Chapter 24

Casandra gasped, clutching her forehead as a flurry of images flashed before her eyes, too rapid and fragmented to decipher. She swayed on her feet, struggling to make sense of what she had seen.

"Casandra!" Elaine caught her just in time, steadying her friend. "Are you okay? What happened?"

"I just—" Casandra tried to recall the images, but they eluded her, leaving only a vague impression. "It-it's nothing."

"To hell it's not," April interjected from her spot on the couch, where she was meticulously painting her nails. "You blew our lamp's bulb!"

"Did I?" Casandra turned to the darkened lamp, still feeling dazed. "Sorry."

"It's your dark magic, isn't it?" Elaine stepped back cautiously once Casandra was stable. "Something's happening."

"You've been off lately, but we thought it was because Daddy Demon came back." April, never one to mince words, closed the lid on her nail polish and leaned forward, her eyes sharp. "But it's something else, isn't it? You're holding out on us. Keeping secrets from your coven. Is this some sort of blood club because we don't have Austen magic?"

"April," Mary reprimanded gently, her gaze shifting to Casandra. "You can trust us."

Casandra looked between the girls, all gathered for a girls' night in while Jane was away. She took a deep breath, finally deciding to confide in them. "I've been sensing someone ever since I got the medallion."

Elaine's frown deepened, the medallion having been a source of unease since its discovery and the dangers it brought. "Another spirit?"

"No," Casandra shook her head, licking her lips nervously. "Remember how I knew my father was still alive?"

"Yeah," Mary nodded, leaning closer. "When you activated the medallion, you said you felt him."

"The thing is," Casandra cleared her throat, "he's not the only one I felt."

April's eyes widened in shock. "You have been keeping us in the dark!"

"April," Elaine scolded, then turned her attention back to Casandra. "Go on."

"It's... familiar somehow. I don't know how," Casandra said, biting her bottom lip in worry. "And I've been having dreams, vague ones, about a girl."

"Rejoice, Elaine! Casandra's turning lesbo on us!" April threw her hands up theatrically. "Andrew is all yours again!"

Elaine and Mary both shot April withering looks, but April remained unaffected.

"When my father touched my shoulder yesterday, I sensed it again, and I'm starting to think it's her," Casandra continued.

"Why would you be sensing this random girl?" Mary asked, her curiosity piqued.

"Les-bi-an," April singsonged, earning only silence from the others.

"I asked him about it, but he brushed it off, tried to make me think I was just imagining it. But I think he sensed it too because right after, he left the house, and I watched him get on the phone the second he started crossing my lawn, calling someone." Casandra's voice was tense, her eyes fixed ahead, ignoring April's taunts. "A couple of seconds ago, I just saw her and five other teens."

Elaine's eyes widened in realization. "A coven."

"They were flashes... but she was doing magic with two guys... and three others were in a cornfield, strung up on crosses, with hooded men around them."

April's smirk disappeared, her eyes growing haunted. "Witch-Hunters."

"Why are you sensing this other witch?" Mary asked, her curiosity piqued. "And why did you start sensing it once you jump-started the medallion?"

"Well, it is some big mega powerful thing," April mumbled, still resentful that the medallion was Casandra's and not hers. "It could have magnified some other special power she has. Witch-Finding or something."

"But why would her father not tell her this when she asked him?" Elaine wasn't convinced by the medallion-boosting theory.

"He's keeping secrets from me. From us." Casandra sighed heavily. "He can't be trusted."

"Tell us something we don't already know," April retorted, rolling her eyes.

"There's got to be a reason why you're sensing this other witch," Elaine declared, shifting into leader mode. "There are two other covens mentioned in my family's book. I'll find the entries, and we can start from there. It's got to be a witch from one of those three covens... they were the only ones really tied to ours."

Casandra nodded, her resolve hardening. "Okay."

"We don't need to go to all that trouble," April argued, her face twisted in distaste. "If the Witch-Hunters have half of their coven, then we're going to hear whispers about a massacre."

