“You have a Card that can sense the truth. My mother told me. Get him, have him see I’m not lying. I want to help you kill joseph. I want to help you save all of us, who like me, want nothing but our lives back and this spell reversed.”
Tegan narrowed her eyes. “How do you know that Card is a he?”
Ellis glanced around. “My mother said it was a woman named Evaline May, but Trey informed Joseph that there was a new Card in her place. A guy, a British guy named Jackson Lancaster.”
Tenn and Tegan exchanged glances.
Ellis leaned forward. “Please. Is he here? If so, he can see the truth in my words.”
Tenn stared at him for a moment. “Jackson is not here at the moment, and I don’t know if we can trust you enough to keep you around until he is. You can’t even stay corporeal while talking. You could slip away and back to Joseph or hurt one of us—”
“Please.” Ellis raised his hands in the air. “Please. I beg you. I am telling you the truth. Throw me in your dungeon, chain me down. Anything. I just want to be free of this. I want Joseph dead as much as you do. I’ll tell you anything you want to know.”
Tenn shook his head.
Ellis gasped. “I can tell you how to force us to be corporeal,” he said in a rush.
Everyone froze then glanced at each other. This was a huge piece of information. If we knew how to do that, our fight against Joseph would be much easier. I wanted to ask him myself, but I knew better than to overstep Tenn’s leadership.
Finally, after a long moment, Tenn’s shoulders dropped. “Okay, Ellis. How?”
Ellis’s cheeks flushed with excitement. “All right, my mother told me to tell you to have the Empress, Emperor, and High Priestess combine fire, water, and earth—”
“Why those three?” Emersyn scowled. “Why us three?”
“Because they are air and spirit. Together, that would combine the five elements.” Tegan moved closer to Ellis then leaned down. “And us three because we’re the strongest elemental powers.”
“Hold on,” I said, and everyone turned to me. “How the hell did you thaw yourself out, but the others are still frozen out there?”
Tenn raised both eyebrows. “Shit. What she asked.”
Ellis smiled. “That potion you threw on me the other night. Of those of us you froze, I was the only one who got that potion. Ever since then, it’s been a lot easier for me to stay…corporeal, as you called it.”
“I knew it should have worked. We were just missing something.” Tegan rubbed her hands together. “All right, Tenn, you’re the boss. You want us to try his trick or toss him in the flames?”
Ellis’s eyes widened. “Please. No.”
Tenn flexed his hand, and Michael’s sword vanished. “Tegan and Em, come up here. Everyone else, back away.”
Em moved to his side. She rolled her wrists. “I’ve got the fire.”
The front door behind us flew open and slammed into the wall. A wave of dirt rushed across the room and to Tenn’s hand. “I’ve got earth. Tegan?”
She backed up to stand between her soulmate and twin. Then she lifted her hands, and two balls of water rolled between her fingers. The water balls floated into the air then joined together to make one. “Add your fire and earth to mine.”
Without hesitation, they threw their elements into her water ball. It flashed with light. All three of their bodies glowed like a full moon. The rest of us watched in riveted silence. But my magic coiled in my hands just in case.
Ellis took a deep breath, and he slipped into shadow form. Only his amber eyes shone.
Tegan, Tenn, and Emersyn threw their arms forward, and the orb of their elements slammed right into Ellis’s chest. He gasped and staggered back into the wall. The second the magic hit him, the shadow turned solid and he was corporeal again. Ellis grinned and patted his body. My breath left me in a rush.
“It worked.” I smiled.
“Yeah, it did,” Tenn said with intrigue in his voice. He looked to the twins then back to Ellis. Then he turned to me. “You think you can thaw the others out so we can test this?”
I licked my lips and nodded. “Definitely.”
Chapter Five
Bettina
Tenn touched the golden bands on his arm, and Michael’s sword appeared out of thin air. He gripped the hilt and held it like it weighed no more than a feather. He walked up to the first of two dozen frozen men, then glanced back at the rest of us. “Ellis, none of these guys are good ones?”
