3. Do something that scares me every day
4. Think about dating someone outside my usual type
Is it weird that the last item is scarier than starting my first real software developer job?
Chapter 2
The Worst Welcome Home Party
IthoughtbecomingaGuardianmeant I finally belonged somewhere—that the coven saw me as valuable enough to welcome me in. But as Fiona stalks toward me, it’s clear how naive I was.
From the crowd behind her, two more witches emerge, both wearing floor-length black traveling cloaks with utility belts. Hayley’s sharp cheekbones and the distinctive scar running down the side of her face make her instantly recognizable, while Neil’s muscular frame and shaved head stand out beside her. A hole seems to open in my sternum, letting my insides plummet into the ground. The coven sent Shadows after me? Shadows are for criminals!
Reality hits me like a punch to the gut. That’s exactly what I am—I broke the coven’s strict laws, and I fled the city before I could face the consequences. They’ve come to intercept me now that I’m back.
“Nobody is touching you,” Natalie assures me, raising her hands. It’s not a gesture of surrender, but a promise that she’s ready to use earth magic to defend me.
My skin prickles at the charge in the air. The fluorescent airport lights flicker, casting eerie shadows across Fiona’s face. Travelers glance up as they rush past with their trolleys and suitcases, and a couple of gazes linger on our standoff.
If I’m not mistaken, Fiona hesitates at the look on Natalie’s face.
Stay put, Hazel, I think desperately, not daring to look back and get her dragged into this. Dammit, this is exactly what I didn’t want—my carefully balanced worlds crashing together.
I step sideways to see around Natalie, my fists clenched to stop my hands from trembling. “Isn’t this a bit much for a welcome home party?”
Fiona stalks closer, her heels clicking against the floor like a ticking bomb. Her voice is low, for our ears only. “Katie Alexander, you’re under arrest for violating your oath to the Coven of Shadows and Alchemists for Managing Magic. Come quietly, and we won’t cause a scene in front of all these people.”
A chill floods my veins. Oh my God, my over-thinking anxiety brain was right for once: I’m actually under arrest.
All that time I spent living in C.S.A.M.M.—studying in the courtyard, eating in the lounge, retreating to the private suite I called home—dissolves into dust in my memory. Did it mean nothing? Am I so easily disposed of?
“I never violated my oath,” I say firmly. “I risked everything to protect magic.”
“You made a reckless, unauthorized decision that put our secrecy at risk, not to mention innocent lives.” Something flickers in Fiona’s eyes—not just anger, but something heavy and tired. “Do you have any idea how much work you caused? How much effort we’ve expended trying to contain what you unleashed?”
Forcing myself not to show fear, I open my arms. “You want to punish me for stopping the Madsens from getting magic? Come on, Fiona.”
She narrows her eyes. “Your punishment depends on the jury. You agreed to our laws when you swore your oath, and our laws dictate we give you a trial. Don’t add to the fire by resisting arrest. Hayley, Neil, let’s go.”
Before they can move, a swipe of Natalie’s hands sends a bench skidding between us and them. Nearby people gasp and point at the possessed furniture, looking around for an explanation.
“Natalie,” Fiona snarls. “Not here.”
“Then back—off,” she warns, her voice low and dangerous. “Or this whole building is about to get a renovation.”
She forms a wall between me and the others, her body coiled and ready to strike. Dammit, I don’t want her to fight her coven on my behalf—again.
Fiona’s fingers curl into claws, a muscle in her jaw tensing. “Think about what side you’re choosing right now.”
Her words jab my stomach like a dagger, reminding me I’m no more than an outsider.
Natalie keeps her palms up. “I chose long ago.”
My heart aches. How many times can I ask her to choose me over her coven before it becomes too much? I can’t keep being the reason she fights with the people she’s known her whole life.
The baggage carousel beeps and whirs to life behind us. I don’t dare look back at Hazel.
Fiona signals, and Hayley and Neil skirt around the bench, advancing from the sides like wolves moving in for the kill. I meet their eyes, trying to find the sense of camaraderie we had a few months ago, but it’s not there. They have a job to do, and I’m just another target.
