When she found her center, Amelia opened her eyes and locked them on Mitchell. She let the phrase that was at the tip of her tongue fall from her lips, “The mark will vanish, and we will be free.”

For a second, she thought she saw Mitchell smile, and she was sure he winked at her. Megan squeezed her hand, and she repeated the incantation. “The mark will vanish, and we will be free.”

Searing pain rushed over Amelia’s neck as if boiling water had been poured on her. Megan gasped and staggered beside her. Amelia sucked in a breath and continued to chant, fighting against the pain that tried to suck the words from her lips. Megan’s voice shook as she joined in, and together they channeled their magic, sending out blasts of luminescent energy with each word they spoke.

Mitchell and Eric crumbled to the ground, howls of pain ripped from them as they fell. Angelle screamed and Erin gawked, clearly not sure what was happening or what they should do. Luke and Lola frantically tried to help Mitchell stand, but each time they got him up, he threw them off as another blast of magic hit him, sending him back to his knees.

“Amelia, what are you doing to me?” Mitchell hollered, sweat running from his forehead in streams. But she didn’t stop her chanting, until the last of the searing burns from her neck dissipated into a soft tingle.

“You’ll never be able to control us again,” Megan whispered, dropping Amelia’s hand. Her eyes fell from Eric to the ground.

The only sound in the room was Mitchell’s and Eric’s panting as they trembled on the floor, too weak to stand. Amelia took in the looks of hatred and disbelief from her friends, and her heart twisted. She opened her mouth to explain, but before the words could come out, Tyler stepped in front of her. “I hope they torture you and kill you.” His face was closed, and his eyes burned of hatred. “Get out,” he said and pointed to the door.

When she didn’t move and her eyes began to burn, Mitchell screamed, his words hitting her like a physical slap, “Get out!”

CHAPTER 26

Mitchell couldn’t watch as Amelia bolted from the room with Megan in tow. He tried to tell himself that this was for the best. If they left, the hunters would leave. He knew he had to do this for his town, his friends, and above all, his family. However, he also knew that if he watched, he wouldn’t be able to stand by and let her leave; because he knew she was the only family that would ever matter to him.

He could hear Amelia’s whispers as the girls raced through the house, and he could practically see Amelia pulling open the closet, stripping off her tattered dress, and pulling on her favorite jeans and hoodie. By the sounds, he knew Megan was stuffing a bag full of supplies, and he nearly went to help them when he heard Amelia say she couldn’t find her phone.

The beep of an incoming text message sounded, and Mitchell could hear Megan whisper to Amelia that the meeting was set. “Mitchell, you can’t let them leave,” Luke said. He stuck out his hand and helped him from the floor.

“Yes, I can,” Mitchell replied, letting Luke pull him up, and then he took a seat on the couch, burying his face in his hands. The squawk of rubber drifted through the house as Amelia and Megan rushed to the kitchen. Keys jingled as she pulled them from the hook. The fridge opened, and then shut. Paper fluttered, and Mitchell was sure he heard the click of a magnet before the door slammed.

A breeze ruffled his hair, and in a flash, he was on his feet and blocking the doorway from the living room. Angelle, Luke, and Lola crashed into his chest. “We will not stop them,” he growled and shoved the three of them back forcefully. Luke tried to push him out of the way, but Mitchell easily grabbed onto his arm, twisting it to a near breaking point. “Don’t push me, Luke. I’m twice your age.”

“You’re going to get us killed,” Lola pleaded as she uselessly tried to pry open Mitchell’s clamped fingers.

“No, he’s not,” Eric said calmly. “He’s saving us.”

The Jeep rumbled to life, and Mitchell clenched his jaw when he heard the gears grind in protest. She should have taken one of the automatics, he thought, annoyed that she wasn’t thinking, and then he quickly shook away the pointless thought, knowing it was a stupid thing to even consider. Did it really matter what car she took as long as she was gone?

“How could you just let her walk out like that?” Angelle asked meekly. “Why didn’t you stop her?” She cowered from his glare and slapped her hand to her mouth.

An overflow of guilt and shame squeezed his heart. He wanted to tell them the truth so badly that it physically hurt. He glanced at Eric and saw the same feelings written all over his face. It was the feeling deep in his bones that spurred him forwards to keep up the charade, and he huffed, dropped Luke’s arm, which was close to black from the force of his grip, and said, “She broke the bond. I couldn’t do anything.”