The girls shared a troubled look, the weight of the situation sinking in. The air in the room grew tense, filled with unspoken fears and the heavy realization of the danger their fellow witches were in. They knew they had to act, and quickly, to unravel the mystery and save the ones they had seen in Casandra's vision.

Dawson wished he'd told his parents how much he loved them before leaving tonight. It wasn't that he had given up or was prepared to die, but the possibility loomed heavily, and if things went south, he wanted to go knowing he'd expressed his love at least one more time. The pain was excruciating, almost unbearable, but he wouldn't, couldn't, give up.

Jason's gaze met his, the silent communication between best friends speaking volumes. Jason's eyes conveyed the immense pain he was enduring, yet he admirably kept it hidden, focusing intently on the symbols drawn in the almost black dirt at his feet. His dark eyes never wavered from the markings, narrowed in concentration. His fists were clenched tightly, muscles straining as he attempted to wield his magic. Despite his efforts being futile, Jason's determination remained unwavering. His resilience fueled Dawson's own courage, and he nodded to himself, vowing not to give in either.

Harper, ever the tactician, tried to stall their captors, engaging them in conversation. "Why won't you at least show us what you look like? If we're going to die, what does it matter if we see your faces?"

The man Dawson assumed was the leader finally stepped forward, motioning to his men. This was it. It was beginning.

The cornstalks rippled in unison as the wind picked up, lightning and thunder clashing unexpectedly overhead. The leader looked around, his expression unreadable. "The others have come."

Dawson's eyes widened as he scanned their surroundings. Suddenly, lightning rained down, the ground exploding on impact, sending dirt flying everywhere, blinding them temporarily. The storm intensified, rain pouring down in torrents, yet strangely, no rain or lightning touched the area above the crosses. At first, Dawson thought it was due to the trio's impressive control over their magic, but when the dirt around the crosses began to glow, he realized it was a containment field. The symbols not only suppressed their magic but also repelled any magical influence from entering.

Amid the chaos, one of the hooded men screamed as a lightning bolt struck him, the scent of burning flesh filling the air. Panic spread among the other hooded figures, but the leader remained disturbingly calm, observing the scene with a look of expectancy.

Suddenly, Angelo emerged from the cornfields, grabbing an unsuspecting man and dragging him back into the corn. The man's cries were drowned out by the thunderous storm. Dawson, catching movement in the flashes of lightning, turned his head to see Sam crouched behind the crosses. He studied the glowing symbols and the invisible shield that kept the rain out. Picking up a twig, he held it until it glowed and then threw it at the barrier. The twig exploded on impact.

Great.

The hell was Sam supposed to do now?

They hadn't been prepared for this. Maya couldn't keep up the lightning storm much longer on her own; her energy was burning out fast. This was supposed to be a quick in and out—Angelo taking out the hooded men, distracted by the lightning, while Sam freed the others. But things were spiraling out of control.

Angelo leapt out of the cornfields, grabbing another of the men as the earth erupted around them from the lightning strikes. He sent the hooded figure flying into the cornfield and disappeared after him once more.

A lightning bolt struck the invisible bubble, and for a split second, Sam saw a mist escaping Jason's hands.

Narrowing his eyes, Sam looked around the destruction, unable to see any of the hooded men. He glanced down at his already scarred, sensitive hands. This was going to hurt like hell.

Steeling himself, Sam took a deep breath before letting out a battle cry, slamming his palms against the barrier. Painful electricity surged through him, the magic crackling dangerously at his palms. He closed his eyes tightly, bowing his head against the pain. "Like fading mist in the evening air, evaporate," he cried out as more electricity surged into him, fighting his spell. "Like fading mist in the evening air, evaporate!"

He was driven to his knees by the jolt of pure white electricity coursing through his body, nearly frying his bones.

"...evaporate!"

Sam forced his eyes open, seeing through the barrier to Angelo, who was on the other side, hands flat against it, eyes closed against the pain as his hands crackled with magic combating the barrier's power.

