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Panic bloomed in my chest and the increasing dread that followed filled my heart. I caught my cousin’s pale blonde hair across the room as she sank to her knees in front of the metal tub full of apples. Several of her friends cheered her on as she lowered her face into the water and began to bob for an apple.
Stop! I wanted to scream but she wouldn’t hear me above the raging metal music blasting from the speakers.
Everything around me happened in slow motion as I headed in her direction. Gabriel’s growl. Damian’s eyes flashing red as he raced ahead of me. Ryder’s gasp of horror. No matter how fast I ran, I couldn’t seem to reach her quickly enough. My heart clenched in my chest as bile rose in my throat.
The ache in my head returned along with a piercing pain that shot down my back. I fought against the urge to collapse as every nerve in my spine spasmed. My limbs deadened and I treaded through a thick sludge of invisible muck. Someone tried to prevent me from reaching Gypsy.
The unknown witch!
“Gypsy!”
My agonized scream for my cousin bellowed throughout the entire house during a lull between songs.
Gypsy’s feet dug into the thin carpet. In total horror, I realized she couldn’t lift her head out of the water.
Her fingers clenched the rim of the tub as she began to thrash her head. The toes of her boots slid along the floor as her legs tried to find traction while she slipped and slid but couldn’t pull away. Fluid splashed over the side of the metal tub, spilling onto the hardwood floors. Still submerged, her panic matched my own. Air bubbles rose to the surface of the water.
Gypsy was going to drown!
“NO!” I yelled as the panic burst free from my chest. My hands rose as I felt the dark energy swirling in the room, creating a vortex that sucked in all the power from every witch and immortal in the vicinity. A vile malicious power tiptoed across my skin, and I resisted the urge to shudder.
For the first time, I could picture the spell in front of me, the black magic incantation used to force Gypsy underwater. Why it appeared in front of me now, I didn’t know.
There were so many layers to the spell, woven with fine intricate stitches that sealed the murderous intent of the weaver. It only took a second for me to spot a weakness in the spell, one loose thread that I reached forward and pulled, yanking with every ounce of strength that remained in my body.
Vaguely aware of the hiss and screech of dismay as I disabled the spell, I didn’t dare stop. Dark energy surrounded my weak frame, seeking a new host with the disruption of the incantation and I moaned slightly with the effort it took to control the remainder of my shields. Pulling. Tearing. I kept going, refusing to allow my cousin’s death.
Biting my lip from the effort, I tasted blood, fighting against the attacker that equally fought me and Gypsy. A shriek followed, releasing Gypsy as I felt the witch shift focus. I became the only target. My body felt battered and bruised as I shifted my efforts into keeping the evil entity from ripping my body apart. Pummeling strikes bashed against my skull. My shields cracked and pulsed as my aura flickered.
In the background, I heard male voices and the wonderful sound of Gypsy coughing and sputtering next to me. Someone carefully placed her on the ground.My cousin was alive.The relief was short-lived. I saved her, but this wasn’t over. My body jolted, far too weakened by the witch’s attack. Warm fluid trickled from my nose as my eyes rolled back in my head.
There was only darkness . . .
“CASSANDRA.”
The familiar malevoice echoed in my head, desperate to make contact. Darkness engulfed everything in a thick haze that nothing could penetrate until a tiny flickering light appeared.
Stretching my hands outward, I tried to reach the protective shield of the light, a reflection of the wolf shifter and his presence. His voice faded, but the light zipped around as if lost in a dark tunnel, bumping into the soot-colored walls surrounding us.
Lost. So lost. How could I break free?
“Cassie, please. Come back.”
I knew Gabriel was here, but I couldn’t find him. The air, the vacant space around me, everything was so heavy and thick and oppressive. What if I couldn’t find my way out?
“I’m sorry, sweetness. Forgive me.” His voice drew closer but not enough for me to tell which path to follow as numerous pathways appeared.
“Gabriel?” Fear of the unknown caused my voice to wobble. Was I safe? Was I dying?
Why was it so dark and cold?
“Come back to me, my sweet.” Gabriel’s deep voice rumbled the ground beneath my feet. “I’m here. Reach out. I’ll find you.”
“GABRIEL!” I screamed his name, but none of the pathways led me to the Lycan. Stumbling in the dark, I feared I’d become lost forever.
The empty void stretched out, reaching far into the endless nothing in every direction.
“Cassandra!” One moment I was alone and the next . . . he appeared right by my side.
