Caged in Darkness (9 page)

If my emotions became chaotic, my gift would
inevitably follow. I had nightmares the bonfire would turn into a
real life Carrie remake and I would star as the psychotic witch who
destroys everyone in a fiery rage. I knew this was unlikely, but it
didn’t stop me from worrying.

I would be a landmine hidden beneath the
teenage population, awaiting an unwary shadow to make a wrong step,
in the unending pursuit of impressing the teenage socialites that
were the cafeteria one crowd. That wrong step could result in an
explosion of my power and could have seriously terrible
consequences.

It was times like this that I regretted
keeping my other life separate from Izzy. She wasn’t a witch, but
she was my friend and someone who I thought would understand.

I put the finishing touches on my makeup and
stared in the mirror. Izzy and Willow were getting ready in the
bedroom, but I wanted to be alone. I was feeling nervous about
going out looking like this; especially when my gifts were acting
up.

I groaned at my appearance. I chose to leave
my hair down for once and let it dry naturally. Loose curls hung
down my back with wild abandon. I rarely wore make up, but Izzy
taught me some techniques. I gave my eyes the smoky gray look,
added some highlights to my cheeks, and the barest amounts of pink
lip-gloss. I didn’t need foundation or mascara.

I wore a burgundy mini dress with a
sweetheart neckline, a tapered waist, and a slightly flared skirt.
The bell sleeves hung loose, and my back was completely bare down
to the very bottom. I felt exposed. Izzy forced me to buy a bra
that linked in front, but was backless and strapless. The cups were
sticky, and I personally thought that calling it a bra was an
insult to actual bras. Still, it gave me the merest sense of
coverage and I was thankful for any. Izzy tried to convince me to
buy a pair of strappy stilettos but I told her she was insane.
Instead, I wore a pair of gray flats. I didn’t need heels with my
height and I wasn’t sure I would be able to walk in them.

Sucking in my breath, I stepped out of the
bathroom. Willow giggled on the floor pointing at Izzy, who did not
look happy. Considering her outfit, I had a difficult time
containing my own laughter.

“Oh. My. God!” I was trying to be nice. I
really was, but I couldn’t contain my laughter. Izzy, the queen of
fashion or at least, gothic fashion was wearing an outfit that a
clown wouldn’t be caught dead wearing.

Izzy’s mom had this irritating, but funny
way of adjusting Izzy’s clothing. She thought she was encouraging
her daughter’s unique sense of style, but really her creations were
ridiculous. Izzy, couldn’t bring herself to tell her mom that she
hated the adjustments, and instead wore them. Talk about
unconditional love.

“Hm. Yeah, I am pretty sure that is the
worst one yet!” I shouted.

Izzy had a pained expression on her face.
Her dress, which was originally beautiful, now looked like an 80’s
prom dress designed for a corpse. It combined gray lace, bright
pink tulle, and a tie die torso.

“Please tell me, I can wear something of
yours!” Izzy begged.

I immediately felt guilty when I saw the
tears streaming down her cheeks. She didn’t wait for my answer, but
took the dress off and threw it into the backpack she brought it
in.

“Yeah, but you might want to spill some
paint on that dress. That way you have a future excuse not to wear
it.”

“Paint would be an improvement.” Willow
said. She then jumped up and started combing through my closet. She
pulled out a pair of black shorts with suspenders attached, and a
cropped top sewed to the suspenders. It was a cute outfit, which
was the only reason why I had made an exception to my midriff
rule.

Izzy grabbed it, shrugged, and climbed right
into the outfit. The suspenders rested on the outer edges of her
breasts and the shorts ended at mid thigh. The fit was entirely
different on her than it was on me. The midriff looked cuter;
because she had her naval pierced with a filigree black rose
hanging from a small white gold chain. She looked adorable, and I
knew there was no way I could wear that outfit after seeing her in
it. She was made for it. Willow wore a black satin pencil skirt
with a white blouse and a black vest. In short, we all looked
vastly different than normal.

