Page 173 of The Beta's Blind Date

“Turpi magicae revelare,”she chants, flicking her wrist when she reaches the center of his chest on the third circle.

In the blink of an eye, the air surrounding Dominic flashes to life, a thick pulsing, writhing gray, black, and red cloud hovering over him. It plucks and dives at his body, but it’s blocked by pure golden light. By my mate.

“Holy fuck,” I say, exhaling as I watch its movements grow more frenzied by the second.

“That’s ugly,” Maya says, wrinkling her nose. “I don’t want to think about how long this has had its hooks in him.”

“The vial,” Renée says, nodding at Maya, her focus never leaving the cloud above Dominic.

Maya raises it between them, and Renée puts her hand on it as well, the glass supported and suspended by both of them.

Taryn’s body tenses and her teeth clench, but she keeps pushing, keeps powering the shield erected between Dominic and the spell. She trembles in my arms, but my girl is strong—fierce—and she doesn’t let up.

“This will be the challenging part,” Renée says, looking at me. “She’s going to need everything you have because that thing and whoever is behind it is not going to be happy. They’re going to fight and fight hard.”

I nod once, my arm wrapping around Taryn’s waist. “I’m ready.”

“Ready,” Taryn repeats, her voice strained.

“Focus on me,” I say, leaning my face to her ear. “Focus on our bond and the strength of my love.”

She nods and takes another deep breath, blowing it out through her lips. I kiss her cheek and leave my nose there, my eyes closing to shut out the rest of the world. All that matters is her and giving her fuel for her gift. The other magic in the room is a distraction, and it doesn’t involve us. We have our part to play, and Maya and her mom will take care of the rest.

“Deiectionem magicae turpi corpore.”

They begin their chant, and the magic held within their spell fills the room, wrapping around us and pushing against the sinister spell that’s taken hold of Dominic.

“Deiectionem magicae turpi corpore.”

The air crackles and spits, raising the hair on my body like static from an electrical storm.

“Deiectionem magicae turpi corpore!”

Wind whips through the room, even though there are no exterior windows. Taryn groans, her body straining as she pushes her radiant healing light into Dominic without ceasing. But I give her more energy, more strength than I ever knew I had in me.

“Mitte in planum astra!”

There is a tug, like someone reaching into my soul and yanking at the fibers holding me together, followed by a rush of air in my ears. I hold tight to Taryn and squeeze my eyes shut, tensing against the unexpected roller coaster ride we’re sent on, feeling like I left my stomach behind as my body shoots into space at over one hundred miles per hour.

And then, as quick as it all happened, it stops. I’m no longer rushing through time and space on a wild ride, the wind no longer whirling around me and dragging me to who knows where. Everything is still and quiet. No chanting of spells, no beeping of hospital machines. Just an unending silence, heavy and pressing.

I open my eyes and find Taryn, Maya, and myself floating above our bodies and the bodies of our friends and Dominic.

“Oh, shit!” I jump backward, staring down at myself with Taryn in my lap, our eyes closed and my arms wrapped around her as she sends her magic into Dominic.

None of the bodies around us move or react to our presence. I glide over to Wesley and wave my hand in front of his face, but he doesn’t blink.

“They can’t see us,” Maya says. “We’re in the astral plane, remember?”

“Can we mess with them?” I ask, and she quirks an eyebrow at me. “You know, like draw on their faces or move them into different spots of the room, so when they unfreeze, they’re confused?”

She rolls her eyes and rubs her temples. “We’re non corporeal, so no, we can’t.”

I exhale and shrug, my hands on my hips. “It was worth a shot.”

A wisp of the dark cloud from Dominic’s aura flits by us, and we all track it with our eyes as it darts around us and then floats away through the walls.

“Let’s go,” Maya says, taking off after it.

---