Page 315 of Sigils & Spells

Lightning bolts zapped my skin where his fingers held me.

Fuck.

Why was it always lightning bolts every time he touched me?

And why didn’t it bother me more?

Truth was, they weren’t painful. But they were something. It was the not knowing I found annoying.

“If I were actually stalking you,mo spréach, you’d never see me coming.”

Brandon let go as quickly as he’d grabbed me and I looked down at my arm, wondering at the sudden chill that filled my veins. By the time I glanced up again, he was gone. And I was alone.

Now, why the fuck wasn’t I happy about that?

CHAPTER4

“But why Burn Season?”Jade asked, her mouth full of granola and yogurt, and I tossed the roll of paper towels sitting on our tiny kitchen counter at the messy earth witch.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Rio butt in, grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl.

Her hair was a gorgeous shade of blue now, and I wondered just how powerful the little human turned witch was becoming. No one had exhibited the strength she’d shown in, well, ever, as far as I could recall of treader lore. Not that I let her know it.

Between Rio and Maia, our unusual little group was becoming quite the powerhouse of magic. I was angry and put off at the same time. It wasn’t fair they got to use their gifts and spend their magic stores on getting better at what they were supposed to do. I knew I was whining, and I should get over it.

Rio and Maia had not had it easy, either. One had lived under the threat of a curse her entire life, and the other had been bullied by her own family. I looked at Jade, always so bubbly, near to bursting with joy, and for the first time ever, I allowed myself to feel envy.

What would it be like to not have a care in the world?

To not be bound by my need for violence and my promise to exact retribution on those who’d harmed my family.

“What’s up, Red? You look pissed as hell,” Rio commented, crunching on her granny smith.

“Oooh, she probably saw Maia wearing her new black jeans,” Jade supplied.

“Wait. What?” I snapped.

Freaking airhead had recently gained a few pounds. Spending so much energy flying made her appetite double these days. Which was all fine and good, only now she thought it was cool to constantly raid my closet. I huffed an annoyed laugh.

Maia came from money and was used to silk and lace, dressing the part everyone had assumed was a princess lifestyle. No one knew the ugly truth about her father and the males of her family. They used their females, stealing magic and keeping them submissive.

I was glad they were found out and suffered for it. But that wasn’t the point. The point was, my platinum blonde roomie had developed a taste for denim and flannel. Unfortunately, I was the only one tall enough for her to swipe anything from.

Sigh.

“Is anyone gonna answer me about the Burn Season thing?” Jade asked again, chomping loudly and getting some of her food on her mouth.

Sloppy little pigpen.

“We call it Burn Season because it’s a fire witch’s busiest time of year where people come with requests to burn mementos of their exes,” I explained, handing the wide-eyed earth witch another paper towel.

“Why would people want to do that?”

“I don’t know. I guess they want to forget the person who fucked them over. Not everyone gets to have a love story like Rio or Maia,” I said, standing up again.

“Is that why you don’t want to date anyone? You’ve been burned?” she asked.

“For fuck’s sake, Jade, no! Stop looking at me with those damn puppy eyes of yours. I don’t have time to date, besides there is no one on campus I am even remotely interested in.”

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