Although I couldn’t see my captor, I sensed him to my left. A cold object was slowly pressed against my temple as a strong arm wrapped around my chest, pulling me tight against a hard male body. Squealing, I resisted the urge to cry out for Antony.
“Nick wants to stop you and your soul-match. The easiest thing to do is to kill lover boy.”
I shivered again, unable to stop my body from reacting to the hard whispered voice. Antony couldn’t die. There was no way I could live if he wasn’t with me. It had taken us a moment to realise that our feelings for each other were ingrained from many lifetimes. Now I knew, I wasn’t going to give him up.
“Don’t kill him, kill me,” I said calmly. “Nick won’t have to worry about dealing with me ever again if I’m gone. You’ll be a hero if you do that.”
His muscles stiffened at my words. Had he taken the bait?
Stepping back, he hauled me away from Bev. She was out cold on the floor, her chest rising. At least she was still alive.
“I’ve got Derek,” Antony called from one of the rooms.
My mouth opened to reply. The pressure of the gun increased against my head so I clamped it shut again. I was surprised Antony didn’t know that I was in danger. According to the grimoire, we should be able to feel how the other person felt, even if they were miles away.
“When he comes out, I’m going to shoot him, and then I’ll shoot you,” the man told me.
Trying to pull air into my lungs, I licked my lips, struggling to get enough oxygen. If I could ignite my magic, maybe I could ice him the same way I had Nick.
“You should just kill me and get it over with. My brothers are big men and they have weapons. If they see you, they’ll kill you.”
His arm weakened slightly. I still couldn’t place who he was as the fear of death vibrated through his body.
“Nick told me that he couldn’t kill you.”
“No, he can’t kill me, but you can. Whatever you do, make it quick. Nick tried to drown me once. It really scared me… he was so annoyed he couldn’t finish me off.”
Lying was easy when I was around the warlocks. The others were taking their time to return to us for some reason. Plus, I had to distract him. If he killed Antony, the mission to build the last witch coven would be over before it even began.
Swearing to himself, he started to drag me out of the front door. I looked back at Bev, hoping she would come round soon. She could escape or find my brothers, who would take care of her.
The man closed the door behind him and put his hand on my shoulder to guide me.
“Over there.” He nudged the back of my head with the end of the gun, pushing me towards the lake.
He couldn’t see my face so he didn’t see the smile that I couldn’t hold back. Men were gullible. I would play along, pretending to be scared, although the shake of my hands wasn’t fake. There was a lot at stake.
“No, please don’t! If you’re going to kill me, just shoot me, please,” I cried.
“Shut up and get a move on,” he hissed, hitting me on the head with the butt of the gun when I tried to glance back. “And don’t look at me. You have no idea how much grief you’ve caused me.”
As pain lanced through my brain, I gritted my teeth. My plan had better work. I was being sincere when I told him that I would rather die than live without Antony. If I died, it didn’t matter. As long as Antony lived.
Wait, I had caused my captor grief. Who could it be?
When we approached the lake, he took a deep breath. “Nick’s going to be so pleased. And I get to feel you die.”
About to fake plead one last time, I winced when he hit me again. What a sick bastard. No, he wouldn’t get to feel me die. No one would.
About to spin, I grunted when he wrapped his other arm around me and rushed forward. We pitched into the lake, falling together.
A shout came from the house just before my head disappeared underwater. Hopefully, Antony caught on to what I was doing and allowed me to get on with it.
The water swallowed us quickly. The warlock’s arms released me, giving me freedom to twist and face my enemy. Fierce heat pulsed through me as I saw the face of the man who wanted to kill me. Daniel’s gaze met mine, his eyes wide under the water. Screaming, I blew out bubbles as he grabbed my arm and tugged me down. He had betrayed me in so many ways. He had even threatened Antony. I wasn’t going to let him get away with it.
