Page 19 of Watch Me Burn

I close my eyes for a moment. “Okay. Yeah. I’m done. I supposedly have all this magic, right? Where is that witch lady? She’s gotta know a way to go back in time until before I knew any of this shit was real.”

Before I turned a witch hunter into barbecue.

Elise takes her hand back, tucking it into the skirt of her dress. “Bridget…”

“No. I mean it, Elise. I don’t want to be a witch. I’m an artist. I do magic with my tablet. I create. Fire… it only destroys. I can’t do this. I can’t walk around, shooting fire out of my hands. I’ll do anything to go back to normal.”

“Do you mean it?”

CHAPTER 6

SANCTUARY

The cell door is open. There’s no sign of Jasper, but Celeste stands in the entrance, a curious look on her narrow face.

She steps further in. “When you said that you’d do anything… do you mean it?”

It’s not even a question. “Yes.”

“I’m glad to hear it. In that case, this won’t be as uncomfortable a conversation as I thought it might be. May I come in?”

After the way she said ‘uncomfortable’ like that, I’m thinking twice about agreeing, but what else can I do? It’s not like I can really refuse.

“Sure.”

“Thank you.”

Celeste sweeps in, and I wait for Jasper to appear to close her in with us. That doesn’t happen. I’m not sure if it’s because, as the head witch, Celeste has more status or if I’m really not a prisoner like Elise claims. Either way, I feel a tiny bit of hope when the cell remains open.

And then Celeste starts the uncomfortable conversation by saying, “As you must’ve already guessed, Thorn is firm in hisrefusal to allow you to stay in Clarity, “ and that sliver of hope dies an instant death.

I curse under my breath. “So that’s it. I’m being kicked out.”

“I’m sorry, but we’ve decided that it’s too dangerous for you to remain in Clarity. For the same reason, I don’t feel comfortable moving you to Ravenhill.”

Wow. Two for two. It’s a good thing that Aunt Maureen and Antonio have finished their six-month trek throughout Europe, settling down in Queens once more. At least I know thatshewon’t turn me away and make me homeless.

“But,” Celeste continues, and that hope resurrects just enough to be noticeable, “there’s a third option.”

I’m all ears. “Okay.”

“Sanctuary,” murmurs Elise.

Celeste looks at my best friend in approval. “That’s right. Thorn and I believe that, under the circumstances, the best place for a witch with abilities like Briget’s will be a supernatural sanctuary.”

Do I even want to know what one of those are?

Before I can ask, Celeste does her best to explain. Supe sanctuaries are small towns hidden all around the world where creatures like witches, shifters, vampires, and more can band together and form their own little communities apart from the human world. Unlike a Fang City which is vamp-only, a sanctuary welcomes those in need.

I’m a rare fire witch. If it gets out that my powers are active, I’ll have the whole witch hunter congregation coming after my ass.

She says it a lot more diplomatically than that. The gist is still that, with my rogue magic, I’m too much of a dangerous threat for Clarity. For Ravenhill.

For Queens.

Fuck.

I can’t go home. What if Aunt Maureenisa witch? I’d never forgive myself if I brought witch hunters to her door. What if I lost my temper? I’m a New Yorker. It happens. I’ll snap, light someone up, and blow my cover. The rest of the world will know that witches exist, and it’ll be all my fault.

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