She watched in awe as the raging gray funnel entered the orb. “Shut it!”
Langston didn’t miss a beat, closing and latching the entity inside. It continued to screech and swirl ferociously beneath the impenetrable, spelled glass.
But Sydney wasn’t finished. Still crumpled on the ground, she motioned for the orb. Langston hurried it to her side, kneeling and resting the globe in her outstretched palms. Placing her hands over the latch, she said Saskia’s last enchantment and pulled a small paring knife from her pocket. With a shaky hand, she carved a rune into the glass, and the door and hinges vanished before her eyes. The orb was seamless, the shifter confined inside for eternity.
Gasping and choking back sobs of joy, exhaustion, and relief, Sydney bent forward, grasping her knees. She fought to stay conscious as her vision spotted, threatening to blacken entirely.
The air was still and silent—no violent wind or hail, no tree branches rumbled, no shrill screams rattled through her head.
Her thoughts whirled. She closed her eyes for mere seconds before hands were on her back, and voices told her what a great job she’d done. She nodded, slowed her breathing, and struggled to lift her head.
Justin and Khourtney were bent over Ainsley, whispering.
“Is Ainsley…?”
When no one answered, she gathered her strength, “Answer me! Is. Ainsley. Okay?”
Her voice rang out, piercing the stillness. Too many people had already died. How could she live with the guilt of this too?
Opening her eyes, she pulled herself into a crawling position and dragged herself over to where Ainsley lay. Snow coated Ainsley’s hair and clothes, her eyes shut like she was in the deepest sleep. She looked perfectly at ease.
Justin sat with his face buried in his palms at the girl’s side.
Khourtney’s fingers reached beneath Ainsley’s ear, feeling for a pulse. “I think she’s alive.”
“Check her,” Syd demanded, her gaze on Máthair Zhang. The Master hurried to where the middling lay on the ground.
Sydney hadn’t wanted this. She might’ve hated Ainsley, but she didn’t want her dead.
Syd observed Khourtney’s grandmother place her palms over Ainsley. “She’ll be okay. By some miracle, she’s survived without major damage.”
A few moments later, Ainsley coughed, her blue eyes fluttering before opening. Justin exhaled, clutched her, and brought her to his chest, rocking her back and forth.
Khourtney fell back next to her grandmother with an expression of anxious relief. Sydney felt it too.
Justin eased Ainsley to a seated position, and she nodded at something he’d said that Syd couldn’t make out.
Máthair Zhang gathered herself and stood; Athair Choi rushed to her side to make sure she was all right. Sydney didn’t know him well, but he didn’t have a reputation for being a teddy bear. Sydney noticed the exasperated stares from the two Elders.
“How did you find us?” she managed to croak out.
Máthair Zhang straightened, her hands clasped behind her back. Chin up, she said, “Really, child?” Her mouth was a thin, tense line. “Did you really think that, with your paltry skill level, you could possibly subdue me? I let you believe that you had successfully cast against me in the Armory on All Hallows’ Eve.” She laughed so drily, it sounded almost sinister. “You have much misguided hubris to believe that you could best not only a more advanced witch but a Master witch.” Her voice cut like a freshly sharpened knife. “You foolish, reckless girl.”
“What are you talking about?” Khourtney asked, moving from Ainsley’s side to stand between her grandmother and Sydney. She looked pleadingly from one to the other, seeking an explanation. “I was with you both that night. What are you talking about?”
Sydney’s throat ached, her heart a series of painful beats beneath her ribs. Everyone watched her. What could she say? She’d used illicit magic on a Master witch. She had no idea how much should she admit to, or what would happen to her for this outrageous abuse of her training.
Máthair Zhang took three steps closer to Sydney. Her hands still clasped behind her. The muscles in her jaw were clenched firm. “I see that my granddaughter doesn’t know of your ill deeds, Ms. Lockwood.” Máthair Zhang’s audience trailed every word and move she made, curious to learn more about Sydney’s betrayal.