Smiling manically, I breathed in and out, pushing the water from my lungs. Daniel’s eyes widened even more, his arms flailing when he realised that I wasn’t drowning. He looked up and tried to kick to the surface. Shaking my head, I pulled on his black jumper until he was near me. Wrapping my arms around his waist, I linked them together. He struggled against me, trying to wrench himself free from my grasp. I wouldn’t let go. I would never let him threaten us again.
“Penny…!”
The muffled shout came from above as something splashed in the water next to me. Turning, I faced Antony, who had landed beside us. He grabbed my wrist, pulling on it to unlock my arms. I frowned at him in question. Why did he want me to let go? The warlock was our enemy, one who would kill him in an instant. He shook his head, his forehead creasing as he gestured for me to let go.
Daniel stopped struggling, his body going still. I glanced up to see that his eyes had closed. Heart thudding loudly in my ears, I let go of the warlock.
Antony opened his mouth and water rushed into it, choking him. What was he doing? The sharp intake of water would make him drown.
Crying out, I wrapped my arms around my soul-match, trying to draw him nearer as his eyes widened in shock. I had to help him to breathe. His eyes fluttered closed when I placed my mouth over his. Crap, it was too late. Looking up, I kicked as hard as I could, pulling him to the surface with me.
“Give him here,” Lee called as soon as our head’s came into view.
Grabbing hold of Antony’s T-shirt, he lifted him out of the water effortlessly.
My stomach churned as Theo offered me his hand and helped me out of the lake. Lee laid Antony on the ground and started to pump his chest, trying to force the water out of his lungs.
“Antony, please…!” I begged, scrambling to kneel beside him.
His eyes were closed and his short hair was plastered to his head. Why had he tried to save Daniel? He should’ve stayed above water, safe from harm.
A rush of water sounded nearby. Glancing up, I watched Theo. His hand was outstretched towards the lake. The water rose high, dragging Daniel up to the surface and washing him onto the grass before slinking back into the lake. Theo could manipulate the elements to do as he pleased. His elemental power was getting stronger.
Lee pulled away from Antony, panting loudly as he shook his head. Shoving him out of the way, I leant down, placed my mouth over Antony’s and breathed into him. Inhaling sharply, I kept my mouth tight around Antony’s and pulled hard with my lungs. The water in his throat rushed up his windpipe and into my mouth. Spitting it out, I rubbed his back as he rolled onto his side, spluttering the rest of it out. A low groan came from his throat as he glanced at me, his blue eyes bright considering he had almost drowned.
“Why did you stop me?” I asked.
He wiped my hair out of my face. “You’re not a murderer. You’re pure and beautiful. I couldn’t watch you kill someone. It would haunt you for the rest of your life.”
A choking sound made us look over to where Theo was helping Daniel. Lee joined them, his footsteps sloshing in the wet grass. The warlock was still alive. I didn’t know whether to be relieved or sad.
A pang of regret flushed through me. Antony was right, I wasn’t like Nick. We were trying to bring back pure magic, not add to the darkness. A good witch was always a happy witch, that’s what Mother had said. Although, she hadn’t ended up as good as she’d preached.
“What happened?” Antony looked down at the huge puddle underneath us.
“Theo happened,” I whispered, leaning down to h
im. “I almost lost you. I don’t ever want to lose you.”
Snaking his arms around me, he pulled me onto his chest. I went willingly, not caring about the others as my skin tingled all over.
“You’re never going to lose me. I’m the trapped heart that Lee was talking about – except, the misery streaks were worth it. Now all I feel is you.”
Smiling, I dropped my face to his and kissed him gently. Lighting literally came from the sky and fried us. Okay, so not quite, but my whole body shook from the intensity of our kiss. Something cracked inside me and tears pushed out of my eyes, dropping onto Antony’s cheeks.
“What was that?” he asked when I lifted my head. “I feel different.”
Licking my lips, I grinned at the taste of him. “I think we just broke the first part of the curse.”
Our happiness was short lived. The others restrained Daniel as he tried to break free, swearing loudly in our direction.
