‘Lotan is dead,’ he said at last, his voice cracking.
Wendolyn hung the towel on the fire grate.
‘I know,’ she replied.
‘Murdered,’ Colt elaborated. He stared into the fire, watching the flames dance up into the chimney.
‘Yes,’ Wendolyn nodded her head sombrely. ‘I’m sorry.’
‘Sorry is no use to me,’ he said brusquely.
‘No, I suppose it isn’t.’ Wendolyn took a seat opposite him. She lowered herself into the chair slowly, her aged bones stiff and tired.
‘The rival Hunters attacked,’ Colt went on. ‘They killed my brothers…’ He stopped talking and covered his face with his hands.
Wendolyn nodded in an unspoken understanding. ‘May I?’ she asked, aware of his struggle to speak.
Colt knew that she was asking to read his thoughts.
‘Go ahead.’ It would certainly be easier than saying it aloud. Although, by reading his thoughts, there was a chance that Wendolyn would find out about his bond with Mia. But Colt didn’t care.
Moments later Wendolyn’s expression turned grave. ‘Their leader is ascending?’ she checked, almost in disbelief.
‘According to Lotan, yes.’
Wendolyn concentrated once more on something beyond their verbal communication. ‘Dino,’ she uttered regretfully. ‘They must change him in order to complete their coven.’
‘But why?’ Colt practically hollered. ‘What do such powerful Hunters want with a young Arcana? A useless Arcana, scarcely in his first weeks!’
Wendolyn’s gaze rested on the fire. ‘It’s much easier to turn a young witch. Their alliance has not yet been sealed.’
‘Why him?’ Colt spat.
‘Who can say why a witch’s power is sought after…’
‘He has no great power!’ Colt scoffed. ‘I request permission to kill him.’
‘No,’ Wendolyn denied him outright. ‘You will not harm the boy.’
‘Why not?’ Colt raged. ‘The Hunters will turn him, and their leader will use his power to ascend! It’s either the boy or all of us.’
‘No, Colt,’ Wendolyn repeated, unwavering. ‘Harming the boy is not an option.’
‘It’s our only option!’
‘Your judgment is impaired by your desire to seek revenge.’
‘And?’
‘And, you are forbidden to attack an Arcana.’
‘He’s a Hunter!’ Colt argued.
‘No, he is not. Not yet. We will stop the transformation.’
‘How?’ Colt demanded.
‘To become a Hunter, Dino will need to sacrifice his ties with humanity…’ she trailed off, as though a realisation had suddenly dawned on her.
There was no need to vocalise it because the same thought was crossing Colt’s mind.
‘His sister,’ he murmured. In a split second Colt was gone. His feet barely skimmed the floor as he raced to his bedchamber.
Exploding through his bedroom door, his heart leapt to his throat. The room was empty.
‘Mia!’ he called. He flung the bedcovers back as though perhaps she was unnoticed beneath them. The four candles lay sideways on the crimson carpet, overturned from where Dino had trampled through them just a short while earlier.
Colt darted to the window, looking down upon the grounds. He knotted his hands through his hair. She was nowhere in sight.
In a flurry, he turned and darted back down the stone staircase. Speeding through the castle, he made a beeline for Mia’s bedroom. From the other direction, Wendolyn was heading the same way.
‘He’s taken her!’ Colt exclaimed. He flung open Mia’s bedroom door. The room was empty.
‘Perhaps not,’ Wendolyn reasoned, puffing as she reached the room. ‘Perhaps she is with friends.’
‘No. He’s taken her,’ Colt choked. ‘I can’t sense her.’
The colour drained from Wendolyn’s lined face.
‘I request permission to kill him,’ Colt hissed through clenched teeth.
‘No!’ Wendolyn scolded. ‘Under no circumstances will you hurt the boy. Do you understand me?’
Colt snarled.
A new voice broke through the tension. A girl’s voice, but not Mia’s.
‘Wendolyn!’ Kizzy cried, galloping up the staircase in her oversized dungarees. ‘You need to come, quick! Dino has locked Benny Blue in the library! Blue says Dino’s gone mad!’
Wendolyn turned to Colt. ‘The spare key is in my bedchamber,’ she told him. ‘Go!’
