Planting herself in her usual spot, Mia listened intently to every sound, waiting on tenterhooks for Colt’s arrival. Occasionally the wind chimes would whistle and the leaves in the trees would rustle, but other than that Mia was alone.
‘Hello!’ A smooth voice interrupted the peaceful setting.
Startled, Mia gasped. ‘I didn’t hear you coming,’ she said, twirling around to face Colt.
‘Then I succeeded,’ he replied blithely. Beneath the fractured sunlight, his eyes shimmered vibrant green, alight with the mystical enchantment of the forest.
‘It’s good to see you,’ Mia told him honestly.
‘I’m sure it is.’
Mia paused. ‘You’re not pleased to see me?’
‘I came, didn’t I?’ Colt answered.
She smiled. ‘I’m glad you came. I was worried about you. I thought that something might have happened to you. After the incident with the poisoned arrow, I woke up and you were gone …’
‘I couldn’t stay,’ he explained, almost remorsefully.
‘I understand. I can accept that you don’t have feelings for me in that way. But I missed you. God knows why, but I did!’
He returned the smile.
‘Can’t we be friends?’ she proposed. ‘Nothing more – just friends?’
Colt laughed scornfully. ‘No.’
‘Oh.’
‘We will never be friends,’ he elaborated. ‘You want more than friendship.’
Mia’s cheeks turned red. ‘Maybe I did,’ she said. ‘All the same, I’d be just as happy to be your friend. I know you think you’re irresistible, but I’m perfectly able to control myself,’ she joked.
‘Well, I’m not,’ Colt blurted out.
If she’d have been thinking rationally, she would have kept her distance from him. But rational thinking had gone out the window a long time ago. She stepped forward and threw her arms around him.
Colt remained rigid. He didn’t return the hug, but he didn’t pull away either.
Mia stayed entwined with him, listening to the sound of his ragged breathing. Her fingers brushed against the nape of his neck. It was strange being so near to him.
Relenting slightly, Colt allowed one arm to move around her.
Mia familiarised herself with the sensation of being this intimate with him. It felt right to her – as though her whole life had been building up to this moment. It was as if they belonged to one another.
‘Stop,’ Colt said sharply. He ground his teeth. ‘Step away from me,’ he ordered.
Mia did as he asked, unnerved by the urgency in his voice. But no sooner was she apart from him than he pulled her back in, using both hands to grip her arms.
Mia looked up. His eyes were no longer light and radiant. Now, they were black and emotionless, with a thin border of red encircling the engorged pupil.
At that moment, he looked as though he were about to either savagely kill her or passionately kiss her. Mia supposed that, to Colt, the two were one and the same.
She tried to push away from him, but his arms held her as if they were made of unbreakable steel. She could almost see the fury issuing from within him. The muscles in his jaw contracted.
‘What are you doing?’ Mia demanded, her voice surprisingly bold.
Colt didn’t respond. Instead, he swiftly moved to kiss her.
‘Don’t!’ Mia snapped. She jerked her head away from him.
‘What?’ Colt asked, in an innocent yet unfamiliar voice. ‘I thought this was what you wanted.’
‘No!’ Mia scoffed. ‘Not like this!’
Colt tensed, uncertain.
‘I don’t want you to kiss me as a substitute for killing me!’ she went on furiously.
He gave an aloof shrug of his shoulders. ‘Is there really a difference?’
‘They’re as different as can be!’ Mia cried. ‘You kiss someone when you care for them. Or when you love them,’ she added quietly.
When Colt next spoke, his words were slow and regretful. ‘I will never love you,’ he told her.
His remark stung.
‘Then never kiss me,’ Mia whispered, her voice choked. She looked up to Colt’s eyes and watched as they transformed before her. The pupils contracted, and the ring of red merged once more into that recognisable pine green.
‘OK,’ he agreed humbly.
Mia swallowed the lump in her throat. ‘And while we’re on the subject, don’t kill me either.’
‘That’s fair,’ Colt nodded. He released his grip on her arms and stepped back.
Mia stepped back, too – not because she wanted to, but because she respected herself too much not to.
Colt stared down at the ground. ‘I didn’t want you to see me like that,’ he confessed.