Father was still gone and my other siblings had to find their human matches to ignite their witch blood in order to break the rest of the curse. My heart sank, beating slowly in my chest.
“It’s okay,” Antony said, stroking a finger down my cheek. “We will bring magic back again.”
I was warmed by the gaze of my soul-match as he stared at me, our breath completely synchronised. We had a long way to go until there were more witch covens in the world, but I could cope with anything with him by my side.
Chapter Twenty Two
The breath on my ear tickled me awake. I stretched my body, grinning when Antony’s bare skin brushed against mine.
We had arrived back at the townhouse the night before, exhausted and frustrated that we hadn’t found Father.
“I told you that I would still be here in the morning,” he whispered.
I was lying on my front, my arm tucked under the pillow. My head faced away from him. He lay against my back, his arm wrapped around my waist.
“I’m not really surprised,” I muttered against the pillow as sleep started to fade. “I did make it worthwhile.”
He went still and I chuckled.
“You surprise me more every day, you know that?”
Nodding, I wiggled against him, sighing contently. His hand travelled up the length of my arm and under the pillow. He tugged gently, revealing my wrist. The blue bracelet was no longer frayed. My heart did a happy little dance. I hadn’t noticed it mend itself. It looked brand new.
“This reminds me that what we are is real,” he murmured, running his thumb over the small charm.
“I wonder what type of elemental witch you’ll be. Have you ever been drawn to any elements?” I asked, savouring the feel of him as he pressed his body to mine in a slow stretch.
“Water, I suppose,” he mumbled, rolling away from me.
Spinning as he got up and started to pull on his jeans, I eyed the muscles on his chest, my gaze tracing the few hairs that led down from his bellybutton.
“You’re just copying!” I laughed.
Shaking his head, he raised his eyebrows at me. “Don’t be so silly. As a matter of fact… I have always loved swimming.”
I giggled as he chucked his shirt at me.
“Of course you have, that’s why you’ve almost drowned twice,” I said, winking as I threw it back.
He jumped on the bed, burying his fingers under the duvet to tickle me. Struggling against him, I laughed loudly, pushing his chest half-heartedly. He finally let go when I snorted and my fingers turned ice cold.
Looking down, he took one of my hands. “Maybe you’ll be able to harness your magic now.”
“Hopefully,” I replied, studying my blue fingertips.
Leaning down, Antony traced my jaw with little butterfly kisses. “I think we better get going. The others will start—”
“Lovebirds…! Get out here, will you? We’ve been waiting ages,” Derek called from the other side of the door.
Derek and Bev had joined us at the townhouse after the attack. We’d left them chatting with my siblings after they promised to take care of them until Father returned.
“I was enjoying our peace,” I said as Antony kissed my forehead and got up. “Where are you going?”
“If I stay and watch you get dressed, we’ll never leave this room.”
Laughing as he left, I dragged myself out of bed. A warm glow vibrated from me. No matter how hard I tried to remember who I was before I had fallen in love, I couldn’t bring back that girl. I felt whole. As if someone had put my soul back together.
I smirked at the airy fairy thought. It was exactly what had happened.
“Don’t take too long,” Antony called through the door.
Sighing, I forced myself to get showered. It was time to face the real world again. We had locked ourselves away for the night, enjoying a moment to ourselves. However, no matter how in love I was, there were still important things to be done. We had only just started.
Every couple that managed to unite had to harness their magic in order to help the other witches find their match so the warlocks could be defeated.
My stomach clenched as an image of my father came into my mind. He was still with Nick. Although the boys had continued to search for him, there’d been no joy.
“Penny…! Come on, will you?” Clarie called when I came out of the en-suite.
Running my hands through my knotted hair, I shook my head and glanced in the mirror. My brown eyes were bright, almost twinkling. I was different. I could feel the pulse of the earth pumping through me, the magic calling the witch blood in my veins.
“I’m coming!” I yelled when someone thumped on the door.
