The Cursed Witch

by Chandelle LaVaun

  Do that again. Do it. Come on, whatever it is!

  She swung her arm to the left and the guy flew through the air across the park.

  YES.

  Then she turned on the other Knights and grinned. “Come and get me, boys.”

  A chill slid down my spine.

  I like her.

  They charged for her. She threw both hands out and black mist grabbed ahold of their metal armor. The metal shrieked and hissed like she had her hands on them. They shouted and squirmed against her, but her grip was strong. My pulse quickened. I licked my lips and moved forward, ready to help her. But then she curled her fingers in and they all flew toward her, their boots dragging through the snow. She lifted them up in the air and then slammed them into the ground.

  YES!

  Okay, Saffie. DO SOMETHING! Help her! This is your fight, don’t just stand there!

  But what? What can I do against all of THIS?

  I didn’t have any gifts or special talents. I couldn’t summon fire to my palms.

  Think, Saffie, think. In a panic, I turned and scanned the ground around me for something I could use. I didn’t trust the armor Riah gave me. I refused to fall for another of his traps. But there was nothing but snow. I groaned. My chest grew tight. I rolled to the balls of my feet.

  Bright light flashed from the girl. I gasped and glanced up only to find it was her. The girl’s entire body was glowing. My jaw dropped. She was glowing. Like the moon. Like a spotlight. Like the lights lining the buildings in the distance. What is that? Who is this girl? I should have been afraid of her. I’d never witnessed so much power. It was radiating off of her like a hurricane.

  Except…I felt the urge to run toward her. It made no sense, and that was the only thing keeping me glued in place. My heart and soul were begging me to run to her side, but my brain said stop.

  The Knights were scrambling to get back up – or most of them were. Some were lying motionless on the ground. She’s winning. For now. Does she know about the Seelies? Does she know what they’re capable of? I didn’t. Not really. But I didn’t like what I’d witnessed so far.

  “SAFFIE!” The girl yelled again.

  Some of the knights got to their feet, but she just threw them face-first into the big boulders. With her back turned, the Knights in front of me peeled off their golden metal body armor. I frowned. Can she control metal, too? God, who IS this girl? And how did she know me?

  One of the Knights sprinted toward her, screaming. She grinned with rage-filled glory and flicked her wrist. Bright orange flames swallowed him whole. I was so distracted by her power that I hadn’t seen a few of the knights sneak around behind her until they tackled her to the ground.

  I gasped. NO!

  I lunged forward and balled my hands into fists – to do what, Saffie? Punch them? This may have been my war but this girl was the entire damn army. I didn’t belong in the same place as her.

  The girl curled her wrists and flames covered her body. The Knights dove for her wrists, dodging her flames long enough to yank her bracelets off her wrists. Glittery magic flashed and her bracelets disintegrated into dust. The girl’s face paled and panic took over.

  Oh no. OH NO. Those bracelets…they must have been the source of her power, like the one Riah had given me.

  She pushed back on her shoulders then swung her legs up, kicking two of the Knights in the face. She rolled to her side, grabbed one of their fallen swords and jumped up. They charged for her. That grin, that evil looking grin, split across her face and my stomach tightened into knots. I backed away again, wanting to get out of the line of fire.

  She rolled to the balls of her feet then sprinted right at them. She ducked and sliced the Seelie’s sword through one of their knees. He screamed and dropped to the ground, but she paid no attention to it. She just kept moving. She leapt into the air and spun, sliding right over another Knight’s back. I gasped. I need to fight like this. WAIT. I CAN FIGHT. Like at Hidden Kingdom.

  Except I had no idea what I was doing and this girl was a pro. I wanted to get in there but I was afraid I’d mess up her plan and get one or both of us hurt. But I would be ready. I bounced from foot to foot, ready to pounce.

  When her feet hit the ground, she dropped down and slammed her blade into a Knight’s gut. Blood splashed all over her but that didn’t seem to bother her. As he dropped, she peeled his sword from his dead fingers like a cold, heartless monster that I instantly adored. Then she paused and frowned down at the two swords she held. Her manicured brows furrowed and then she slammed the two sword hilts together end-to-end. Magic rushed out of her – and the metal merged together. Giving her a double-sided sword.

  I want one.

  She twirled it in her hands, then grinned. “Not too shabby for a cheerleader, eh?”

  I had no idea what a cheerleader was but this girl was my new hero.

  The knights yelled and raced toward her. She charged forward, ducking and dodging as she went. Then she dropped to one knee and swung her weapon through the air, slicing two of the Knights in half. Oh shit, what kind of swords are those? My stomach turned but I didn’t dare look away.

  Fire covered every inch of her blades. She held one hand up and a bright orange fireball formed in her palm. She frowned and tossed it at the Knight closest to her. Then she summoned another and another. Her fire billowed from her hand. She switched her weapon to her left hand, then summoned fire to her right. It answered immediately.

  She grinned. “Well now, would you look at that?”

