“Go again.” He crosses his hands over his chest, leaning against the tree trunk.
“This is pointless. I am getting nowhere.”
“That’s because you’re not concentrating.”
I glare at him, wiping the sweat from my forehead. “Oh I think I am concentrating plenty.”
“Close your eyes and picture it, again.”
He’s so bossy.
“Do you have it?”
I nod, keeping my eyes closed.
“I want you to imagine it coursing through your veins, from your toes, to your fingertips. Taste the magic on your tongue. Feel the magic spreading through your body - do you have it?” I want to tell him, again, that there’s no point to this. Clearly, it’s just not working. But I keep my lips pressed together and do exactly what he tells me to.
“Now let it out.”
I do. I let that feeling radiate throughout my entire body, letting it hum in my mind as I will it to release. The slight burn of it kissing my fingertips makes my eyes fly open and a small spark of electricity dances on the tips, only to fade fairly quickly.
Ashton curses under his breath.
“Adylin.”
“I’m sorry, I really am trying.”
He pinches his nose. “I know. We just have so very little time and this isn’t working.”
“I already said that,” I groan.
Ashton shakes his head. “Cameron!”
Cam dips his head out the door. “Yeah?”
“Come here a minute, will yeah?”
My boyfriend jogs over to us, a slight smile across his gorgeous features; my heart warms just looking at him. I can never quite understand how I managed to be so lucky to have him in my life. He’s been my anchor through all this. My mind drifts back to the first day I met him, I had been so scared to let him into my life. I thought he would think of me as a ‘freak’ like the rest of the school did, but he never thought like that. Cam believed in me even when I didn’t believe in myself and nothing I said made him think of me as crazy or completely insane. He always pushed me to come to terms with who and what I am. Now, even knowing that I have to dip into that part of myself that harnesses black magic to stop the Black Witches from destroying our home as we know it, he still looks at me with those same adorable eyes full of love and admiration.
What would I do without him?
The two of them speak in hushed tones, Cameron glancing my way every now and again as I wait patiently for them to finish their little bro romance.
“Earth to Cam and Ashton.” I tease, “What’s the game plan because I am growing old over here.”
But neither one answers me and I begin to grow impatient, pacing back and forth in the backyard of the cabin.
Eventually, Ashton stalks over. “We’re going to try this another way.”
“Oookay?” I draw the word out, a little nervous by the tone of his voice.
Cameron moves to stand in front of the tree, his shoulders squared and, Ashton, turns to face him. “You have twenty minutes to harness your powers, before I use mine on Cameron.”
My eyes widen. “What? No!”
“You can do this, baby,” Cam encourages.
“This is crazy! You can’t think I am going to go for this, did you?”
Ashton shrugs. “We are running out of time and right now, it’s the only option we have.”
“You’re not going to hurt him Ashton or I swear to -”
“What are you going to do, Adylin?”
My hands clench at my side. “You’re just like your mother.”
He doesn’t seem affected by my words. “No, I’m smarter and I am not afraid to do what is necessary to make this work, time starts now.”
I throw my hands in the air. “I can’t just make it happen on command!”
“Stop overthinking it.”
“Overthinking it? You are threatening to hurt my boyfriend if I can’t harness my dark magic,” My attention shifts to Cam. “And you’re just going to let him?”
He offers a small smile, “I trust you.”
“But can you honestly trust him?”
“No.” that doesn’t help the situation much at all. “But I know that you wouldn’t let anything happen to me. So we’re doing this.”
I know that I can’t argue; it’s clear that they’ve already made up their minds. If I don’t do anything, Ashton could put Cameron in grave danger. I take a deep breath, trying to settle the anger inside of me.
“Times counting down, Adylin.” Ashton reminds me, his eyes never shifting from Cam.
I close my eyes and do exactly what he told me to do, this time pushing harder but only coming out with the same outcome. “This isn’t going to work!”
“Ten seconds.”
“Ashton, don’t!”
Cameron begins to look nervous.
I can’t control the anger that pulses through me, I want to blow up on him for even thinking of this crazy idea. What makes him think that threatening my boyfriend is going to trigger some deeper part of myself. It’s completely nuts!
“Five.”
“Four.”
My heart quickens, my nails digging into the inside of my hands. “Don’t” I beg.
He glances over at me. “Three.”
“Adylin,” Cameron warns.
“Fine!” I growl, my eyes squeeze shut and I concentrate, my mind wrapping around the energy that I feel inside of myself, willing it to come forth. The surge of power trails through my body, kissing every nerve ending as I will it through my fingers.
“Two.”
My anger only intensifies.
My boyfriend shuts his eyes, willing himself to stay put, I know this by peeking through my squeezed eyes and knowing that if I don’t act fast, he’ll end up at the hands of Ashton’s own dark magic.
I beg my Ancestor to give me the power I need to break through. I will myself to push past the barrel of fear that I held so high and to unleash the power that’s locked somewhere inside of me.
My brow is soaked in sweat, my hands clammy as I hold them out before me, please let this work.
Ashton breathes. “One.”
