Page 95 of Dark Moon Secrets

Keep running.

Maria’s voice was firm, but it was fading again.

Was there something wrong with the connection between us? Was this because I was rejected from my initiation?

Fuck, I didn’t want to lose the magic I had just found.

I would fight to keep it. I would do anything to hold onto it.

My lungs burned as if on fire with each breath in and out. My leg muscles started to seize up. I couldn’t keep going like this.

I stopped running, let my dress fall, bent over slightly, hands on my knees, and coughed, trying to catch my breath.

They hadn’t found me, so I must have got away with it.

Still breathing hard, I saw my white dress looking worse for wear. That would be a dead giveaway if I hadn’t done what I’d been told.

I didn’t care, but at the same time, I didn’t want them not to train me. I had to get the full power of my magic.

A growl behind me sent an icy chill through me.

Was my wolf here?

It was almost funny, days into learning I was a witch, and instead of thinking it was a dog, I now thought of a wolf. I wanted to see my wolf again, and the joy of that happening melted through the iciness in my body.

I turned, and the growl intensified.

My skin prickled, even though my body was hot from running. This couldn’t be my wolf. Not with how I was reacting to the sound.

But where was it?

I circled further and then saw a movement in the leaves.

‘Hey, is it you again?” I said, hoping against the odds it was.

A wolf moved from behind the cover of a bush.

It wasn’t my wolf. This one had a black pelt and eyes full of hatred. Teeth bared, its top lip snarled at me.

“My mistake. I’ll just be on my way.” I went to move away, inching toward the shop, when he lurched forward.

I yelped back, then froze on the spot. What was I going to do?

What should I do?

It was a better question. If this wolf had killed my parents, I knew what I would do. But it wasn’t like I could answer it.

“Why aren’t you going to let me go?”

The wolf stepped forward. He was close enough now that if I went to run, he would easily pounce on me.

I’d escaped one trap and found myself in another. This one had sharp teeth and claws, and I wanted to kill it straightaway.

Thank goodness I had my magic. I willed it to my fingers. As long as no one saw me, it wouldn’t be an issue. Could I be so controlled with how I wielded my magic? I was out of breath, rejected, angry, and completely ungrounded.

“I’m not going to hurt you if you let me go.”

He growled at me.

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