The Broken Witch

by Chandelle LaVaun

  “Tenn, I’m not going to blind myself, so hold on to me.” Willow’s words were strong, but her voice was soft. “Here we go.”

  She raised her free hand up in front of her, and blue mist poured into the air. It mimicked the fog. A blue wall rose up from the ocean and circled around us like we were inside a tornado.

  My left hand was ice cold from where the fog touched me. It stung, but I wasn’t going to let go of Willow’s hand. I glanced over my shoulder. Everyone walked in silence, their eyes sharp and alert and watching the thin protection wall. I kept us moving. We just had to get out from the fog, then I could use the water to carry us home. Until then, I couldn’t risk it.

  Braison gasped. “What was that?”

  I frowned and looked back at him. I didn’t see anything out of place. I felt magic and pulsing energy, but that was the fog. And the chest of crystals. It was hard to discern them from each other. “Just keep moving.”

  We walked a few more steps, and then Braison cursed. “Something just touched me. Guys. What is that?”

  I looked back again. “I don’t see anything. It’s probably just the fog seeping through.” I didn’t believe my own words, but what else was I supposed to tell him? Everything inside me was telling me to run. To drop their hands and fight.

  “Wait, the fish are saying something,” Chutney said in a rush. Her palms grew sweaty. “Slow down, guys. I can’t understand you!”

  Braison shouted in alarm and sank under the water’s surface. Paulina and Cooper tried to hold on to his hands, but he was pulled under. I cursed and ran to where he’d dropped. I let go of Chutney’s hand and willed the water to part. Except he wasn’t there. All I found was sand and a stingray. I released the water and pushed with my magic. His energy was pure panic and fear.

  Paulina screamed and dove to her knees, but the water wouldn’t budge for her. It was rock solid.

  I sensed Braison a few feet over from me. I pushed and pushed with my magic until all of my muscles screamed in protest, but the water only parted a small sliver.

  “Help!” Braison shouted.

  Heat flared in my chest. Pain so raw and vivid it felt like someone had sliced me open. I gasped and stumbled back. Tegan.

  Anger soared inside me. “Give him back!” I screamed.

  “What’s happening?” Larissa shouted. “Where is he?”

  I didn’t answer. My focus was on the one person it always was since the day I’d met her. “TEGAN!”

  Cooper cursed.

  Willow coughed and fell backwards onto the hardened water. Her blue wall vanished.

  Then I felt her. The fog was too thick to see through, but I didn’t need my eyes. Her aura was tangible and a force to be reckoned with. Her energy was stronger than the sun’s rays beating down on us. The fog swirled with rainbow mist. Lightning of every color sparked all around us.

  “Tegan, give him back. NOW.”

  The water under our feet trembled. Tegan’s evil laugh echoed through my mind. My stomach turned and my heart sank.

  “Tegan,” I growled. “You don’t need to hurt him.”

  “Please, Tegan! Please don’t kill him,” Paulina cried. She slammed her fists on the surface of the water.

  Hurt him? Tegan said into my mind. Everyone else flinched, so I knew they heard it, too. Tegan scoffed. If I wanted you dead, you would be.

  The water opened up in front of me, and Braison flew into the air. He landed on top of the hardened surface and slid right into Paulina’s open arms. His skin was pale, but he seemed to be breathing fine. He pushed himself up and looked around.

  Wait. Where’s the chest? My pulse went into overdrive.

  She took the chest.

  Tegan emerged from within the fog. She had an evil little grin on her beautiful face. Her pale green eyes sparkled like diamonds.

  My heart fluttered. Butterflies danced around in my stomach. It infuriated me to no end that she still had this effect on me.

  She raised her arm, the one with the soulmate glyph covering past her elbow, and the fog vanished into thin air. She chuckled. The chest floated in the water beside her. “Thanks for this. Couldn’t have done it without you.”

  “Tegan, how could you?” Cooper shouted.

  She arched one black eyebrow. “How could I what? Funny, I’ve been wondering the same thing about all of you. I mean…Salem’s Prophecy? How could you not tell me the truth?”

  My body turned to ice. She knew. She knew the prophecy. The one about the twins. The one that said they would either close it forever or destroy the Gap altogether. She knew…and she chose darkness. My chest grew tight. It felt like an entire house sat on top of me.

