The Darkness Within (36 page)

Mr. Ryan and the others began mumbling a spell. I couldn’t make it out because my entire body shook. Mirabella was in worse shape than I was, but not by much. We both cried out in pain—her from losing the magic and life inside her, me from fighting the darkness that now wanted to inhabit my body. Pain soared through me, squeezing my lungs and burning my throat. I choked, and my knees gave out. Mirabella’s eyes rolled back into her head as we both collapsed to the ground.

Ethan’s lips pressed against mine. I opened my eyes and wrapped my arms around him. “You’re okay.” I had no idea where I was or what was going on, but I didn’t care. Ethan was alive.

“And so are you. Mirabella is gone. Dead. She burned up when the dark magic left her. You took her out, Sam.” He smiled, and as odd as it was to have my boyfriend be proud of me for killing another person, that was exactly what it was. Because the person I’d killed was as evil as witches came. “The others made the dark magic bury itself in the fountain so it couldn’t enter you. It wasn’t easy, but they pulled it off. Then they sent the fountain to some tomb that’s guarded by good witches or something like that.”

Mr. Ryan laughed. “Something like that.”

I looked around. We weren’t in Mirabella’s cottage anymore. We were outside, but I couldn’t get a good view of where we were since everyone was hovering over me. “Where are we? How long was I out?”

“A day and a half,” Ethan said. “You had me so worried.”

A day and a half
? “We’re home, aren’t we?”

He nodded. “The deer-clones are gone, and no one suspects a thing about either coven. Mrs. Melrose is a seriously powerful witch—in a good way.”

I stood up, realizing we were in our clearing. I wasn’t surprised. It was where we did most of our spells, and we were definitely here to do another. I didn’t doubt it. “So, you guys weren’t trying to hurt us. That was all Mirabella.” I already knew this, but I wanted to hear him say it.

“Yes,” Mr. Ryan said. “We got to you as quickly as we could, but she had some pretty heavy-duty spells protecting the cottage. We were only able to sense Sam in the end, but luckily that was enough.”

Yeah, luckily, I’d screwed up Mirabella’s protection spell. “What happens now?”

Mr. Ryan put his hands on his hips. “Well, after a lot of debate, we agreed that another spell was necessary. One to make Beth less suspicious of not only you and Ethan but the rest of us, too.”

“You used magic on her?” That wasn’t what I called setting a good example. I kind of expected more from teachers.

“I can assure you Beth was not harmed in any way,” Mr. Snyder said. “We simply made it so that she doesn’t take an interest in any of us anymore.”

“But how…?” I waved my hand. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter.” Beth wasn’t really my big concern right now. “What about Ethan? What happens to him now that Mirabella took his magic?”

Ms. Matthews smiled at me. “We can restore your coven. Make Ethan a witch again by transferring some of your power to him.”

Of course! I didn’t need the power of
two
witches inside me. My heart raced. This was what I wanted, but I couldn’t make the choice for him. “Ethan, it’s up to you. If you’d rather be human—normal—I understand.” I looked down, trying to gather my strength for whatever
decision he’d make. “But if you want to be a witch,” I kept myself from saying “with me” even though my selfish side really wanted to throw that in there and guilt him into this, “I can give you some of my power.” I looked at Dylan. “I could give you Ben’s power. I think he’d be happy to know you were using it.”

Ethan looked away, weighing his options. I was glad. As much as I wanted him to be part of the coven and to share this with me, I didn’t want him rushing into the decision. This had to be what he really wanted.

Finally, he raised his head. He stepped closer so we were only about a foot apart. His hand cupped the side of my face. “Ever since the day I met you, all I’ve wanted was to be with you. To be worthy of your love. You’re the strongest person I know. You fought cancer right to the very end.”

Tears took over as the emotions of the past year flooded me. “I fought it because you gave me a reason to fight. I wanted more time with you. Out of all the things I knew I’d be missing out on by dying at seventeen, you were the one I couldn’t come to terms with losing. I love you, Ethan.” My body shook, but Ethan steadied me.

“I guess we’re both the same, then.” A nervous laugh escaped his lips. “I mean, I brought you back from the dead. I found a witch to bring you back. I gave up my life so you could live.” I already knew all this, but hearing him say it made it that much more real. “And I’d do it all again. Even the dying. Even the dark magic. Every painful moment. Because you’re worth all of it.”

Shannon sobbed, and I was glad I wasn’t the only one bawling like a baby. Once she lost it, the others broke down too. All of them. Ms. Matthews, Mrs. Melrose, even the guys, right down to Dylan, who turned away to avoid anyone who might see his watery eyes.

Ethan pressed his lips to mine, letting them linger in a soft kiss. “If you’re a witch, Sam, then I want to be a witch right alongside you. We deserve this life together. A magical life with no more sickness or darkness of any kind. For us, the third time’s a charm.”

I couldn’t hold back any longer. I reached for him, wrapping my arms around his waist and pulling him to me. Our lips crushed together in a kiss full of desperation, love, and hunger. Ethan was my
air. He was my reason for living after I’d lost everything and everyone. And he was right. This was our time. Our fairy-tale ending.