Looking at the others, she began to explain, “Samhain night, my granddaughter and Sydney came to see me, asking about things with which they had no business. I indulged them with their queries, tried to help even, but instead of trusting me with the truth, they lied. They betrayed my trust. Sydney ordered my granddaughter on an errand while she used magic against me.” Whirring around, she cocked her head and glared once again at Sydney.
Punctuating each word, she said, “Did you really think you could use the very sleeping potion you had just learned on me and get away with it? And a forgetting spell?” She walked a slow circle around Sydney, never taking her narrowed eyes off her.
Syd’s mind raced. If the spells hadn’t worked, why hadn’t Máthair gone to the High Priestess about what Sydney had done? Why pretend not to know anything this whole time? An eerie sickness loomed. “Please, I had my reasons, misguided as they might’ve been. Let me explain—”
Máthair Zhang held up a hand, and Sydney closed her mouth, her breath arrested. The Master continued, “You do not get to explain anything. You had your chance for explanations. You were to follow your mother’s instructions, but you went behind her back. Behind the back of your entire coven.” Her cold, harsh tone felt like an emotional skinning. “And do not speak to me of misguided anything. What you’ve done is inexcusable.”
Sydney wanted to say something, to defend herself instead of being persecuted when she’d only been trying to save her people, but she knew that she had no reasoning the Elder would accept.
Justin gained his feet and moved cautiously toward Máthair Zhang. “We’re sorry. Please, this isn’t all on Sydney. We waited, but it was clear nothing was being done to find the shifter. We were afraid for everyone’s safety.”
“And yet, despite you, two of our children died tonight, and because of your initial delay, two others are left without their powers.” Athair Choi’s voice echoed through the silence.
Justin bowed his head.
Khourtney stood before her grandmother. “I didn’t know Sydney was going to use magic on you.” She reeled around facing Syd, her face a twisted snarl. “How could you? I’ll never forgive you, not for any of this!” She wrapped her arms around her grandmother. “I’m so sorry.”
Máthair Zhang stroked Khourtney’s head and released her.
Sydney broke the temporary silence. “What are you going to do?” Her voice was childlike, and she hated herself for it, but she felt very much like a child, waiting for her punishment.
“Do you mean, am I going to go to your mother with what you’ve done?” Máthair Zhang said coolly. Her gaze swept over each of them. “You were stupid, careless, and above all, lucky that this entity didn’t kill you all tonight. I will deal with each of you personally. I will not ruin the rest of your lives by bringing this to the High Priestess or The Directive. None of you will ever speak about any of this again. Do you understand?”
Sydney nodded, too afraid to make a sound. The others followed her lead.
Athair Choi held up his hand and wiggled his fingers at Langston. “Bring me the artifact.”
“No!” The words escaped Sydney’s lips before she could stop them.
His black eyes narrowed on her, his jaw clenched. “What did you say to me, girl?” He levitated and stood before her in seconds. She could see the rapid movement of his broad chest as he breathed, felt waves of resentment drift from him. “Give it to me,” he demanded with his arm outstretched.
Langston backed away from the group, still holding the orb. “We can’t give it to anyone. We have to hide it somewhere safe—somewhere it can never be accessed again.”
Athair C
hoi dropped his hand. “Máthair Zhang and I will decide what is safe. You’ve all done enough.”
Ava stomped her foot into the hard ground. “I can’t keep listening to this. What we’ve done is help trap and defeat a nearly 400-year-old shapeshifting entity that was bent on killing us all. You should be thanking us,” she said from her perch on the ground near Ainsley. “Sure, we made mistakes, but we also risked our magic and our lives to protect our coven.”
Sydney was seconds from sealing Ava’s mouth magically. Her friend had a bit of a rebellious streak, but she’d never expected her to talk back to an Elder like this. She needed to de-escalate the situation. “This is my fault. Ava’s very emotional and has been through a lot, so please excuse her outburst. Tell me what I can do, and I’ll do it.”
“I will deal with Ms. McKellen later. Right now, someone needs to tell me what the plan is to ensure that the bound entity never wreaks havoc again,” Máthair Zhang demanded.
