Page 111 of The Witch and The Blood Oath

Ryder snarled, and Walker paled. Cady’s sad face made my jaw clench, and I took a deep breath.

“You never knew the answer to our question,” I said, “yet you’ve made us posture here for far too long.Why?”

I readied my magic in case of an attack, but Mara and her followers remained still.

“I told youwhereto find your answers.” Mara sighed. “Youth today are so ungrateful.”

“My dad is in a coma because of you and your vampire friends,” Walker said in a low, dangerous voice.

His magic crackled in the air, and mine danced on my skin, desperate to answer it. The battle had exhausted most of the magic Walker had shared, and my own power was eager for more of his.

“I heard about that,” Mara said casually. “It’s rather unfortunate what happened, but you know vampires. They can be a bit…bloodthirsty.”

Mara and her cohorts chuckled in unison. Their callousness stirred my rage, and I fought to control the magic thrumming under my skin. My friends shifted, and the tension in the room was palpable.

“That’s it?” Ryder demanded. “That’s all you have to offer?”

Mara’s sultry smile was replaced by a stone-cold glare. She looked at Ryder like he was a bug she wanted to squash.

“You come tomyhouse,” she said, “askmefor information, and dare insult me because I haven’t made all this easier for you? Get out.”

None of us moved. Dark, oily magic slithered across my skin like a snake.

Mara rose, and her followers crept closer.

“Get. Out.”

With Arion taking the lead, we rushed outside and into the dark, safe comfort of night. Though it was bitterly cold, noone complained. No one spoke until we were halfway down the mountain, far from Mara and her coven of dark witches.

Ryder opened the conversation with a string of curses.

“What are we going to do now?” he grumbled and gestured to Walker. “Your dad’s as useless in death as he was in life.”

“Hey,” Walker barked, “he’s not dead, asshole. And he got hurt fighting on our side, remember?”

Ryder’s only answer was to growl and pace.

“We can try to wake him up?” Cadence suggested.

I shook my head. “I-I know that’s what you want, but we’ve been trying for months. I’m not sure what we could do differently.”

Walker ran a hand through his hair. “Damn it, it’s just so frustrating. You figured out how to bring me back to life, but we can’t wake him up.”

Ryder paused. “You’re right.”

Walker shot him an incredulous look, but my stomach sank. Walker noticed the dread on my face, and his jaw dropped. Hope lit Cady’s face.

“We couldn’t…” Walker began and cleared his throat. “We couldn’t make him a warlock, could we?”

“No,” I said firmly. “It’s too risky.”

Ryder scoffed. “Risky? The guy’s a vegetable!”

Lightning danced on Walker’s skin, and Cady’s magic buzzed.

“You got a pass for your earlier comment because you’re sad and pretty,” she threatened, “you won’t get another shot at insulting my family.”

Surprisingly, Ryder’s shoulders sunk, and he waved his hands in surrender.

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