Mia threw up her hands. ‘I’m sorry, but I really can’t stop the rain.’
‘Yes, you can.’
‘No, I can’t.’
‘Yes, you can.’
Mia narrowed her eyes. ‘No, I can’t.’
‘Yes – you – can,’ Colt insisted, enunciating each word perfectly.
The back-and-forth debate was driving Mia crazy. ‘No, I can’t!’ she cried. ‘How do you expect me to stop the rain? It’s beyond my control!’
‘You’re doing it. You can stop it.’
‘Doing what? I’m not doing anything,’ Mia protested.
Impatiently, Colt clicked his tongue on the roof of his mouth. ‘You’re making it rain,’ he told her.
‘And how exactly would I manage that?’ she challenged.
‘I’m not a mind reader!’ Colt exclaimed. ‘How am I supposed to know what puts you females in your foul moods?’
‘I’m not in a bad mood,’ Mia argued.
Colt eyed her with an infuriatingly dubious expression.
‘And even if I were in a bad mood,’ Mia carried on, ‘I’m certainly not making it rain. It’s just nature.’
‘No, it’s you.’
‘Stop saying that! I wouldn’t have the faintest idea how to make weather like this!’ She cupped her hands together, catching the bombardment of droplets in her palms.
Colt smirked. ‘I thought you were the most powerful witch of all time,’ he mimicked her.
‘I am,’ Mia retorted. ‘But I can’t make rain. I’m not…’ She racked her brain for an appropriate example. ‘…I’m not Rain Man,’ she said at last.
‘Rain Man didn’t create rain,’ Colt scoffed. ‘It was just his nickname.’
‘Oh. Well, anyway, I’m not doing this.’ Mia looked up to the gloomy, purple sky.
‘Yes, you are.’
‘Stop it!’ Mia wailed. He was relentless!
‘It looks like you. It smells like you. How else can I put this? It is you.’
She stared blankly at him. ‘Huh?’
‘You’re everywhere,’ he elaborated, although without much clarity. ‘You’re a Tempestus, yes?’
‘What’s a Temptestus?’
Exasperated, Colt rubbed at his temples. ‘Oh, for God’s sake,’ he muttered, ‘not a Temptestus. A Tempestus. That’s what you are.’
Mia frowned.
‘This is just pathetic. Do I have to spoon-feed everything to you?’
‘OK,’ Mia replied sheepishly.
‘That wasn’t an offer,’ Colt snapped. ‘You’re a Tempestus. You have the ability to manipulate the elements. You do know what the elements are, don’t you?’ he checked, half-joking.
‘Um…’ she pondered it. ‘Atoms?’
‘No, no, no,’ Colt cut her off intolerantly. ‘The elements: earth, air, fire and water. Are you familiar with those words?’
Mia scowled at him. ‘Yes.’
‘Good. You command them.’
Mia fell silent. On the one hand, she was elated at the idea that she may have actually found her power. On the other hand, how could she trust what Colt was saying? He was a Hunter, after all. And up until a few minutes ago, she was under the impression that they were mortal enemies. Beside, how could he possibly know?
‘Why should I trust you?’ she asked at last.
Colt laughed. ‘Darling,’ he droned, intimately, ‘I don’t want your trust.’
Mia stared at him. She wasn’t about to back down. ‘How do you know this about me?’
He sighed. ‘Isn’t it obvious? I recognise you as a Tempestus because I’m one, too.’
Mia took a deep breath, struggling to keep her cool. ‘Well, then, maybe you’re the one making the rain. Have you ever considered that?’
Colt knotted his fingers through his rain-soaked hair and groaned. ‘I’m not. You are. Now be a good girl and stop it, because it’s highly annoying.’ He paused, and then added archly, ‘As are you.’
Mia contemplated his words. Maybe he really was telling the truth. He had no reason to lie, anyway. Could it be that she had finally found her power?
‘I’m a Tempestus,’ she murmured dreamily.
‘Yes. And a fabulous one at that. I’m being sarcastic, you know that, right?’
‘What can I do?’ Mia asked, suddenly enthralled.
