Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 67614 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 338(@200wpm)___ 270(@250wpm)___ 225(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67614 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 338(@200wpm)___ 270(@250wpm)___ 225(@300wpm)
He can feel the human witch struggling, and he finds it highly amusing. Xander thought he could simply reach into the glass and stop everything that was beginning to unfold… It was laughable.
And now look at him. Completely at the mercy of his every whim.
Flying above the ocean, he looks down and sees the redhead running toward a cottage. The one who’s linked to the human he’s taken over. He smiles inside with utter glee.
Yes, this is working out wonderfully.
Chapter Twenty
Breena
I wake with a start, disoriented. But as I look around my mom’s living room, I remember I’m with the coven, trying to figure out how to destroy hate.
That’s not a thought I imagined I’d ever have.
“You fell asleep.” I glance over to find Giles watching me with those amazing eyes that now hold so much concern for me. He pushes his glasses up on his nose, and I smile at him, wanting to reassure him that I’m okay.
“I hope I didn’t sleep too long. I have to earn my keep around here.”
“Only an hour or so,” Lucy assures me. “No biggie. You’ll need your strength later.”
“We all will.”
We spent the night with dozens of books spread out across the house: grimoires, Books of Shadows, diaries, and volumes on crystals and herbs. You name it, we pored over it.
And I think we have a plan for later today.
“It’s good that it’s not in Hallows End,” Lucy says as she reaches for a fresh donut that Poppy made this morning. “The logistics of that would have been a nightmare.”
“It’s enough of a nightmare as it is,” Astrid agrees. “Now that we have everything we need, we just have to find Xander—and it.”
Many members of the coven went home for a little while to change clothes and gather supplies they would need for their specific tasks. The plan is to meet back here at noon and then move forward with finding Xander, pulling that horrible thing out of him, and then destroying it.
It sounds so simple, but I have a feeling it’ll be anything but.
“I’m going to run back to your place to get my cloak and my wand,” I say to Giles. “I’ll feel better if I have those with me.”
“I’ll take you,” he says and stands, pulling his keys out of his pocket.
“What about Nera and Merlin?” Mom asks.
“What about them?” Lucy replies.
“Should they be alone? This type of warfare is very hard on a familiar.”
I worry my lip and look over at Lucy. “Should I take Merlin over to your place to be with Nera?”
“Good idea.” Lucy nods in agreement. “Let’s do that. I want to grab a couple of things, too. I think Lorelei already went to her house for some stuff as well. Let’s get it all out of the way before we get to work.”
“Let’s go,” Giles agrees.
It’s a beautiful spring day in Salem. The sun is already high in the sky, and colorful tulips and daffodils line the fence lines of the little homes in town, giving off the prettiest pops of color.
Giles parks in the drive, and I hurry inside. “Merlin, I’m going to take you to Lucy’s to be with Nera today. I don’t want you to be scared, okay?”
The cat looks up from the couch, all sleepy-eyed, then stretches long and slow as if he doesn’t have a care in the world.
“I think he’s okay with it,” Lucy replies as I hurry upstairs to the closet.
First, I change into the purple dress I had made. I embroidered magical symbols all over it, and it just feels like magic. Then, I pull my cloak off the hanger and drape it over my shoulders.
My wand, made of amethyst and sterling silver, sits on my altar. With that in hand, I turn to hurry back downstairs, but Giles is right behind me.
“You startled me.” I grin as he frames my face in his hands and tips his forehead against mine. “It’s going to be okay, my love.”
“I can’t have anything happen to you,” he whispers. “I can’t lose you now, Breena.”
“Hey, you’re not losing me. And I’m not losing you either.” I wrap my arms around his middle and cling to him. “We’re a strong coven, Giles. We have a solid plan, and we’re going to succeed in this. I can feel it.”
“I’m going to admit to you, while it’s just the two of us here, that I’m terrified. Xander is one of my closest friends, and I didn’t like the way he looked yesterday. And if it gets its claws into you again, I could lose you both—”
“Whoa.” I hold his face in my hands now. “Stop that. Remember, it wants your fear, babe. It wants you to go into this terrified of it and whatever it might do. If you give it that, it’s already won.”