Page 101 of Witch Untold
“Cora!” Jessie barreled into me, knocking me off my feet.
The air fizzed. Her scream ripped the air, and the scent of charred flesh stung my nostrils.
I scrambled to grab her as she fell. Blood and gore coated her shoulder. She looked up at me blearily, then her eyes fluttered closed.
The whip cracked again, aimed for us once more.
“No!” I raised my hand to deflect it with my power, but nothing happened.
Ice gripped my throat as the thong arched toward us, but a jet of green power deflected the lash.
“Move!” Sloane planted herself between the warlock and us.
Poppy hurried over. “Oh, fuck. Oh, shit.”
We dragged Jessie to the wall. “Stay with her. I need to get to the fire alarm.” There was no time to explain.
I broke into a sprint, dodging warlocks, ducking to avoid the jets of power lancing across the room. Almost there.
Almost…
Something grabbed hold of my ankle and yanked me off balance. I hit the ground, bracing with my hands as a weight fell on my back. Teeth gnashed in my ear.
Shit. Shit. A witch was trying to eat me.
I bucked, trying to get her off me, twisting to avoid her blunt teeth. Fuck, was that drool? I reached for the alarm. Dammit, so close. So bloody close. Power jettisoned out of my hand and connected with the glass.
A shrill scream saturated the air, high-pitched and persistent.
The alarm.
I’d done it. I rolled, taking the witch with me, squishing her beneath my back and then elbowing my way free.
She grabbed my leg, eyes wide and red-rimmed.
“I’m so sorry.” I kicked her in the head, knocking her unconscious.
Around us the warlocks had stalled in their attack, exchanging panicked glances. Yeah, fuckers, in a few minutes this building would be crawling with firefighters doing an obligatory sweep of the place.
“Fall back!” Whip Guy called out.
The bastards winked out one by one.
They were gone. I sagged in relief, turning to face Sloane.
Her eyes widened a moment before I was jerked backward by the hair. A hand squeezed mine, setting my skin on fire with pain. Hot breath kissed my ear. “See you soon, little anchor.”
I fell forward, suddenly free, and whirled to find my attacker gone.
Sloane pulled me to her. “You okay?” She cupped my face, studying me intently.
“I’m fine.” Except my hand was on fire. I lifted it to find neat finger marks burned into my flesh. “Bastard.” The burn melted away as my skin healed and knitted.
I looked up to see Sloane’s shocked expression. “How?”
“I don’t know.”
“Doors are open,” Jessie said.