‘Not much, by the looks of things.’ Colt tapped his foot against the waterlogged ground. ‘Making it rain seems to be your forte.’
‘No, I mean, what will I be able to do? What can a Tempestus do?’
‘You’ll figure it out.’
‘No!’ Mia cried. ‘That’s all anyone ever says! Please teach me. Puh-lease,’ she imitated his previous use of the word.
Although he tried to resist it, Colt cracked a smile. He ran his hands over his face and let out a strangled moan. ‘OK,’ he said finally, ‘I won’t teach you, but I will give you a demonstration.’
Mia nodded emphatically. Her winter-grey eyes lit up and the rain began to subside.
True to his word, Colt raised his hand and swiftly turned his palm skyward. All the while his eyes remained locked on Mia.
She gasped as a forceful rush of air lifted her to a standing position. Disoriented, she clutched on to Spangles’ gravestone, steadying herself. It was as though the air had picked her up off the ground. In fact, she supposed that was exactly what it had done. She gazed around the graveyard in disbelief.
Colt drew his outstretched hand into his body. ‘Look at me,’ he ordered, and a gust of air guided her focus back towards him.
‘That’s incredible,’ Mia breathed.
‘I’m incredible,’ Colt amended.
‘Did you distort the rain?’ Mia asked, piecing together the bizarre rainstorm that had driven her to the graveyard.
‘Yes.’
‘Why?’
‘Because I wanted you to stay still. I thought if I blurred your vision it would hold you in one place.’
Mia’s lips pressed together into a smile. ‘But it didn’t.’
‘No, it did not.’
‘Why didn’t you just tell me that you wanted to talk?’ she asked.
Colt grinned. ‘Because I was having fun.’
Mia rolled her eyes. ‘Glad my terror was so entertaining for you,’ she said wryly. ‘How did you do it, anyway?’
‘Watch…’ He raised his index finger and spun it in a fluid, circular motion. The light dusting of rain between them spun like a tornado and then plunged to the ground with a splash.
‘Am I able to do these things, too?’ Mia pressed.
‘Perhaps,’ he answered. ‘But you’ll never attain my standard of excellence.’
Mia focused on a puddle of rainwater. She directed her palm towards it, awaiting a reaction. Nothing happened.
Colt chuckled. ‘You’re absurd!’ he said brightly.
Mia frowned. ‘Can you teach me how to do it?’ she asked, desperate for him to divulge his secrets.
Colt glanced up to the sky, where a gleaming ray of sun had broken through the grim storm clouds.
‘I’m not one for thank-yous,’ he said frankly. ‘But I’m glad the rain is over. I’m done with you now.’ In the blink of an eye he was gone.
Mia stood alone in the flooded graveyard. She shivered in her wet clothes, but glorious sunshine glistened in her eyes. The miserable day had just got a whole lot better.
As the sun set over the forest, it illuminated the land with a dusty-pink blush, which would soon disappear in the twilight hour.
Dino combed the gardens in search of Mia. He wasn’t planning on apologising to her, mostly because he didn’t feel that he’d done anything wrong, but she’d been missing all day and he felt obliged to at least make an attempt at finding her.
He walked past a couple of Arcana boys who were sitting on the grass laughing about something. When the boys noticed Dino, their laughter died away. Dino could feel, and hear, their wariness towards him. He glanced back at them briefly and vaguely rec
ognised them from the drawing room. Evidently they had witnessed his aggressive outburst earlier that day.
Dino rubbed his head – the action had become a familiar habit. He didn’t know why he bothered, though – it did nothing for the discomfort inside his mind. But at least the placebo effect provided him with a small degree of relief.
Keen to distance himself from the boys, Dino carried on walking. He cut straight through the gardens and kept going until he reached the sloping embankment. There he stood, looking down upon the maze of pine trees.
Dino gazed absent-mindedly at the ground beneath his feet. The waterlogged mud had mostly dried out, and the grass now seemed inviting with its dewy green blades and the occasional scattering of dainty flowers.
He stamped his foot down on a tiny yellow buttercup, crushing it like a merciless giant. For a moment he felt sick. Sick at the realisation of how much pleasure he had taken from exerting his dominance over the tiny flower. It was almost wicked – almost not him. It was as though a demon was slowly awakening inside of him, preparing to take over.
