Urban Mystic Academy: Third Project (A Supernatural Academy Series Book 3)

by Jennifer Rose McMahon

  I inhaled sharply. "Like Dom."

  He glanced at me with concerned eyes. "This book knows all about it. About everything."

  I swallowed hard, remembering the sketch of the portal in the book, and wondered what other things it might know about us.

  "Keep turning," I said. Then I stopped short in response to an echo that bounced to us from within the church. A sound like a moving chair. "What's that?"

  Shane stopped all movement and listened with focus.

  "Not sure. We'll be fine if we stay perfectly quiet." He turned back to the book, equally as fixated on it as myself. "Look, there."

  He tapped on the picture of a glowing person. The color had faded, but it was still clear that a shade of green hovered around them.

  "It looks like the aura that surrounded us in the church earlier," I said.

  "Exactly what I was just thinking." He turned the page and started to read aloud. "Perilous ruin every man dreads. Reverence to the pyramid timber lodge. Storm upon storm the tempest blows."

  The strange words pulled together like a rhythmic chant, and one single image formed clearly in my mind.

  "The portal?" I interjected.

  Shane remained unflinching, as if trying to avoid the truth of my conclusion, to make it not real.

  He continued reading. "Lost to the void of the chasm. Where there was love now only misery. Connecting with a touch but never fully in exquisite perfection. Trapped in the body of a soulless man." He hesitated and cleared his throat. "Heavy remorse. Restless. Roaming. Strength beyond reason. Feeling all but having nothing. Haunting the earth in search of lost love. The soulless man knows not, and he but wanders."

  He turned to me with eyes full of fear.

  My breath caught in my chest.

  A soulless man?

  What the hell did that mean?

  I shook my head, backing away, deflecting what we both knew to be true.

  Staring at Shane through panicked eyes, I continued shaking my head in denial.

  "Keep reading," I begged.

  If he read more of the passage, maybe he’d expose the rite in directions that didn't fit anymore or make any sense, then we'd know it had nothing to do with us.

  But then I worried if he kept reading and the words connected even closer to our story, then we’d be screwed.

  My thoughts hovered on Shane’s condition.

  Something had happened to him in the portal—something that left him not quite himself.

  The verse told a story of the portal, of a man losing his soul in it.

  I shook my head again, willing it all away.

  "It's just an old book, Shane," I squeaked. "It's not real."

  He gazed at me through tear-filled eyes.

  "No, Brynn." He swallowed hard. "It explains how I feel. Perfectly."

  My heart plummeted to my feet. "What do you mean? It hasn't said anything that even makes sense."

  His air fell out of him in an exhale of resignation. "But it does." His eyes fell back to the book, and he flipped the page.

  I stepped closer to see the sketch depicting a scene in a shaded forest. It showed a young man running out of a triangular wooden hut with his arms outstretched to a girl in colonial skirts and a shawl. She reached for him too, but in the scene drawn below it, the young man runs right through her as a transparent version of himself. At the entrance of the hut, stood the solid figure of the young man watching in horror.

  My hand flew to my mouth with a gasp that sent me backward. I bumped into the trunk that harbored the noose and stumbled back to find my balance.

  "It's not true, Shane. It can't be," I begged. "I feel you here." I quieted for a moment, listening to my heart, and searched for the depth it felt for Shane.

  There was a hollow spot in the center of my chest. One that I always knew was there but had ignored from pure ignorance of what it might be.

  But now, the empty cavity ached as I stared at Shane. It was the part of him I couldn't find but searched for endlessly.

  "You feel it," he stated. "I see it in your eyes."

  My mouth opened, but words refused to take form. A tear fell from my eye, and he watched its truth move down my face.

  Shane turned back to the book and flipped the next page.

  "We need to figure out the solution." He squinted at the jumbled words and drawings. "There must be a way to reconnect my soul to my body." His fingers flipped through the pages faster.

  My breath panted in and out of me as my heart rate accelerated.

  Was Shane truly a soulless man?

  I had no idea what any of this meant.

  But somewhere deep inside of me, I understood.

  Shane had lost something in the portal. Something that blocked him now from connecting with me completely.

  It became more clear as I processed the verses and images in the book.

  Shane had become separated from himself in the tempest of the portal—parted from his true essence. Maybe it happened the last time or maybe when he was younger. There was no way to know for sure.

  My head whirled with light-headed dizziness as my heart rate dropped to nothing in my terrifying realization.

  Was Shane dead?

  I fought against the haunting conclusions that formed in my mind. We were over-reacting to the strange illustrations and incantations in the book of magic. Hocus pocus.

  There was no way any of it could actually be real.

  If we studied the book a little longer, we’d realize it was just a bunch of ideas and theories from the times when medicine and science weren’t completely understood.

  I stepped closer to Shane and the spellbook.

  "There has to be more," I whispered. "What do the next pages say?"

  I wasn't sure if I really wanted to know, but not knowing was definitely worse.

  Shane's trembling hands turned the pages back to the images of the man running from the hut. He trailed a finger along the center of the book’s spine and then turned to me.

  "Pages are missing," he shot. "Torn out."

