I opened my eyes, remembering why I had started to run in the first place. The feeling that fell over me. I was right that we weren’t alone. It might have been Kaleb following me, but there was something else out here. “I felt it.”
He looked at me, confused. “Felt what?”
“Someone was out here. I felt it. It was like a sixth sense was going off. That’s why I was running. I thought it was following me.”
Kaleb quickly scanned the area and then looked back at me. “Are you sure?”
I nodded. “I am. I felt its presence, just like Jade describes it.” I looked around, wondering what I was feeling. How far away was this person? We knew that Jade could sense things miles away, but I doubt I had that ability.
“You believe me, right?” I asked softly. I knew that he wasn’t quick to believe in Jade. I would understand it if he didn’t. I had only started getting my magic, so I could be wrong.
He frowned, looking hurt. “Why wouldn’t I believe you?”
“You didn’t believe your sister.”
I watched his face harden slightly. “That was a mistake that I won’t make twice.” He looked around the tree line. “We need to tell Brandon. If there is a hybrid out here, we need to get a search party going.”
I nodded in agreement. We headed back into town, where Kaleb called Brandon. Before I knew it, the guys all arrived, and Jade came running toward me.
I rubbed my hands together, hoping it would help keep me warm. Nothing seemed to fight off this coldness that had settled over me since the woods. I glanced at Kaleb, who was talking with Brandon, Westley, and Asher just a few feet away from me. They were all deep in conversation.
“So, you felt it again?” Jade asked, pulling my attention back to our conversation. She had her arms wrapped around her middle, shaking as the window blew against us.
I slowly nodded my head. “Yeah. It’s like someone is shoving me into a freezer. But then a warm as well. I felt it in my hands before it came out.”
Jade nodded. “I know the feeling. I get hot. Like I’m being burned from the inside. Have you been practicing?”
I shook my head, thinking back to how I almost hurt Kaleb if he hadn’t ducked. “I kept telling myself it wasn’t real. That it was just a fluke.”
Jade looked at me, confused. “Why?”
I shrugged. “It was easier than thinking I have magic that’s been untouched for years. I mean, the thought of what happened to you happening to me seemed unreal, Jade. I was sure it was a mistake. That maybe I was just making it up, or my body was reacting to everything that was going on.”
Jade frowned. “And now?”
“I can’t deny it. And I should start trying to use it. Trying to learn how to pull it out and control it.”
Jade gave me a soft smile, hooking her arm with mine. “I’m here for you, you know that, right? You can join me and the others. Train with us.”
I nodded. “I’d like that.” I looked over toward Kaleb, who looked serious. He nodded as Brandon spoke, but his eyes drifted over toward me. He stared at me for a moment, and I looked away.
Chapter 14 - Kaleb
“We are sending a group out,” Brandon said. “And make sure everyone knows to stay in groups of two.”
“Do you want me to go out?” I asked, planning to join them.
Brandon shook his head. “No, you’ve been up already. Asher and Westley are both going out and taking a team with them. You take Nora home.”
I glanced at Jade and Nora, who were huddling close together now. “Did Jade feel anything?”
Brandon nodded. “She was just telling me before you called.” Brandon glanced over at the girls. “Has she been practicing?”
I shook my head. “No.”
Brandon scowled. “She should. Otherwise, an accident could happen.”
I thought about how her light came at me, and I ducked. My heart had raced so fast, knowing that if I had waited even a second, something could have happened.