‘I’ve already seen you like that,’ Mia reminded him, ‘when I wore the Athame.’
‘Well, that was different,’ Colt snorted. ‘You put on an Athame, for crying out loud! You couldn’t even control your own power, and yet you thought you could control a ceremonial tool that dates back hundreds of years!’
Mia placed her hands on her hips. ‘I didn’t know how powerful it would be,’ she defended herself.
‘I know,’ Colt smiled. ‘That’s why I came to your rescue. My gallantry really is relentless.’
‘You came to rescue me?’ Mia scrutinised him dubiously. ‘It seemed to me that you were coming to kill me!’ She mused over how casually she spoke of such horrors. A few weeks ago, all of this would have seemed preposterous.
‘No, no, if I’d planned to kill you, you’d be six feet under by now,’ he boasted. ‘I came to help you out – although for the life of me I can’t think why. And, anyway, I don’t know what you’re complaining about. I saved you, didn’t I?’
‘You saved me from the Athame,’ Mia agreed, ‘but not from yourself.’
Colt sighed submissively. ‘Alas, I can’t save you from me. I’m my own worst enemy, as it were.’ He paused for a moment. ‘Actually, that’s not the case. I’m rather fond of myself, if truth be told.’
‘You don’t say.’ Mia feigned shock.
‘Yes, I think I’m quite superb. And I’m right to think that way. But perhaps I’m your worst enemy.’
‘Well, you know what they say – keep your friends close and your enemies closer,’ Mia replied in jest.
‘Not in this scenario. The closer you keep me, the more I detest you.’
‘Thanks!’
‘I detest you in the most adoring way,’ Colt amended. ‘It’s all passion, isn’t it? Love, hate, happy, sad – what difference does it make?’
‘A lot of difference.’
‘So you say. But only because you were taught to feel and obey emotion. I, however, am a solitary opportunist. My only goal is to satisfy myself.’
‘So you say,’ Mia retorted. ‘But if that’s true, why come to my rescue when I took the Athame? Why give me your blood?’
‘Because I’m a fool.’
Mia laughed. ‘Join the club!’
‘You are a fool,’ Colt agreed. ‘You saw how feral I became when I turned. All of that passion – to kill, to kiss, to be – it takes hold of me and I can’t fight it. I lose it. I lose myself to it.’
‘But you stopped yourself,’ Mia reminded him. ‘You didn’t hurt me, or kiss me. I think you’re more in control than you give yourself credit for.’
‘Not really.’ Colt looked up to the pale blue sky. ‘Today, just then, was the only time I have ever managed to master my demons. Ever.’ He returned his gaze to Mia.
‘Ever?’
‘Once it grips me, there’s usually no turning back. Until I’ve made my kill, that is.’
Mia’s nose wrinkled.
Colt shrugged his shoulders.
‘So, what changed?’ Mia asked. ‘What made today different?’
‘Hard to tell.’ He scuffed at the moss underfoot. ‘Perhaps you. Perhaps your voice sedated me. Or perhaps it bored me into sobriety.’ He chuckled.
&nb
sp; She rolled her eyes.
‘But as I said,’ Colt went on, seriously now, ‘I didn’t want you to see me in that state.’
‘Apology accepted.’
‘It wasn’t an apology.’
Mia smiled sweetly. ‘Well, whatever it was, I accept. And thank you for saving me – both times.’
‘Ah! A thank-you! My very first!’ Colt cheered.
Mia laughed. ‘How does it feel?’
‘Overrated.’
She laughed again.
Colt reached out and touched her cheek with the backs of his fingers.
Mia closed her eyes. She felt a breeze pass gently through her hair. ‘That’s you,’ she said, ‘isn’t it?’
Colt drew the breeze around her, dusting it over her lips. ‘You recognise me,’ he grinned. ‘Just like I recognise you. I got your message, by the way.’ He dug into his pocket and produced the catkin.
Mia’s eyes fluttered open. ‘You kept it!’
‘Yes, I…I found it interesting.’
She beamed. ‘Can I ask you a question?’
Colt heaved a weary sigh. ‘I expect you’ll do so regardless of my response, so I might as well pretend that it was on my terms. Go ahead.’