  "What?" I jumped to the book and inspected the inner line of the pages.

  He was right.

  A jagged line of torn paper ran through the middle of the spine. It appeared to be three or four pages, at least.

  "No," I pleaded, dropping my head back. "Those are the pages we need the most. They could hold the explanation.”

  Or better, or a solution.

  Shane ran his hands through his hair. "I need to see those pages, Brynn. They hold the answers of my very existence. Who would take them?" His voice broke as he stepped back in despair.

  Shaking his head, he moved away from the book in search of space.

  I closed the book and sealed it back in its wooden box.

  "I wish we hadn't come here," he murmured, moving toward the small door of the hidden room.

  His breathing became erratic as he stumbled toward the exit. I followed him, making every effort to push my inner panic aside so I could help him.

  It was no use, though. My terror had poisoned my veins and coursed through me like toxic venom. Every nerve in my body twitched as I feared losing Shane forever.

  Lowering himself toward the door, he pushed it open. I bent to exit with him, and in my uncoordinated distress, I stumbled and fell against him. The two of us piled out onto the floor of the storage room with a clumsy splat.

  Rolling onto our knees, preparing to stand, our eyes landed on a pair of feet. Together, we lifted our gazes along the figure that hovered over us, and together we cried out, "Ms. Kelly!"

  She reached for our hands and pulled us up at the same time. We fell into her as she held our shaking bodies close.

  Her soothing embrace calmed our quaking bodies, but not enough to squash the sobs that finally escaped from me. I buried my face in her shoulder, allowing the deep sadness to flow out of me.

  Shane stepped back, holding Ms. Kelly's eyes with his. He didn't blink, and he didn't flinch. He just stared, waiting
for her to speak.

  I pulled myself together and moved away from her comforting hold. Standing by Shane, I reached for his hand. With a gasp, my eye widened as his energy entered my body through our touch. His exhilarating essence coursed through me, and I took it in like oxygen.

  "You've found the book of spells, I see," Ms. Kelly sighed. "Discovered things you don't understand."

  We nodded.

  "I'm not surprised," she said. "The two of you have a curiosity that can't be harnessed." She took a deep inhale. "I suppose I expected it. And as annoyed as I may be, I'm also glad that you hold the tenacity to search for answers, for growth."

  Finally able to take in a full breath of air, I said, "Pages are missing, Ms. Kelly. We need to find them."

  She reached for us. "Come. Let's sit together. Tell me what you've discovered."

  We followed her out of the room and into the grand expanse of the church. Settling into the front corner pews, we filled the worship hall with our racing whispers as the story unfolded from start to finish.

  Ms. Kelly nodded as the final pieces of our discovery were revealed to her. Shane allowed me to tell the last parts, as his shoulders sank deeper into his frame.

  "Could it be true, Ms. Kelly? Is it referring to something that happened to Shane?" I searched her for a response, praying it would be one I could live with.

  She looked back and forth between us. Our hands remained entwined, creating a bond between Shane and me that couldn't be broken.

  "I'm not sure," she said with a harrowed tone, rubbing her forehead. "I need to study the book further." She closed her eyes for a moment, then looked at us. "But yes, I've heard of this before. A long time ago." She hesitated. "I've suspected it of Shane. When the green aura had surrounded you two before, I recognized it as a sign."

  I dropped my face into my hand, and Shane continued to stare blankly at the altar.

  "We'll find the lost pages," she assured us. "We'll find a way to reverse it. I promise you."

  Chapter 7

  Leaving the old church to go home was the hardest thing I ever had to do. Ms. Kelly said it was the best option for now, though. She wasn't thrilled that Shane and I had snuck into the church to find the book of spells. But now that it was done, there was no way she could deny it had to happen.

  Shane needed to know what he was.

  And now he did.

  Leaning back into the pillows on my bed, I stared at my phone, waiting for it to buzz. The sudden isolation of solitude sent loneliness through me, but the downtime was necessary.

  Ms. Kelly instructed us to lay low for the rest of the day, and to meet again at the church after school tomorrow.

  The intrigue of her unknown agenda for the meeting made my mind race with possibilities. But one thing I was happy with was that we were bringing Poorva and Blake back into the loop. My guilt for leaving them out of our sneaking adventure poked at me, but I knew if they had been there with us, things wouldn't have unfolded the way they had.

  And I understood now that it had all happened the way it did for a reason.

  I thought of the kiss Shane and I shared in the secret room and blushed. It was more than a kiss. It was an eruption of suppressed feelings—desire to be closer to him. The draw between us was the most powerful thing I've ever felt, and now, in this moment, all I wanted was him.

  Finding the lost pages of the spellbook was paramount if we were ever going to be able to connect fully.

  We needed his soul.

  With Halloween fast approaching, I prayed Samhain would be the time for all things to resolve. It was one of the most powerful times of the year, according to Ms. Harrison's wheel, and being the day to celebrate the dead, I figured it might hold some extra power to help Shane.

  Now, if we could only keep Laney at bay.

  I was sure she was still heated after our confrontations earlier today and had no regrets for blocking her on social media long ago.