“Don’t give us that shit,” Lola spat, her tone filled with venom and contempt. “We’ve all been watching you guys practice. We know what you’re capable of doing. Both of you could have stopped them.” She glared so fiercely at Eric that he slid back behind Mitchell.

“Back off, Lola,” Mitchell warned, although the command that usually toned his voice was not as strong as he had wanted.

“You deserved it,” Erin said, and if the other looks of hatred that Mitchell had received had upset him, hers devastated him. It was raw and passionate and lethal. “You used your persuasion on her. You were going to kill her. They deserve better than you guys.”

Mitchell swallowed hard, fighting against the ripping feel in his chest that threatened his strength and determination. “Erin,” he started, but she wouldn’t hear it.

Erin’s face screwed up with rage, and she shouted, “I wish you had let me die.” And with a burst of wind, she was gone.

“Mitchell, we need to go after them,” Angelle urged. She grabbed a phone from the coffee table. “I’ll call Joe. He won’t let them leave.”

“Enough!” In a lightning-fast move, he took the phone and threw it. It hit the wall, and then it hit the floor and shattered into hundreds of little pieces. “If you don’t like my decisions, then leave. This is my house, my town. You’ll respect that or you’ll get the hell out!”

Angelle whimpered and skipped back. “But it’s their magic that has kept us safe this far. If they join the hunters, we’re as good as dead.”

Mitchell needed to calm down; he knew it. The burning in the back of his throat wasn’t helping. It only managed to spike his temper up to a blazing fury. He wasn’t sure exactly what Amelia had done, but whatever it was, it had drained him. He bit his tongue, swallowed his anger, and went to the kitchen.

They didn’t say anything when he left, but he heard the soft pat of footsteps behind him. Mitchell went straight for the stainless steel fridge, trying to ignore the pulling at his core and the tingling in his limbs that attempted to convince his brain that he needed to run after Amelia. He grabbed a bag of blood and bit into it, not bothering to warm it up or pour it into a glass.

He went through three bags before the burning began to dwindle and the insistent tugging around his heart faded to a constant, but bearable, tension.

Someone cleared their throat behind him, and after he drained another bag, he finally closed the fridge. As he shut it, a flyer caught his eye, and he slid the magnet over and took it. He chuckled. It couldn’t have been more perfect. Still holding onto the page, he turned around and said in a clear and strong voice, “Tyler, I want you to take over the plans for the fair. This town needs a little happiness.”

“You can’t be serious,” Angelle scoffed. Her cover girl face paled and wrinkled.

He grinned and placed the flyer on the counter. “I am serious.”

Mitchell knew by the looks he was getting they all thought he had gone mad, and he was sure that his laughter only helped to confirm their suspicions. The only one that looked remotely curious was Eric. His face lit up after a second, and a half grin appeared. He chuckled and then elbowed Mitchell out of the way of the fridge and began guzzling a bag of blood.

“Mitchell, buddy,” Luke said. He took a few hesitant steps towards him and placed a hand on Mitchell’s shoulder. Mitchell tried to pretend he didn’t see the black and blue hand mark on his wrist that was still trying to heal. “You’re not thinking straight. We need to focus on getting rid of the threat.”

Mitchell forged his voice to sound sure and confident. “We are getting rid of the threat. Once the hunters have the girls, they’ll leave.”

“When did you become so stupid?” Lola yelled. “They won’t leave, and you damn well know it. They’ll just use Amelia and Megan against us.”

Mitchell narrowed his eyes. “Like I said before, if you don’t like my judgment, then there’s the door.”

Luke fell for the hostile glare and quickly placed himself in front of Lola. He wasn’t the only one who—thankfully—didn’t want to pursue the useless argument.

“Okay,” Tyler said, snagging the page in one hand and grabbing Angelle with the other. “I’ll get it all together.” He started out of the room, but before leaving, he turned back. “What’s the password to Millie’s computer?”

Cheap shot, Mitchell thought, and his jaw twitched. They all knew her password. It had only been put in place when Fiona had shown up to keep the financial files out of her reach. Mitchell glared at him for even bringing it up, and he almost gasped when he saw the blatant comprehension on Tyler’s face.

“Bonded for life,” Mitchell answered softly. He hated the pain that he heard in his voice and cursed the sympathetic glances he received from his family. Tyler nodded, and after a long searching look, he left.

Mitchell turned from the rest of them and looked out the window, trying to hide the tears that pooled in his eyes. The view didn’t help. All he saw was the empty space where Amelia’s Jeep should have been parked.