Winter Fire (Witchling Series) (24 page)

He picked it up. Ice flew through him. It froze his magick and chilled its warmth. He almost felt his blood slow. The sensations within him were too fast for him to counter.

Beck staggered. Morgan tried to catch him, and they both dropped to the ground. Her fire tore through him, preventing the Darkness of the rock from stopping his heart. In the distance, she was calling his name, her tears like drops of lava on his face.

Blackness swept through his mind.

Chapter Fifteen

“Beck!” Morgan cried. She hadn’t been able to keep him from falling, but she at least kept him from hitting the ground hard. Unconscious, he was pale, his eyes closed. “Wake up. Please, wake up!” Tears fell from her eyes to his face.

She felt his earth magick fade almost to a trickle and his body grow cold. She shoved her fire into him. The coldness retreated. Color returned to Beck’s face.

“Please wake up,” she whispered.

The room was chilly. Her eyes went to the rock. It had fallen from Beck’s hand and lay a few feet away. He didn’t awaken or move, aside from the steady rise and fall of his chest as he breathed.

Morgan kissed Beck’s cheeks, sobbing. He was alive- barely. If he didn’t survive, it was her fault. She’d brought the rock here, not knowing what it would do to him.

As always, she ruined everything good in her life.

“Morgan?” Amber’s voice was muffled. She knocked on the door.

Morgan gasped. She reached for the stone, wanting to protect anyone else from touching it. Or finding out what she’d done.

The door opened.

“Morgan?” Amber looked around, gaze falling on Beck’s still form. “What happened?” she exclaimed.

“I…” Morgan stopped. She saw Amber’s surprise, concern – and something else. Suspicion. “I didn’t mean to.”

“What did you do, Morgan?” Amber whispered. She knelt beside Beck and checked his pulse.

“Is he okay?” Morgan stood to give her space.

“He’s breathing and his heart is beating. Morgan, please. You have to tell me what happened!”

“He’ll survive?”

“I don’t know what’s wrong, but …” Amber felt Beck’s forehead “He seems to be sleeping.”

Morgan backed towards the door. Amber had barely believed Beck that Morgan had nothing to do with the tree incident. She’d never believe that Morgan hadn’t meant to hurt Beck. They’d try to send her home for sure!

Without Beck to calm her magick, Morgan was close to combusting. Tears blurred her eyes as she took in his still form. His chest was moving, and he certainly seemed to be sleeping.

But more was wrong. She knew it. It had to do with the stone clutched in her hand. It did something bad to the only person who reached out to her and was genuinely interested in her.

“I need to call his family,” Amber said. “Morgan, I want you to stay here. We have to talk about all the stuff that’s going on.”

Morgan was at the stairwell before Amber finished. The idea that Amber wanted her confined in the room was the last straw. Morgan ran.

“Morgan!” Amber called.

She ignored her instructor and fled down the stairs and through the main floor.

“Morgan?” The girl’s voice was soft and familiar. “Wait, Morgan!”

She ignored her and ran out the front door. Morgan ran down the driveway, not caring where she went. She had to escape, to take the rock away before it hurt anyone else, to just leave everything and everyone behind her.

Even Beck.

She stumbled, tears blurring her eyes. Someone was calling her name, and Morgan ran faster. Fire trailed her and made her fevered. She darted off the driveway into the forest, needing to be alone. She hurt so bad right now. She’d barely saved the only other person she ever cared about, and even her fire hadn’t been able to rid his body of the cold she put there.

She was a curse to anyone who knew her.

Suddenly, she tripped and landed hard in the snow. The fall jarred her out of her desperation. Her magick melted the snow beneath her, around her, and she sank further into the white pile beneath her.

“Morgan!” the girl’s voice was breathless.

Morgan scrambled up, or tried to, but a tree branch swept her legs out from under her. She twisted, staring at it.

“I’m sorry about the tree,” Summer said, stopping nearby. She gasped for air. Biji slid to a halt behind her. “Morgan, you can’t leave campus. Beck said –”

The mention of his name caused pain so sharp, Morgan gasped.

“Leave me alone,” she said. She pushed herself to her feet. “I’m not going back.”

“Morgan, whatever happened –”

“You’re not supposed to be off-campus without Decker, either,” Biji reminded Summer.

