Page 62

“You forget. I have something you don’t,” I replied as I inched towards the original.

“If you say ‘family’ I’m going to throw up,” he said in disgust, a sneer on his lips now. “Our parents tried to push that stupid idea on me and you see how that turned out. So, spare me.”

I raised the weapon of choice up and said, “No, this brick.”

Sometimes you had to use what you had. I could use a fucking chicken right about now, too.

As he turned around to face me, I slammed it into his face, clipping his chin. Tripp let out a cry of pain. The copies did the same but at that moment my pack had attacked as well. Dorian tore at the other forms while Rook tried to put himself between us but I was too close and more copies pulled him into their arms, dragging him out of sight as they closed in around him. Merrick tried to swing but one muttered spell had him flying into the wall, the sickening crack making my blood run cold.

I wanted to run to them but I couldn’t take my eyes off of my brother. If he was strong enough to control that many clones of himself while also monologuing like a movie villain, then I didn’t trust giving him my back.

My nerves were so haywire that a burst of magic hit the room, making my brother and his clones stumble. He let out a snort when that was all that happened. Little did he know it was still mostly pooled in my chest, waiting to strike.

“You can’t win, sister. Your magic has gone rogue, unlike mine that obeys,” Tripp said as he held his chin. Even when he was hurting he was still a raging asshole.

He started to chant another spell with his eyes locked on Rook, but I lunged forward, slamming the brick into his face again before he could finish. This time I aimed for his cheek.

Could I kill my brother? I didn’t think so, but if he didn’t stop threatening my pack and Blake, I wasn’t going to stand aside and let that happen.

“You did all of this to hurt me and still act like I'm the problem?” I asked as I held up the brick to threaten him. “Reverse it. Now.”

My words had him throwing his head back and laughing harder than ever, despite the pain of my blows and a promise for more.

“Even if I wanted to, there is no cure. Well, other than death,” he taunted me, blood dripping from the cut on his cheek into his mouth. He smiled at me with red tinted teeth. “Though, that can be arranged. I could use someone to experiment new spells on.”

“I don’t believe you, What did you add to the potion?” I questioned as I watched him for any change in his breathing. I could always tell when he was lying.

I ignored the rest of his taunts. That wouldn’t be happening.

Tripp backed away from me a few steps and taunted me in a sing-song voice, “I’ll never tell.”

Then one of his copies grabbed me from behind, pulling my arms behind my back. That action forced the brick to fall on his toe. He yelped in pain but didn’t release me.

“I don’t need a primitive weapon to kill you,” Tripp growled as he took advantage of my situation and hit me hard in the stomach. The breath in my lungs released in a whoosh.

“Fuck you,” I cursed him, putting every ounce of venom into my tone I could manage. He hit me again before I recovered and then grabbed the brick I had used on him.

“Let’s see how much you like it,” he said as he raised it higher. I braced for the impact but just before he struck, wolf fangs sunk into his wrist, snapping it in a single bite. Darkness swept around us. I knew it was Rook’s doing since I could see.

Tripp and his look-alikes all stumbled around, fury taking over their faces, twisting them into something bordering monstrous.

Even as they stumbled in the darkness, the forms never flickered. He, clearly, wasn’t paying attention now. What the hell was this magic?

Tripp screamed in pain as Dorian snapped his maw down on his leg this time. His wrist was already hanging uselessly, now he was falling to the ground. As he bellowed out his rage and pain, more copies appeared. I wanted to smack myself for not letting Rook call in reinforcements.

My curse chose that moment to make itself known. It started to bubble under my skin, a telltale sign it was going to release.

“Pack, cover, now!” I ordered as the golden magic formed on my fingers tips.

I curled my fists and held onto it the best I could, keeping it at bay until Rook pulled Merrick and Dorian out of sight, the dense fog going with them.

“Look, even they don’t want anything to do with a fuck-up like you,” he bellowed out, his laughter bordering psychotic now as pain and fury mixed with his normal personality.

He thought that he was winning and we were trying to escape. This time, instead of pushing it away, I welcomed the release of power that was pent up inside and focused it all on Tripp and his copies. I forced my hands toward them, magic bursting free in a bright arc of lightning.

It hit the clones in a burst of electrified magic, their forms disintegrating on contact. Somehow, my brother was still on his feet. His wounds were pouring blood and his smile was insane.

How did it not hurt him more?!