He shuddered at the disturbing thought. Don’t be stupid, he reprimanded himself. You’re not a demon. You’re just you.
He moved his foot from the flower and bent down towards it. Carefully he plucked the little crushed buttercup and released it into the breeze as a sort of recompense.
As the buttercup tumbled through the air, off on its journey, a hand swooped out and snatched it from its course with the speed and agility of a viper striking its prey.
Startled, Dino spun around. He hadn’t heard anyone approach. But there, just a few yards away from him, stood a man.
The man was older than Dino, although it was hard to tell exactly how much older he was because his strange hollow face was both haggard and robust at the same time. He stood as still as if he were made from stone, and by the looks of his pallid skin he almost could have been made from stone. The man pinched the buttercup between his thumb and forefinger, squashing it into a yellow pulp.
‘I know you,’ Dino murmured.
‘Perhaps you’ve seen me around,’ the man replied in an acid tone. His mouth was coiled into a smile, but his eyes were emotionless. ‘My name is Tol.’ When he spoke his name, his tongue flickered out like a serpent’s.
Inside, Dino flinched, but on the outside he held his composure.
‘Nothing to say?’ Tol noted in a low, hissing tone.
‘I’m not interested in introductions,’ Dino retorted. ‘You don’t need to know my name.’
Tol sneered. ‘I already know your name, Dino.’
Dino stiffened. The stranger’s face was unlike any Dino had ever seen. His complexion was sickly and sallow against his dark hair and clothes. His empty eyes were sunken and shadowed, and his hair, although slick, appeared coarse like animal fur. In fact, there was something about this man that seemed inhuman. Yes, he was human in his basic anatomy, but it was as though he was somehow devoid of a life force. He was a shell.
‘It’s an honour to meet you,’ Tol went on.
Dino grimaced. ‘What? Are you drunk?’ He concentrated his mind to gauge the man’s emotion. It was joy. But a warped sense of joy. Dino didn’t like it in his head; it felt toxic and spoilt.
‘What do you sense?’ Tol demanded, his dark eyes still dead.
‘I sense that you need to get back to the nut house before they start wondering where you are.’
Tol growled like a ferocious dog. Despite his bravado, Dino shrank back.
Then, abruptly, Tol began to cackle. ‘Come into my mind,’ he offered menacingly. ‘Have a look around. When you’re invited, you can truly experience the full potential of your gift.’
Dino glared at him. ‘No, thanks.’
Tol closed his eyes. The veins on his eyelids were purple and bulging. ‘Do it,’ he urged.
Dino licked his lips. For some twisted reason beyond explanation, he actually wanted to explore the man’s mind. He had never been invited to do such a thing before –previously he had only been forced to hear snatches like the sound of a radio tuning in and out.
Why not? he wondered, gritting his teeth. Why not see what I’m capable of?
So, with a deep breath, he permitted himself to channel into Tol’s mind. It was simple – all he had to do was allow it. Once their minds had synced together, the sensation hit Dino like a ton of bricks. He wasn’t just hearing the man’s emotions – he was feeling them, too. He felt Tol’s repulsive joy as if it were his own. And, more significantly, he could feel Tol’s supremacy, now flowing through him simply by using his mind as a vessel. Dino trembled. He had never experienced such power.
With that, Tol opened his eyes and broke the connection.
Dino dropped to the ground, exhausted.
‘So, I was right,’ Tol sneered. ‘You are a Sententia.’
Dino staggered to his feet.
‘You felt my power,’ Tol guessed. ‘And you want it.’
‘No.’ Dino recoiled at the assumption.
‘Don’t you crave power? The power I have? I can show you how to get it.’
Dino shook his head. ‘I don’t want it,’ he stuttered.
Tol ran his tongue along his serrated teeth. ‘A Sententia’s power goes far beyond mere empathy. I can teach you how to not only hear the emotions of others, but to manipulate their emotions to your will. Come with me.’ He extended his crooked hand.
Dino tensed. ‘No.’
Tol beckoned him closer with his hooked finger.
