The Secret Witch (The Coven: Academy Magic Book 5), page 16
Ellis
I was sitting by our bonfire. Waiting. Trying to remain calm and collected. I had a job to do, and everything was finally falling into place. I couldn’t mess this up now. Everyone was counting on me.
Joseph hadn’t taken all of us for this fight. He’d wanted us to take these next few steps in shifts so some of us would always be ready for war. Tonight was my off night. There had to be four dozen of my fellow shadows sitting around the bonfire next to me.
The trees rustled off to my right, and a flock of colorful birds flew out. Joseph emerged a second later, screaming and cursing. Trey slithered out behind him, looking more worse for the wear than I’d ever seen him. The other shadows they’d taken slowly moved closer to the bonfire and away from our leader.
Joseph kicked a bucket, then bent over and threw one of the wooden benches into the trees.
“J-Joseph?” One of the meeker shadows, Chris, stood and waved. “A-are you okay?”
Joseph roared and spun around. He vanished then reappeared right next to Chris. He snarled and slammed his palm into Chris’s face. Black smoke billowed from under his hand. Chris screamed and his body trembled.
I knew what was about to happen. I looked down at my hands just as Chris’s lifeless body hit the ground at Joseph’s feet.
“ELLIS!” Joseph growled.
I looked up. “What do you need me to do?”
Joseph narrowed his eyes on me. “They had you locked up. They thought they beat me. They had to have said something!”
Ah shit. Shit, shit, shit. This was the moment I’d been dreading. I had to tell him something, and something believable. I knew without a doubt there was absolutely nothing that would prevent Joseph from killing me right now. Think, Ellis. There had to be something—
Tell Joseph they discovered Ruth sent the girl down the river in a raft. They’re trying to find her now, Tegan’s voice said into my mind.
I licked my lips then repeated her words.
Joseph stared at me for a moment…then grinned. “Excellent. Now, go down to the river. Collect soil from the riverbank, a rock, and some water.”
I nodded. Play it cool, Ellis. “What would you like me to do with it?”
“Bring it back to me.” He rubbed his hands together, his next scheme already brewing. “I know a spell I can do to track the girl down before they do. So, go. Get me what I need.”
I jumped to my feet and spun away from him before he had a chance to see my face. There was no way I could let him go through with this spell, but I had no idea how I was going to stop him. I was going to have to think of something fast.
Don’t worry, Ellis, Tegan’s voice said into my mind again. There is no way any dark magic spell he’d know could overpower Ruth’s magic. But just in case, here’s what we’re gonna do…
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Jackson
It was late at night. We all needed to be resting, conserving our energy for the next fight Joseph was bound to throw our way. But once we saw the golden cauldron sitting in the fireplace in the living room, no one was willing to sleep. The potion in there was going to reverse the spell Ruth put on Hope.
And so there we all stood, huddled together in the living room watching Lennox stir the cauldron’s contents.
Something heavy slammed into the front door three times in a row. We all jumped and pulled our weapons out. I was closest, so I ran over to the door then glanced back to Tenn. He narrowed his eyes, then nodded. I raised my sword, then pulled the door open.
Warner leaned in the doorway, rubbing his eyes.
I cursed and lowered my sword. “Bloody hell, mate. You trying to get killed?”
“Nah, man. I’ve already almost done that today. But thanks.” Warner grinned. His hazel eyes sparkled.
“Come in.” I stepped aside to let him enter. “What are you doing here?”
“Yeah, what are you doing here, Warner?” Tennessee crossed his arms over his chest and glared at him. “I thought I sent you to Dallas?”
Warner held his palms up. “I know you’re my Leader and I have no business in saying this, but I’m staying here. In Eden.”
Tenn arched one eyebrow. “Really, now?”
“YUP.” Warner nodded, completely unfazed. “No offense to anyone in here. Y’all are a bunch of epic badasses. But I’ve seen what these shadow-creepers can do, and you need every fighter you can get.”
“We don’t want any more innocent blood.”