I turn my blazing eyes in his direction. “Don’t touch him!” I yell, my voice sounding foreign. The sky crackles with thunder as the earth around us shakes, the energy igniting and a cloud of dark mist suspends from my fingertips and straight into Ashtons chest as a scream escapes my parted lips and echoes against the wildness around us.
He gets thrown back toward the cabin, crashing into the window with the sound of shattering glass he comes to a halt as he falls face first onto the porch. The energy is unlike anything I have ever felt before. The power that surges through my entire body feels amazing, like I can master anything. The back door opens and my parents rush out. “What happened?”
Their eyes widen, taking in the massive storm that I've created around us, the sky screeching in anger as lightning strikes the tree inches from the cabin. My mom shrieks, hand falling to her chest.
Ashton groans, pulling himself to his feet with my father's help. “I told you not to touch him.” I growl.
He looks at me with a smirk on his face, a cut lining his jaw. “Now that’s what I am talking about.”
“Adylin?” Cameron asks.
I look over to where he’s standing, his eyes full of bewilderment and confusion. “Your eyes.”
I can feel the magic filling me, the Ancestors voices echoing inside of my head. This is what it feels like to come in tune with who I really am. This is what I have become and the power, the electricity of magic that consumes my very being is unlike anything I have ever felt before. I feel more alive than ever and I knew, at that moment, that Ashton had been right. I am no black witch. I am much more than that. I am a Dream Seeker and I harness the power of my Ancestors, the power to destroy the Black Witches.
I tilt my head to the side, a smile playing at my lips and suddenly, I’m no longer afraid. “I’m ready. We need to bring the Witche
s to us now.”
14
“So, it seems we have missed a little bit of action,” Officer Chris chuckles, as he sits at the dinner table. Aunt Evelyn and Officer Chris arrived into town late the night before. I had been so engrossed in my training with Ashton, I had barey found any time to talk with them. My parents and Cam had filled them in on everything that had been going down since they had left to head back to New Orleans.
To say they were shocked and interested, would be an understatement.
“Just a little,” I tease.
“Maybe we need to be more clear on this matter,” Ashton interrupted, causing all of us to turn and focus on him.
We were all seated around the dinner table, enjoying a nice home cooked lasagna with garlic bread and fresh salad.
As he continued, I glared at him. I had told my family almost everything, but there were still a few things that I had left out.
As he continued, Ashton rolled his eyes at me and then turned so he couldn’t see my facial expressions anymore. “We only have a few days left before the witches will begin their takeover of the world. Adylin needs to use her magic and stop them,” Ashton stated.
He leaned back in his chair, arms crossed across his chest, and a scowl set on his face.
“How dangerous is this?” Aunt Evelyn asked.
It was clear she was still navigating around all of this Dream Catcher magic. I knew it was hard for her to be the last to know things. For so long, she had been my only family. The one person who took me in when we thought my parents had died. Now, she was visiting me and I could sense she felt left out.
“Yes, this is dangerous. But, it’s my duty as the Dream Seeker. I have been preparing for this my entire life-- only I just didn’t know,” I said.
Cam reached under the table and grabbed my hand. Squeezing, he offered me his undying love and support.
“When is this going to happen? Who all will be involved?” Officer Chris asks.
I almost laughed at how he seemed to be interrogating us with his questions.
Before I could open my mouth to speak, Ashton beat me to it.
“Tomorrow night. The witches have been trailing us for weeks. I got the calling this morning that they are near. Ever since I was a little kid, I could sense when the Dark Magic Witches were near. The sensation has been growing and I know they are near,” Ashton said, this time turning and looking at me.
Our eyes locked and there was an unspoken agreement between us.
This was the first I had heard about when everything would go down. While I was upset, he hadn’t thought to tell me this before we had an audience made up of my family, I knew what he was telling me was correct. Ashton was going to risk his life to help me. I owed him everything.
“Did you know about this?” Cam asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
Shaking my head no, I turned and faced him. “No, this is the first I am hearing of this, too. But, what can I do?”
Everyone at the table now stared at me. I knew they were waiting for me to say something--anything.
Scooting my chair back, I stood, placing my hands on the table. “Tomorrow night, I will go out into the woods and meet the witches. Only Ashton and I will be there. The rest of you will remain here. It’s not safe for you all to be out there. I can’t focus if I know any of you are out there and in danger,” I said.
My mind was reeling as fear and worry raced through me.
“Wait, we should be there too. We have dealt with the Dark Magic Witches before,” my dad argued.
“No!” I shouted, surprising everyone, even me. “I lost you and mom once already at the hands of the Dark Magic Witches. I refuse to do that again. You all will stay here,” I stated with finality.
I left the table and raced toward my bedroom. I needed to be alone for the night. Because come tomorrow, the fate of the world would rest on my shoulders.