  “Oh, dearest brother. For a second there, I thought you’d never figure out that dream.” She winked then disappeared, taking the chest with her.

  This was a trick.

  And we fell into it perfectly.

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Emersyn

  “Wait…what?” Deacon’s face paled. He nodded as he listened then hung up his phone and shoved it in his pocket. He ran his hand through his hair and shook his head. “That was Tennessee.”

  My heart beat faster in my chest. I leaned against a pole to steady myself. We were in Hidden Kingdom, watching and waiting for anything. I licked my lips. “What did he say?”

  “They found the shells from the prophecy…and then Tegan stole them.”

  My breath left me in a rush, like I’d been kicked right in the stomach. She stole them? I groaned and buried my face in my hands. We knew that dream was a trick, yet we went anyway. Tennessee insisted we hadn’t had a choice. Timothy agreed. I’d figured if those two agreed on something, then it must’ve been right. Perhaps it still was.

  “What do we do now?” I looked around like the answer was in front of me.

  “Protect the Gap.” Saffie flew down from the trees she’d been lurking in—not to hide, but to see. She landed on the ground with her bare feet which were somehow not dirty. Fairy magic, she’d told me once. Her lavender eyes were clear and sharp as she looked back and forth between us. “By First Quarter Moon’s last striking hour, it is upon us. She will be taking the crystals to the Gap. We must go there and guard it.”

  It was still weird to see Saffie full sized. She was only a few inches shorter than me now. I definitely couldn’t think of her as a crazy little fairy anymore. No, now she had a regal aura about her and the hint of something wicked in her eyes. She looked every bit the stereotyped evil fairy, but I knew she was anything but. She also seemed more confident in herself now.

  I nodded. “Saffie’s right. Let’s get to the fountain.”

  “I’ll fly over and tell the others to meet us there,” Saffie said, then flew into the air and out of sight.

  Deacon turned and started down the pathway, but my body was locked in place. My magic surged to the surface, waiting and begging to be used. This was it. The moment we’d been preparing for. My stomach tightened into knots. A cold chill slid down my spine and I shivered. The last time they almost brought a greater demon through the Gap, it had been my fault. My magic. I’d been manipulated by my fear for my little brother, but Tegan had been strong enough to break through the demon’s hold on me.

  Now the tables had turned, and I wasn’t so sure we’d be able to stop Tegan.

  At least not anymore. Her magic was too strong, too powerful. It would take all of us to combat her, and maybe even then not enough.

  “Emersyn?” Deacon tapped my chin upward, forcing my eyes to meet his. “Are you okay?”

  Warmth tingled through my body from his touch, but it did nothing to ease the cold weighing on my heart. I shook my head. “This is about to get ugly. Promise me you won’t let me go there, too.”

  He dipped his head down and pressed his lips to my forehead. When he pulled back, he had a little smile on his face. “I’ve got you, Empress.”

  Two weeks ago if he had tried to kiss me—even on the forehead—I would’ve flipped out. But e
ver since we’d talked, I’d found myself more and more comfortable around him. I was starting to even crave his presence, and it was alarming. It was weird to be relying on the Devil for good influence, but it was weirder to think of myself as a bad influence.

  Fighting against my twin wasn’t something I’d been prepared for in any way. I’d never expected it. She’d always been on my side, right from the moment we met at The Gathering. Then again, she had given me my fire bracelets after she’d gone to Henley’s side, so there was a chance she was still on my side. That almost made me more nervous. Would she get to me?

  I looked up into Deacon’s bright violet eyes. “I’m afraid.”

  His eyes softened. He tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. We were standing so close I felt the heat coming off his body. “I’d be worried if you weren’t.”

  For the first time since I met him, I had the urge to kiss him. It would’ve been easy, too. All I had to do was stand up on my tiptoes. I knew he’d do the rest. The way his purple eyes dilated told me he was thinking about it too. I licked my lips, and his eyes tracked the movement. My heart fluttered in my chest. Just do it.

