Page 6 of Wicked Warlock
All at once, the wind died down and Penny’s body drifted to the ground. She landed on her feet and swayed. An emerald glow emitted all around her, and she swayed on her feet. She shook her head.
“No, no.” She sucked in a breath. “Not this.”
I scrambled to my feet. “What? What happened?”
A scream broke out through the silence of the warlocks. I pivoted to face toward the screaming when another and another scream shattered the silence and pierced the night. Then one by one, their eyes went vacant. I spun around and looked to Maze as he stood there, his body quaking from head to toe. His eyes went from a bright emerald green to a vacant milky white. A sheen of sweat broke out over his skin, and he turned a sickly pale shade of green.
He shook his head and pressed his palms to his eyes, rubbing at them. He shoved his hands into his hair, pulling at the wild dark strands. A strangled growl escaped his lips, and he didn’t look to me. I wanted him to; I wanted to know what brought a cast of warlocks complete terror. I felt the chaos of their magic rolling over my skin like slimy mud that cooled and made my body felt stiff and uncomfortable. “Someone start talking now.”
Instead, he swung around to face Penny. She was hunched over with her arms wrapped around her midsection, sucking in deep, gasping breaths. When she stood to meet my eye, a chill went down my spine at her look of desolation. Her skin was as pale as Maze’s, and her emerald magic pulsed around her. It made my own power stand on edge, like I could siphon off half of it at any moment and she wouldn’t feel it. So much power, so much turmoil. She shook her head, sending those long blond locks cascading around her face. A single tear rolled down her cheek and she let go a shaky breath. “They failed. They’re dead, they’re all dead.”
Chapter 2
Zinnia
My eyes widened and my breath caught in my throat. My chest constricted, and it took me a few moments to regain my ability to speak. I didn’t want to think it, speak it, or even believe it for a second. “What do you mean?”
Penny tried to rein in her magic, but she practically glowed with it. Even the grass around her lit up like midday. It pulsed with her emotions, and I felt it move and flow over her. My magic answered to the power rolling off her, moving to the forefront.
She sucked in a deep breath. “Beckett, Astrid, Logan, Nova, Ashryn… all of them. They… they didn’t make it.”
I froze. My mind rebelled against the thought of losing them. Any of them. My stomach churned into heavy knots, and for a moment, my breath left me, and I couldn’t regain it. Beckett had been with me from my first day here at Evermore. He was my soulmate’s best friend. He was one of my best friends. He was the one who saved my mother and kept her alive when none of us could. Tears stung the back of my eyes and I fought to let not a single drop fall. No, this couldn’t be right, this couldn’t be happening. Three days and they were supposed to be back here with us, with Logan in tow.
Ashryn’s steady forest green eyes ran through my mind and I nearly cracked on the spot. She’d spent so much time protecting me and giving me her silent strength, for it all to end now? NO! It couldn’t be. I wasn’t ready for this, wasn’t equipped for this. Tucker dropped down and landed beside me. His warm presence gave me a moment just to breathe, to compose myself. But Nova…
Nova, my queen in arms and one of my best friends. Tuck pressed his hand to my shoulder, and I felt his warmth spread throughout my body. I sucked in a deep breath. I needed to understand this. But I couldn’t accept it.
“Someone needs to start talking right now. What the hell happened?”
Maze took a step toward Penny then hesitated. “It doesn’t make sense. Why would she do this?”
I glanced from Maze to Penny and back again. “She who? Did what?”
Penny turned to me with her hands shaking. She sucked in a deep breath and closed her eyes. “Nova. She killed them all.”
“WHAT?” My knees felt like at any moment they’d give out, yet I forced them to lock and held my chin high. “No, it couldn’t be… She wouldn’t.”
“She did. I saw it.” A heavy, devastated sigh escaped her lips. “Including herself.”
“This can’t be right.” I pressed my hand to my chest, trying to slow my racing heart.
Cross’ knuckles turned white as he grasped the hilt of his knives. His golden eyes sparked with some kind of emotion I couldn’t put my finger on. The muscle in his jaw ticked. “In my experience…” He cleared his throat. “Maze. Is. Never. Wrong.”
Penny squared her shoulders and lifted her chin. “Neither am I.”
I took a step back and leaned against Tucker. I was the high queen. I should’ve known what to do or say. But deep down I didn’t believe it, refused to believe it. Astrid’s determined face filled my mind, and I knew that girl wouldn’t go down easily. None of them would. And for Nova to be the one to do it? Oh, hell no.
I opened my mouth to tell them she’d never do something like this; they had to be wrong. But the words wouldn’t come out. If Nova killed them, it was for good reason, and the only one I could think of was mercy. If they were going to die a horrible death, she’d make it peaceful. But how did I explain that to the rest of them?
A single scream pierced the air, and I froze. Not more visions.
I spun around to face a younger witch running across the courtyard. Her golden hair held the light from the flickering flames. Her long red cloak billowed out behind her with each step she took. Then other scream and another… They filled the air, and all at once, dozens of witches flooded into the courtyard, all of them rushing toward one point.
“What now?”
I began walking toward where they gathered. As I drew closer, my nerves began to fray and one resounding fact stood out to me: All of these witches were from the Enchantments cast, Serrina’s cast. Each of them was beautiful in a supernatural way and drew the eye the way she did. My stomach turned and twisted as I took in their tear-stained faces.
“Get out of my way!” Niche ran through the crowd of witches, shoving kids aside. She was so small, yet I easily spotted her fire engine red hair, white lab coat, and oversized glasses.