“You should wear a different necklace. I
don’t think the blue stones look right with the dress you’re
wearing.” Willow lifted the pentacle hanging from my neck. I
flinched; worried that it would burn her. It didn’t really burn the
winged man because he was a figment of my imagination that had been
produced by massive amounts of stress.

“I like it.” The truth was that even though
I realized my encounter at my parents’ estate was a hallucination,
I couldn’t bring myself to take off the necklace. In my
hallucination, the necklace had protected me, hadn’t it?

Ash

I spent the day avoiding Savannah at all
costs. I could hear her through the walls and it was tearing me up
inside to not be with her. I couldn’t risk being alone with her
again after I almost kissed her. What if I lost my will and gave
in? It could result in the greatest sacrifice of my life, because
she is the one person I could not live without. Savannah saw me as
a brother, and if I wanted to keep her I would have to treat her as
a brother would.

It was a relief to go to the bonfire. The
group of people who went to these types of parties didn’t appeal to
Savannah, which made it more appealing to me.

“Hey, Ash!” Griffin piled out of a jeep with
three other guys from the coven and Isis.

Most of the people at the bonfire were from
school, but sometimes the older coven members came out of boredom.
I sat alone by the fire. My irritability turned everyone else away.
Griffin left the others and took the seat on the log next to
me.

“Hey.” I spoke in a monotone and looked to
the side to see Griffin shift uncomfortably.

Griffin and I were raised together. We had
been through some extreme circumstances, and when my parents died
he understood in a way no one could expect a four year old to. Most
people didn’t understand our friendship and why I would want to be
friends with someone so crude. However, he was different when we
were alone. Savannah thought he was a jerk. I couldn’t blame her,
but until she came along, he was my only family besides Maye. Now
Savannah superseded that relationship.

Griffin cleared his throat. “Sorry, about
yesterday. I shouldn’t have egged Isis on. You still mad?”

“No, not mad. It was a stupid thing to do
though. It could have had some serious consequences.” I looked
across the fire to see Savannah climbing out of Izzy’s car and was
dumbstruck.

“Yeah.” Griffin saw me staring across the
fire and followed my line of vision to see Savannah.

“What’s she doing here?” He sounded
tired.

“No clue.”

“Whatever. See ya.” He stood suddenly and
walked over to the others from the coven.

Savannah neared the bonfire and I was
completely transfixed. Ordinarily, she preferred to be invisible in
a gathering. It looked like she intended something entirely
different tonight. She walked with her head held high and a
determined gleam to her eyes.

I groaned. It was difficult enough being
around her, but now every guy in the vicinity would be tempted. How
could I play the over protective brother, when I was one of the
hormonal guys she needed protection from?

Savannah stopped at the bonfire and waved
when she saw me. That was when I began to feel the pressure in the
air. My ears popped the way they do on an airplane, and my skin
prickled. Aggression built until I saw what was causing my dominant
nature to heighten. The feeling steadied to an even platform.

Someone stood against the dark section of
the woods behind clustered groups of teens. I couldn’t see his
face, but he was watching Savannah. When she walked his head turned
to follow. I didn’t like that his eyes were stalking her. My
territorial instincts were kicking into high gear, and Savannah was
definitely
mine.

Liam

I hadn’t seen the Cross girl before, but my
mother gave me a sock she owned as an infant. It allowed me to
sense her when she was near. She had a distinct aura that was
nearly as tempting as her appearance.

I came to the bonfire expecting to be bored,
feigning interest in a teenage girl, who possessed gifts she didn’t
understand. Instead, I saw a natural beauty whose power bent around
her as she moved. It was doubtful she was aware of using her gift,
but I could
see
it.

Her gift met mine in a dance of wills. My
power spun around her curling through the air. It was a game of
seduction I would dominate.

Savannah’s head twitched to the side and
looked around. It seemed that she could sense me when I felt her
push back. She did not even flinch at the use of power. It was as
though her power had a mind of its own. Mine embraced her’s in a
waltz. I was strong and possessive. Her dance was one of grace and
sensuality.

She walked towards her friends, but her body
began to sway. She could feel it too, but didn’t yet understand
what
it
was.

Savannah

The feeling I experienced earlier in the
kitchen was back, and making me dizzy. Did other witches feel this
when they approached their ascension?