Colt vanished in a flash. Minutes later he joined them at the library, brass key in hand.
Hastily, Wendolyn unlocked the door and Blue burst out. In a garble, he told her everything he knew. Including how Dino had been searching for the books on ascension.
‘It’s as I feared,’ Wendolyn muttered grimly.
‘I think Dino is being p-possessed by a Hunter named Tol,’ Blue explained.
At the mention of the name, Wendolyn froze. ‘Tol?’
Blue nodded his head.
Wendolyn’s face fell. ‘Then I’m afraid things are worse than I had imagined,’ she said. ‘We must act fast. I need to contact Cassandra and Madeline Bicks.’
‘Dino’s family?’ Blue looked on, wide-eyed.
‘Yes. I will require their assistance.’
Colt fidgeted restlessly at the library door. ‘Let me go,’ he implored Wendolyn. ‘I won’t kill the boy.’ At that point, he didn’t know if he was lying or not. And he didn’t care, either. All he cared about was finding Mia.
‘Go,’ Wendolyn said. ‘Find them. Try to stop the sacrifice. But be careful – if Tol is ascending, his power will be beyond what you have experienced before.’
‘I’ll stop it,’ Colt swore.
‘I meanwhile will search for ways to protect Dino from Tol’s power. We must release him from the hold Tol has over him.’
‘Will that stop Tol?’ Kizzy pressed.
‘No. For that we will need Cassandra and Madeline. She turned to the Hunter. ‘Colt, delay the sacrifice for as long as you can.’
‘There will be no sacrifice,’ Colt vowed. And with that final statement, he was gone.
Colt paced agitatedly around the flooded courtyard, confused as to which direction to go. His rain continued to spill relentlessly from the oppressive purple sky. Distressed, he stood at the mercy of the downpour, lost. It was surreal; he had brought the rain more times than he could remember, and had crossed through that courtyard near enough every day of his life, but never had he felt so frantic and afraid.
Attempting to track Mia in a downpour this torrential was an impossible task. The sheer quantity of water had swallowed every other scent in the surrounding area. Ironically, the more unsuccessful Colt was, the wilder the storm became.
He growled viciously, his frustration rising by the second. His eyes were as black as soot. Even the whites of his eyes were now swollen jet black.
‘Compose yourself,’ he reprimanded. But it was an unattainable wish. He had lost all control, and could not regain it.
Fury drove him now – it consumed him. He was addicted to it, fuelled by the urge to destroy whatever was misfortunate enough to cross his path. He longed to make a kill, to satisfy the savage demon inside of him.
There was only one thing that held him back, only one thing left that stopped him from surrendering to the darkness. He needed to find Mia. And the only way he could do that was by beating the anger that absorbed him.
I can’t do it! I have never been able to control it. How can I expect to overcome it this time?
‘But…she did,’ he said aloud, suddenly recounting his run-in with Mia earlier that day. She had brought him back from the brink of ferocity with the greatest of ease.
He closed his eyes, savouring the pleasure of envisioning her. With immaculate precision, he pictured every detail of her face: the curve of her cheekbone, the cherry red of her lips, her slate-grey eyes, and the dimple of her smile. With a wave of relief, he felt his
rasping breath steady somewhat.
Stay with me, he asked the image that resided in his mind’s eye.
‘Don’t,’ he muttered out loud, his eyes still closed.
Strangely, he found himself reciting the conversation that had sedated him only twelve hours before. The words were a wonderful comfort; it was as though she were right there at his side, scolding him from her own lips.
‘What a peculiar thing to yearn for a lecture!’ he realised.
The rain, though still present, had started to relent.
Spurred on by the effectiveness of his ramblings, Colt persisted to run though their earlier conversation. ‘I will never love you,’ he mumbled to himself. ‘Then never kiss me…’ Colt opened his eyes. He rolled the words over one more time. ‘Then never kiss me,’ he repeated.
And then, he picked up a scent. It was faint and distant, but it was Mia.
Colt jerked his head in the direction of the forest. The night was eerily quiet, but Colt knew that it was rife with activity. He would stop at nothing to uncover it.
