And then there was screaming.
The screaming was something out of a horror film.
“What’s happening?” Emersyn yelled over the pained wailing.
I shook my head. I don’t know. It was chaos and terror. People were trying to flee the scene, but that black smoke covered everything. It wrapped around people’s legs and slithered up their bodies. Everywhere it touched…their bodies began to melt. What were once legs were now turning to dark liquid.
Willow gasped from behind me. “What is happening to them?!”
Rebecca shrieked and dropped to her knees. She swatted at her legs and feet, but they were disappearing before my eyes. “ELLIS!” Her voice was rough and high-pitched.
My heart was pounding. My body was begging me to move, to do something to help them. But I couldn’t. It was over. The damage was done. This wasn’t real; it was just a memory.
John leapt through the smoke to land right behind his young son. His whole body was turning black, but that didn’t stop him from scooping Little-Ellis up into his arms. Little-Ellis was screaming, and it was too much to bear. But I had to watch. This was my penance. He managed to get himself and Little-Ellis over to Rebecca, but then he just dropped like a lead weight. They wrapped what was left of their arms around each other, squeezing Little-Ellis between them.
I had to look away. Even though I knew they lived, it was too much.
“Goddess,” Tegan whispered.
The screaming escalated until it was piercing my eardrums.
Oh, Goddess. No!
But there was nothing I could do. Nothing any of us could do. These people were wailing and desperately trying to get free, but they were melting into puddles. My father was running all around, trying to help people. My mother was shouting spells in that angelic tongue. She spun in circles with a panicked look in her eyes. Neither of them was melting or in any kind of pain even though the black smoke was all over them.
Just then, my mother threw runes onto the ground. People stopped melting and turned into shadows.
“This isn’t me! I didn’t do this!” my mom shouted.
Little-Haven landed right in front of us with Little-me in his arms. We were perfectly fine, unscathed and well. But I remembered being terrified of this moment. I remembered this gave me nightmares, even after my memory was taken. Little-Haven grabbed my arm and dragged me toward our father. Dad scooped us up and rushed to Ruth’s side. The four of us were the only people there who hadn’t fallen victim.
With Haven and me perched on each hip, Dad ran to Mom. “RUTH!”
“I have to contain this!”
Dad glanced around with fear in his eyes. “What is it?”
“Dark magic,” Mom growled.
“HOW?”
She didn’t answer him. She dropped to her knees with that black smoke still swirling around her. She pulled a dagger out of her boot then slammed the blade into the ground. A golden bubble dome exploded around the clearing, trapping the black smoke inside. She screamed a spell, one I’d never heard before.
Then she pulled another dagger from her boot, and this one had a small bluish stone in the hilt— I gasped. It looked exactly like Haven’s dagger—except without the stone.
“Is that…my dagger?” Haven made a weird, strangled groan. “How?”
Working faster than I could process, Mom somehow plucked the crystal out of the hilt…and it looked exactly like the crystal of Haven’s pendulum but bigger. It’s like George’s big brother.
“Dude!” Easton yelled.
“Is that the Spirit Stone?” Willow cried. “I don’t understand.”
Mom held the stone in her hand and closed her eyes. “Bury thyself within this earth, until my dagger returns to rebirth.” Then she slammed the bluish crystal straight into the ground, and it disappeared.
Haven pulled out his own dagger and held it up…and it was the exact same one. “H-how?”
Uncle Timothy cleared his throat. “I may have made sure Kessler had her dagger and suggested he give it to you.”
I gasped.
Haven groaned. “She had the Spirit Stone? You knew? How?”
“No, that I did not know. I swear.”
Mom jumped back up. She spun in circles, clutching her locket and mumbling spells.
“Ruth?”
She turned to Dad with tears in her eyes. “This is what my father saw.”
Dad paled. “What do you mean?”
Mom groaned and tugged on her hair. “You were there. You heard my father! He warned us we would not live to see our children grow older.”
Dad shook his head. “You don’t know that this is it.”
A tear slid down Mom’s cheek. “I wish you were right, but I know in my heart you’re not. We won’t survive the night.”
