Page 88 of Elora and the Crow

She stared at her arm, the skin burned red and shiny and glared at Elora. “You little bitch! That fucking hurt!”

Elora gave her another hard grin before speaking an incantation. Blue light washed over Malencia, and she screamed piercingly, her body writhing in agony as Elora walked toward her, her hands held out in front of her.

“By my power, flame and flower, let the fire consume her from within!” Elora shouted.

Malencia screamed again, falling to her knees and her back bowing as smoke billowed from her skin.

“By my power, flame and flower, let the fire consume her from within!” Elora repeated.

With another shriek of agony, Malencia thrust her hands at Elora. Yellow light bathed Elora in an eerie glow. Her body went stiff, and her lips parted in a silent scream as yellow light erupted from her mouth.

“Elora!” Jonah shouted.

Malencia cried out, and the yellow light disappeared. Elora collapsed to her knees, her chest heaving as she sucked in air. Malencia staggered back, leaning against the wall as the smoke dissipated from her body. She stared at her trembling hands as Elora stood, bracing her hand on the wall.

Fear flickered across Malencia’s face before she glanced at Jonah across the room and then at Caleb lying motionless at her feet.

“No!” Jonah shouted when the witch muttered a spell, and Caleb’s body rose in the air.

Jonah staggered to his feet and then dove to the left as Malencia shot a beam of yellow light at him. The beam was weak and nearly translucent but still powerful enough to knock the picture off the wall behind him.

The glass from the picture frame shattered on the floor as Malencia shot another beam of light at Elora, who ducked out of the way. With Caleb’s body floating beside her, Malencia gave Jonah a taunting grin. “If I cannot have you, I’ll take your brother instead.”

“No!” Nimera screamed. Blood flowed freely from her leg as she dragged her body toward Malencia and Caleb.

Jonah climbed to his feet, ducking another beam of light as Malencia ran out of the foyer with Caleb’s body floating after her like he was tethered to her by an invisible cord.

“Fuck!” Jonah shouted as Elora stood, bracing her hand on the wall again. “Elora, we have to stop her!”

Elora nodded. She took a few stumbling steps forward before she stopped and swayed back and forth. “Jonah?” she whispered. “I don’t… feel so good.”

He shouted her name, panic infusing his entire body when she collapsed like a broken toy. He stumbled past the broken pieces of the door, falling to his knees beside her and using his right arm to pull her against his chest.

“Elora! Baby, wake up. Look at me, baby. Please.”

He studied her pale face, his body shuddering against her small and oh so fragile one. “Please, Elora. Wake up, baby.”

She didn’t move or open her eyes, and panic eating at his insides like a hungry rat, he turned to Nimera and said, “Call 9-1-1.”

CHAPTER28

Feeling slow and disoriented, Cece stepped out from the elevator onto the hospital’s ICU floor. She spotted Bren by the nurses’ desk and hurried toward him, rubbing absentmindedly at her forehead. She’d had a terrible headache this afternoon, one so bad that not even her healing potions could help it. She had lain in her bed with the blinds closed, her head throbbing and aching, until she’d finally fallen asleep. She’d woken six hours later, her headache reduced to a dull throb behind her eyes, to multiple texts and voicemails from Jonah and Bren.

“Bren?”

Bren turned toward her, his face grim, and fear flickered to life in Cece’s stomach. “Where is she? What happened?”

“Elora is… it’s not good, Cece.”

“I want to see her,” Cece said.

“Only two visitors in the room and only family,” the nurse behind the desk said.

“I’m her best friend,” Cece said.

“Those are the rules. Her husband and the police officer can keep you updated,” the nurse said kindly but firmly.

“Her husband?” Cece said.

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