I breathed through my fear as I felt Liv's magic flare against my skin, like a rake of her nails against my back. Slightly painful pleasure.
Her magic wasn't aimed at me this time. It was focused on Larson, being pulled and tied once again to the wards she already powered.
Liv and Lars grimaced as the glow on the orb grew brighter, the pull on her magic becoming more violent. I felt her power weaken quickly, the sudden drop in her energy level sharp enough to alarm me.
Rob watched the spell closely as the glow brightened.He'd be able to see it working in a way I couldn't, since I only had a small amount of spellcaster magic.
Liv blinked slowly.
Exaggeratedly.
I sucked in a breath as her power disappeared rapidly, draining into the spell.
She started to lean over the table for support. I scooted closer, releasing her hand to grab her waist and keep her in the chair.
Her cheek lowered to the countertop. "Woww," she mumbled. "That’s strong."
"It shouldn't be hitting her this hard, this quickly," I growled at Rob and Larson, though Lars was nearing unconsciousness.
"I'm fine," she whispered.
"This is normal, Niall. It's a strong spell, but they can handle it," Rob said calmly.
Larson passed out on the table.
Liv's body went limp.
I pulled her onto my lap, fighting panic.
I focused intently on the feel of her magic. It was still vibrating, though the vibration was slowing.
Rob eyed the spell, placing his fingers on my brother's throat and checking his pulse.
The glow was still growing, but their energy was still fading fast.
Toofast.
Faster than it had that night.
"Something's wrong," I urged. "It's pulling too much."
"The spell is correct. We checked this too many times to have it go wrong. It's going to be fine."
The vibration of Liv's magic was slowing the way it had near theendof Larson's last spell, but this one wasn't ending.
Liv's skin started to pale.
No.
Fuck.
This was exactly what had happened last time—but her magic had drained slower, then.
Much slower.
This wasn't right.
Maybe the spell was working the way it should, maybe it was functioning properly, but it was going to kill Liv.The magic would latch onto Larson afterward, and he would go with her.