He began to run, empowering the wind to work alongside him. It aided his legs, heightening their speed until they were nothing more than a blur. Tearing through the land like a bullet, he weaved in and out of the trees, leaving only a deep-set trail in his wake.
That night Colt ran faster than even he imagined possible. Lives depended on him, and this time he wouldn’t be late.
A large diamond shape had been drawn into the boggy mud. Tol stood at the northerly point, while his two robed minions stood at east and west. Dino took his post at the southern point. In his arms, Dino clasped Mia in front of him. She struggled, but he restrained her so closely to him that her movements hardly made any impact at all.
Dino peered over her head at Tol’s sneering face opposite them. The grotesque man seemed morbidly fascinated by the siblings.
‘What a sight,’ Tol leered menacingly. ‘How very similar you look.’
‘Actually, we look nothing alike,’ Mia shot back boldly.
Dino tightened his grip on her, as though he were punishing her for speaking out of line.
‘Ouch!’ Mia grumbled. She lowered her voice for only Dino’s ears. ‘Snap out of it, Dino. You’ve been brainwashed by that…monster!’
He heard her, but her words barely registered. His attention was too focused on Tol to be distracted by his sister.
Tol’s snake eyes flickered between the members of his coven, and then, like clockwork, the three men began chanting in an unfamiliar tongue.
‘I can’t believe you’re really going through with this,’ Mia hissed under her breath. ‘I was wrong about you. You’re not my brother – you’re just an evil demon, like them.’
‘Exactly,’ Dino whispered back into her ear. ‘This is who I am.’
Mia kicked back against his shin, but it caused no reaction. He was numb to it.
‘I’ve changed my mind,’ she spat. ‘It’s not who are you. Being who you are would be too convenient an excuse, and I’m not letting you get off that easily. Who you are is my brother, and you’re going to kill me. I want you to feel very, very guilty. You are officially the worst brother in the whole world.’ She kicked him again.
Dino blocked out the sound of Mia’s voice and listened instead to the monotone chanting of the coven.
‘You realise,’ Mia went on, ‘that I’m going to haunt you for ever. I’m going to haunt you until it drives you insane, like in that movie, Ghost Fever.’
Dino paused. ‘I haven’t seen it.’
‘It’s quite good. But that’s not the point! The point is, I’m going to dedicate my life – or my afterlife, or whatever – to making your life hell. You thought I was annoying before? Well, get ready to meet me as a ghost.’
Dino snorted and Tol glared at him.
‘Stop talking,’ Dino snarled, his sharp breath prickling against Mia’s ear.
‘I most certainly will not!’ she exclaimed. ‘If anyone should stop what they’re doing, it should be you!’
‘I can’t stop. I have to rid myself of my humanity.’
Mia wailed in frustration. ‘Cassandra and Madeline are never going to forgive you for this.’
Cassandra and Madeline.
Dino stiffened. It had been weeks since he had thought about his mother and aunt. It was strange to hear their names.
Unbeknownst to Dino, Tol had invaded his mind. He had suffocated all of Dino’s own thoughts until only Tol’s influence remained.
But now, a new influence crept into Dino’s subconscious. And it wasn’t Tol’s, or even his own. It was Mia’s. His Sententia power detected the sound of Mia’s emotion. She had always been louder to him than anyone else – evidently Tol included.
‘You love me,’ he uttered in disbelief.
‘No, I do not!’ Mia objected. ‘You’re evil!’
‘How can you still love me?’ Dino stammered. ‘I’m about to kill you.’
‘Yes, I do realise that, thank you, Dino! And, for your information, I hate you!’
‘No…you don’t,’ he told her. ‘You love me. I can hear it.’
Mia kicked him.
The Hunter chanting grew louder and faster.
All of a sudden Dino’s head started to throb. There were so many conflicting emotions all battling to be heard. His mind told him that he wanted Mia dead, but simultaneously his heart told him otherwise.
Then Tol spoke to Dino in a deep, guttural voice. ‘Make your sacrifice,’ he commanded, his beady eyes blazing.
Dino gulped. He placed his hands on Mia’s head.
‘No, Dino! Don’t!’ she cried.
You can do it! Tol planted the affirmation in Dino’s mind. You are a Hunter.
Dino’s fingers twined into Mia’s hair. He breathed steadily. It would be over in seconds. She would feel no pain.