  I laughed. I actually laughed. There were still at least a dozen Seelie Knights standing between us, but the power and fury pouring out of this blonde bombshell was intoxicating. I couldn’t help but watch and admire the show. I was ready to help, but I knew I was nothing compared to her.

  “Wanna stop and talk this out?” She tossed a fireball up in the air then caught it. “Or do you wanna die?”

  I grinned. Kill them.

  They charged for her.

  “Okay, death it is.”

  She leapt forward and swung her fiery sword while throwing flames all around her. For a few moments, I was lost to it, to her merciless rage as she lit the sky orange. I was watching her moves, the way she fought and used her magic in ways I had never seen. I needed to be able to fight like that.

  Something moved in my peripheral vision, I jumped and spun toward it just as a Knight raced through the shadows under the trees. He held two swords with sickening curved, sharp blades. I looked back to the girl, but she didn’t see him. Her back was turned as she fought the other Knights. He was going to kill her.

  He leapt out from the shadows and his wings carried him silently across the sky. Both blades were raised over his head, but as he started to drop he swung the swords down—

  “NO!” I screamed and threw my hands out.

  DIE! I pushed my magic with every ounce of strength I had in me. Not her. NOT TODAY. Not on my damn watch. I felt my power rush down my arms and into my fingers then shoot out into the air. Golden glittery missiles shot out of my palms and slammed into the sneaky Knight’s back.

  His eyes widened then glassed over in an instant. His lifeless body plummeted to the ground.

  The girl gasped and spun around. Her golden gaze met mine and I knew I wore the same wide, shocked expression she did. I just killed him. With my hands…with my magic…My hands trembled. I killed him. I’d thought the word die and then I killed him. My body turned cold. But I had to, he was going to kill HER…and she saved me.

  The girl blinked, then that rage reclaimed her pretty face. She lit up a wall of fire behind her then leapt toward me. I sighed and dropped my hands— the girl’s eyes widened. Her mouth opened just as a thick armored arm wrapped around my waist and yanked me back.

  I felt the familiar tingle and energy of the Seelie tunnels rush over my body and I screamed.

  Chapter Sixty-Three

  Saffie

  “NO!” The girl grabbed a dead knight’s sword off t
he ground and threw it toward me. The long sword shot like a rocket through the air with fire coiling around the blade.

  I thrashed and threw my body around, kicking my legs as hard as I could to try and break free of the Knight’s hold. But it was no use, his strength was not human. I had nothing on him. I looked up and screamed again. The tunnel was closing, those damn green vines sprawling and reaching out for each other.

  But the sword flew strong and zipped right through the narrow tunnel opening.

  I growled and pushed my magic and it exploded out of me. The Knight holding me shrieked and threw me to the ground just as her fiery sword flew over my head. I flipped onto my back in time to watch her blade sink all the way through the Knight’s chest.

  He let out a strangled screech and dropped to his knees. Thick red blood bubbled up around the hilt of the sword then poured from his chest. His wings fluttered once then melted away. He choked on a gasp, blood leaking from his mouth…then he crumbled to the ground.

  I scrambled to my feet and charged for the tunnel opening just as the last vines wrapped around each other and sealed shut.

  “NO. SAFFIE!” I heard her muffled shout through the closed tunnel walls.

  “NO!” I screamed and it scorched down my throat. I punched the wall over and over with everything I had, but all I got was bursts of bright colors and flowers. “NO!”

  This can’t be happening. That girl, that awesome bad ass girl knows me! I have to get back. This can’t be happening. I pressed my palms to the vines and growled as they turned that stupid neon green. Flowers popped up between my fingers and I snarled. I pushed my magic out, gold glitter rushed out of me…but nothing happened.

  The tunnel remained perfectly intact. NO! No, no, no! OPEN!

  A deep, raw laughter ripped through my rage then echoed down the tunnel.

  I gasped and spun around – and froze.

  It was the Seelie Knight that the girl had just hit with her sword – wait. I frowned and looked down at the ground. The Knight’s lifeless, bloody body lay there right where he fell. Above it, his spirit floated in the air. His form looked the same, minus the fatal wound, but he was entirely translucent and shimmered the faintest green color. He was dead. This was his spirit.

  And he was laughing at me.

  I clenched my teeth and narrowed my eyes on his ghostly form. I was sick to freaking death of all these ghosts. If they could mess with me, then I could mess with them. And I’d had it with their games. If the dead wouldn’t play nice then neither would I.

  I stomped up to the laughing ghost then grabbed him by the throat. His form solidified under my touch, his skin turning back to that pale shade he had when he still lived. From the neck up, he looked alive. His blue eyes widened with more fear than I’d ever seen. I growled and tightened my grip, digging my fingers into his neck. Something about watching that girl fight lit a fire inside of me. I was done sitting back and waiting. I was going to fight.

  The ghost gasped under my fingers.

  I dug my nails into his skin. “Tell me how to get back there or your soul will never rest.”

  He opened up his mouth but then his gaze shot over my shoulder and widened. I glanced behind me and my heart sank. Riah stood there in full golden armor with an army at his back.