Opening it, I pretended to scowl. Clarie hopped from one foot to the other, a beaming smile on her face. She grabbed my hand and dragged me to the kitchen, ignoring my attempt at humour.
A party popper exploded as I came into the room, making me jump. Laughing, I held up my arms as they all started to sing happy birthday.
“I only let them do one party popper. I know you can’t stand too much fuss,” Clarie said when the song had finished.
Birthdays were big occasions in our house. We celebrated all eight in excellent style.
“You need to blow out your candles,” Theo said, putting his arm around me and giving me a squeeze. I smiled up at him and stepped forward to do just that, my long breath extinguishing the flames in one go.
“Did you make a wish?” Clarie asked, linking arms with me.
“She doesn’t need a wish, she needs to pass them on to us,” Lee said.
Punching him lightly on the arm, I glanced up to see Antony among my brothers and sisters. He watched me with a grin on his face.
His tongue flicked out to lick his lips when our gaze met and my cheeks heated. They must have been bright red. Luckily, the others were so wrapped up in talking, they didn’t notice.
“Time for the birthday breakfast. The lovebirds have been at it for so long, the bacon’s gone cold,” Alex announced, putting eggs in the microwave for scrambling.
“Nothing wrong with cold bacon,” I said as the others came around the table and hugged me.
When Guy embraced me, he pointed at the cake. His aftershave was so strong, it tickled my nose.
They had decorated the cake with the same water symbol stamped on my bracelet. A lump came to my throat when I read the small iced sentence.
The first of the Last Witch Coven to unite with her soulmate.
Blinking rapidly, I tried to hold back the tears. The others kept an eye on me, waiting for me to break down.
“I told you she would cry,” Theo said, “you insisted that she would be okay.”
He was talking to Lee, who shrugged. The tears ran down my cheeks as I watched my siblings squabble.
“Thanks everyone. I love you all.”
They patted my back as they helped themselves to the English breakfast that Alex and Lee had prepared.
“Eat heartily,” Alex called. “We need to get back to the search
as soon as you’ve finished!”
“Yes, we’ve also got to go through all this hassle again soon, don’t we, Alex?” Lee teased as he left the room.
“Yep, your turn next!” Theo joined in.
Alex shook his head as he picked up a steaming mug of tea. “No, chance. I’m not ready for that,” he said, gesturing at me as I wiped my eyes.
Theo laughed, raising his eyebrows as he turned to follow Lee into the living room. “You haven’t got a choice, mate. I give it a few months. It’s pre-destined. You’re going to be whipped very soon.”
Alex scoffed as he moved past us, squeezing my shoulder as I tried to sniff away the tears. I grinned as he walked away backwards and gestured a crazy circle next to his ear. The others were right, it was his turn next.
“I love that about you,” Antony whispered in my ear as he snaked an arm around my waist.
Leaning into him, I wiped my face on his shirt.
“Although, I’m not so sure about that,” he grumbled, making me laugh. “You look beautiful when you cry. It’s who you are and it’s amazing. I think I love you.”
The room was quiet. Everyone had gone into the living room to give us a little privacy while they ate. They knew me well, and although it sometimes annoyed me, it actually meant I could be who I was.
“I love that you’re a kick-arse witch now.”
“Don’t.” He shook his head and put his finger over my lips.
“Sorry.”
He was trying to be romantic, which was something I wasn’t used to. I had never been any good at receiving compliments either.
“Nick is going to throw us crap to try and break us apart,” I said.
Lowering his head, he kissed me so gently, I hardly felt it until his tongue darted out and traced my lips.
“We’ve already been through a lot. We’re still here, aren’t we? Plus, our bond is unbreakable now.”
My lips curved into a grin as I moved my head forward and caught his bottom lip in my teeth. If he wanted to tease, I could play that game.
He breathed in deeply, the rush of air echoing around us. Letting his lip go, I looked into his eyes. “I love you, Antony, and I’m never letting you go,” I whispered.
Chasing Magic: The Last Witch Coven Book 1 Page 21