Warner’s smile vanished. His eyes went dark. “Joseph kidnapped me, used me in a dark magic ritual, then tried to kill me. I’ve been trapped in the balefire, then watched my best friend betray me. The only people I care about are in this room, and over my dead body am I not standing by their side to take that son of a bitch down.”
Silence.
Everyone looked to Tenn.
Warner just stared at him.
More silence.
Tennessee smiled. “I knew I liked you.”
Warner sighed and ran his hand over his overgrown mohawk. “I thought I was gonna die for a second there.”
Tenn chuckled and shook his head. “Had to make sure you were ready to do so.”
“I mean, I’d rather not, but yeah. Let’s dance.”
“Well, I’m taken. But I’m sure someone here would fill in.” Tenn laughed then pointed to the kitchen. “Eat. You look like shit.”
“Thanks.” Warner chuckled. Then, once Tenn turned away, he looked at me and widened his eyes. “I almost just died, right?”
“I think so,” I whispered back.
Lennox darted across the room and tackled Warner in a hug. When she pulled back, she patted her hands over his body. “Are you hurt? Did he touch you? Did his magic touch you—”
“No, no. I’m fine.” Warner blushed. “Well, I mean, a little bit of that black smoke touched my feet—"
“Eat this.” Lennox handed him a little hard candy. “It’ll chase off any remnants. Trust me.”
“Girl, I’ll eat whatever you want me to— Wait, that didn’t come out right.”
Easton laughed. “Yeah, it did.”
Lily smacked him playfully and rolled her eyes.
Lennox winked then skipped back over to the cauldron.
Warner popped the candy in his mouth then leaned against the wall next to me. “So, what’s going on here?”
I quickly, and quietly, filled him in on everything that had happened after we evacuated Eden. Particularly the parts about Tennessee really being Haven Proctor, son of Ruth and Micah. Nephew of Timothy.
Warner cursed softly and shook his head. “So, once this potion is done, we’re gonna find this Hope sister of his?”
I nodded. “That’s the plan.”
“Dude, I’m just saying we need to be actively looking for her,” Braison said, picking that conversation right back up where we’d left it. “We have to.”
Paulina nodded and twirled his red hair between her tan fingers. “We have to assume Trey heard what B and Em said about Hope having the locket.”
“And the river,” Chutney mumbled.
Emersyn groaned and buried her face in Deacon’s chest. “I’m sorry!”
I glanced over to Bettina and saw the same guilt in her eyes. It wasn’t her fault, or Em’s. I walked over and pulled her into my arms. She went without hesitation then wrapped her arms around my waist.
“Em, no one is blaming you or Bettina.” Tegan lowered the book she’d been reading. “And more importantly, it’s done now. We just have to focus on the next step. Finding Hope. Before they do.”
“But that’s the problem,” Willow whined and threw herself down on the sofa. “Now they’re looking for her, too. They don’t have this spell, but they have other resources obviously. He’s using dark magic. He could find her first.”
Hunter sighed. “What are y’all suggesting?”
“Maybe we don’t wait for the potion,” Devon said from the bay window. She turned and strolled more into the room. “Maybe we start following the leads we found and see if we can find her. Either way, we need the potion to get her memories back.”
Cooper turned to face Tenn. “I like this idea.”
I cleared my throat. “But you won’t know who she is, and neither will she. Her memories were taken, and she won’t be able to confirm it for you. So even if we do track all of our leads, we won’t know if we found her or not.”
Deacon chuckled. “We need like a Hope-detecting pregnancy test. Here, pee on this stick, please.”
Tegan’s head snapped back up from her book. “Actually, that’s not a bad idea— Well, not the peeing on a stick part.”
Bettina pulled back enough to look over at her best friend. “This will be good.”
Tegan narrowed her eyes, then turned to Constance. “I need a ton of clear quartz crystals.”
Constance arched one eyebrow, but she flicked her wrists and two dozen crystals came flying down the stairs. “Where do you want them?”
Tegan pointed. “Lenny?”
