Wilt

Chapter 4: The Abyss

           Genevieve ran through the forest, every thought in her head disappearing as her body focused on escape. Branches whipped at her exposed skin, she could feel blood trickling from the cut near her hairline. But she could see her house, the twinkle of a candle in her parents' room. She was so close, she was almost safe.

Rough hands grabbed her hair and pulled her back and she screamed. No sound left her throat. They'd used magic to pull the breath from her body she realized. She felt her own magic depleted, she'd used it all up with their foolish plan. Genevieve had been stupid to think that they could take on the full force of the Hadlock family.

"Good try," the voice said and she felt the cool sensation of metal against her exposed throat. "You'll have to try again next time."

And then the knife sliced through skin and bone and everything. Genevieve's world exploded in a supernova of pain and burning and pain. She squeezed her eyes shut as she was left to bleed out on the forest floor. If they had caught her that must mean he was dead, he would never have let them get to her if he was still alive. She tried to summon one last memory of him, it flickered like the candle in her window. And then it was gone.

Gen sat on the stone wall circling the school and nudged at the snow with her boot distractedly. Last night's dream had been one of the bad ones and it had followed her like a dark cloud all day. She had been sitting outside for ages as she waited for Malcolm Hadlock to leave school. She didn't know what he could possibly be up to. The parking lot had emptied so that only a scattering of cars belonging to teachers remained. And the shiny silver motorcycle that lurked at the far reaches of the school grounds. Gen was seated directly beside it, intending to haul Malcolm aside after school for questioning.

But then he hadn't come out, and it was beginning to get dark. Enough time had passed that her father had called her to see if she was in a ditch, freezing to death.

Malcolm had either drowned in the River Wey or had decided to get an insane amount of after school tutoring. Gen eyed his motorcycle with trepidation. With all the narrow winding streets in Haslemere it was seriously dangerous to drive one. Rumors stated that he had emigrated from London, somewhere she'd never been. Gen doubted it was safer to ride a bike in England.

A leaf was plastered to the front tire. Its pale green color had been almost completely crushed out of it. But she could still tell that it was from an oak tree. Lina had taken a horticultural course the previous summer and had spouted knowledge about ferns and mosses and the different species of oak tree. Gen didn't need that sort of knowledge, she was sure it was from the Hadlock oak. Of course she had no way of knowing for sure.

She sighed deeply and gazed out across the monotonous snowy landscape. Her eyes snapped back to the leaf. It was green. There was a green leaf stuck to the Hadlock boy's motorcycle in the dead of winter. They were a week from the solstice and yet somehow it was alive. Gen leaned closer and reached a bare hand up to touch it.

A gloved hand caught her wrist and dragged her out of reach. She let out a shriek and wrenched free. Malcolm Hadlock crouched over her, his dark gray eyes thunderous and his hands shaking with anger. The sky was bright white behind him, filling his blonde hair with light so that he looked almost angelic. He let go of her abruptly.

His eyes flicked around the empty parking lot and then fell on her accusingly. "Didn't I tell you to stay away from me?"

Gen stepped back away from him so that her back dug into the stone of the wall. "Actually you only specified that I should avoid your house. Is house the right term? Mansion? Castle?"

He waved a hand and grimaced. "Fine. Are you here for a reason or do you just wish to annoy me?"

Gen glanced at the leaf on the wheel and thought of the way Malcolm had been bewitched by the oak tree that scratched at the windows of the Hadlock house. "Why did you come here?"