Morgan began running again. Summer didn’t trip her, but the girls didn’t listen to her either. The snow cleared behind her, at the silent command of Summer’s earth magick, while Morgan struggled through the snow and brush. Her mind swam with emotion and thoughts; she soon forgot about the girls following as she focused on placing her feet and fleeing.

“Morgan!” The shout penetrated her thoughts. It was frantic this time, conveying enough emotion that she stopped.

She turned. Summer and Biji had halted a dozen feet behind her and were staring into the forest. Morgan twisted to see where they looked.

Alexa had even more back up this time. Wanting a fight, Morgan faced the Dark girl. There were six others behind her. She started forward.

“Morgan, we have to go back,” Summer urged her.

Morgan stopped, thoughts on the two Light girls. She wasn’t about to let anything worse happen today, especially to two of the only girls who were nice to her.

“Run,” she said to them.

“Only if you come with us,” Summer replied quickly.

“This is perfect,” Alexa said, eyes sliding from Morgan to Summer.

“You think six is enough?” Morgan snapped. “Summer, Biji, go!”

“We’re not leaving you here,” Biji replied stubbornly.

Alexa stepped forward, trailed by the others.

“Morgan, please,” Summer said. “You’re coming with us or we’re not leaving.”

She hesitated. She wanted a fight, but she couldn’t let the others get hurt. Morgan started towards the two Light girls reluctantly, planning on taking them to the campus then running again, before Amber locked her up in some tiny closet.

Alexa hurried towards them, and Morgan pushed Summer and Biji to start them moving. They went, running down the path that Summer’s magick had cleared. Morgan started to follow when lightening shot through her. She uttered a strangled curse and dropped to the ground.

The currents stopped, and she lay on the ground, steaming and panting.

Summer and Biji were staring at Alexa, surprised, while the Dark teens moved closer.

Morgan pushed herself to her knees and waved for them to continue. She’d been Taser-ed once before in self-defense training. It sucked, though her fire magick absorbed much of the electricity and took the edge off. It left her disoriented, but it wouldn’t incapacitate her the way it did someone else.

“Crank it higher,” one of the Dark teens called.

“Use both of them,” another advised. “Fire witchlings have an immunity to being shocked.”

Morgan wobbled to her feet. She started to turn to knock off Alexa’s head.

This time, the currents paralyzed her in a mix of pain and shock. Alexa took the others’ advice, using two Tasers on their highest settings. Morgan wasn’t able to absorb the power darting through her fast enough, and she dropped into unconsciousness.

Chapter Sixteen

With the soul stone, we can wipe out Light. Permanently.

Dawn half-listened. It was harder than she expected to juggle Bartholomew’s thoughts with her own. Lately, she wasn’t always able to tell which was which. Not that it mattered. They had the same goal: make Beck suffer.

“Maybe then Beck will finally understand what it’s like to lose something he loves,” she replied.

The barista behind the counter of the café looked at her blankly.

Dawn shook her head and forced a smile. She lifted her coffee from the counter and left the café for her car. It was a chilly early afternoon. The sky was clear, but the weather was expected to get worse. Hopefully, it prevented people from venturing out once the sun set. She’d picked tonight for that reason: she didn’t need anyone interfering in her plans.

She glanced at her watch, anxious to hear how the first phase had gone, then slid into her car.

“Alexa can’t be trusted.”

She jerked and glanced at the passenger seat.

Sometimes, she saw him. In the mirror after a shower, in the reflection of a dark window. He was almost fully formed in her car, not quite taking shape but definitely there, as if she were dreaming. But she wasn’t. She was awake, and the large, foggy form of Bartholomew-the-Terrible was in her car. She looked away.

His aura was shadowed like Decker’s and his eyes were the same shade of blue-green as Beck’s. With bronze skin and dark hair, Bartholomew’s features were otherwise obscured by the haziness of his vision.

It was an air memory. She’d seen them before, like when Tanya came to visit her after the girl had been killed. Dawn recalled seeing Tanya in her room, standing by her bed, watching her. A strange cold filled Dawn then, the same one fluttering through her now.

She shuddered. She didn’t like seeing dead people.

“She’ll betray you,” Bartholomew said.

“I know. She’s already gotten soft about things,” Dawn replied curtly.

“If you want this to go right, you can’t have a weak link.”

“She’s fine for now.” Dawn gripped the steering wheel. She guided the car out of the parking lot.

