"Impossible. Gog and Magog ripped it out of me."

"They ripped the gold magic out of you." Rivka added sugar to her iced tea.

"I don't have magic. I'd know."

"Like you knew the first twenty years of your life when it was all bottled up?"

I finished my concha. Did I even want magic back? Magic had upended my life, twisting me into the worst version of myself. I was happy. At peace. Why upset that balance?

While I wrestled with my feelings, ...