Ellis, who was knelt on the ground with Kessler holding him down, shook his head. “Nah, the rest of our good guys stay back. These are nothing but murderers.”
Tenn pursed his lips and nodded. “Okay. I want most of you to stay back, but be ready just in case. Em, give me a ring of fire around us. Let’s make it hard for them. Babe, we’ll throw you our magic, and you hit ‘em with it, okay?”
Tegan rolled her wrists. “Ready.”
“As soon as Bettina thaws them, you hit ‘em. I want to see if they attack first or surrender.” Tenn glared at the ice. “If they attack—”
“You’re gonna be all kinds of not human, right, boss?” Royce said with a chuckle.
Tenn glanced over his shoulder and grinned. “Damn right.”
“Yesssss,” Royce whispered and hopped up and down.
“All right, Bettina, melt ‘em.”
I opened my mouth then shut it. Shit. Now that I was out here and ready to do this, I wasn’t exactly sure how. I wasn’t even sure how I froze them in the first place. I knew how to summon my ice from inside me and throw it out, but I hadn’t ever tried to pull ice back. At least not off living people.
You can do this. You’ve pulled ice back before. Should be the same, right?
Raw, hot energy slammed into my side. I glanced up just as Tenn strolled over to me.
He ducked to meet my eyes. “You all right?”
I nodded. Then shook my head. “Just trying to, ya’ know, figure out how to do this. Off people.”
He smiled and moved closer. “It’s the same as pulling it off non-living things. Just push your magic out until you feel your own power. Grab ahold of it with your mind, then pull it back.”
“What if it hurts them?”
Tenn shrugged. “Let’s be honest, I’m most likely about to have to kill them anyway. Don’t worry about them. They’re not worthy of your concern.”
I nodded and rubbed my hands together. “Right. Got it. Just be ready, okay?”
He smirked and dirt rose up off the ground all around him. It hovered by our hips then floated over to Tegan, all without Tenn even moving. I exhaled and shook my head. The guy had a scary amount of power, but he said I did, too. After all, I’d done this.
I braced myself and held my hands up. Tegan summoned a giant orb of rushing water from her hands. Orange flames shot over to it and sank between the waves splashing around. The dirt soared into it then disappeared. The three of them began to glow, and their magic brushed over me. Tegan looked over her shoulder at me then nodded.
Okay. Showtime.
I closed my eyes and pushed my magic out of me. Cold energy tingled against my fingertips. Adrenaline rushed through my veins. I felt little sparks out in front of me. Though my eyes were closed, I saw each and every one of my frozen victims like stars in the black sky. I took a deep breath then forced my magic to tighten on each of those spots. Then I opened my eyes.
Tenn was watching me.
I nodded.
He swung Michael’s sword around in his hand and turned his attention to the frozen people. I took a deep breath then flexed my fingers out wide. I pulled my magic toward me. At first, it felt like playing tug-of-war with Kessler. But I dug my heels in and pulled harder. My arms trembled. The ice began to shake and crumble. Massive cracks spread through the ice sculptures. I growled deep in my throat and curled my fingers in.
Ice chipped off of the top of their heads. Strands of hair poked out in the darkness. I gasped and a rush of energy
spread through me. I gritted my teeth and pulled my arms back to my sides. The ice fell from the victims like an avalanche. Inch by inch, my magic dropped from their bodies in a landslide.
As soon as their heads were free, they began panicking. They twisted and turned while the ice still covered their lower halves. They slashed at it with their swords and cursed. The one in the front pulled a dagger off his hip and threw it right at Tenn’s face. It was aimed perfectly and flew pretty fast, but Tenn just flicked it away with a nod of his head.
“We don’t want to hurt you,” Tenn said calmly, like we were discussing dinner plans. “We want to help cure you.”
The rest of my ice exploded, and they were free. They charged for us. One step and they were two dozen human men; the next, they were shadows and glowing eyes. I held my hands up, ready to freeze them again if I needed to. Tegan still hadn’t thrown the elemental orb. The shadows threw daggers and swords at us, but Emersyn threw her hand up and they all froze in midair.
