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“Thank you for having us over,” Zane says. “The food and company have been wonderful.”
I wave for them to sit back down. “Stay and enjoy yourselves. Don’t let me end the night early.”
Owen catches my hand. “Do you want me to come with you?”
I lean down and kiss his cheek. “No, stay and have fun.”
Leaving them, I head upstairs, going to the bathroom to brush my teeth.
As I run my toothbrush under the water, a light scratching fills the room.
Pulse leaping, I turn off the faucet and strain my ears, but the sound doesn’t come again.
Laughter drifts from downstairs, along with the indistinguishable rumble of conversation.
Maybe that’s what I heard?
I turn the water back on, and the scratching noise resumes in the walls behind the mirror.
Heart pounding, I shut off the water and drop my toothbrush into the holder.
It’s not real. It’s just a byproduct of the pills Bryant gave me, I tell myself, but I can’t stop my heart from racing as I rush out of the bathroom and into my bedroom.
There, I dive under the covers and pull them over my head, blocking out the monster.
A LITTLE DEVIOUS
The cold concrete of the basement floor numbs my ass, despite the cushion I sit cross-legged on.
I struggle to block out the sounds from the other side of the plastic curtain, where the rest of the coven has been split into groups based on their elements to work with Mel and Aspen on accessing their powers.
Despite the chill, my head nods forward, my dark-red hair falling around my face. I jolt upright and rub the grit from my eyes, my lids heavy with exhaustion. The past few nights have been sleepless, plagued by strange noises in the house that no one else seems to hear.
I fidget with the hem of my bunny sweatshirt. When I dressed this morning, I needed the comfort of my soft armor to face the day. More and more, my anxiety grows, to the point that I dread going to bed at night.
Every time I close my eyes, nightmares plague me, and when I wake, I get flashes of a dark figure standing over my bed. The guys are all worried, but when my questions about odd noises in the house drew concerned looks, I stopped bringing it up.
Dr. Lopez already digs too deep into my psyche. I don’t need to be analyzed at home, too. The hallucinations will go away once the drugs finish working their way through my system.
With a deep breath, I allow my heavy lids to close and try once more to focus inward while not falling asleep. The fog in my brain feels like I’m pushing through molasses, making it harder to concentrate.
I’ve been at this for days, struggling to discover my magical affinity, but nothing clicks. It’s as if I’m trying to unlock a door without the key. If not for the magic I’ve performed in the past, I’d think I wasn’t a witch at all. It’s frustrating that I can only access my power with someone else leading or on instinct.
The swish of the plastic curtain jerks me upright once more, and I glance over to see Aspen striding toward me.
His icy-blue eyes hold a mingling of hope and impending disappointment. “Were you just sleeping?”
“No.” I shift uncomfortably on the cushion. “But I’m pretty sure I wasn’t meditating, either. Slow breathing is just boring.”
“You need to focus.” Impatience tinges his voice. “The magic is inside you, but you’ll never find it if you keep resisting.”
My fingers dig into my thighs, my frustration threatening to erupt. “I’m not resisting. I’ve been trying every day, but nothing happens. Maybe my magic only works with other witches involved.”
Aspen pinches the bridge of his nose, like I’m giving him a headache. “Magic isn’t reliant on other people. Yes, covens combine power to perform larger spells, but that only works because each witch brings magic of their own to the circle. You just need to learn to focus.”
My teeth clench. “I am focusing.”
“No, you’re napping,” he snaps. “Do you even want to be a witch? Because your lack of dedication makes me question why I’m even here.”
