“I want someone who wants to get to know me on a deeper level, you know? I blocked him, but quickly forgot about him when I lost my magic pretty soon after.”
My head bent to glance over at the opposite bed. His gaze followed mine, a frown pulling at his eyebrows.
“I’m sorry to hear about your experience,” I muttered. “Do you have this guy’s number? A friend of mine had a similar experience and we want to report him.”
Shaking his head, the boy chewed on his lip. “No, he never gave me a number. Just contacted me through the dating app.”
“Okay, thanks for your help, I really appreciate it.”
As I got up to leave, he grabbed my hand and squeezed it. I relaxed, concentrating on not allowing my energy to connect to his and pull on what remained of his magic.
“I hope you manage to sort him out, he was out of order.”
Clearing my throat, I slowly took my hand away from him, trying not to seem like I was repulsed by his touch. Which I wasn’t, but I was afraid. I didn’t want him to lose any more magic than he already had and my control, although fairly well trained, wasn’t perfect.
“I promise to try my hardest.” Going to walk away, I paused, one foot in the air.
The boy in the opposite bed was still on his side, his head buried into his pillow. He would hate me if I interfered by saying something, but I had to find a way for him to be noticed.
Touching my phone in my pocket, I took some of the power from the battery and flicked my finger. As I left, the boy who feigned sleep suddenly jolted upright when his bottle of water flew off his bedside table and rolled under his crush’s bed. Jumping up, he stumbled over to him and grabbed it, muttering an apology.
“Don’t worry,” the other boy said, smiling broadly. “What’s your name?”
My own smile widened as I heard the stuttering words of the other boy before they laughed together. Well, if Mother Nature wanted the witches together, I had given her a helping hand. I’d call it my good deed for the day.
Chapter Three
“Whose idea was this?” Helissa groaned low in her throat as we clicked the submit button on her phone.
Isabel jumped up and down where she sat on the ground. The grass was springy, light under my fingertips as I stroked it. The academy loomed high behind us as we ate our lunch in the sun.
“Mine,” I said, snatching her phone and trying not to laugh.
Helissa hadn’t been impressed with my plan to lure Damian on the app. Of course I needed girl power, which meant we all had to join the app.
Isabel hadn’t complained at all, obviously. Her eyes sparkled as she flicked her long thick black hair behind her shoulder. Today, she wore the full academy uniform, which meant she was trying to behave. She hadn’t told us why.
“It will be fun. You never know, we might get a real date out of it.”
“What? With the psycho whose draining magic? No, thank you.” Helissa took out her grimoire, her expression growing darker when her fingers traced the outline of her surname. “I don’t like that you haven’t told Seaton, either.”
I had debated whether to tell the principal but decided against it. There was no way he would let us meet up with the culprit after luring him on the app. If we were successful, of course. However, I had a feeling the sick bastard wasn’t going to be too fussy. I couldn’t risk such a good opportunity to catch the bad guy.
“We let you into the ring of secrets because we trust you,” Isabel said, dramatically grabbing Helissa’s hand to stop it from repeatedly tracing the engraved name. “Are you sure you want to be involved?”
Shaking her off, Helissa opened the grimoire and nodded. “Fine, I’ll stop moaning.” Her fingers flicked the pages until she stopped, opening the book wide. “Here, this might help.”
Spindly Latin words decorated the page, making it all pretty. I had always wished that I could have a grimoire. My mother had one, but she had been tactful in not telling me. I found it after she had died, tucked away in a wooden chest. She had obviously realised that an Illusionist witch would never need one.
Blinking away tears, I gestured to Helissa. “What does it say?”
“It’s an attraction spell. It helps witches to lure their mate.”
Isabel leant over Helissa’s shoulder, her eyes tracing the words. I had never bothered to learn Latin, although I had memorised a few Latin spells, even though I couldn’t cast them properly.
“I thought that was an illegal spell?” Isabel frowned, even though a spark lit her eyes. “Making people fall in love is so old fashioned.”