“Stop now and I’ll let you live,” Tenn yelled out, still standing calmly. “Stop.”
But they didn’t. They moved faster.
Tenn twirled Michael’s sword and leapt straight for them. He moved so fast he was just a blur of light shooting across the dark sky like a comet. Michael’s glowing sword sliced through three shadows in the flash of a second. They exploded into dust while Tenn moved to the next.
I glanced over my shoulder to my Coven-mates and found them separated from us by a ring of fire. When I turned back around, Tenn had taken out half of the shadows. The others stopped running for us and turned on him. Tegan threw the orb of elemental magic right at the ring of shadows circling around Tenn. But I realized there were only five of them left.
Tenn jumped straight up in a vertical line about thirty feet until he about disappeared into the black sky.
The magic ripped through the first shadow then exploded like an atomic bomb. They all screamed and jumped back. They patted their bodies and panicked.
Tenn landed in a crouch right in the middle of them. “Stop and let us help—”
The shadow-man right in front of him screamed and dove forward with a serrated dagger. His blade swung right at Tenn’s face. Tenn used Michael’s sword to block the hit, and the guy exploded into a cloud of dirt. Another guy tried to jump on Tenn’s back, but his hand touched Michael’s sword and he burst into bright golden flames. The Heavenly fire was so big that it hit the guy next to him, and they both went up in flames.
The last two shadow-men froze with wide eyes as the Heavenly fire danced around Tenn without hurting him. A second later, they turned and sprinted away from us, heading straight for the Old Lands. Except they were running straight for Em’s fire border, and they weren’t slowing down. I opened my mouth to yell for them to stop when the flames turned them to ash.
Tenn cursed. “That is not how I wanted that to go.”
“They ran into my fire. Y’all saw that, right? Like, I didn’t torch them.” Emersyn flicked her wrists, and the flames vanished. “So that’s not on me, right?”
“If it helps, they were wanting to kill us all,” Deacon said from by the building.
“They also killed those humans,” Ellis grumbled. “Disgusting.”
I sighed and dropped my hands. “Well, at least we know that trick Ellis told us worked—” I gasped as heat exploded in my chest. It felt like I’d swallowed a piece of coal. I gripped my chest and tried to breathe through the fire in my lungs.
“B, you okay—” Tegan stopped and stared at something over my shoulder. A huge grin spread across her face. She threw her hand up and waved. “JACKSON!”
My heart stopped.
Oh, Goddess. He’s here. Finally.
Chapter Six
Jackson
It was just after three in the morning when I finally pulled my truck into the front parking lot at Edenburg. I knew by the fire and glowing sword my Coven was up here, so I threw my truck in park and hopped out. By the time I shut my door, the flames were extinguished.
I saw no sign of Joseph or his creepers.
I sighed with relief.
My entire Coven stood there with their backs to me, looking at something in the distance. I frowned and followed their gaze—and my jaw dropped. A giant wall of solid ice blocked off the border to the Old Lands.
Bettina. I smiled and shook my head. I was so damn proud of her. She’d come so far in three months.
No one appeared to have noticed my arrival yet, or they sensed it was just me and therefore weren’t concerned. Their energy was tense and sharp. Something had clearly gone down just now. I glanced around, silently counting all of them in my head to make sure everyone was there. No one seemed to be hurt. Everyone was standing. Tenn, Tegan, Emersyn, and Bettina stood a little bit in front of everyone else.
“If it helps, they were wanting to kill us all,” Deacon said from up by the building.
“They also killed those humans. Disgusting,” an unfamiliar male voice said.
I frowned and looked toward the sound. Kessler was holding a guy down on his knees. He had long, wildly tousled hair not unlike Tenn’s. But other than that, I didn’t recognize him, or anything about him. I couldn’t even see his face. I also didn’t understand why Kessler was pinning him down or why my Coven-mates seemed to be standing guard around him.
If it helps, they were wanting to kill us all. Deacon’s words registered. Joseph. Whatever had just happened, he must’ve been behind it. I was just glad everyone survived it. I didn’t see Daniel or Mona, but Constance and Kessler looked calm—and they wouldn’t be if their soulmates were in danger.
