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My thoughts were so consumed by him that at first, I didn’t notice the strange prickle of energy in the air. When it thickened, swelling around me, my steps halted, my heart lurching within me.

A heavy force slammed into me, sending me crashing to the forest floor. I rolled and tumbled, my shoulder hitting rocks and roots.

With a groan, I blinked blearily up at the approaching figure. I recognized the weathered black cloak and wild graying hair.

Geraldine.

Panic shot through me, and I hastily stood up, heart pounding. My shoulder throbbed as I tightened my grip on the strap of my satchel. “What do you want?” I demanded.

Geraldine’s mouth curled into a cruel smile. “I was hoping to catch you alone, Cerise. That brutish Wolven kept getting in the way. But now, at last, we can talk—witch to witch.”

My eyes narrowed, my breath quivering as I took a step away from her. “I have nothing to say to you.”

Geraldine drew closer. “Child, I have the answers you seek. You don’t even know what you are, do you?”

My heart stuttered in my chest. What am I?

The magic coursing through my veins was strong enough for Elvira to suppress with a tonic.

I swallowed and shook my head. “No. I can’t trust a word you say. Even if I do want answers, I don’t want them from you.”

Geraldine gave me a pitying look. “How disappointing.”

She flexed her fingers. I lifted my own hands to block her attack, but I was too slow. A blast of power struck me in the chest. I soared backward, colliding with the trunk of a tree. Stars swam in my vision, and darkness pressed in on me. My skull pulsed in agony, my body too weak to move.

Leaves and twigs crunched as Geraldine moved toward me.

Up, ordered the voice in my mind. Cerise, you must get up now!

Needles of pain speared through my temples as I shifted on the ground, trying to rise. A fog settled in my mind, clouding my thoughts and muddying my senses.

Focus! shouted the voice. Cerise, she will kill you!

I squinted as Geraldine spread her hands, fingers twitching. Sparks of magic danced between her fingertips.

Before she could strike, I gathered my powers and thrust my hands outward. My magic struck, knocking her backwards. While she was down, I summoned the fire spell and aimed it for her cloak.

Geraldine shrieked as the fabric caught fire. Head spinning, I turned and bolted, knowing I was too weak to fight her much longer. The dull pounding in my skull was getting more intense with each step I took.

Go, go, go, urged the voice. You can do it. Just get as far away from her as you can.

The ground shook, and roots sprang from the earth, slithering toward me. I cried out, increasing my pace and nearly tripping over a rock.

But the roots were quicker. They hissed along the leaves and looped around my ankle, yanking me to the ground. My elbows broke my fall, the impact rattling all the way up to my shoulders.

With her magic, Geraldine dragged me backward, the restraints tightening on my foot. I clawed at leaves and dirt, trying in vain to free myself. But the roots wrapped around my other foot and tugged, firm and unyielding.

“Stupid girl,” she spat as her magic deposited me directly in front of her. Her cloak was singed on the left side, but she had managed to put out the flames. “All this power in such a weak vessel. It’s a waste.” She lifted her chin. “But at least I won’t have to share it with the other witches. It would have been far better to do this in the bunker with all the necessary instruments. But alas, I’ll just have to work with what I have here.”

Horror churned in my gut as realization sank into me.

She’d brought me to the bunker to siphon my magic from me.

But clearly, she hadn’t expected Alaric to be with me. With him there, she couldn’t do anything.

And now that he was gone, this was the perfect opportunity.

Terrified breaths tore through me. I lifted my hands to summon more magic, but the roots snaked around my wrists, pinning each one to the ground. I thrashed and struggled, but it was no use.