Page 97 of Dark Moon Secrets

I had to. Why did I keep thinking of it as my wolf?

I owed it nothing, not really, though right now, it was saving my life.

Get out of here.

Maria’s voice was stern in my head. Of course, I should listen to her.

But I didn’t.

Scrambling to get up, I stood, wobbly on my feet, the loss of blood making me lightheaded.

I can do this.

This was my chance to show my real power, not to anyone else but myself. I knew if I could do this, then I would be unstoppable with how I could use my magic. It would mean I could avenge my parents’ deaths but also protect the coven.

This was my destiny, and I was going to embrace it.

Focus. It was my voice in my head.

No way could I use my magic without risking hurting my wolf. What else could I do?

Magic was the only power I had that could stop this fight. I had to try something.

The pattern of the spell came to mind—a two-fold spell—the knowledge from the book where I had absorbed the words.

This time, I connected to my magic, the part of me that made me who I was, the part I hadn’t explored. And now I was going to do that.

The two wolves fought hard and fast, yet I began to learn their moves, their attacking and defending patterns becoming predictable. I released the first part of the spell—the magic flowed from my hands, bright and strong, tinged with purple.

Time slowed. The movements of each of the wolves slowed, becoming more graceful and not such a frenzied motion.

The first part of the spell had worked.

Now was the hard part.

Would my aim be accurate?

I had no comparison for doing anything close to this before.

My eyes were on the head of the wolf who had attacked me, sizing up the distance for maximum impact.

I released the second part of the spell. Hot red magic shot through the air. Was I really creating this much power?

It didn’t matter if I could or not. I had missed my target.

The magic hit the shoulder of the wolf.

I fell to my knees, exhausted from releasing so much magic at once and from the pain in my arms.

The wolf fell over, skidding away, but it got up as if nothing had happened.

My wolf rushed him, trying to gain the upper hand. But the fight was still very much even.

I couldn’t help my wolf, the one who was trying to save me. And now I didn’t have the energy to leave.

Then, the first part of the spell wore off, and the fight sped up to normal speed.

And something else happened.

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