Suddenly they were not alone. A warm breeze tousled Mia’s hair, coiling around it and sweeping the strands from her face.
Colt.
Tol tensed. ‘Kill the girl!’ he roared. Something almost undetectable shot past him.
In a cyclone of wind, Colt appeared. He stood staunchly just outside of the ceremonial border, his eyes fixed on Tol.
‘So, you’re the big bad wolf who murdered my brothers,’ Colt remarked brazenly. ‘You don’t look all that intimidating.’ He sized him up with arrogant disdain.
‘And you must be the fourth Hunter of the Glass Castle,’ Tol sneered back. ‘The only one left.’
‘Still standing,’ Colt provoked him.
‘Not for long.’ Tol raised his hand and shot a blast of yellow light in Colt’s direction.
With impeccable speed, Colt dodged the spear of light. ‘Nice try.’ He grinned.
‘Colt, run!’ Mia screamed. Dino’s hands remained clasped to her head, holding her in place.
‘I’m not going anywhere without you,’ Colt assured her. His eyes stayed fixed on Tol.
‘They’ll kill you!’ Mia cried. ‘Just go!’
‘No,’ he replied in an even voice. ‘I’m not leaving you.’
‘Funny you should say that,’ Tol remarked with a cackle. ‘Because that’s precisely how we captured her in the first place! Who knew it would be so easy to take you away from her?’ His laughter pierced the night air like the screeching caws of a crow.
‘That’s why you killed my coven?’ Colt deduced. ‘To take me away from Mia?’
Tol sneered. ‘The simple plans are often the best.’
Colt swallowed. ‘Well, guess what? There’s none of them left for you to kill. I suppose that means I’m staying this time.’
‘Of little use it’ll be! You’re not at the Glass Castle any more. You’re on my ground now.’
‘Ha!’ Colt scoffed. ‘There is no such thing. All ground is my ground. And I’ll kill every single one of you before I let you harm the girl.’
Dino dipped his head to Mia’s ear. ‘What is this? Are you in some sort of relationship with a Hunter? Mia, what are
you thinking? He’s too dangerous for you!’
Mia spluttered in shock. ‘Are you serious? Now is not the time to play the protective brother! You’re about to kill me, remember? It doesn’t get much more dangerous than that!’
Groping for time, Colt distracted Tol from the ritual. ‘You went to great effort to get me out of the way,’ he goaded in a risky jeer. ‘Sounds like you might be afraid me.’
‘Afraid of you?’ Tol bellowed. ‘You are nothing!’
‘Then take your best shot.’ Colt extended his arms, inviting a challenge.
Tol raised his hand and shot a second bolt of light at his opponent – faster and more forceful this time. But again, Colt ducked aside, using his Tempestus agility to his advantage.
In terms of strength, Colt was no match for Tol, but nevertheless he was a distraction. And an effective one at that.
‘Leave now,’ Tol warned him. ‘You have no business here.’
‘Actually, you’re wrong.’ Colt laced in and out of the trees, trying not to stay in one place for too long. ‘I do have business here.’ He disappeared behind a pine tree and resurfaced somewhere else entirely. ‘And I’d go so far as to say that my business takes precedence over yours.’ His voice echoed, its origins indistinct.
‘Pah!’ Tol thundered. ‘I beg to differ.’
‘No, I beg to differ.’ Colt paused and looked intently at Mia. ‘I have to kiss that girl,’ he announced.
Even in the midst of warfare, Mia couldn’t help but smile.
‘Because I love her,’ Colt elaborated, ‘and I believe that was the deal.’ He grinned.
‘You have got to be kidding me,’ Dino muttered under his breath.
‘And I love him!’ Mia returned fervently.
Tol let out a rippling laugh. ‘Falling in love with a Hunter?’ he ridiculed, addressing Mia for the first time. ‘Just like your mother. Pitiful little girl!’
Colt frowned. ‘Where are your manners?’ he mocked scornfully. ‘That’s no way to speak to a lady.’
Tol glared at Mia, bitterness colouring his sallow face. ‘I shall speak to her any way I choose,’ he hissed. ‘She is my daughter, after all.’
Chapter Sixteen