Page 71 of Pure Magic
We crash together, grunting and crying out as our releases collide.
Breathing as if I’ve run ten miles, I collapse on his chest.
He holds the back of my head, kisses my hair. With his other arm, he bands my back as if I might fly away.
“I love you too, Adam. I will love you for all lifetimes and in any world.” After rolling off him, I let him clean me with newly warmed water. My mind is hazy as he snuggles in behind me and covers us with a blanket.
Considering how much is on my mind, I’m shocked I fell asleep, but after the travel and experiencing every possible emotion, I slept hard and deep.
Still, the sun is not yet up, and I’m awake. All the worries flood back to me as I find I’m the only person in the bedroll. Sitting up, I blink the dark tent into focus. Empty.
Drawing the blanket around me, I call for light and a ball of white light bobbles beside my head, confirming the tent is empty. Barefooted, I step outside.
June is feeding the fire, and a hint of gray light tells me the sun will arrive soon. She tosses a log in and waves at me. “Good morning.”
My cheeks heat, and I have no idea why I should be embarrassed. “Hello, June. Did you see Adam?”
Wide-eyed, she shakes her head. “No. No one has stirred in the thirty minutes or so I’ve been awake.”
I scan the sea of tents, and only a few people are beginning to step outside to tend their own fires. Looking farther out than the encampment, I see no one.
Stepping back inside, I hold in my tears as I pull on clothes fit for the battlefield.
He’s gone.
At the bottom of my pile of clothes, the black wand Goddess gave Adam rests on the cloth floor.
Chapter
Twenty-Two
ADAM
The hardest thing I’ve ever done is leave Sara Beth sleeping in the predawn hours. She looked like an angel, while I tugged on clothes and left like a thief. I suppose I am worse than a criminal for stealing her love while knowing I had to go.
Just as Goddess foretold, I walk across the plain toward where I sense my brother and sister waiting. I’ve walked nearly five miles by the time I see them sitting quietly by a small campfire at the edge of the woods.
“I don’t need you anymore, brother,” Ariana says. Her voice is soft and vicious.
Kaden doesn’t even look up from his mesmerized staring at the fire.
“Why have you bespelled Kaden?” I step around my brother and avoid looking directly at Trina’s body lying face down in the grass. Facing Ariana, I see deep lines have formed around her eyes and mouth. Whatever she’s bringing into herself is harming her.
“He had a moment of doubt, and I can’t have that happen today.” She chuckles. “All these years, we’ve planned and plotted for this day, and he never struggled until recently.”
I sit on a stump just at the edge of the heat from the fire. “Didn’t he know the consequences of what you plan? Did you explain to him that you would destroy this world and others and bring darkness?”
Meeting my gaze for the first time, she smiles, and it’s like she’s a young, carefree girl again. “You always were the smarter one. Too bad you have a morbid attachment to this place.” She gestures to everything then wraps her brown cloak around her shoulders. “Why have you come? I told you I have no need of you now.” She points at Trina. “That one will suffice.”
My gut twists, but at least Trina is still breathing. “You and I both know the magic will be tainted if you use another’s blood. Our blood is special. Isn’t it, sister?”
“She will do,” she says too fast.
“I will help you with opening the gate, if you release her back to the Windsor coven. I swear it.” My heart is pounding so hard that it’s a miracle she can’t hear it.
“You swear it on your Goddess?” She spits out the last word.
It may not be possible to save this world, but I’m determined that Trina will not die in my place. “I swear, by Goddess, I’ll help you open the gate. I’ll add my blood to yours so you can complete the spell, but only if you guarantee her safety back to her witches.”