“It’s a risk.”

She sighed. “Really? Are you going to tell me what to do every minute of my life?”

He said nothing.

“I’ll deal with it when it’s an issue,” she added firmly.

“No, I’ll deal with it when it’s an issue,” he replied. “You won’t do what it takes.”

Dawn rolled her eyes. “Fine. You deal with her.”

He disappeared. She wasn’t certain what that meant or even if he was really gone. She had a feeling his intention was not to let Alexa go her own way when this was over, which was what Dawn intended to do. Alexa served her purpose, but Dawn had never actually killed anyone. She debated with herself.

“She lacks conviction,” Dawn muttered, echoing the words she hated to hear from Bartholomew.

In Alexa’s case, it was true. Alexa was the reason they failed to kill Summer or get revenge on Beck. The girl was in love with Decker; she’d even apologized to him weeks ago for hurting Summer, before Summer re-emerged into the picture. Lately, Alexa was surly and slow to respond to Dawn’s texts. She began to think Bartholomew was right; Alexa was a weak link.

Dawn parked and got out of her car. Her gaze swept around the parking lot and settled on Noah, who seemed to be waiting for her. As usual, the sight of him eased some of her tension. Her brother was her only real ally. Alexa and the Light and Dark witchlings she bribed or slept with rotated through the revolving door of her life. Noah was her blood; he had to be loyal.

“Hey,” she said, waving.

He approached. His blue eyes were troubled, his brow low. He appeared to be brooding.

“Hi. Caffeine free, I hope,” he said, glancing at the coffee in her hand.

“Of course,” she lied. She hadn’t given up caffeine or alcohol despite the doctor’s warnings about birth defects. Her mother spent both pregnancies on drugs and alcohol, and she and Noah turned out fine. Beck’s kid wasn’t going to cramp her lifestyle.

“I did something I think I should tell you about, in case it comes back around to you,” Noah said. “I hope you’re not too mad.”

“What?” she asked uneasily.

“I asked Beck if he’d settle out of court with you for custody.”

She gave an annoyed sigh and started towards the dorms.

“Dawn, Dad’s broke.”

“I’m sure he’ll find money for his grandchild if he can for the whore whose apartment he’s paying for,” she snapped. “Why would you do that, Noah? I told you not to talk to him!”

“I know. You’re right,” Noah admitted. “He wasn’t willing to consider it.”

The news stung.

“I even asked him if he’d wait until we’re solvent again, but he said –”

“You told him that we’re broke?” she demanded, whirling. “What do you think he did? Turned around and told his father, whose lawyers now know how to win the case!”

“I’m sorry, Dawn,” Noah said, hushed. “He won’t tell anyone.”

“You don’t know him, Noah!”

Dawn wanted to scream. She drew a deep breath instead. Thank god she already had a new plan! If Beck was too busy with the Light or out of the picture entirely, she’d have no need for a legal team. She’d win by default.

“I can’t believe you told him,” she said and spun, marching to her room. “Do you want me to lose my baby?”

“No Dawn, of course not.”

“You’re acting like you do.”

“What?” Noah’s tone turned from embarrassed to frustrated. “I just wanted to help. We can’t afford to go to court. I’m trying to find a way to make this better for everyone.”

“You should be concerned about making things better for me,” she said, flinging open the door to her room.

“You’re right.” He sighed. “I should’ve at least talked to you before I went to see him.”

Someone was in her room. Isaac. Dawn gave him a warning look. His eyes went to Noah.

“Hey, man. I didn’t know you were back in town,” Isaac said with a smile.

“Yeah. Just got here,” Noah said. He looked from Isaac to Dawn.

“Isaac and I are … studying,” Dawn said. “Give me a minute to change.” She didn’t wait for either of them to respond before closing the door to the bathroom.

Noah suspects too much.
Bartholomew whispered.

“He’s fine. I’m not worried about him,” she said dismissively.

I am. Alexa will abandon you. Noah will turn you in.

Noah was a good brother, a loyal one. He went Dark a full year before her. When he left, he was quiet to the point of meek. He never spoke out against her and had been the first to defend her. It struck her that he had changed during the time they were a part, perhaps because of the added responsibility their father gave him. Before he left, he never would’ve spoken to Beck without her knowledge or permission. He had always been a dutiful brother.