by Holly Ice
‘Once we’re out of this, we’ll tussle over that one.’
I pulled him closer as Inzi, Grim, and other WMCF officers corralled non-sentient and sentient fae into trucks to be cared for and offered a new home.
The captive women and babies had taken my place near the ambulance, the crew triaging them by greatest need. Callum was helping where he could. I hadn’t realised he was here until my injuries were treated.
And Eugene… I stared at the white tent, covering the spot where Russell had killed him.
He’d died on the concrete, but Russell had been caught and spelled into a car, the women were free, and Avery’s fear loosened its hold on my mind which gave me hope one day she might leave me.
Everything had finally come together. From here on, no one could say my spirit powers were a lie. And no one could say there wasn’t corruption at the heart of the witch community.
I smiled. With Inzi and Keller and all those women behind me, a retrial would be impossible. Inzi would make sure the WMCF found Justin’s real killer, and with all I’d done to prove my spirit powers, Keller was sure to back her.
A car bumped down the track behind us, its passengers bobbing up and down on the rough road, two of them pushing against the ceiling to hold themselves in place. Another frowned, probably using air magic.
I nodded to them, and Shane followed my gaze.
‘They’re not WMCF,’ he said.
And they weren’t the coven either. So who else knew what had happened and how to find us?
One of them spotted me and nudged everyone else in the car until they all stared at me, grinning.
They parked up quick and left the doors of the car open, running to the boot and coming towards us with cameras.
Damn it. I’d hoped I’d be long out of here before the press arrived.
Flashes peppered me and Shane until I closed my eyes against his chest. He wrapped his arms around me, his muscles tensing. No doubt he was giving them his best death glare.
‘How did Bianca know where to look?’ One called.
I frowned, the knots in my stomach loosening. They’d used my name rather than Wildes, and the question wasn’t totally hostile.
The flashing stopped, and I peeked again. The four of them were spread a respectable distance back from us, the camera rolling.
‘Can you tell us about your visions?’ the lead woman asked, dressed up for the camera with heavy makeup. ‘Did you get your first hint what was happening when you arrived at the academy, or later?’
‘I…’ I looked to Shane, but he shrugged. He had as much idea about what to do here as me. A soft feeling of gratitude brushed my mind, and then left, a weight lifting from me, and I knew Avery had gone. And that told me exactly what I needed to say. Because as much as we’d won today, as much as we’d revealed, we had a long way to go.
‘Today’s not about me,’ I said, nodding to the women by the ambulance. ‘Those women are the real heroes here. Talk to them. Tell their stories.’
* * *
Thank you for reading A Dangerous Witch. I hope you enjoyed the read and that the characters grew on you as much as they did me.
If you’d like to know more about Shane – his family life, his accident, and his gap year – you can read his prequel story here: http://tiny.cc/3kpnqz
And if you’ve enjoyed this series, please consider leaving a review to help other readers decide if this series is for them: http://tiny.cc/6lpnqz
Thanks again.
Holly
Acknowledgements
My greatest thanks goes to my designer, Mary at MiblArt, for creating such a beautiful book cover, to my copyeditor, Emmy at StudioENP, and to all my friends who have read and given feedback to improve this story: Mae, Ellen, Francisco, Polly, Daphne, Lisa, Alex, Ian, Kaz, and Maddy. This book wouldn’t be half as good without you.
About the Author
I’m based in the rural outskirts of Bristol in south-west England. I live with two adopted cats with a dose of Maine Coon, a boyfriend of many years, and an overactive imagination. I write speculative fiction (fantasy, sci-fi, and horror), often with a touch of romance. But I spend a lot of my time reading, and binge watching TV series. I also attempt to garden and go running regularly, but often fall short on that score. Oops!
Links to my main social media hot spots are below.
Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Holly-Ice/e/B00BEJZW04
Author website:
https://www.hollyice.co.uk/
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/HollyIceTheAuthor/
GoodReads:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7098210.Holly_Ice
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