Lennox’s eyes sparkled. “On it. Perfect. Constance, please make them dip into the cauldron, hold for a second, then bring them out and lay them on the table.”
Constance did exactly as she was instructed. Once all the stones were lying on the table, Lennox skipped over and picked one up.
She grinned, then held it to her skin. The stone turned blood red. “This will detect Hope. Red means no, because I am obviously not Hope. But if someone is, then the stone will turn green for yes.”
Cooper rubbed his palms together. “Tenn, let us do this for you. Let us try and find her.”
For a few long, tense moments, the room was silent. I didn’t even think anyone was breathing. We all wanted to help, but this was his sister so it was his call.
Finally, Tenn sighed and nodded.
Em jumped away from Deacon and grabbed a paper off the table. She held it up. “Look, we found this girl… She’s an orphan since she was four, just like Hope. Fits her description, too. Deacon and I can take a crystal and go check.”
Cooper pulled a piece of paper out of his back pocket and held it out for Tenn. “I made a checklist, places to check.”
Tenn took the paper and read over it with sharp eyes. Then he nodded. “I want to check this Tower Card myself.”
Tegan jumped to her feet. “I’ll go with you.”
I frowned. I hadn’t seen the checklist, but I did have an idea. “Hey, Bentley? You said that Sam girl was important, right? Could she maybe be Hope?”
Bentley pursed his lips and cocked his head to the side. “That’s a good question.”
“Perfect.” Bettina stepped away from where I wanted her to be and smiled. “Jackson and I will go check her.”
“But not tonight.” Constance shook her head and put her hands on her hips. “I know I haven’t pulled Leader rank much since Tenn joined me, but I am now.” She turned to Tennessee. “You and Tegan go now to check the Tower. The rest of us will stay on alert here. When you get back, we can send the others.”
“Constance is right. We need to limit how much we split up. We’re stronger together.” Tenn pushed his hair back. “Tegan and I will make this quick check, then we’ll be back. Tomorrow, once everyone is rested a bit, we’ll send the rest of you out to check other leads.”
Bettina looked up at me and smiled. Her eyes sparkled…and my stomach dropped. What did I just do? I hadn’t meant I needed to go check Sam. I just thought someone should. There had to be a reason why I was sent to collect her so this would make sense. But I didn’t want to see her again. Not so soon. The girl had kissed me and flashed me; she was wild and carefree.
And now I had to introduce her to Bettina.
Because nothing could go wrong there…
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Tennessee
I stepped out of Tegan’s portal and froze. She’d dropped us right in the middle of the hospital hallway. Nurses and doctors rushed around. That sterile, clean smell invaded my senses. Yet not a single person noticed our sudden appearance.
I frowned. “Are you cloaking us?”
Tegan smiled and tangled her fingers with mine. “I’m tired, don’t feel like playing the game tonight. Let’s just go check Frankie—”
“Frankie? Who’s that— Wait, is that her name?”
“Apparently.” Tegan chuckled and pulled me into a brisk walk. “Jackson said her name is Frankie.”
“Well, I can sure feel her from here.” I focused in on the energy pulsing down the hall, feeling it grow stronger with every step. “She’s powerful.”
“I know!” Tegan squealed. “I can’t wait…and this is her room.”
I glanced over my shoulder to the nurse’s station behind us, but I knew Tegan’s cloaking spell was strong enough to keep us hidden from human sight. I scanned their faces to see if perhaps we had a sleeper supernatural nearby—and then I was suddenly staring at a wooden door.
“Oh, good. Her family isn’t here right now,” Tegan whispered.
I spun around, and my heart lodged in my throat. There she was, our new Tower Card, lying in a hospital bed completely covered in white bandages. Goddess almighty. What happened to her?
“Paulina says her and her friend were drugged and assaulted at a local frat party, but Frankie here got them out. Says she stole a car and drove here but then got in a wreck out front, and the car exploded.”
“Shit.” I strolled over to the bed, to where her left hand was mostly exposed. I reached out and gently pressed my fingertip to the back of her hand. Bright blue magic poured out of her and wrapped around my finger. “She’s incredibly strong.”
