Black Magic

Chapter Two

Sixten checks us into a much nicer hotel than the one I could afford. Much nicer than my cabin, considering this place hasn't been abandoned and actually has electricity and running water I don't need to fetch from a well. He gets us a couple rooms, connected in the middle by a door, and ushers me into my room with curt instructions to get myself cleaned up and settled.

Without my backpack or any of the supplies I'd managed to accumulate back at the cabin, there isn't really much for me to settle. Instead I step into the bathroom, immediately turning on the hot water in the shower and ducking inside. The scalding water pounds near-painfully on my sore back, turning my pale skin bright red. I tilt my head back and let the water flow over my hair, undoing my long braid and running my hands through the pale blonde strands. I haven't had a proper shower since I escaped. It's so soothing; the heat washes away my tension and stress and the darkness inside me settles into a low, imperceptible purr.

My hair has grown out during my time in captivity. I've never taken notice until now; I always just put it into a braid without paying much attention. But now the strands curl around my wide hips. I wash my hair thoroughly, scrubbing away the dirt and grime from days of nothing but dumping buckets of water over my head.

When I finally clamber out of the shower my pale skin is bright pink, my freckles even darker. I wrap a fluffy white towel around my chest and another around my absurd length of hair. It all just feels so . . . so normal.

Streaks of condensation remain on the mirror after I wipe away the fog. I lean forward, inspecting myself, poking and prodding at the skin of my face. My cheeks are still slightly gaunt, the square shape of my jaw even sharper without a layer of fat. There are deep bags beneath my pale violet eyes that have never really gone away no matter how much sleep I get, although they're definitely a lot worse now. Being clean definitely makes me feel more—myself, somehow, and I pull away from the mirror finally recognizing the reflection staring back.

Since I don't really have any other options I just get redressed in my clothes from earlier and wrap the towel around my head again. Then I step out of the steamy bathroom, taking a deep breath of fresher air.

There's a knock at the door connecting Sixten's room to mine. I open it and immediately Sixten strides inside. Now, in the light of the hotel room without anything else happening, I can finally get a proper look at him. He's ridiculously tall, well over six feet, with broad shoulders and long, slim legs. His face has almost an aristocratic appearance to it, elegant and serious, his dark hair tied back in a bun. He's—very pretty, actually, and I feel warmth in my already pink cheeks before I shake my head and dismiss that thought immediately.

"We can take a train back to Salem later this afternoon," he says, leaning against the wall near my bed, making himself comfortable. When he sees the towel wrapped around my head it almost seems like he's about to smile, but his face stays emotionless. "You should get some sleep before then. In a proper bed."

My jaw tenses. "Back to Salem? I thought you weren't turning me in."

"I'm not." He stares at me, eyes almost sparkling. "But my work is in Salem, and I know it is your birthplace. I assumed you would want to attend Salem University for Witches, catch up on what you've missed. You are eighteen, yes?"

Right. Salem University. Somehow, that all seems inconsequential now. Like it's all part of a person I used to be. "I guess going back would be the right idea." Who knows what my family's reaction will be, but Kerani and Raj deserve to know I'm alright after I disappeared off the face of the earth four months ago. "Where do you work in Salem? I thought you were with the Circle." Though Salem is, of course, a place of great magical significance, warlocks tend to think of it the same way witches think of human 'witchcraft'. Instead the Circle operates out of London, England—or, rather, a small concealed city within London's limits. It's kind of complicated.