Dad turned sheet white. He pulled Haven and me into his chest. “And them?”
“My brother will know what to do… He always does.” Mom shuddered. “Come. There are things we must set in motion before Julian comes for us.”
Then the hologram faded.
Uncle Timothy let out a strangled groan. Haven’s breathing hitched.
And I bloody lost it.
Tears exploded from my eyes. I sobbed. It was Joseph! “That bastard!”
This whole time and it was really Joseph’s fault. I couldn’t believe it. He’d tricked everyone. That black smoke was dark magic, and it had come from him. My throat was raw and burning, and my ears rang. In the back of my mind, I knew I was screaming, but I couldn’t stop it.
It was Joseph.
He did this.
He did this to us.
Uncle Timothy jumped in front of me and grabbed my shoulders. But I heard myself cursing Joseph and screaming. I felt Jackson squeeze my hand, but I was lost to the pain of this moment. It was too much. I was too upset. Joseph needed to pay for this.
And then Haven gripped my elbows and dragged me into his chest…and I lost my battle. I fell apart in my brother’s arms.
Chapter Fifty-Five
Bettina
It was Joseph.
He was the reason it had gone wrong, the reason my family was taken from me. The reason my parents died. The reason I was hidden away and had my appearance changed. The reason I hadn’t seen my brother for twelve years. The reason my poor uncle lost everyone in one night.
I will have my vengeance.
Joseph will pay for this.
But I needed to be strong in order to do that. So I pulled away from Haven and wiped at the mess of tears on my face. My eyes were throbbing and my throat burned. It felt like an elephant was sitting on my chest. I had to push through. I felt my brother’s eyes on me, but I couldn’t look at him or I’d fall apart even more. I took a deep, shaky breath, and that familiar Christmassy scent filled my lungs. Jackson.
I threw my hand out behind me, and my fingers found the soft cotton of his navy sweater. I fisted the material and pulled him toward me…and then my face was buried in his chest. He wrapped his arms around my shoulders and squeezed me tight. The slow, steady beat of his heart pounded through our now-complete soulmate glyph, and it actually helped calm mine down. I focused on his pulse and tried to match my breathing to his.
“So, what’s the plan now?” Emersyn said softly.
I turned and pressed my back to Jackson’s chest. Then looked to Haven.
He nodded to me. “He’ll pay for what he’s done.”
“How?” Cooper put his hands on his hips and shook his head. “How do we do that?”
Jackson sighed. “Well, we know now that Joseph used dark magic to alter the spell.”
Royce threw his hands up. “Yeah, but we don’t know what the dark magic spell was.”
Tegan shrugged. “Not yet, but we can find out. There’s a dark magic spell I can do—”
“NO!” everyone screamed at the same time.
Tegan arched one eyebrow. “Feels kinda like mutiny, but okay.”
Haven shook his head. “Babe, just no
. You know you can’t touch dark magic.”
Tegan narrowed her eyes. “I’m in control of myself, y’all.”
“T, you can’t.” Henley stepped forward. “That was different. That was demons, and you were in control. We don’t know what Joseph is capable of or willing to do. We can’t risk you right now.”
Uncle Tim nodded. “I can tell you from my time with him, Joseph knows a ton of dark magic. Things he shouldn’t know. It’s not worth it.”
Hunter eyed his daughter. “I know you think you’re an adult, but I’m definitely gonna pull the parent card on this one. You’re not doing it.”
Devon nodded and crossed her arms over her chest. “Same.”
Tegan sighed. “FINE. But someone has to do it, so who’s going to volunteer? Not Henley. Not Tenn. Not Bettina.”
Emersyn shook her head. “Not me.”
Everyone looked at her then shuddered.
“Agreed. Not you.” Deacon put his elbow on Em’s shoulder and leaned into her. He grinned. “Y’all, I got this. Dark magic comes with my territory.”
Lennox stepped up. “Um, right, so not to spoil the Devil’s playtime, but I think for this spell, we need a pentagram.”
Henley pointed to her. “One hundred percent yes. I will definitely be one of the five.”