I froze a few feet away from my truck.
Soulmate. That was why I’d been called back. That was why I drove over a hundred miles per hour just to get here as quick as possible.
My soulmate was here. That was what Tegan had said.
Except…where is she?
I scanned every face again, searching for one I didn’t recognize.
But there was no one except the guy. And Tegan had definitely said SHE. Not that I thought my soulmate was a guy, but— My heart fluttered. What’s going on here? Had she left? No, that didn’t make sense. Tegan wouldn’t have let her leave before I got there. She wouldn’t do that to me. Where is she? Maybe she’s inside the building?
I started walking toward them again, desperate for answers. I needed to know who she was. I needed to see her face, to see the glyph on her chest that would match mine. I needed to feel— Fire exploded in my chest. I gasped and stumbled a few feet. The heat grew more and more intense, scorching a path up my throat and melting my insides. I stopped and gripped my chest. It burned against my hand. I clenched my teeth and tried to breathe through it.
Where is she? This pain…this…burning…meant she was nearby.
But I still saw no one I didn’t already know.
Bettina sighed and dropped her hands. “Well, at least we know that trick Ellis told us worked—” But then her words cut off, or maybe I was burning too much and my senses were shutting down.
“B, you okay—” Tegan spotted me in that moment, over Bettina’s shoulder. A huge grin spread across her face. She threw her hand up and waved. “JACKSON!”
Everyone turned toward me at once. They grinned and waved.
I tried to wave or smile or nod—or something –but the pain was debilitating. It had never hurt like this before. I felt like I was burning at the stake like Joan of Arc.
Bettina spun around, and I told myself not to look away but then our eyes met.
Those big, beautiful royal blue eyes watered the second she saw me. Tears rained down her face, and that last part of my heart broke. I hated this. It wasn’t fair. How could I feel like this for Bettina yet be meant for someone else? I didn’t know what I’d done to deserve this kind of punishment. I was supposed to be looking for my soulmate, meeting her for the first time, letting my heart be open to her. But instead, I was helplessly stuck on the one I really wan
ted.
I didn’t think I was ever going to heal from this. Not really.
I wished I could ask Ruth, Timothy’s sister, how she’d handled it because I was broken.
Tennessee appeared right in front of me. He stepped into my line of view, blocking Bettina from my sight. I sighed at the lifeline he’d just unknowingly given me. Or maybe he did know. Maybe they all knew how I felt about her. I forced myself to focus on him. He arched both eyebrows. There was something off in his mismatched gaze that made my heart skip beats.
He stopped in front of me. “You ready?”
I frowned and nodded. Then shook my head. I cursed and scrubbed my face with my hands. When I pulled my hands back, I found Tenn smirking and it made my stomach turn.
“What?”
His smirk widened into a full grin. “Brace yourself, Lancaster.”
My chest tightened, and that fire spread. What the bloody hell does that mean, mate? It felt like every muscle in my body was spasming at the same time. Anxiety rushed through my veins. My heart was pounding so fast I was definitely about to have a heart attack.
Tenn gripped my shoulder. He lifted his other hand and pointed. I looked at his Emperor Mark then followed the line of his arm and toward where he was pointing.
My gaze landed on Bettina and my heart stopped.
“There she is,” Tenn said in a soft voice.
I stared into her eyes brimming with tears that glistened in the moonlight. She didn’t move or speak. She just stared back at me. “I don’t…I don’t…I don’t understand.”
Tenn chuckled and squeezed my shoulder. “Turns out Tegan isn’t the only lying Bishop in the family.”
No. No, no. This isn’t true. Don’t believe it, or it’ll hurt so much more. Panic surged inside. This had to have been some sick joke or miscommunication. It couldn’t be her. I wanted it to be her, and that’s why it couldn’t be. I’d checked her for a glyph several times. She didn’t have one. Don’t listen to him. Something is wrong here. I shook my head and started to look to Tenn to argue when something sparkled from Bettina’s chest.
The Coven - Academy Magic Complete Series Page 107