Waving away her protest, Helissa grinned. “Attraction is not the same as falling in love. Yes, it is technically frowned upon-”
“Illegal,” Isabel cut in.
“Shush!” Helissa barked, laughing gently when we both raised our eyebrows. “Do you want to catch this bastard or what?”
Glancing at one another, we nodded slowly. Yes, it was dangerous territory, but as future agents, we were prepared to do anything to bring down the man responsible for almost killing a student. It must have been him who burnt down the infirmary.
Looking up at the smoked out window, I cringed. The teaching wing had been closed off to students altogether. Luckily, the fire brigade had managed to put out the fire before it damaged any of the other rooms.
“Do it!” I ordered Helissa as burning heat travelled over my skin.
We couldn’t allow anyone else at the academy to get hurt, but we had to make sure we covered our tracks at all times. It would be easier if I had the skill to cast spells, especially as my magic couldn’t be traced. Unfortunately, I wasn’t a Wayward witch. I was just plain old Alishia Jones. Helissa’s name gave her extra power, being that her bloodline was ancient. At least no one had high expectations from me. I could happily pretend that I was somebody, all the while maintaining to everyone else that I was a nobody.
“Right,” Helissa started, leaning over the book further. “The instructions say we need something of his. A piece of hair or a nail clipping.”
“Nail?” Isabel gasped. “Eww, that’s disgusting.”
“This was written hundreds of years ago, Izzy.” Helissa sighed, her eyes rolling as our friend visibly winced. “They didn’t have photos back then.”
“Can you use a photo now?” I asked, ignoring Isabel as she stuck her finger in her throat in a pretend gag.
Helissa looked at me, shrugging her small shoulders as she tucked her curly brown hair behind her ear. “I don’t see why not. Have you got one of him?”
Shaking my head, I grabbed my phone and signed into the app. “No, but let’s search for him on here.”
They both picked up their phones, ready to get to work. This was exactly what it would be like to be an agent. The thought sent a thrill up my spine as I imagined myself with amazing weapons, kickass boots and an incredible agent name. Alishia the Great or something similar.
“Hello, pretty ladies,” a deep voice greeted, making us all jump.
“Dracian!” Isabel almost screamed as she jumped up from the floor and threw her arms around the dark-haired witch.
Dracian laughed, patting her back as he let her hug him. The two male students who accompanied the witch shook their heads, apparently baffled by his popularity. I didn’t understand it myself either, considering he was a killer. Oh, but wait, Isabel didn’t know that. Maybe I was being cruel not telling her.
“What are you up to?” he asked, crouching down when my friend finally let him go.
Isabel opened her mouth to speak. Reaching for her, I gripped her wrist, squeezing hard. As a tiny bit of her magic filtered into me, I ripped away, scowling when she blinked at me, open mouthed.
“Nothing,” I said, avoiding eye contact with his friends, who no doubt thought I was a weirdo. “Any news on Lucy?”
Rubbing the back of his neck as he frowned, Dracian watched me closely. “She’s in recovery. The operation went well, but she’ll be scarred for life.”
“Poor girl.” My muttered reply was met by the darkening of his eyes.
A shadow crossed them as he looked at me, his intense unblinking gaze causing me to swallow hard. Why was he studying me so closely?
“See, this is why we’re doing the right thing,” Isabel said, interrupting our staring session.
Dropping my gaze, I cleared my throat, about to talk. Before I could, Isabel was speaking, yet again.
“We know the connection between the students who were drained. It’s a bloke on-”
“Izzy, enough!” I snapped, snarling at her when she blinked at me.
“No need to be so harsh,” Dracian said, poking her arm. “She trusts me. You should, too.”
About to blurt a very unladylike reply, I stopped myself when Dracian glanced down at the grimoire.
“Attraction spell?” His eyebrows pulled low, his expression cautious.