Dino grimaced at the sight of the man’s jagged, rotten fingernail. ‘You’re messed up in the head if you think I’m going anywhere with you. Never going to happen.’
‘You’re wrong,’ Tol snarled. ‘Sooner or later, I will have you. You belong in my coven. You’re mine.’
Speechless and sickened, Dino turned and ran full pelt back towards the castle.
Tol didn’t follow him; he simply watched with a cruel smile on his lips.
Dino didn’t stop running until he’d reached his bedchamber. He burst into the room and slammed the door shut behind him, pulling the deadbolt across. When he caught sight of his hands, he noticed that they were trembling. The thought of Tol made his skin crawl.
He jumped when Mia poked her head out from behind her gold bed curtains.
‘Where have you been?’ she asked.
He let out a sharp breath. ‘Where have you been?’ he returned the question. ‘I’ve been out looking for you all day.’ That was an exaggeration, but he hoped that his irritation would disguise his fear.
It didn’t.
‘What’s wrong?’ Mia asked. She climbed out from her bed and swept over to him. ‘You’re shaking.’ She reached out to him.
Dino pulled away from her and linked his hands behind his head.
‘What’s wrong with you?’ she repeated. Her eyes started to cloud with concern.
Dino side-stepped past her and sat down on the edge of his bed. He slumped his head into his hands.
‘I don’t want to be evil,’ he muttered.
Mia walked over to where he sat and stood before him faithfully. ‘You’re not evil.’
‘Aren’t I?’ he challenged.
She placed her hands on her hips. ‘You’re not evil. Obnoxious, yes. Moody, sure. But not evil.’
Dino peered at her through the gaps between his fingers. ‘Aren’t I?’ he asked again, his voice becoming softer and more vulnerable.
Mia sighed. She took a seat beside him on the bed. ‘You could never be evil.’ She draped her arm over his shoulders.
Dino dropped his hands into his lap. He wasn’t so sure of that any more. ‘I don’t know what I am,’ he admitted.
‘Well, I do,’ Mia replied firmly. ‘You’re my brother. Warts and all!’ she added with a smile.
Dino reached up and touched her fingers as they rested on his shoulder. ‘Mia,’ he said hoarsely, ‘I swear, the only thing keeping me sane right now is that you don’t have a power. I hope you never get on
e. It takes hold of you. I wish this had never happened to me.’
Mia fell silent. She had been so excited at the prospect of telling him of her encounter with Colt. But now it didn’t seem like such a good idea.
So she simply smiled and said, ‘It’ll get easier.’
Dino laughed rigidly. ‘What makes you so sure?’
‘Call it a gut instinct. I’ve got a feeling that things are about to change.’
Chapter Seven
Allies and Enemies
Mia woke up at the break of dawn, still reeling from her run-in with Colt the previous day. He had seemed convinced that she was a Tempestus, but the idea of being able to manipulate the elements as he had done seemed unbelievable. However, the possibility fascinated her nonetheless.
Mia lay in her bed, far too awake for such an early hour. Her eyes were wide open and her mind was alert. All she could think about was what Colt had told her – or, more to the point, what he had shown her. She hungered for the ability to do those things herself. His words echoed in her head. Had she really created the rain? Colt certainly seemed to think so. Now the only question that remained was how.
That was the final straw. She couldn’t stay in bed for another second. She had to get outside.
Without making a sound, Mia crawled out of bed. Moving as stealthily as she could, she slipped into a pair of jeans and a plum-coloured fitted T-shirt. Dino didn’t stir. He continued to slumber undisturbed behind the thick gold bed canopy.
Mia quickly pulled her hair up into a ponytail and crept to the bedroom door. She snuck out of the room and closed the door with a gentle click.
The candles in the corridor had burnt out, leaving the stairwell unlit. The grand mahogany banister threw ominous shadows across the steps – like a giant spider’s web, and Mia was the unsuspecting fly.
When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she peered along the corridor. Considering the immense size of the castle, she had barely explored even a fraction of it. Wendolyn had set clear boundaries as to where the Arcana were permitted to be. The mere thought of what lay beyond their designated area was undeniably alluring.