Langston stepped forward, cradling the orb in the crook of his arm. “We had to use the bones of the witch that first bound the shifter, to summon it here. The two are magically linked, so it was safest to draw the entity away from innocent people on campus. As her magic is linked to the shifter’s, I think it’s best if we bury the orb in her grave so that it’s guarded by her magic once more.” He didn’t look up from his feet. “No one knows the location of the grave besides us.”
Máthair Zhang and Athair Choi exchanged rage-filled glances.
Athair Choi licked his lips, gathering himself. In a measured tone, he said. “You desecrated a witch’s remains, and the lot of you used dangerous Dark magic?” His fists were clenched at his sides, his nostrils flared. “And now you have the audacity to tell us, your Elders, how to handle the situation?”
Sydney prayed the earth would open up and swallow her. “Since the entity can’t be killed, it's the only way to stop it. The original witch gave us the spells necessary to bind it for eternity.”
“And what of your magic, Langston? Is it bound inside the orb with the entity?” Máthair Zhang asked with an expression that suggested she already knew the horrible answer.
He nodded but kept his head held high. “It is, and it probably always will be.”
“We don’t know that,” Jax said. “There might be a way to reinstate it. We’ll research.”
“I may not have my magic, but there are still things I can do,” Langston said, not waiting for anyone's permission. He jumped into Saskia’s grave, placing the globe with the swirling gray interior into the dirt. “I need the skull,” he called up, and Syd watched Athair Choi gasp and Máthair Zhang cross herself.
Justin retrieved the skull from the ground and passed it down to Langston before clutching one of the shovels. Langston hoisted himself back out, and the two began refilling the gaping hole.
“That can wait, or Langston can continue on his own, but I need Justin to gather here with the others. You’ve all used a great deal of Dark magic, despite the danger and the fact that it is forbidden,” Máthair Zhang said through clenched teeth. See looked from Sydney to each of them as she spoke. “Repercussion is very real, I assure you.” She reached out, grasping Sydney’s palm in hers. With her free hand, she conjured a small ball of white light and examined Syd’s hand beneath it. “Just as I suspected, it has already begun.”
“What has,” Khourtney asked with concern.
“Her nails have begun graying, a sign that her blood is tainted. Dark magic remains inside you, and it will slowly poison you if left untreated. If there are too many exposures, you will die—often a most painful death.”
Sydney’s ribs squeezed around her heart, taking her air. Pulling her hand out of Máthair Zhang’s, she scrutinized her nails under the conjured light. Sure enough, they were light, dull gray. “Can you cleanse our blood?” She didn’t want anyone to know how afraid she was, but her trembling voice betrayed her.
“While I cannot completely remove the remnants of such treacherous magic, I will do my best to try and reduce its effects on all of you—with the help of Athair Choi,” she inhaled deeply, “if he is willing.”
Sydney’s stared at the arduous man. He’d been so livid, she didn’t expect him to agree to help, but he nodded gruffly to the older woman. She was still his superior, so Syd figured asking him was a mere formality.
The cleansing ritual took about thirty minutes. Sydney was convinced it had worked when a distinct vibration flowed through her body, and her nails returned to their normal pinkish hue. The healing magic seemed to bounce in and out of every cell in her body. It wasn’t painful, but it wasn’t exactly a spa treatment either.
Syd felt a little better, but she questioned how she was going to summon the energy to walk all the way back to campus. But life slammed her with another waking nightmare before she could contemplate that undertaking.
“Now would be the time to explain why you have a middling amongst you,” Máthair Zhang said, furious accusation in her tone.
A wave of nausea took hold of Sydney; she'd forgotten about Ainsley. Following Máthair Zhang’s judgment-filled stare, she saw the brunette sitting propped up beneath a nearby tree. “Uh…”
“What is the meaning of this?” The Máthair’s teeth showed as she growled with fury. Any goodwill they had just managed to accrue was gone.
Thankfully, Khourtney put her arm around Ainsley, who looked like she was seconds from wetting herself. “She’s our friend. She’s helped us through everything, risked her life, and jumped in front of the entity’s magic to save Sydney just now. We wouldn’t have beaten that thing without her.”