‘When you noticed the catkin, did you consider coming to find me? I know you don’t love me, but do you think of me at all?’
Colt looked momentarily wounded. ‘Of course I do!’ he cried. ‘I wanted to come for you. And even more so when it began to rain. I felt your pain. And, worse, I knew I’d caused it.’
‘Then why didn’t you come?’ Mia asked tenderly.
‘Because it’s not who I am.’
‘Who are you?’
‘A Hunter,’ he stated matter-of-factly.
‘What difference does it make?’
Colt smiled sadly. ‘It’s the difference between love and hate.’
The irony of his comment silenced Mia. Silenced her to the point that she wished she had never spoken at all.
Colt dipped his head. ‘I should leave.’
‘At least this time it’ll be a proper goodbye.’
‘I suppose it will be,’ he said. ‘I’d offer you a hug, but…’ he laughed quietly, ‘we both know how that would turn out.’
Mia closed the gap between them and enveloped him once again. ‘You’re worth the risk,’ she murmured.
This time Colt shared the embrace. He drew her closer and buried his face in her hair, breathing in her scent.
‘Goodbye,’ said Mia. She reluctantly stepped back from him.
Colt met her eyes. ‘Goodbye,’ he returned. He reached out and pushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear. ‘It’s been…different,’ he said with a husky laugh.
‘Yes,’ Mia agreed. ‘And the same.’
‘Different and the same,’ Colt echoed.
With a wistful look about him, Colt began to walk away. But he appeared to be stalling his departure, running his hand along a serrated tree trunk and looking up and down its bark as though it was foreign to him.
‘It’s a tree,’ Mia told him.
Colt stopped and turned back to her. His hands were balled into fists, and one was pressed so firmly to the tree trunk that it started to dent the bark.
‘You know,’ he said, somewhat grudgingly, ‘I shouldn’t say this, but if you want to try the Athame again, I will help you.’
Mia’s eyes twinkled. She didn’t care about the Athame, but she did care about Colt. ‘Really?’
Colt licked his lips nervously. ‘I can help you. But only if you are mindful that spending time together will only make things more difficult in the long run.’
Mia gave a nonchalant wave of her hand. ‘I don’t care about the long run.’
Colt smirked. ‘I’ve noticed.’
‘Besides,’ she added, ‘like I said, I’m willing to take the risk.’
The corner of Colt’s mouth pulled into a smile. ‘Me, too.’
‘You see?’ Mia grinned. ‘We’re both fools!’
‘Oh, well, that’s a consolation,’ he said wryly.
‘When shall we try the Athame?’ Mia asked.
He debated silently for several seconds. ‘Dusk. I’ll patrol the forest until sunset, and then I’ll find you. Don’t look for me,’ he warned. ‘I’ll find you.’
‘But how will you know where…?’
‘I’ll find you,’ he reiterated impatiently.
Mia frowned. ‘How?’
Colt chuckled as though he were laughing at a private joke. ‘Darling,’ he drawled, ‘I could find you anywhere.’
Chapter Thirteen
Ascending
As the sun began to set, the Arcana gathered in the stone-walled dining room for dinner. The only person missing was Dino.
He had other plans.
For the past few hours he had shut himself away in the library. And there he remained, chaotically ransacking the shelves of books. Every so often, he would pull out a book, leaf through it, and then discard it on to the floor.
So engrossed in the task at hand, Dino barely even reacted when the library door opened.
‘Dino! What are you d-doing?’ Blue exclaimed.
‘Looking for a book,’ Dino mumbled distractedly. Even as he spoke, his attention didn’t leave the bookshelves.
Blue’s expression clouded with concern. ‘What book?’
‘Ascension,’ Dino replied, not inviting any further conversation.
But Blue persisted, his honey-coloured eyes wide and anxious. ‘Why do you want to read about that?’
Ascension was a well-known ritual that would enable a witch to ascend to a higher power. Essentially it was dark magic, so its secrets were kept safe by the Arcana. If the ritual works fell into the wrong hands, there would be a danger of it being used for malevolent purposes. Ultimately, the process would grant its commander the ability to tap into the greatest powers known to witchcraft. It was a gift sought by many, but permitted only to those who were pure-hearted.