“I know. She’s gonna be a badass. I can’t wait.” Tegan held her hands just above Frankie’s bandaged chest. Rainbow magic spilled from her palms. “Katherine’s potions are working well—"
“Tegan?” I arched one eyebrow. “Should you be doing that?”
She shrugged. “You felt her power the second we portaled here. She can handle it, but more than that, she needs a little extra bump.”
I shook my head and refocused on Frankie’s arm. Jackson had told us he’d checked for her Mark and saw it, yet I still found myself reaching for the bandage on her forearm. I wanted to see it for myself. I gently pulled the material aside until I spotted those three black letters XVI.
The Tower.
“Man, maybe we should be moving her to our infirmary?” I shook my head and fixed her bandages. “I don’t like that her skin isn’t healing faster. We need—”
“To let things run their course.” Tegan pulled her arms back then reached into her leather jacket pocket and removed her tarot deck. She shook her head and began shuffling them. “First of all, we evacuated all of Eden, remember? So she’s safer here for now, especially since Joseph doesn’t know who she is. Secondly, she should have died in that car, but her magic saved her. And Katherine’s potions are already working miracles. We need to let that do its thing. And thirdly…” She pulled a card off the top of the tarot deck and flipped it over, then she frowned.
“What?”
“Thirdly, my gut tells me we’re not supposed to intervene in her life just yet. And this card proves it.” She turned the card to face me. “See?”
I leaned over the bed and looked at the tarot card. The card said The Tower, but the image was odd. Normally, once a witch was Marked, their face appeared in the tarot deck along with their name. But Frankie’s just showed the back of a girl’s head, where only her cotton-candy pink hair identified her.
I sighed and straightened. “Yeah, you’re right. I guess— Wait. Her name isn’t on there, yet we know what it is. Maybe…maybe…”
Tegan smiled softly. “There’s only one way to find out.” She pulled out a quartz crystal the size of a golf ball and handed it to me.
My pulse quickened. This just got real. I knew I’d come here for this specific reason, but now that I was here… Shit. The world spun a little, and my stomach turned. I lowered the crystal down to Frankie’s arm. I was about to find out if this girl was my lost sister. She was the right age. She had blue magic, and so did I. But if she’s my sister, wouldn’t I feel something? Some kind of connection or recognition?
My fingers trembled as I slowly pressed the crystal to the small patch of skin showing.
The crystal instantly turned a deep blood red.
I exhaled the breath I’d been holding then looked up to Tegan and shook my head.
“Well, at least we tried.” She gave me a small smile. “We will find her.”
I nodded. I wanted to believe it, but I was afraid to let myself hope.
Hope is not lost.
I was starting to fear it was.
“All right. I guess we better go before her family returns.” I slid the crystal in my pocket then stepped back. “It feels wrong to just leave her here.”
“I agree.” Tegan rubbed her palms together, her rainbow magic sparkling between her fingers. “That’s why I’m going to put a tracker on her so we’ll know if she leaves the hospital.”
“Leave the hospital?” I frowned. “Why do you think she’ll leave without us knowing? Do you know something I don’t?”
Tegan shook her head. “But I feel something. I can’t put my finger on it. We don’t know when Frankie will heal, and if we’re preoccupied when it happens? No one here knows to call us. She could leave and…I don’t know… I get the feeling Frankie might freak out when she wakes up.”
I pushed my hair back. “She’s covered in burns, so how are you going to track her? You can’t put jewelry on her, and you can’t put a spell because it could interfere with Katherine’s healing.”
Tegan looked up at me with a wild glint in her eyes and that mischievous smile I both loved and feared. “But I can put a scar on her, and no one would think otherwise.”
My eyes widened. “A scar? You can place a tracker on her in the form of a scar?”
She shrugged. “With my Leader’s permission, yes. What do you say?”
I cursed. Let’s pray this doesn’t bite us in the ass later. “Yeah. Yeah, do it.”
