Page 24 of Cursed Love
Ryan’s words came to mind as her skin tingled, reminding her she was not entirely helpless. She could handle this. Sure, she did not know how to kill one, but she could do something. Brandy only needed to hold him off long enough so she could get the hell out of there.
He snarled from behind. “Here, witchy witchy.”
All she had on her side was surprise. Ignoring him and her internal alarm telling her to run, she centered herself. There was only one chance to get this right. Brandy spun on her heels and faced the were. With a flick of her fingers, she sent the newspaper dispenser flying in his direction. He caught it with ease, and her heart dropped into her stomach. She was in trouble.
A growl tore free from him as Brandy spotted another dispenser across the street. Taking him by surprise, she managed to smack him from behind. The metal crunched around his solid body, and spittle flew from his mouth.
Taking advantage of his stunned state, she ran. When she reached the corner of the block, she glanced back at the pissed-off werewolf who wanted to maul her. Not paying attention to where she was going, she stumbled to the ground, knocking someone down in the process. Her heart pounded inside her rib cage as she silently cursed Ryan for not teaching her the disappearing spell.
“Are you o—Brandy?”
Shit.
Brandy looked between Greg and the woman, glaring at her from the ground.
“Brandy?” the woman hissed.
“Yeah, sorry. I wasn’t watching where I was going.” She stood quickly, her eyes darting toward the sound of snapping teeth.
“Is a dog chasing you?” Greg asked, hearing the same noise.
“It must have gotten loose,” Brandy told him as she walked backward away from them and the werewolf. “You guys might want to go a different direction.”
Turning on her heels, she booked it up the street. She wanted to run but did not want to draw any more attention to herself. She could already feel the curious stares from those who had witnessed her knocking Greg’s woman down.
She managed to get to her place without any other supernatural exchanges. After rushing inside, she set the deadbolt and stared at the door frame. There were no signs of the images that had formed momentarily after Ryan’s spell, but she raised her hand and still felt magic in the air. She wondered if this was what he’d meant when he said he sensed her magic the night they met.
Brandy needed to learn more. The grimoire was key, since Ryan all but forgot about her. Not that she could get him off her mind…
After filling a glass with water, she took it to the living room. She could not see her best friend or family, thanks to her powers. The least she could do was study the grimoire. She dug out the leather-bound book and brought it to the living room too.
Inhaling deeply, she began working on the strenuous task of understanding her new world. As if everything was not gibberish to her logical mind, she had to read through old script.
She was not sure how much time had passed when she finally set the book down and laid her head on the back of the couch. Disappointment filled her as she processed some of the spells she’d found in the book. There was one to change the color of her hair or eyes, but none to cloak her like the one Ryan used.
Brandy was warm, too warm. She could not handle getting the actual flu after calling in sick for it last week. Needing to cool her dry throat, she filled the glass with more water. Exhausted, even though it was only eight at night, she decided to prepare for bed.
Sighing, she tucked the grimoire away where no one could find it. The rest of her studying would have to wait for another time. Feeling herself worsen every minute, she opted to skip her shower and get some nighttime medicine.
When her eyes fluttered open a sliver, she found only darkness. She wasn’t sure what time of night it was. Brandy had sweat through her clothes and onto the comforter she’d passed out on. Touching her forehead, her heart sped at the heat radiating off her.
To say she was on fire was an understatement. Of all the times she could recall having the flu, she had never been this warm, and she had never experienced the odd sensation coursing through her.
Forcing her eyes open, she searched for her phone. She raised her head an inch before it became too heavy. Panic bubbled within her. How would she call for help if she could not even lift her head?
Remembering her new skill, she focused what little energy she did have on using her powers to bring her phone to her hand. Her head lolled to the side so she could scroll through her contacts, and she and let her thumb land on Ryan’s.
It rang a few times before going to voicemail. What little hope she felt deflated at the sound of the beep.
Her lids became heavy, and she was pulled under once more by whatever bug had attacked her system. Brandy’s last thought was whether the werewolf’s spit had come in contact with her body, and if it had, was she dying?
***
“Shit. She’s burning up. Find me some towels and wet them with cold water.”
Brandy heard Ryan’s muffled voice through a tunnel. Her lids were too heavy to open, and her mouth was too dry to speak. She could only whimper in pain. Had someone rolled her into a pile of hot coals?
“What’s wrong with her?” a man asked.