Máthair Zhang’s feet lifted a half foot from the ground before she soared over. Startled, Ainsley flinched and backed into the tree as far as possible.
“I don’t know how you managed to get mixed up in witch business, my dear, but you are no longer necessary.” Máthair Zhang held her hand in front of Ainsley and recited a forgetting spell.
Sydney prayed Ainsley had the forethought to play along.
When Máthair Zhang finished, she whirled around to face the rest of them. “There. Now, Mr. Lautner and Mr. Bello, please escort her back to her room, undetected, since you have all breached curfew. Ainsley will have no memory of this event or that magic and witches exist.” She waved her hand, indicating that they leave at once. Justin and Langston nodded and helped a limping, weak Ainsley out of the woods.
Syd had no idea how Ainsley was alive, let alone walking.
The grave was full of dirt again, and Sydney didn’t wait for permission before doing one final spell over top of it. This one, to seal the site.
By the time Sydney and the others returned to the dorm, it was nearly three a.m. She and Ava had put cloaking spells on each other and slipped back inside, although Syd was cautious when opening and closing their door, so the sound didn’t wake anyone.
Safely on the other side, Sydney flipped on the light. She leaned back against the door and kicked her boots off, which immediately began leaving small puddles on the hardwood. “I cannot believe the way you spoke to them,” she said to Ava, “to Khourt’s grandmother, especially—a Master witch.”
Ava shrugged nonchalantly, but Syd discerned the fear in her. “They were laying into us and had no idea what we’d risked. I couldn’t listen to it anymore. Besides, she’s never liked me anyway.” Ava shed her scarf, jacket, hoodie, bra, and jeans, leaving her in only a long sleeve tee and underwear. “All I want to do is sleep for a week,” she said before crawling into her twin bed and slipping beneath the heavy, navy comforter.
“Do you trust them?”Sydney asked. “Máthair Zhang and Athair Choi, I mean.”
Ava propped herself up on one elbow and winced. “Like, do I trust that they’re not going to tell our parents or turn us into The Directive?”
Syd nodded.
“If they did, it would turn into a full-blown investigation, and Khourtney would be in just as much trouble as the rest of us. Máthair isn’t going to ask for
that kind of shame to fall on her family name, so yeah, I think we dodged a bullet this time.”
Sydney felt relieved, although something in her gut remained off. Khourt was one thing, but why would Máthair Zhang protect all of them? She could simply keep Khourtney out of her report, or downplay her role in things, couldn’t she?
Ava sighed. “My body feels like it went through the spin cycle—heavy load. Even my skin aches, and everything inside me feels like—”
“Tingly Jell-O?”
“Yes, exactly! I’m so glad classes are out until January.”
Sydney finished changing into her sweats, turned off the lights, and stumbled into bed. She wasn’t glad it was time for the winter holidays. The thought of spending a few weeks under her mother’s roof made her stomach roll with queasiness.
She couldn’t believe how close they’d come to death tonight.
Sydney cleared her throat. “Hey, um. Thanks, by the way.” She was grateful they were in the dark. Being vulnerable was never easy for her.
“For what?”
“For standing up for me. No one’s done that for me before.” Syd looked up at the ceiling and did the best to keep her tone even.
“You don’t always make it easy, but you’ve put yourself on the line for all of us, time and again, during this thing, so thank you too.”
“Whatever,” she said with a smile. What she didn’t say was that Ava was her chosen family, just like the others, and she would always fight to protect them. “Night, Ava.”
“Night, Syd.”
Chapter 16
Ainsley
A beam of late morning sun shone through the window, waking Ainsley. Slowly, she opened her eyes. She wasn’t in her dorm room. She looked down in puzzlement and saw she was wearing a blue and white nightgown. The kind patients wore in the hospital. “What the…?”
“There she is,” a woman’s soothing voice said.
Startled, Ainsley noticed the nurse, dressed in scrubs with teddy bears on them, at the side of her bed.
Wilde Abandon (Ashcroft Academy Book 3) Page 14