It began as a fluttering in my stomach,
tingled down my spine, then warmth that built in my chest and
spread to the rest of my body.

The feeling was slightly different that it
had been earlier. It came in waves like the flowing of the sea over
sand. If I was the sand, what was the sea?

I noticed him. He was hidden behind people
and trees. His eyes were invasive and didn’t flinch at my gaze.
Willow and Izzy misted from my mind as I walked towards him. He had
blond hair and dark eyes. He was taller than me and toned.

I walked and stopped in confusion. The
feeling was stronger now and my body began to answer its call. Lips
parted and my body swayed in a secret rhythm. He moved away from
the trees, planting himself directly in front of me. He had met me
halfway, but looked confused by his actions.

He didn’t seem in control, as his hand
reached out to trail along my neck towards the neckline of my
dress. I didn’t stop him;
couldn’t
stop him. I yearned for
him and when he touched me I craved him. My eyes felt weighted,
while my body was magnetized.

“Who are you?” I whispered, softly. Energy
pulsed between us, but halted at my voice.

The energy pulled away. Silently, I called
to it. I begged it to stay and when it refused, I tried to capture
it. It was an internal match that I lost.

His eyes were wide and somewhat frightened.
Why was he afraid?

The expression disappeared. “Liam.”

“Huh?” I couldn’t process what he was
saying, but I was fairly sure I just made an idiot of myself.

Smiling, he repeated his name. Then cleared
his voice and said “You’re from the Meadow Falls coven, right?”

He knew about witches? “How?”

His eyes lit upon the area behind me and a
domineering smile gained ground on his face.

Air movement halted, sound stopped, and time
stood still. A low growl filled the air behind me and I spun to see
Ash’s teeth barred. He took an offensive stance and pulled me
behind him. His fangs showed, but I didn’t think anyone besides us
could see.

Liam stood straight. He didn’t give ground
or attempt to take it. He stared Ash in the eyes without a single
flinch, but when he looked at me something exploded from Ash.

To the naked eye, they looked like two guys
fighting over a girl. However, as a witch I saw something
different. Ash’s aura heightened to red flames and consumed Liam.
In response, Liam threw up a shield of gold. While their gifts
silently battled their bodies clashed.

Ash snapped his fangs at Liam, and Liam
landed a blow to Ash’s gut. I cried out at the sight of blood
splattering to the ground. Punches flew at such a fast pace that I
lost track of who threw them. Liam moved backwards and crouched
defensively. I don’t think they were aware of my presence any
longer. Eventually, the battle moved towards the woods; away from
the others.

“What’s going on?” Willow whispered in my
ear.

I had been so focused on the fight between
Ash and Liam that I wasn’t aware of Izzy and Willow’s approach.

“I don’t know. One minute I am talking to
Liam and the next Ash is here attacking him. What should I do?” My
worried stare reached for Willow’s.

Izzy tugged on my arm to pull me into the
woods. “One thing I know for certain, you don’t get between two
dogs fighting over the same piece of meat.”

“Huh? First off, that comparison is unfair;
they are not dogs. Secondly, they’re not fighting over a piece of
meat!”

I could see the fight taking place deeper in
the woods, but couldn’t tell if either of them was badly injured.
Panic started to build in my chest and I ran forward with Izzy and
Willow following. We stopped at the edge of the clearing where the
battle continued.

“You’re the meat.” Izzy said, out of the
corner of her mouth.

I turned to face Izzy’s assessing stare and
turned to look at Willow. Her hand covered her mouth in horror, but
the look in her eyes told me that she agreed with Izzy.

“Just stay away from her!” Ash spoke before
Liam kicked the back of his knee. Ash’s knee buckled and he
reciprocated with a flare of magic that caught Liam’s shoulder in a
fiery smolder.

Liam held his shoulder with a grimace, while
panting from exhaustion.

“Do you have a claim to her?” Liam spoke
from the opposing side of the clearing, while Ash stood. “I think
she’s a big girl and is smart enough to make her own decisions
about who to be around. Why don’t you ask her what she wants?”