RISING SHADOWS (Shadows Book 2)

Chapter 4

I grabbed the first broom I came to and headed for the surface brushing off any attempts to speak to me. As straight as an arrow I flew for Nova, leaving my coven to carry out my orders. 

It wasn't through ability I was able to maintain such a perfect line of flight towards my intended target. It was the anger boiling in my blood masking all my fears. Breaking through the dome, I was only metres away from Nova. I hurtled towards her, pushing my magic harder and harder. The glee on the bitch's face was maddening. But as I neared her, she set off North away from me.

I injected as much power as I could into my broom to keep up. Much more experienced than me, she could have easily gotten away but that's not what she was doing. She was taunting. Beckoning. She weaved in and out of the clouds, dipping low and rising high, her laugh a shrill echo.

"This way granddaughter," she cooed. "Let me lead you astray."

Her words rushed by, caught in the whistling wind. And I ignored them. There was no way this was going to end with Nova getting what she wanted. There was no way this was going to end with Nova returning to the Iron Moon.

After dancing with the clouds some more, she tipped the head of her broom, angling it down. I followed mirroring as best I could. The sudden descent made my stomach flip.

Still way ahead, Nova landed in an empty field of colour-stripped grass. Grace blessed her landing. Her broom came to a controlled hover before her boots touched the ground.

And suddenly I was aware I was going too fast. Nearing the earth, I panicked and pulled the nose of my broom up sharply, but gravity maintained its hold and tugged me down. Shit. Perhaps I was going to see Gran sooner than I thought. I tried siphoning off some of my power from the broom but it dug its claws in, locking down on the magic I had already fed it. With nothing else left, I held my hand out and summoned my water element. Flinging out my power, I formed a pool deep enough to give herself a softish landing and aimed for it.

The water absorbed me as I hit it at speed. The head of the broom lodged in the ground, splitting in two. Pain shot through my spine as if it had snapped in the same way. I pushed myself up onto my feet. Water cascaded down my face. I swept away drenched strands of hair that fought to cling to my cheeks and forehead.

"My, what a sight you are," Nova cackled.

I turned to face Nova, biting down on the throbbing in my back. She pressed on, a predator stalking its target. With the toe of her boot, she nudged the broken remnants of my broom out of her path. Gathering the scraps of strength still left within me, I backed away.

"There is no reason to fear me," she paused briefly. "Actually, there are many reasons to fear me, but I will not harm you, not if you do as I say."

I gritted my teeth. "I will not. You killed my grandmother, you killed Leda. I will never listen to anything you have to say. You probably had a hand in killing my parents too for all I know. You're certainly capable of it."

Nova threw her head back and let out a screech of laughter into the night. "No but I was going to. They were taking you far away from me. Somehow, they managed to convince the whole of their coven to up and leave and live in semi-secrecy. Just so that you could not be found. It was Astrea who caused the car to veer off the roadside, she appeared to them in lightning form and the flash blinded Celeste."

It was the first time I'd heard anything other than harsh steel from Nova, and at the sound of my mother's name too was something of a surprise.

"And you, a useless child was plucked from certain death while my heir perished. But that is all in the past. Look at you now, High Witch of a coven to which you do not belong." She prowled ever closer. Her nails were pins at her fingertips, the same shade of blood that matched the smear of colour across her lips. Her skin was marble-smooth, eyes young and bright. She must have eaten recently and for one fraction of a second, I allowed the horrific thought it could have been Rafe's heart.