As expected, there was no response to my touching the ground, and when I stood a strong wave of exhaustion pressed in on me.Surely I’d given them enough time to party back in the dorms. I needed to get in some study and sleep.
I headed for the arched gates, and was almost there when a pair of warlocks hurried past. I came to a halt, recognizing themboth. Logan and Noah were in the middle of their evening run—running for fun explained a lot of what was wrong with both ofthose assholes—when the moonlight washed over them. There was this stupid pain in my chest at how I’d been ghosted. My dadwas freaking ecstatic at Logan’s obvious lack of interest in me, and I should have been too.
“Logan!” A witch screamed out his name as she raced across the grounds. She wasn’t alone either, two of her friends trailingbehind her. “Wait up. We didn’t finish our conversation.”
Logan and Noah stopped, wiping the sweat from their foreheads. The witch leaned into him, and I recognized her as the prettyblonde who had been talking to Marcus at that first full moon party. Rage bubbled in my chest, and I was shocked to see lightspilling from my fingertips.
The instant fury made no sense, and needing to get away, I slinked back into the graveyard. “Bastard asshole of a fuckingwarlock,” I snarled, and kicked rocks between the headstones.
My anger wasn’t rational. I could only attribute it to thefire of my magic, which swirled so hard that my chest ached. I tried to force it out, but the way it was locked down only increased my anger. All I ended up with was hands and arms glowing as I grasped my crystal necklace, desperate to find a calm again.
A tingle caressed my neck and raced down my spine. I was struck with the unnerving sense that I’d pushed too far into thetombs and headstones. My new location had brought forth the creepy stalker vibe.
Danger, danger, danger.
Like a flashing light above my head, my warning systems were on full alert, telling me to get the fuck out of there. The feardemolished my rage, and I found myself unable to move, my hand fused to my pendant as I searched for danger. I’d made a stupidrookie move and let myself get complacent. Nothing good ever came from this creepy feeling, and here I was in the middle ofa graveyard under a full moon. Alone. Wait, no...
Logan and Noah.
They were just outside the gates, and as much as I didn’t want to run into him, Logan was my best chance of avoiding whateverhaunted my world. I just had to push past the debilitating fear and move my feet.
Gripping the necklace tight enough that it cut into my palm, I closed my eyes and summoned up every ounce of strength, managingto lift my foot as the snap of a branch alerted me to a presence.
My eyes shot open, and I found myself staring at a nightmare.
The creature dragged itself through the graves. It had two huge clawed hands, while the rest of its body slithered on the ground like a snake. My breaths were just short of hyperventilation as I stumbled back into a crypt. The snakelike headof the beast came into view, with dozens of teeth. It crawled toward me faster than should be possible as it navigated the narrow spaces between headstones.
This time I couldn’t blame a lack of oxygen. Unless I’d slipped, hit my head, and was unconscious, there was a real,honest to fucking goddessmonster coming at me. It didn’t look like the one in the lake, but it did arrive with Logan’s presence. Just like the lastone.
Was he dealing in dark magic? As a spellcaster, and one of the strongest warlocks in the world, had he crossed a line?
The snake monster cut off my panicked thoughts as it snarled and came closer, bringing with it a distinct scent of ash andsulfur. Its beady black eyes were focused on me, unwavering, and I managed to take one step, and then another, almost fallingover exposed rocks.
Goddess, help me.
I had no idea what I could do here, and the creature was only a dozen feet away. Releasing my crystal, it fell against mychest, and with its warmth my sanity returned.
My sanity and ability to get the Hel out of there.
With the monster between me and the entrance, I sprinted deeper into the graveyard, chancing one very brief look over my shoulder.A strangled scream escaped when I found the monster close behind. Its pace was intense. There was no way I’d make it out ofhere before it caught up.
In my panicked state, I searched my pockets for anything that might help, only to pull out a small vial of ash.Oh, thank fuck.I still had the defensive spell from class today.
I uncorked the jar right as my luck ran out and I clipped my shoe on a stone hidden in a patch of grass and went tumblingforward. Somehow, I managed to keep hold of the jar, and only a little ash spilled.
Flipping over, I screamed again, this time with much more intensity because it was on top of me.
That snake head darted forward as I jerked my hand and let the ash fly in its face. I screamed the incantation, instinct drivingme, even as my mind remained locked in fear. If I survived tonight, I’d have to send Professor Zander some flowers or my firstbornchild because I owed him big-time. In his fussy way, he’d drilled this spell into our heads all week, and under pressure,I’d remembered it.
My magic burned within me, and when I threw the ash, I pressed my hands against the chest of the creature and prayed I couldsend enough energy into it to knock it away. All I needed was a chance to escape.
Its skin was scaly and hot to touch, and as magic raced through my palms I knew I’d made the right decision to open a pathwaythrough touch. The light grew bright enough to blind me, and while I closed my eyes I didn’t stop expelling magic.
The light faded, and I opened my eyes to find that I was completely alone. The monster was gone, and so was the creepy sensation.My arms trembled as I pushed myself up, looking at every dark shadow, waiting for movement or another attack. Instinct toldme I was safe, but I wasn’t about to take chances.
Once on my feet, I ran out of the graveyard like my ass was on fire, to find that not a single student was nearby. A glanceat my watch had me blinking... 9:00 p.m. How in the world was that possible? It hadn’t been more than seven when I’d wandereddown.
When I entered the dorms a few minutes later, it was quiet, no sign there’d been a party at all. I gathered up my clothes and toiletries, knowing that I needed a shower, even if therewas a monster lurking in the halls. No way could I go to bed covered in grass, dirt, and possibly snake-monster drool.