Above, a small hole formed, betrayed by the rain starting to pour inside, soaking those within. A lightning bolt struck the ground in front of Harper's cross.

Sam's eyes went to Jason's fists, finding them glowing. The slate-colored haze formed a mist that clung to Jason's hands, crawling up his arms before enveloping the rope binding him. The mist entered each fiber, freezing the ropes until they exploded into hundreds of pieces, dropping Jason hard to the ground.

Grunting, Jason yanked a necklace with a green pendant off his neck and threw it as far away as possible. He stumbled to his feet before reaching Harper's cross. He pressed his hands onto the wood, ice crawling from him towards her binds. The freezing mist curled around the rope, the sound of each strand freezing was loud in the chaos. Jason narrowed his eyes at the binds, then yanked his hands away from the cross and closed his fist, whispering something.

Harper screamed as the ropes broke and she fell. Jason caught her, taking most of the blow as they tumbled to the ground.

"Are you okay?" Harper stared down at him in worry, straddling him.

He nodded with a flinch, reaching up and yanking the necklace off her, breaking the chain. "Help Dawson."

Pushing off, Harper hurried to Dawson's cross. Jason grunted as he got up and threw her necklace away too before limping towards the barrier. Taking a deep breath, he pressed his hands flat against the surface, joining Angelo and Sam. "...in the evening air, evaporate!"

Dawson collapsed to the ground, narrowly missing Harper, who leapt out of the way just in time.

Lightning and rain mingled, dancing within the barrier, which flickered visibly. Harper joined the chant, pressing her hands against the barrier, and was quickly followed by Dawson.

One would have thought that with five witches using their powers in unison to bring down the barrier, the pain would have diminished. Instead, the agony increased tenfold, driving several of them to their knees. A part of Sam begged him to let go, to end the torment, but another part snarled at the thought of defeat. That part pushed him further, and without removing his hands from the barrier, he somehow managed to push himself back onto his feet. "EVAPORATE!"

A bolt of lightning raced towards him, and Sam's eyes widened in horror, realizing Maya was losing control. The lightning scattered everywhere. He closed his eyes, refusing to move or remove his hands from the barrier.

The lightning hit, an explosion rocking the earth beneath him. Behind him, someone screamed. Eyes flying open, Sam turned to see one of the hooded men lying on the ground, a knife in his hand, his body steaming where the lightning bolt had fried him.

The barrier wobbled beneath the witches' hands, drawing Sam's attention back. He grunted as it continued to fight, visibly starting to crack, weak spots appearing all over. They were almost there, almost had it, but it wasn't enough. They needed more.

Damn it!

Suddenly, two hands slammed onto the barrier next to his. Sam turned to see a terribly pale Maya beside him, her hands shaking as visibly as the barrier. She looked barely conscious, her lips moving slowly in a chant he couldn't hear but knew she had to be reciting.

The barrier became more visible, a pearl-like bubble about to pop yet not quite. Maya swayed. Sam reached out and placed his burnt, agonizingly painful hand on top of hers against the barrier, pressing down hard.

Maya looked up at him at the contact, and suddenly lightning rained down, striking the barrier. It exploded, the force sending their bodies flying.

As the explosion of magic and power lit up the sky like a nuclear bomb, a white wolf sat safely on a hilltop overlooking the field. The remaining hooded figures had slipped into the woods and escaped while the unbound coven battled the barrier. The fact that the wolf hadn't confronted the kids himself proved this had been a scouting mission, reconnaissance. Now, he had the information he needed.

This coven was strong.

The wolf watched as the teenagers lay on the ground, unconscious from the blast, from the magnitude of the magic that had erupted. The ground heaved, suffering from the magical upheaval. The wolf felt its cries before the earth opened up. It almost swallowed one, the brunette with pink hair, but somehow, even unconscious, she managed to balance on the precipice.

Intriguing.

Standing as the teens began to awaken, the wolf turned and raced away, knowing that those in town would have seen the explosion and would be on their way.