  I rolled onto the balls of my feet, ready to lean into him, when the air pulsed with electricity. I froze. My eyes widened. The ground rumbled. A gust of wind slammed into my face, carrying with it an aura of unthinkable power. The energy was wild and dense. Goose bumps spread across my skin. The hairs on my arms stood tall.

  “Tegan,” Deacon and I said at the same time.

  We took off in a dead sprint for the courtyard. The Fantasy Forest pathway was dark and barely lit, but we knew it well. We slipped between the trees and raced to the edge of the courtyard. I ducked behind a tree and squatted down. When I peeked around it, I spotted my sister standing proud with a large wooden chest at her feet. She looked tall and terrible with her black hair whipping all over and her aura radiating around her.

  “NO!” Saffie screamed. She swooped down in a blur of pink and red and scooped the chest into her arms. Her wings flapped like crazy as she flew toward the fountain.

  Tegan cursed and leapt to her feet. “Saffie!” She evaporated into bubbles and disappeared. A second later, she reappeared at the base of the fountain.

  Saffie shrieked something in a language I’d never heard and waved her wand in the air. Massive crystals as tall as me shot out from the ground, wrapping all the way around the fountain. My jaw dropped. I didn’t know if Saffie always had that kind of magic, but I was damn sure she had it now.

  Rainbow mist swirled around Tegan’s hands. Lightning shot out of the sky and hit the ground. Saffie shook her head and wrapped her arms around the chest.

  There was a flash of white light and then Henley appeared. She took one look at the crystal fence and hissed. Demons popped up out of nowhere and charged the fountain.

  I was on my feet and racing over there in a heartbeat. Deacon was hot on my heels. I flicked my wrists, and flames danced in my palms. I shot my fireballs across the courtyard, burning demons to ash with every step, but I wasn’t going to make it before they overthrew Saffie’s defense.

  Saffie’s lavender eyes widened and sparkled. “TENNESSEE! HELP!”

  I glanced over my shoulder just in time to see Tennessee jog into the courtyard. Then he was gone. It shouldn’t have been a surprise. I’d seen him move. I’d seen him fight. But every time, it blew my mind. In four of my steps, Tennessee shot across the courtyard until he stood between Tegan and the fountain. The air whistled. Tennessee held his right palm up toward the sky. His long black sword slammed into his hand.

  He glanced over his shoulder. “Saffie, you know what to do with those?”

  “YUP!”

  He grinned and it reminded me of all the reasons he scared me. “Do it. I’ll block you.”

  Tegan vanished, and a horde of demons blocked him from my sight.

  Chapter Forty

  Emersyn

  Red lightning slammed into demons on both sides of me. I shot my fire at the demons in my path like I was a fire-breathing dragon. I didn’t slow down. I just kept running.

  Tennessee was a menace. I’d seen him fight, but never like this. He ducked, spun, and jumped, slicing his weapons through anything that came near. Black demon blood flooded the cement under his feet. I tried to keep track of him as I ran, but he was a blur of death. Demons shrieked and turned to dust one after another.

  I slid up to the fountain beside him and sent flames raining on the approaching demons. I pushed with my magic and sent a wall of thick black smoke into the demons’ faces. “Tenn, what’s the plan here?”

  He spun around and looked up at the fountain behind me. “Saffie is going to use those crystals to close the Gap. We have to protect her from demons until she does. Tegan and Henley are going to attack us with everything they’ve got.”

  “Then you better get out there!” Deacon yelled from the other side of me. “We’ll hold this, but they need you out there.”

  Tennessee frowned and shook his head. “No, she’s going to send it all here.”

  “Not if you can distract them!” Deacon shouted. “Go make sure she’s too damn busy defending herself to get over here. Keep Tegan away from here.”

  “Tennessee…” I flicked my wrists and pushed with my magic. A wall six feet tall of pure fire shot out of my hands. I met his mismatched eyes and nodded. “Go make sure no one gets killed. I’ll hold this.”

  He hesitated, and I couldn’t blame him. But he must’ve come to the same conclusion I had because he nodded. “I won’t be far. Yell if you need me.” And then he was gone again.

  “Em, lower your flames,” Deacon whispered.

  “What? Why?”