Everyone turned to Haven.
He sighed and scrubbed his face. “Okay, Deacon and Henley. And Lennox, since she clearly knows her shit. But we need two more so…”
“I’ll do it,” Jackson said from behind me.
Everyone jumped and spun to face him. I turned and looked up at his face.
“From my understanding, the whole point of the pentagram is to balance the darkness, right?” He shrugged. “Those three all walk the wild side, so we need someone like me in the mix.” Then he looked me in the eyes. “I want to do this.”
Uncle Tim reached out and squeezed his shoulder. “Me too. I’ll hold the last spot.”
Haven nodded and rubbed his hands together. “All right. Yeah, okay. You five do it.”
Warner cleared his throat and raised his hand like we were in class. “Um, excuse me, but are the rest of us safe to be here while ya’ do this? I’ve done enough playing with Joseph’s magic, ‘kay, thanks.”
Tegan chuckled. “B, dome us.”
I frowned. “What?”
She waved her hands in an arch over her head. “Make one of your domes around the rest of us so we’ll be protected.”
My eyes widened, and I stood tall. “Oh. Right. Brilliant. Yes, okay. I can do that.”
Haven nodded. “But Hope and I are gonna stand outside the dome.”
“Umm, isn’t that dangerous?” Warner asked with a frown, like Haven was crazy for suggesting it.
Haven shook his head. “You saw.”
“Haven’s right. If that dark magic didn’t hurt us then, we should be fine now.” I pulled my sword out of its holster on my hip. “And if it’s not, Tegan will get us out.”
“Damn straight,” she mumbled.
Kessler pursed his lips. “And Deacon, you know how to do this dark spell?”
Deacon tapped on his temple. “Queen of Darkness has already told it to me. I got this.”
Emersyn cursed and fisted his shirt, then dragged his lips down to hers. A second later, she shoved him back with a groan, then spun away and marched off without a word. Her long platinum blonde hair whipped around in the wind as she walked over to stand behind me.
Deacon chuckled and shook his head. His violet eyes sparkled with delight. “I love you, too, Buttercup.”
Constance smiled. “All right. Let’s get going on this. Everyone else behind Bettina.”
My stomach tightened into knots. No pressure, dudette. If my dome didn’t hold up, my friends could get hurt—or worse. And if that wasn’t bad enough, my own soulmate and my uncle were taking part in the spell. If something went wrong… No, stop that. Nothing is going to go wrong. Manifest positivity, Bettina.
I swallowed my nerves and pushed my shoulders back as my Coven-mates—and Warner—gathered behind me. Deacon, Henley, and Lennox were walking to the other side of the clearing, just to be on the safe side. Their backs were to me, but all three of them stood tall and confident. If they weren’t nervous, then I had no reason to be either. Right? Right. I think. Maybe. No, yes, right. UGH.
Uncle Timothy walked by me to follow them. I reached out and grabbed his wrist. When he glanced back at me, my eyes started to water.
“Be careful,” I whispered.
He smiled and gave me a wink, then squeezed my hand. “I will.”
As he passed, Haven stopped him, too. I had a feeling the three of us were going to be overly cautious with each other for a long while. We’d only just gotten each other back. Hell, we thought Uncle Timothy had died. I’d seen him die. In my arms. I looked down at my hands, and in my mind I still saw his blood on my fingers. I shuddered.
Jackson stopped in front of me and tipped my chin up with his finger. “You going to be okay while I do this?”
No. I nodded. I have to be. “Just be careful. If something doesn’t feel right, then—”
“Then you’ll feel it.” He smiled and tapped my chest.
“Right,” I breathed.
He kissed my forehead, then turned and jogged to catch up with the others. My stomach turned and my pulse quickened. Bring your freak-out down a notch, woman. He can feel it, too. I took a deep breath then spun around. My Coven-mates were all huddled together, waiting on me.
“Ready?”
They all nodded.