‘Why do you want to find out about a-ascension?’ Blue demanded again.
‘I’m just interested,’ Dino responded evenly.
Blue looked around at the disarray of the library. ‘Did you do the r-refusal ritual?’ he asked.
Dino frowned. ‘Huh?’
‘The ritual. The one to b-block Tol’s advances.’
‘Oh. Yeah, yeah,’ Dino blagged, ‘I did it.’
‘How did it go?’
‘Peachy. No problems.’ He continued to pull books out at random, only to toss them aside like worthless junk.
‘You won’t find it there!’ Blue blurted out, cringing as the delicate books collided against the furniture.
Suddenly Dino was ready listen. He turned around slowly, his dark eyes focused now. ‘Where is it?’
Blue avoided the question. ‘Did you tell Wendolyn and Mia about Tol?’
‘Yes. Where’s the book?’
‘What did they say? Because there was a m-meeting this morning and Wendolyn had s-serious concerns about Hunters in the area, and she didn’t seem to know–’
Dino cut him short. ‘Where’s the book?’
‘Ascension is d-dark magic. It’s not on the shelves with the other books. Has Tol tried to contact you again?’
‘Where are the books on dark magic?’ As he spoke, his lips curled upwards like a rabid dog.
Blue backed away instinctively. ‘What’s wrong with you?’
‘Nothing’s wrong with me. I feel amazing. Better than ever.’
He may have felt it, but he certainly didn’t look it. What had once been an attractive face was now bruised and sallow. But the most noticeable change of all came from within. It was as though Dino – the real Dino – wasn’t in there anymore.
‘If something’s happened, I can help you,’ Blue appealed to him.
‘I do need your help,’ Dino admitted, and for a moment it seemed as though Blue’s words might have got through to him. ‘I need you to tell me where the book is!’ he bellowed.
r /> Blue shrank back. ‘No!’
‘Then I’ll drag it out of you,’ Dino threatened in a menacing voice that was no longer his own.
‘W-w-w…’
‘Button it!’ Dino sneered. ‘Now, I should warn you, this might hurt just a little…’ He raised his hand and twisted his fingers, as though he were picking at an invisible lock.
Blue cried out in agony. He clutched at his head as if he were trying to hold his skull together.
‘You want to tell me where the book is,’ Dino stated in a low, hollow tone.
Blue fought to resist, but Dino’s hold was too great.
‘William Wix’s study,’ the words tumbled helplessly from Blue’s mouth. Dino had planted the desire in his mind, forcing him to share his knowledge.
Satisfied, Dino snapped his fingers and released his hold. ‘Thank you,’ he hissed.
Blue trembled, staggering backwards against the bookshelves.
‘So,’ Dino spoke again, ‘the dark magic books are stored in William Wix’s study... You are a useful friend, Benny Blue.’ He tapped his chin thoughtfully.
‘You’ll never get into the room,’ Blue bit back. ‘Wendolyn keeps the door locked at all times.’
‘Does she?’ Dino mused. ‘I think you underestimate me.’ He smirked. ‘You forget, the power of the mind is a marvellous thing. Wanna see?’ Without waiting for a response, Dino darted out of the library and slammed the door shut behind him.
Blue raced forward and yanked at the handle, but the heavy door didn’t budge.
‘Power of the mind,’ came Dino’s muffled voice from the other side of the thick wood. ‘Bet you didn’t know I could do that!’ he laughed. ‘I can lock a door simply by willing it. The question is, can you unlock it?’
Blue rattled the handle and banged against the solid wood.
Then Dino’s stifled voice came again. ‘Nah, I’m only messing with you. I didn’t use my mind. I used the key. It was already in the lock. In fact, I think I’ll take it with me for safe keeping. See ya,’ he taunted in a devious tone.
‘Open the door!’ Blue hollered, bashing his fists against it. But Dino was already gone.
Distressed, Blue slumped against the door.
Trying not to panic, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his vial of ciron thistle. With a shaky hand, he sprinkled a few flakes into his palm and encased them beneath his fingers. The ciron thistle lay dormant, waiting for its command. Blue closed his eyes and envisioned the chunky, brass library key.