  “Because we need to see what’s going on, and we can’t risk you losing energy.” He moved to stand so close beside me I felt the magic rushing out of him. “Lower it. Conserve yourself. Let me fight with you.”

  I pulled my fire back a notch, so it was only four feet tall.

  Then I gasped. In those few moments, the courtyard had erupted into utter chaos. Demons of every shape and size littered the area. The entire Coven had arrived and were in the thick of battle. Swords and magic sliced through the crowd. Henley was off on my left-hand side. A sickening green glow shined up from the ground under her. I recognized it immediately. It was the same magic she’d used with me to try and bring a greater demon through. We were running out of time.

  “Deacon, what time is it?”

  “Five minutes till midnight,” a small voice said from right behind me.

  I glanced over my shoulder and found Bentley perched between two massive crystals with a book in his hands. My heart skipped a beat. “Five minutes?”

  “Keep these demons off the fountain, Emma,” he said calmly. “I’ve got a spell to do. Saffie, you ready?”

  “Almost, Benny!” she yelled back.

  My stomach turned. Bentley was only nine years old. I hated that he was there in this battle. Everyone I loved was in this, and it terrified me to think we could not all walk away.

  I looked out at the fight again. Thick vines shot out of the forest and wrapped around a group of demons. Royce chuckled like an evil cartoon villain as Cooper finished the job. Bright, blinding sunlight shot across the courtyard. Demons hissed and writhed on the ground. But Larissa didn’t let them die that way. She ran after Lily’s magic and sliced them to pieces. Easton barreled through hordes of demons like a bowling ball, covered in metal body armor. Light flashed across the way, and a squadron of fairy spirits rose from the ground. Paulina raised her hands and they shrieked. I had no idea what she was doing, but it was working.

  Braison was a few feet behind her with a large, long sword gripped in his hands. He looked like a ninja from hell. Spider demons jumped off the roof of a restaurant nearby and practically landed on top of Constance and Kenneth. I gasped and moved to shoot fire their way, but they didn’t need my help. Spells flew into the air around them, slamming into the monsters with no mercy. On t
he farthest end of the courtyard, a wall of blue mist blasted demons at Willow’s command. When they froze in place, Chutney leapt forward and chopped their heads off. They made a wicked team.

  Where’s Tennessee? It took me a second to find him because he was everywhere all at once. His body glowed brighter than a full moon. He weaved through the fight, slicing and dicing as he went. He never stopped moving. He went from one demon to the next. Where everyone else paused to make sure they killed it, he just knew. My jaw dropped. He leapt straight up in the air then slammed into the ground. A shockwave ripped through the courtyard. Dozens of demons disintegrated at once. He didn’t notice; he’d already moved on.

  A rush of warmth rolled over me.

  “Emersyn,” Deacon hissed.

  I jumped and glanced over—and cursed. “Sorry!” In my amazement of Tennessee’s skills, I’d dropped my fire wall too much. Okay, stop watching him now, Em. I narrowed my eyes and refueled my fire.

  My friends were out there fighting for our lives. All I had to do was keep the demons away from the Gap and the chest of crystals.

  “Bentley, time?” Deacon shouted over the chaos.

  “T-minus two minutes!” my little brother yelled back. “Saffie?”

  “Ready when you are, Benny!” she screamed back.

  “Okay, wait for my signal!”

  I cursed. It was too soon, yet not soon enough. My pulse was racing so fast it sounded like a woodpecker. The prophecy said By First Quarter Moon’s last striking hour, which meant they’d make their move at midnight.

  Where are you, Tegan? My sister was oddly quiet. I knew from what I’d seen of her that she could’ve demolished us with the snap of a finger. Why hasn’t she? I narrowed my eyes and searched the courtyard for her.

  There! She was off to my left, way in the back by the edge of Fantasy Forest. Not that it mattered. She could be anywhere whenever she wanted. She danced across the cement, spinning and ducking with a sword in each hand. I frowned. Who is— Oh my Goddess. DAD? Our father was locked in a heavy battle with his own daughter. Beside him, Timothy charged without mercy. These two men had decades of fighting experience and training on her…but you wouldn’t have known it. She moved like a jungle cat, quick and precise. I saw Tennessee’s moves echoed in her style. She’d learned from the best.