  It really sucked that her threat to us wasn't limited to just her. Regretfully, she was well wrapped in with her twisted mother and worse, the Dark Witch. I couldn't ignore her forever. And tomorrow, in school, would likely be our next throw down.

  The one good thing about Laney that I had to keep reminding myself of was the fact that she knew Dom and everything that was happening. She could actually be useful perhaps in finding him, which would then lead us to Courtney as well. I'd have to be crafty in my approach with her, knowing that she might hold some cards that could lead us to our friends, and maybe even the missing pages.

  A burning sensation pulled my attention to my arm, and I lifted my sleeve to rub it. The ancient mark of the witch hunter festered deep in my skin, and I covered it with my palm. Heat radiated out of it to the point I nearly had to pull my hand away, but I pressed harder on it instead, wincing from the pain.

  Then my phone buzzed, pulling my attention from the strange brand on my skin.

  Shane's name lit up, making my heart jump.

  I opened it immediately.

  I want to see you

  My air sucked in, and I touched the screen, opening his next message.

  I feel like a punished child sent to my room

  A pic of his face in his dark room posted behind the words, and I stared into his eyes.

  I took a pic of myself, squashed into the pillows on my bed.

  Me too

  I sent it, then took another pic with more of a smile.

  I couldn't think of what else to say though. I wanted to know if he was okay, but of course, he wasn't. I wanted to see him too but felt dumb saying it. Joking about feeling like we were in time-out seemed stupid too. So I just typed whatever came to mind without a filter.

  I miss you

  My finger hovered over the send arrow, and then I closed my eyes and touched it.

  Something about Shane allowed me to lower my guard, and as scary as it felt, it also felt good.

  I took a deep breath and lowered my head deeper into my pillows.

  Tomorrow was going to be another big day, and with everything we needed to accomplish, my face reddened at the fact that I just wanted to get my hands on him.

  Cyber-foreplay with Shane had made me desperate to see him. I hardly slept in anticipation of our reunion. The most important thing was to comfort him, to let him know nothing had changed between us, and that we'd fix his problem asap.

  I fumbled through my morning routine, adding extra primping wherever I could manage it. Flipping my hair to the side added pretty flare, and the hint of blush on my cheeks made me glow. Looking at my reflection in the mirror, my momentary lapse of reason came crashing to reality.

  Looking pretty for Shane had no space within our situation. It was sad that I couldn't celebrate it in a girly way, and my reflection slapped me back to reality. Saving his life was the priority, and the depth of my stare proved it.

  Dom and Courtney's souls depended on me as well, causing worry lines to cross my forehead.

  I rubbed my fingers across my brow to loosen it, trying to understand the complexities of first love. But in reality, it was more like an immortal-love-that-transcended-time with a twist of witch hunter-and-her-soulless-man kind of thing.

  My reflection stared back at me with pity, but instead of lowering to her judging glare, I spun away, leaving the negativity behind me.

  This was my life, and no matter how much the typical-teen wishes and expectations poked at me, I had determined to embrace my more complicated experience. Like a gift.

  Stepping out the door into the early morning chill, I savored the fact that Mom hadn't woken up yet. Last thing I needed was for any of her negativity to brush off on me as I began another day of the unknown.

  I glanced up, and my eyes landed on Shane's RAV parked right outside my house.

  My breath sucked in from the sight of him watching me.

  Normally, I coveted my alone-time walking to school. It was my headspace and my moment to brood, and I hated giving it up.

  But
not today.

  I nearly ran to his car and hopped in.

  Breathless, I turned in my seat to take him in, like a tall glass of water in a scorching desert.

  His expression was serious at first, but as soon as he tried to speak, he gave in to his true desire and reached for me.

  I shimmied closer as he pulled me into him and kissed me. One hand ran up along my cheek and into my hair, as the other reached around my waist. He kissed me like I was his oxygen, and I melted in his hold. Lost in the bliss of his scent and his mouth, I forgot all sense of time and space.

  Just being with him was all that mattered.

  He slowed and inched his face away from mine. Studying my eyes, he smiled.

  "Good morning," he murmured.

  Reaching for the console between, he pulled a coffee flask out from under my legs and gave it to me.

  I opened the top of the coffee and took a huge whiff of its aroma.

  "Perfect," I grinned.

  He watched me take a sip. "I know."

  After another moment, he pulled out into the light traffic of the morning and drove us to school.

  "It's ridiculous that we still need to go through the motions of school," he griped. "We've left its simplicity far behind us, a long time ago."

  "I know." The words dragged out of my mouth as I resisted our small talk.

  Then, in my moment of hesitation, we both spoke at the same time, the exact same words.

  "We need to talk about this."

  Our voices landed on the last syllable simultaneously, and we burst out laughing.

  I gazed at the beautiful smile on his face, and then my stomach soured as it faded.

  His sorrow couldn't hide.

  "We'll fix this," I said, grasping his hand. "I promise."

  Our energy surged through our clasped hands, and his eyes brightened from the euphoric sensation that ran between us.

  As he pulled into the student lot, I reached for my backpack, pondering how I would fulfill my promise to him. The thought of trying to save his soul churned nervous vomit into my throat as a panic attack threatened my composure. But there was no question—I would do this.