I tightened my grip on my sword and summoned my magic. It sang through my veins instantly, like it’d been ready and waiting for me to call on it. I felt the energy roll through my body then down into my right arm. I’d never actually thought about this part before; usually I just did it. But I pictured my pink dome in my head, imagining it covering them…then I took a deep breath, swung my sword in an arch, and buried the blade into the ground.
Just like I pictured in my head, a massive pale pink dome appeared out of thin air from where my sword was lodged into the ground. It went up and over their heads, then sank to the ground behind them. I sighed with relief. It worked. They all gave me a thumbs-up. I smiled and turned around.
And found Tegan standing next to Haven.
“TEGAN.” I pointed to my done. “Inside the bubble. NOW.”
“I’m just saying, what if you need me? Maybe I need to be out—”
Haven threw her over his shoulder, leapt…and landed inside my dome. He dropped her onto her ass on the ground. “Stay.” He winked, then leapt back out.
She jumped to her feet and charged to the wall—but Kessler caught her by the elbow.
I laughed and shook my head. “Bad dog.”
Jackson’s pulse fluttered. I gasped and spun around. But he looked fine. I must’ve freaked out because he glanced over to me and smiled. He’s fine, Bettina. Totally fine.
The five of them stood in the shape of a pentagram, each of them standing at one of the five points. Lennox and Henley were explaining something, but they were speaking too softly for me to actually hear the words. The three guys just kept nodding.
Then, Deacon looked over to us. “We ready?”
Haven nodded. “Good to go.”
“Yeah, let’s get this over with,” I mumbled to myself.
I glanced over my shoulder to my dome. My Coven-mates were all watching the five with sharp eyes. I wasn’t the only one worried about this. Tegan was chewing on her thumbnail and bouncing on her feet. Flowers were popping up all over the ground near Royce. Emersyn was twirling her hair around her fingers, the tips of which were covered in little flames. Smoke billowed out around her feet. I knew how she felt. My soulmate was over there, too. I was trying not to watch.
But then Deacon began chanting, and my pulse went nuts.
No, wait.
That’s not mine.
Sure, mine was beating faster than normal, but that sharp
flutter was Jackson. I spun around so fast I actually wobbled a step. He stood at the bottom right point of the pentagram, closest to me. Lennox was directly across from him, and Henley stood on his right side. That made me feel a little better. Those two girls were terrifyingly gifted. I might have been talented at creating my own spells, but they knew every existing spell.
I tried to find solace in that.
But Jackson’s hyper-speed pulse was making my stomach turn. He was nervous. With each word Deacon yelled out, Jackson got more and more tense. I felt his emotions like they were my own, but worse, his were amplifying mine. And I knew he felt that, too. But I couldn’t help it. He was nervous, and now I was freaking out. Our pulses were pounding so loud in my ears I couldn’t even hear the spell Deacon was saying. I knew he was several lines in, so it couldn’t take too much longer.
Deacon’s eyes widened.
“DEACON,” Emersyn hissed from inside the dome.
Just then Jackson’s pulse went crazy. It was beating so fast they were blending into one. My hands were trembling from it. He was panicking.
“Jackson!” I shouted.
His head snapped toward me—and then he gasped. His eyes widened. Panic exploded inside of him, and rippled through my body. I glanced to the others, and they were all making the same shocked face.
Black smoke poured into the clearing from within the trees like a tsunami. It swept through in the blink of an eye. I looked down, and it was coiled around my legs and feet.
A deep, dark laughter echoed from behind the trees…and then Trey emerged from the shadows.
I cursed and tried to charge at him—but my feet wouldn’t move. I pushed and pulled, yet nothing. I couldn’t move my legs. “TREY!”
He threw his head back and laughed then waved his hands in the air, and the black smoke shot up to my neck.
I gasped and my spine straightened. My heart was pounding. My pulse felt like an earthquake ripped through my body. I tried to move my arms, but couldn’t. I was paralyzed from the neck down. I looked to Haven. His big golden wings were out, except he seemed to be struggling as much as I was.
My body gave out and my knees hit the cold, hard ground. I tried to scream, but no sound came out.
The Coven - Academy Magic Complete Series Page 131