  Chapter Sixty-Four

  Saffie

  I cursed and the spirit vanished from within my hand.

  “Saraphina.”

  My stupid traitorous heart fluttered at the sound of his voice and the way he said my name. Rage exploded inside of me. How dare he. I looked to him and snarled, my golden glittery magic coiling around my arms and legs.

  “Riah,” I growled back.

  My chest tightened and burned like I’d swallowed that girl’s fire. Every inch of my skin blazed with fiery fury. It hurt to look at him standing there like a complete stranger in his full body golden armor and pointed ears. I missed the black hoodie and boots. I missed the cocky sideways grin and the wild glint in his eyes. But this Riah was no one I knew.

  This was Seelie Knight Commander Zachariah.

  And I was not going to let my broken heart break me.

  “Saraphina,” he said slowly and calmly with his hands raised in the air. “Just come with me and let’s talk.”

  Talk, eh? The army behind him dripping in weapons didn’t look like the chatty type.

  I nodded and rolled to the balls of my feet. “You want me? Come and get me.”

  I spun and sprinted down the tunnel.

  “SARAPHINA, STOP!”

  I summoned my magic to my hands as I ran, forming a giant orb between my fingers. Then I slid to a stop and slammed the orb into the wall and pushed. OPEN! The vines shrieked and vanished instantly. I grinned and jumped through the opening — SHIT.

  I threw my hands out to the side and my wings fluttered behind my back, holding me up…a few feet above deep, dark blue water. The tunnel had opened up right over the middle of the ocean. There was no land to be seen in any direction. I cursed and pushed back – and my wings worked. I flew back inside the tunnel and hit the back wall.

  “WAIT,” Riah yelled. “Just stop!”

  Like hell. I planted my feet and charged down the tunnel. My magic rushed to the surface without me even calling for it. I grinned and let it build between my palms. My legs burned and my entire body ached but I couldn’t give up now. I had no idea how this tunnel worked or how it knew where to open up at but I had to try again. Getting out of this Seelie tunnel was my only chance of survival.

  “You’re gonna hurt yourself,” Riah shouted again, though his voice was much closer now. “Just stop.”

  Not today, Satan.

  I looked down at my magic orb. It was half the size of my body. Put me on land. Put me on land. Put me on land – I threw it into the wall with every ounce of strength I had left. Golden glitter exploded all around us and the tunnel shook. The ground trembled under my bare feet. My orb tore through the vine wall like it was butter, leaving an opening bigger than my body.

  I dove through the opening then slid to a stop.

  There was land, but it was solid ice and covered in snow. Massive glaciers towered over me like those buildings in New York. I felt warm energy tickle against the side of my face, when I looked I found three white bears standing on a glacier. Their heads snapped in my direction and they stared.

  “Nice bears,” I said calmly. “You’re okay. No one is going to hurt you.”

  Bright white light flashed out of the corner of my eye. I spun — and gasped.

  Two people who had definitely not just been there were now standing fifty feet away. My jaw dropped. It was a guy and a girl, and they did not belong in this tundra any more than I did. Power unlike anything I’d ever felt rolled off of them in waves. Hot energy slammed into me and my magic rushed to meet it like an old friend. Both of their backs were to me. I wanted to scream out but my body locked up.

  There was something about them that my brain could not handle. My thoughts vanished. My pulse quickened. Everything seemed to slide into slow motion. They both wore matching black outfits, from their leather jackets down to their beat up combat boots. The girl started to turn and I noticed her long black hair that fell straight down to her hips had purple at the tips. She spotted me the second she turned. Her pale green eyes widened and her jaw dropped. She gripped the guy’s jacket and spun him.

  The guy was taller than Riah, with wavy black hair that fell in waves down to his shoulders. He turned and two bright mismatching eyes met mine. And I knew them in an instant.

  I gasped. “Tennessee.”

  Tennessee’s mismatched eyes widened. He dove for me. “SAFFIE!”

  And then a thick arm wrapped around my waist and yanked me back inside the tunnel. Hands gripped my arms and hoisted me in the air. I screamed and kicked my legs but all I saw was a sea of golden armor as the Knights tackled me to the ground—

  Rainbow colored magic slammed into them and they flew into the air.

&nbs
p; TEGAN!

  And then just like that, like someone flipped a switch, my memory came rushing back.

  I jumped to my feet as the tunnel sealed shut again. My magic shot out of me, wrapping around my body like it missed me. I missed you, too. Tennessee and Tegan were gone.

  But I was back.

  I REMEMBER EVERYTHING.

  Everything will be different now that Saffie has her memory back…but how will she get home? What will she think of her long awaited freedom now that she finally has it? And what will she think of Riah now that the truth is out…

  Find out in Book 2, The Rogue Witch, coming late summer! CLICK HERE to pre-order it NOW!

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  I thought magic was make believe...but I was way wrong.

  I was nobody. No matter how hard I tried, I never fit in with anyone at my high school. Now I know why.