Page 44 of Haunted Hearts

My heart leaps in my throat.

“Willow!” I yell in unison with Brock and Viktor.

On the other side somewhere, I hear Theodon and Kwil shout for her too. My heart slams against my ribs as I search through the flames. Is she ok? What the hell happened? Where’s Death? Just as I square my shoulders, committing to running through the wall to get to her, the flames drop, slamming into the ground where they are immediately snuffed out. There, standing right where I’d seen her last, Willow stares directly at me, her eyes wide with surprise.

“Holy shit! Did you see that?” She whoops and looks over at her dad still perched on a nearby rock. Death laughs loudly and slaps his knee.

I told you it was going to be different! He calls back, clearly unperturbed.

Willow throws her head back and lets out a full belly laugh.

My hand flies up to my chest to cover my heart as it slows back down. “Can you have a heart attack if you’re already dead?”

I watch as Willow summons the flames back. Around us, the flames return, but this time with more control, starting off as a ring of embers.

“I think I just may have had my first one,” Brock answers.

The embers disappear as Willow’s brows furrow in concentration. The clear sky overhead grows dark as storm clouds appear out of nowhere. As they gather, the temperature drops. Once the sky is jet black, a grayish-white mist descends from the clouds. As it draws near, a sound captures my attention. It’s a solitary scream that grows louder and louder as the mist descends. As it hits the sand surrounding Willow, that single scream is joined by a chorus of them. The mist mushrooms out, rushing towards the three of us, and towards Theodon and Kwil.

Brock, Viktor, and I stumble back towards the water. The screaming white mist washes over us. Terror, so real and jarring, hits me as hard as my back had hit the sand. It’s notmyterror, but it becomes mine as it seeps into my skin. My heart slams against my ribs. My throat squeezes shut and my body trembles as cold and fear swamps me. I can hear Willow shout, but my vision begins to blacken and…

Just as quickly as it overwhelms me, the terror subsides.

My vision clears. I drag in a shaky breath before staggering forward and sinking to my knees. I catch myself just before I land face first in the sand. Panting hard, I stare at the ground.

“Sorry guys!” Willow calls.

I look up in time to watch the clouds disperse. Death is standing beside Willow, his hand on her shoulder, scolding her about something. I look past them to find Theo leaning against a rock while Kwil is down on one knee.

“What the hell was that?” Viktor snaps.

Looking over at him, I find the white-haired Fae standing but visibly shaking, his face pale. Brock is on his ass, staring at Willow with his mouth ajar. Leaning back on my heels, I brush the sand off my hands and drag in a few more deep breaths.

“The hell if I know,” Brock replies, not bothering to get up. “And by the look of things, neither does Death.”

I follow his gaze back to the father-daughter duo and note the surprised and concerned look on Death’s face.

“We may have to protect Willow from herself at this rate.” Slowly I get to my feet.

“Maybe,” Viktor agrees begrudgingly.

What will that entail? Death and Willow look up as the clouds reappear. I brace myself for more undiluted power. This time, when the white mist falls from the sky, it disperses quickly. Bumps raise upon my flesh and my heart races, but the terror isn’t as strong as it was before. Willow pairs this with her flames that she summons from the ground, and as they rise up to meet the white, screaming mist, we all tense and wait.

The explosion it causes topples me backwards into the water. Brock and Viktor are right there with me. I would have laughed at Viktor’s yelp, but my mouth is full of nasty, salty water. As I come up for air, a massive wave comes crashing down on top of me. Sputtering, I stumble towards the shore. Suddenly, Brock is there, grabbing me by the collar and yanking me to my feet.

“You good?” he yells.

It takes me a moment to realize why. Behind him, the wind is howling and sand is whipping around, creating a barrier between us and the others.

“She’s sopowerful,” I whisper as I stare at the wall of wind and sand.

“Good thing she’s on our side,” Viktor grunts, using both hands to push his hair out of his face. “Can you imagine facingthisin battle?”

“She’s unstoppable,” I agree. “Or will be.”

“She already is,” Brock declares confidently. “Even without a handle on her own strength, an enemy wouldn’t be able to touch her right now. Just look at this.” He raises his hands at the sight before us, grinning. “She’s a sight to behold.”

“You can tone down your excitement, she can’t hear you,” Viktor shoots him a dark look that Iknowmust be from jealousy.

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