Hunter rubbed harder, and Eva squeezed my other hand tight.
“One more push,” Alex growled, and a surge of red magic flew from his palms straight into me.
My body began to convulse. His magic was inside me, ripping my skin from the muscles and muscles from their bones. Everything was stretching apart, and if he didn’t stop soon, I’d break.
“St—st—stop!” I screamed, but as he’d promised, Alex didn’t listen.
Instead, his power surged out faster and harder. Spots began to cloud my vision. I closed my eyes, determined not to see what I was sure would be the end. My heart pushed against the confines of its sternum, and I groaned.
Eva whimpered. “Maybe we should—”
“She’s almost there!” Alex snapped.
Another surge of power, riddling my inside with holes, ripping me apart. My muscles gave up fighting, and I fell limp against the bed, numb from overstimulation. This was it. This was the end. At least it was light—painless.
A grunt, followed by a squeal, hit my ear, but I remained turned inward, unable to take on anyone else’s hardships at the moment.
And then my heart dropped right back into place, and breath—blessed air—filled me, giving me life once more.
I lunged upward, but Alex’s strong hand pressed me back down.
“Wait.” His tone was raspy.
Was he injured?
I opened my eyes, and a gasp flew from me. Fuchsia magic, more vibrant and intense than anything I’d ever produced, swirled and spun above me. My friends looked shell-shocked, the energies messing with their bodies. Only I had been spared, because this power was mine—a part of me.
Anddamndid it look like it could kick some butt.
It took a few minutes, but thankfully, Alex had had the foresight to crack the window, and my magic leaked outside. When the air in my bedroom was barely tinged pink, my friends shook their heads as if coming out of a daze.
“Holy hell,” Hunter murmured.
“Yeah, what the shit have you been hiding, Odie?” Eva asked, blinking.
I had no answer, so I locked eyes with Alex, who regarded me with awe.
No one knew what powers had been hiding inside me, but I was ready to find out.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Along exhale left my lips.
“It’ll be all right,” Eva said, pinning her red curls up for the Yule Feast. “You have every right to be frustrated with your parents. And no matter what they say, unbinding your magic should be your choice, anyway.”
I didn’t disagree with her. What Iwasworried about was what they would say.
Since my binding had been released two weeks ago, my entire world had changed. I’d gone from the absolute bottom of our class to somewhere in the middle. Alex thought I could shoot to the top, but I had my doubts. Having raw power—which I apparently had a crapload of—was one thing; control was another. Since I’d never had to temper my magic, I lacked in that aspect.
It was terrifying.
Maybe Mom and Dad knew I wouldn’t be able to control this much energy, so they’d taken precautionary measures? Am I a menace to society? What if the smart thing to do is bind myself again?
I shook myself. No. That was impossible. Even if I could barely handle the tremors that wracked my body when I performed the most basic of spells, I doubted that I could go back to being half a witch.
“Oh my God, girl. I can feel the tension rolling off you. You’re shaking, and it’s not from the heater being wonky. Here,” Eva handed me a glass of wine from a bottle that Hunter had somehow snatched from the kitchens. “To calm your nerves.”
I took a sip, and even though my anxiety did not diminish, the warmth that slipped through my veins was welcome in the cold bathroom.
