Page 107 of Witch Untold
I’d recognize it anywhere, except this time there was no Rune waiting to greet me. This was real. Not a dream. This was our place.
I pulled my jacket closer about me to ward off the chill, looking out at the sea, bathed in orange and red hues as far as the eye could see. If I waited a little, I’d be able to see it under the moonlight.
The guys and Wren had been in the kitchen, laughing and joking as they prepared our evening meal. I probably should have told them I was going for a walk, but one of them would have insisted on coming with and I needed to be alone. I wasn’t ready to talk about the results or the uncertainty. I didn’t want to ruin the next couple of days with shitty news.
I just needed a moment to process and be pissed, then I’d let it go and head back and forget about it until the trip was over, because…Because this could be my last trip with the guys as me.
Cora.
Tulpa.
Anchor.
When we got back, Anna would need to be told, and there was no escaping the testing. We’d need to know because this wasn’t just about me. It was about the fate of humanity.
But this weekend.
This weekend would be mine.
My nape prickled and then the shuffle of boots registered behind me.
I whirled to find a man standing a few meters away. He smiled, and the scar on his cheek bunched.
“Hello, little anchor.” He grinned.
Oh, fuck. It was him, the warlock who’d burned me.
“Didn’t anyone ever tell you not to loiter on a cliff edge?” His tone was conversational, adding to his general creep factor. “One slip and it’s bye-bye.”
The cliff edge was several meters behind me and railed off, so I was safe. Still, a shiver of foreboding ran up my spine.
I allowed power to infuse my limbs, ready to make a jump. But first I needed to know. “How did you find me?”
“A special skill of mine. Once I brand my prey, there is no escape.”
Shit, the burn. Had that been a tracker of some kind?
My body tingled as I prepared to make the jump. But then the power died, leaving me cold and empty.
No.
Not now. Not here.
The warlock brought up his hands and his energy slammed into me, throwing me off my feet and into the air. I landed with a painful crunch that knocked the wind out of my lungs, but there was no time to assess my injuries. I tried to jump again.
Nothing.
He strolled toward me, relaxed and confident. “You know, the plan was to get rid of The Elites, but fancy our surprise to find the anchor in their midst. I takeyouout and it’s game over for you witches and a nice promotion for me.”
I scrambled back and checked myself, glancing behind me to find the railing less than a meter away.
Shit, I needed to get around him somehow. Come on, power, come on. I reached for the connection to my guys, grabbing at the threads, but they slipped through my fingers, ethereal and distant. No. No, this couldn’t be happening.
Tears of frustration stung my eyes. I was defenseless against him.
His hand lit up in crimson fire.
“Time to die, little anchor.”