15
The sun is hidden behind the dark clouds; the smog swirls around our feet as Ashton and I push forward. The further we get from the cabin, the more I feel my family drifting away. The looks on their faces was enough to almost break the last of my resolve and give in to them coming along. But the last thing I want is to put my family in danger. Especially now, this isn’t like rescuing Hailey from the boat or saving my parents. This is much bigger; there are so many lives on the line and one slip up could very well mean the end of the world. The last thing I want is to put more people in danger than I already have. Officer Chris agreed to checking in with us every half hour to set my parents mind at ease. It’s only a matter of time before they call. I remain focused on the task at hand. I have just come to terms with the dark magic swirling around inside of me. With some training, I was able to master it. It’s still very odd for me and knowing that what I am, what I can do, it scares me more than anything ever has. But if I don’t face the truth now, then I never will.
Ashton keeps ahead, his shoulders squared and alert. I listen to every snapped branch and leaf rustling in the distance, my nerves catching up to me. We’re surrounded by the towering trees and the further we get into them, the more compact they become. We are swallowed whole by the endless woods.
“It’s only a matter of time before they catch up,” Ashton says, “I can sense them, stronger than before.”
“I don’t know if I can do this,” I gulp, my confidence waverling.
He comes to a halt. “You need to. You’re the only chance that this world has right now, Adilyn. I know my mother and she will stop at nothing to get what she wants. If you can’t do this, then we might as well turn around and face the unraveling fact that the world will burn until nothing is left of it.”
“This isn’t some fantasy story, this is the stone cold truth; the world is going to crumble around us if we don’t do something about it and do it now.”
I take a deep breath, settling the uneasy feeling. “And if it doesn’t work?”
Ashton suddenly looks nervous. “Then life will cease to exist.”
I know that he is right, but it doesn’t hurt any less to hear the words spoken aloud. I don’t know how my life has come to this. Not long ago I was just the high school’s ‘freak’ and now here I am chasing after Black Witches who are trying to tear away the remaining sanity that we have left. I am walking right into danger to protect those that I care about most in this world.
The silence that settles over is unnerving, my spine crawls and a shiver rushes over my body. I just want the nightmare to be over with, but I know that it isn’t that easy. I pull my phone from my back pocket and stare at the picture of Cam and me, it’s one of my favorites and my heart warms. I should be back there in his arms, but here I am running further away. There’s still no call from them and I begin to worry. What if something happened?
I don’t bring this up to Ashton, he’s already on edge and determined.
My shoes dig into the muck beneath my feet and I scrunch my nose at the smell. New Orleans is my hometown, but boy does the wilderness smell.
The sun begins to drift beyond the trees darkening around us. It’s dusk, the light draining from the beautiful sky above us, cosseted behind the dark clouds. The trees look more mysterious, silhouettes against the darkened sky, their shadows now hidden. The sounds around us thicken, coming visibly more noticable.
Ashton moves to climb over an abandoned tree log, turning to help me over, he gives me a small smile. “Everythings going to be okay, this will be a piece of cake,” I know he’s only trying to calm me down, surely he can see the unease in my eyes.
I nod. “How much further?”
“Not much, we want to put as much distance between them and ourselves as much as possible. We can’t risk them getting the upper hand on us.”
“I’m worried they’re going to come after us,” I admit.
“The witches?”
I stuff my hands into my jacket pocket and avert my eyes as we walk. “No, my parents or worse, Cameron.”
“They’re smar
t. They know this needs to be done.”
“But the look on their faces...”
He sighs, “Families disagree, but that doesn’t mean that they don’t trust you. You’ve come this far, if they can’t trust you to do this, then they can’t trust you to do anything. Eventually they have to let that rope go and let you do what you need to do. You’re not a kid anymore.”
“I know,” but you don’t know them like I do,”I can’t lose them.”
“You won't,” Ashton reaches out, giving my hand a reassuring squeeze. “I promise.”
A movement out of the corner of my eye catches my attention. Freezing, I hold my breath. Ashton surveys our surroundings. “What is it?”
“I saw something.”
He presses his lips into a thin line, gripping my hand he drags me with him. “We’re not far enough away, come on!”
We pick up our pace, now sprinting. My heart races inside of my chest and it gets harder for me to get air in. My lungs are screaming for release. More noise comes, my lungs rapidly inflating and deflating taking in the musky scent. My foot catches on a stick and I stumble. Regaining my footing. I let go of Ashtons hand and rushed forward, letting my inner strength guide me through the woods. I can’t see where I am going, but I know Ashton is right behind me.
“Don’t slow down!”
The path only disappears against the darkness, covered by knotted roots and branches that have fallen from the tree’s. I’m careful where I place my feet, my pace not swaying. I can feel them. I don’t know how, but I can sense them gaining on us and by Ashtons labored breathing and panicked eyes as I peer over my shoulder, I know that he feels it, too. The feeling presses down on me, suffocating me as I am consumed by fear. The silvery moonlight chased us from above as we scampered through the slender trees. Just when I think we are in the clear. A blast comes from somewhere unknown and Ashton is flown through the air, knocking into a nearby tree. I come to a halt, my eyes roaming, burning from the icy breeze that appears out of nowhere.
Dream Seeker (The Dream Catcher Series Book 3) Page 7
