Page 109 of Roaring Flames

“And who is the…Trinity?”

Ethan answers that question. “The Maiden, Mother, and Crone. They’re the rulers of the coven.”

“Every warlock and witch are required to register with them when they come of age. They have to swear loyalty to the coven and all that jazz,” Emery adds.

Ansel swallows. “Are they… They won’t come after me, will they? I mean, I won’t get in trouble, will I?”

Ethan and Emery exchange another one of those unreadable looks. Silence stretches, fraught with tension.

Emery’s grip tightens around the steering wheel.

“I would be careful if I were you,” he says, the words low and rumbly, almost a growl. “Whatever you do, do not find yourself alone with a witch or a warlock. And if the Trinity tries to meet with you? Run.”

Forty-Two

IZZY

Jake hasn’t left his room in days.

I don’t know what to say to him, how to help him. Hell, I don’t even know if hewantsto be helped. His entire life was altered irrevocably in a span of seconds.

Isn’t it funny how everything can change within a blink of an eye? It doesn’t seem fair. Surely, there should be some sort of buildup, some sort of gradual progression before shit hits the metaphorical fan.

I still haven’t heard from Grayson, and Ansel has been…

He hasn’t taken the news of what he is well.

He still attends class, but he’s a shell of his former self, his eyes dull and the skin beneath them marred by purple bruises. Whenever I try to speak to him, he’s cordial, but there’s a gap between us that didn’t exist previously. I don’t know what caused it or how to fix it.

Maybe it’s the fact that I kept my knowledge of the supernatural world from him. Maybe it’s because he didn’t tell me about his powers. Or maybe it’s a culmination of everything, and neither of us knows how to handle it.

One thing’s for certain—I’m floundering.

I close my locker after the last class of the day and place my head against the cool metal. Tomorrow, I’ll be traveling with Christian to a wolfy barbecue. How has this become my life?

But today…

Today I just want to sleep and forget all of my troubles.

I’m aware of him before I even see him. It starts with a tingling sensation across the nape of my neck that branches outwards, engulfing me in a prickling type of heat. The tiny hairs on both of my arms stand straight up, and a flush works its way down my cheeks and to my neck.

Reid.

I don’t know how I know it’s him, only that I do. It must be that damn mating bond or whatever it is.

I haven’t seen Reid in…who the fuck knows how long. I think the last time was at work, before the accident. He hasn’t attended class since then, and I can’t help but wonder if I have a part to play in that. A part of me misses his nonverbal grunts during art class.

And I wish to light that part of me on fire.

I spin around, and sure enough, Reid is standing directly behind me, a scowl on his face and his huge arms folded over his chest.

He grunts something noncommittally and then jerks his chin towards the front entrance of the school. “Come.”

Come?

I gape at him and then ball my hands in anger. “Come? Are you kidding me? I’m not a damn dog.”

He frowns. “Come…please?”

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