See, and that was why I didn’t want Dracian Dread to know anything. He was the teachers’ pet, the students’ kiss-arse. He would tell Seaton all about our plans, which would ultimately ruin the only chance we had of catching Damian.
“There’s a dude,” Isabel said, ignoring my warning glares. “He’s on the dating app. We’re going to-”
Without thinking, I used the tiny bit of magic I’d taken from Isabel to cast a silence spell. Her lips were forced shut, her words cut off. Her eyes widened before she looked at me, a startled expression on her face.
“Alishia,” Helissa breathed.
Dracian grabbed hold of my wrist, his grip firm. “Release the spell this instant.”
Tearing myself out of his hold, I jumped up, flicking my hand and reversing the spell. “I’m sorry.”
My apology was said with little enthusiasm as I spun and ran from them, my boots loud against the concrete.
“Alishia!” Isabel called, but I ignored her, running across the grounds and towards the gate.
I couldn’t hang around and watch my friends reveal everything to the boy who had killed my parents. Working hard to gain information, I felt proud that I had achieved something on my own. What gave them the right to freely offer it to someone else?
My phone started to ring as I exited the grounds and headed towards the bar. I had no intention of answering it, so I left it in my pocket as I slowed my pace. It would be one of the girls, urging me to go back. Instead, I would go to the pub and talk to Frankie.
The door to the bar opened ahead. My manager strolled out, lighting a cigarette. Something about the man made me feel more human. Well, maybe that wasn’t such an accurate term, but being that he was an Illusionist witch too, it made me feel better.
“Afternoon,” he greeted when I strode up to him.
Huffing, I flung my backpack on the floor and sat on the small bench opposite the bar’s magic entrance. The students and witches used the cover of the pretty alley to sneak into the pub. I had often sat and watched them approach, their excitement for a night of drinking contagious.
“Don’t you hate it when people don’t know when to shut up?”
“Pardon me for breathing,” he replied, his eyebrows raised.
Slumping against the back of the bench, I banged my head on the wood. Wincing as I rubbed my wound – okay, slight ache – I sighed loudly. “Sorry, I didn’t mean you.”
“Are you having a teenage crisis?” His words made me look up and glare at him.
Shrugging, he puffed on his cigarette, forming rings with his mouth. Smoking was a disgusting habit, one that my father had been prone to when I was a young girl. I had watched him stand outside in the cold and wet, frowning as he thought about how he could help me. At the same time, he would drag on a cigarette and blow it out in a long line.
A pang of pain made me grimace as I sat forward and put my head in my hands. Frankie watched me closely, waiting for me to reply to his obscene question.
“Of course I am,” I eventually answered. “Although, young adult meltdown would be a more accurate term.”
My phone rang again, the sound bursting from my pocket. Grabbing it out with the intention of putting it on silent, I went still when I saw who it was.
“What the bloody…?” My words trailed off as I pressed the answer button.
“Alishia?” My aunt’s voice was as sharp as I remembered.
She lived in America, escaping England when she married a witch from Salem. He had tried to get the British authorities to let me move over there when my parents died but apparently, the institute had prevented it. Nasty nasty people.
“Auntie Felicity,” I breathed, tears instantly coming to my eyes.
My foster carers had prevented me from talking to my mother’s sister the whole time I was there, even blocking my aunt’s number on my phone. Somehow, the block had now been lifted.
“Thank goddess, you’re alright. I’ve been ready to fly back over to see what was going on.”
“I’ve not spoken to you in two years.” I gasped as a tear dropped down my cheek. “Where were you?”
Her sob resounded loud in my ear. “I tried, Alishia. They assured me you were doing well. The institute…”
Frankie cleared his throat and went back into the pub, giving me a nod as the door closed behind him. I was glad of the privacy. I hadn’t had such a tough conversation in a very long time. My heart literally squeezed in my chest, pushing all the pain to the surface.
“Did they do anything?” I asked, holding my breath as I waited for her to answer.
