AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Help me, Steph,” I say when she remains frozen on the spot. I jerk my head toward the narrow bed along the wall. “Grab the pillowcase off your pillow so I can tie her wrists.”
Shannon lifts her hips and arches her back, trying to buck me off with a feral growl. When I cling to her and shove her back down, she starts to chant. Tangling my fist in her hair, I yank it mercilessly, and her words cut off with a screech.
“Shut up,” I hiss.
“Fuck you,” she grits out between clenched teeth before starting to chant again.
I yank her hair once more, but she only groans between the words. I feel her magic start to swirl around me, then disintegrate as Steph’s booted foot connects with her jaw. Shannon slumps beneath me, all the tension and fight draining out of her.
Taking the pillowcase from Steph, I quickly pull Shannon’s wrists behind her back and tie them as tightly as possible. Pushing myself up, I rub my palms against my denim-clad thighs and turn to Steph. She leaps forward, slamming into me before wrapping her arms tightly around me.
“They told me you were dead,” she whispers, and I can hear the relieved tears in her voice.
“They told me you were dead,” I reply. “But I didn’t believe it for a second.”
Pulling back, Steph meets my gaze with red-rimmed eyes. “How did you do that? You brought down her barrier spell and made yourself invisible.”
“I have no fucking clue. But we can figure it out later. We need to get the hell out of here. Now.”
I can tell Steph wants to continue the conversation, but she shrugs off her questions and gives me a nod. Slipping her hand into mine, she starts to chant the spell for invisibility, nodding for me to join her. We speak the words in unison, and in seconds, we both disappear.
Moving as quietly as possible, we leave the room and pick our way down the stairs. Shouts and stomping footsteps echo throughout the house, and we pick up the pace. We’re running out of time. We have to get out of here before someone senses the magic around us.
Once we hit the first floor, we run, our hands gripped tightly so as not to lose one another. A man darts into our path from the left, and we barely manage to skid to a halt before crashing into him. Stalking to the front door, he throws it open and rushes outside, shouting at the others to search every outbuilding.
Pulling Steph along with me, I step over the threshold and tiptoe down the porch steps. We stick to the concrete drive and run for our lives. I breathe a little easier once we make it to the road, but by silent agreement, Steph and I continue to run until we’re far away from the house and the voices of our captors fade from our ears.
We slow to a walk, but maintain the invisibility spell until we see a small gas station up ahead. Releasing the magic so as not to startle anyone at the store, we rush inside and ask the attendant if we can use his phone.
I call Jesse, and the relief in his voice is palpable as he orders me to stay inside and out of sight until he gets here in about fifteen minutes. Thanking the clerk for the phone, I hand it back and pull Steph into the ladies’ room.
“Okay, now that we’re reasonably safe,” she says, crossing her arms over her chest, “tell me how you performed those spells.”
“I don’t know what to tell you, Steph. I memorized the spells Bernadette taught you,” I say with a half shrug. “I said the words, and it worked.”
“Do you know what this means?” she asks, her face lighting up with excitement. “It means you’re a witch, too!”
“No way,” I say shaking my head. “That’s not possible.”
“Why not?” she asks. “I went my whole life not knowing what I am. Who’s to say you haven’t been bound the same way I was?”
“Because even though you were bound, Jesse knew right away what you are. He could smell the magic on you. So if I’m a witch, he’d know. Even if some all-powerful magic was used that made my scent unnoticeable, he’s had my blood, Steph. He would’ve tasted it.”
“What if he knows and decided not to tell you?” she asks, cocking her head and shooting me an apologetic look for the accusation.
“He wouldn’t do that,” I say, ignoring the trickle of doubt that creeps down my spine. “He doesn’t lie to me. He would’ve told me.”
“Okay,” she says, nodding firmly.
I can feel the doubt radiating off her, though. Or maybe it’s my own doubt I feel.
Only witches can perform spells.
I casted more than one.
And if that makes me a witch, how is it possible that Jesse doesn’t know? It’s not possible. He would know.
So that leaves only one possibility.
