Page 73 of Forbidden Magic
My mouth is dry, but the panic from before has mostly lifted. “What are you thinking?”
“It’s got to be one of them. The Faes have been at the head of the anti-mortal movement since the beginning. Your boy Cole has got to be the head of the snake.”
I pinch his arm hard. “He’s not my boy.”
“We need to trick him into showing his cards. Make him mad enough to be reckless. Do you really think you can win your bet?”
“Absolutely, but I’m not going to stoop as low as they are. I want to win in my own right.” Whatever Olson is saying, I have trouble imagining Cole—or even Flynn—attacking Lydia or Holly like that in cold blood.
The blue-haired warlock punches the air in front of him. “Playing fair is going to get you expelled, and Cole and his minions will graduate with honors while you take up some bullshit job as some politician’s assistant.”
I open my mouth in protest.
“Hear me out, Jules. I’ve got your back.”
29
Scandalous
They should have renamed the hide and seek game tofuck over Jules night.
Flynn is a hider this time around but prowls up and down the starting line, his cat eyes fixed on me. It’s clear from the moment the start horn blazes that the seekers are gunning for me first.
I run into the trickiest part of the forest where the trees are closely knit together, toward the steep rock wall that leads to the top of the falls. I’ve prepared the ingredients for a spider climb spell.
The night is foggy and bleak, and a few patches of ice make the terrain treacherous.
I steal a glance over my shoulders, half-expecting everyone to be on my tail, but I can only hear one pair of quickened footsteps behind me.
As soon as I reach the rock, Flynn is on me.
He grabs a fist of my hair before I have a chance to move and yanks my head back. “Why did you bother? We were never going to let you win.” The satisfied smirk on his face makes my skin crawl.
He imprisons me in a bear hug and drags me out into the open. I twist and wrestle against his hold, trying to squirm free, but the more I wiggle, the tighter he squeezes me against his chest. The warmth of his body is devious against the cold night air.
I finally relax and aim a knee at the space between his legs.
Quick as a snake, he blocks my blow and hauls me over his shoulder. My upper body hangs in midair, my stomach braced against the muscles of his shoulder blades. He feels like Cole, like an unmovable rock wall splitting me in two. His coat is thick enough that I don’t have access to his skin, but I still press both my palms against his back and push my fire through.
Flynn doesn’t seem bothered by the heat, his steps quick and self-assured until the flames pierce through the leather.
As I glimpse an inch of his skin, a large hand squeezes my ass.
My breath catches. A sickening warmth sparks from his hands to the tips of my fingers and toes. I growl a curse of profanity before being tossed onto a cold bed of moss.
A hateful circle closes around me. Brie. Vivianne. Melanie. Jessa. Cole.
“Here she is,” Flynn announces proudly.
Brie touches my wrist, and the number 1 appears in neon red calligraphy. “It’s done.”
I jump to my feet, my head still spinning from the fall.
“Now, let’s find her friends,” Vi says.
The other seekers are all on board to spare Flynn and hunt us. Just like Olson had predicted.
Brie braces her fist against her hip. “We have to concentrate on her sister.”