“Just promised to kill us if we didn’t leave you alone. Alishia, I-”
“Why would they do that?” I interrupted, fury bursting through me.
Jumping to my feet, I kicked the bench, swearing when pain exploded in my toe. Stupid bench.
“They want your power, honey,” she said, her voice tight. “Where are you now?”
Gripping my free hand into a fist, I stared at the pretty trees in the park at the end of the alley. “I’m at the Undercover Witch Academy. Professor Seaton-”
“Oh, good, Seaton was a friend of your father’s.”
Relaxing my shoulders, I closed my eyes. It felt so strange to be talking to my aunt. I believed that she had given up on me, not caring what happened to her niece. Hearing her voice brought back the trauma of losing my parents.
“Do you know anything, Fel?”
My words were almost a plea. If she just knew something, she could help me find peace. Well, after Dracian was proved guilty, obviously.
Her sigh told me all I needed to know. “You know I don’t, my love. I’ve tried to do some investigating from here but the coven rules are strict. No meddling in foreign affairs, even though I’m English!”
As my heart sunk, I tried to ignore the pang of guilt that turned my stomach. I hadn’t told her about Dracian Dread. If anyone knew that I could read memories, I would be hunted by the institute without mercy. At the moment, because I was protected by the professor, they were leaving me alone. However, I couldn’t trust anyone fully, not even my aunt.
“I promise to try and get justice for my parents,” I said, swallowing back the tears that threatened.
Her voice was tight when she spoke again. “I remember your mother saying that someone had visited the house, not long before they died, asking if they could help them with their magic. They were an Illusionist witch too, on the run from the institute.”
Maybe the institute was more involved than I had imagined. If Dracian’s father had helped mine, it was pretty clear why Dracian was at the scene. He probably resented my parents for not being arrested like Mr Dread.
“Okay,” I replied, not really sure if that information would help considering I knew who the killer was. “I’ll keep at it.”
The reason I had even bothered to ask my aunt if she knew anything was just in case I had it wrong. Nothing had persuaded me that Dracian was innocent. It had been hard to believe that he could be capable of such brutality when he had tried to save the students in the academy. And yet… I had seen his fa
ce outside the window of our home.
“I miss you, little bean.”
A sob erupted from me out of nowhere. No one had called me by my nickname since my parents had died. Felicity used to sing a song using it, rocking me when I was a toddler. All the memories of the happy times flooded my mind, the pain forcing me to my knees.
“I’m sorry, please don’t cry,” she said, her own voice choking back a sob. “I wish I could come and see you.”
Trying my hardest to calm myself, I took several deep breaths and got to my feet. Her words gave me hope. “Why can’t you?”
“My coven won’t allow it. They’re afraid of the institute and want me to stay out of any English business.”
Huffing out my breath, I wiped my eyes, cringing at the smudge of mascara on my finger. Ugh, why did I wear make-up?
“I’ll keep you updated,” I said, bringing my hard exterior back around my heart.
Felicity’s breath hitched as she blew out her breath too. “Okay, please be careful when contacting me. I don’t know if the institute bugged my phone.”
Part of me wondered if my foster parents had bugged my own phone. Maybe the institute knew about my plans all along. Although, I hadn’t exactly shared it with many people over the phone, just Izzy. And Isabel wasn’t the most discreet.
“I love you,” I breathed before hanging up the phone.
Taking a shaky step, I picked up my bag and went into the bar.
Frankie stood behind it, staring glumly at the tables and chairs in front of him. There weren’t any students around, they were too busy studying in the grounds of the academy.
“Is everything alright?” he asked when I sat on a bar stool in front of him.
Without answering, I reached over, took some electric from the till – it was fine, it literally beeped once and then returned to normal – and swirled my finger to pick a bottle of beer up from the side, bringing it closer to me. Frankie caught it just before it reached my hand.
“I must admit, you have a strange way of gaining your magic.”
Undercover Witch Academy Box Set Page 16