned you a punishment, greatly disproportionate to the crime?'
    'No, I'm not saying that either.' Ebony was suddenly aware that she could hear her heart beating in her ears. 'The Coven are made up of the wisest, most powerful witches. If they make a decision, there's usually a very good reason for it.'
    'Okay, so then, taking away your magic had a reason, right? Something more than punishment?'
    Ebony felt like she was a cow being led around by a farmer, chain tugging at her nose every time she didn't seem to be walking fast enough. 'I don't know. I mean, I guess so.' Ebony had a sudden vision of her mother, and swallowed hard. Her mother had never done anything on a whim. Nor had she ever done anything for just the sake of the rules. Every witch knew that the rules were there only to modulate power – never to direct it. A witch couldn't let herself become the tool of anything, or anyone, and especially not a set of laws.
    That's how you created your destiny, wasn't it? By following the rules as a guide, like the lane lines on a road. But never as a route.
    'So what do you think their reason was? I mean, I've been talking to Chalcedony, and it seems that the Coven rarely give out such punishments, let alone for-'
    Ebony's mind had suddenly become just a bit hazy. It was stuck, like a scratched record, on three little words: "talking to Chalcedony".
    Ebony tried to steady herself, not wanting to be drawn into the hurricane of unpleasant memories associated with her former best-friend. What with everything else going on in her life, Ebony had relegated Chalcedony to a corner. Yes she was back; yes she was swanning around in Ebony's job, in her fancy high-heels and designer skirts. But Ebony had greater, more meaningful things to worry about.
    'Ebony? What do you think?' Nate suddenly said, voice more insistent as he pulled the car into a car-park in the depot at the base of the police station. He turned to look at her, and then rolled his eyes. 'Spaced out again? You really are hitting those drugs hard.' He tilted his head, eyes narrowing with keen analysis.
    He was using that competent detective routine again, Ebony realized with an uncomfortable chill. 'Nope,' she said levelly, opening the door quickly.
    'Right.'
    Ebony wanted to scream, but settled for closing the door a little too hard.
    Nate looked mildly amused, and opened the car door, leaning comfortably against the door and bonnet as he looked over at her. 'So, what do you think?'
    'About what?'
    He shook his head. 'About the fact the Coven rarely hand out punishments like this, let alone for the tiny little crime you were supposed to have committed?'
    Ebony frowned, finally listening to what he'd just said. She'd gone over and over this in her own mind, and had only managed to come up with one answer. 'The ways of the Coven are mysterious' she said, voice trailing off.
    'That's a convincing answer, thanks for that, really makes things clearer. Seriously though, don't you think there's something very strange about the way you were punished, and the timing too?'
    Ebony felt herself spacing out again. She thought about the Coven, the crypt, Chalcedony. She thought about the past several weeks, and the pain of having to rebuild herself anew. If she had to admit it then she would, yes, there was something strange about how Ebony had been punished. And yes, there was something strange about when she'd been punished – smack bang in the middle of the Month of Rites. It was almost as if someone were setting Ebony up for a good, old round of magical-rewriting. But that thought was enough to send a quick shiver down her spine.
    'Are you serious?' Nate's voice was low and brimming with disbelief 'I