By the time we pulled apart, everyone had turned away. They’d tried to give us privacy. That, or we’d made them so incredibly uncomfortable they couldn’t bear to look at us anymore. Either way, it didn’t matter.

“Anyone want to explain how I transfer my magic to Ethan?” At the sound of my voice, they all turned.

Mrs. Melrose walked over to me. “I can help you.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Melrose.”

“I suppose you should start calling me Eileen outside of school.”

“I’m not sure I can do that.” Calling teachers by their first names was weird. And while Mrs. Melrose wasn’t a teacher, she still worked in the school. “Besides, are you planning to hang out with us a lot outside of school?” I was grateful to each and every one of them for helping Ethan, but again, they were teachers. The weird factor was still there.

Mr. Ryan laughed. “Relax, Sam. We don’t plan on moving in on your coven or trying to play a parental role here. But we’d be happy to help you all learn more about your powers, if you’re interested.”

“More teaching?” Shannon rolled her eyes. “Lovely.” At least she seemed to be over her crush on Mr. Ryan.

“So, what do I do?” I asked, trying to get everyone’s focus back on transferring my power to Ethan.

“Wait.” Dylan walked over to me. He turned to Ethan. “Do you mind?”

I had no idea what he was asking. Mind what? But Ethan nodded. After everything we’d been through, he trusted Dylan—or maybe it was just that Ethan trusted me.

He reached for my hand and held it in his. I felt my cheeks redden, not because I felt something for Dylan, but because I was afraid I was going to have to turn him down in front of a bunch of teachers and Ethan. “Dylan—” I tried to cut him off, but he shook his head.

“Please, let me say this. I should’ve said it a while ago.”

Oh, no. Don’t do this
. He wouldn’t ruin his relationship with Ethan now, would he?

“That vibe you were picking up on, the one that started in the bathroom…”

No! He was really going to say it.

“You weren’t totally wrong. You did sense something. Only it’s not what you were thinking.”

I exhaled, letting out the breath I’d been holding since he’d touched my hand.

“You remind me of her. Mindy.”

I remind him of the girl who cheated on her boyfriend? Who strung him along and tore his heart to shreds? Ouch
.

“I didn’t mean that as an insult.” He seemed to be reading my mind. “She could be really sweet and protective. She had a side to her that was so strong and caring at the same time. But where she lacked loyalty and honesty, you make up for it. You’re like a better version of her. The person I’d thought she could be.” He let go of my hand and looked at the ground. “I’m sorry if my emotions have been up and down where you’re concerned. But sometimes when I looked at you, I saw her.” He met my eyes again. “Now, I see that wasn’t fair to you. You’re your own person, and I’m lucky to have you as a friend. At least, I hope we’re friends.”

I smiled. “We are friends, but we’re more than that, too. We’re family.”

He nodded. “I can handle that.”

“Can we get on with the spell and get our family back to the way it should be?” Shannon asked. “Ethan needs to be one of us again.”

“Wait.” Dylan held his hand up. Now what? “I think Ben would want you to keep his magic. If he’d gotten the chance to know you, he would’ve wanted it this way.”

That was hard to hear. I wasn’t sure the guy I’d killed would want me to have his magic, but I owed Dylan this much. Ben was his brother. Even in death, their bond remained. If Dylan wanted me to keep Ben’s magic, I would. “I’d be honored to keep Ben’s magic.”

Shannon laughed—completely inappropriate and totally Shannon. “How funny is it that Sam’s going to have a guy’s magic and Ethan will have a girl’s?” We all glared at her, including the teachers. She held her hands up. “Sorry, just trying to lighten the mood. Everyone’s getting all mushy and emotional.”

Mrs. Melrose stood behind me and placed her hands on my shoulders. “Ready, Sam?”

I looked at Ethan. “You sure about this? If you go through with this, you’re pretty much stuck with me for good.”

“Then in that case…” he paused, but then he reached for my hands. “I’m positive.”

“Good,” Mrs. Melrose said before I could respond. “Now, the rest of you, form a circle around Ethan and Sam.”

I heard everyone shuffling around, but my eyes were locked on Ethan. He smiled and squeezed my hands. I wanted to kiss him so badly, but I didn’t want to delay the spell any longer. There’d be plenty of time for kissing later.

“Now, everyone repeat after me,” Mrs. Melrose said. “From one to another, grant this magic its new home. Tied forever, each fully in control.”

As we all chanted, with the exception of Ethan, a golden glow surrounded the circle. It built up energy and closed in on Ethan and me. As it touched us, I felt a rush of magic leave through my hands and travel into Ethan. I saw Rebecca’s face in my mind, and as the last drops of her magic left my body, her image disappeared.

Mrs. Melrose let go of my shoulders. “It is done.”

Ethan didn’t hesitate. He scooped me into his arms and kissed me like we were the only two people on Earth. Everywhere he touched me, I felt electrified. His magic was touching mine. The sensation was amazing. I felt lighter than air in his arms. And the best part was that I knew the magic between us was only going to get better.

I’d been through hell more than once, but the universe was finally giving me my magically ever after with Ethan.

Acknowledgements

As always, thank you to Kate Kaynak and the incredible Spencer Hill Press team. I couldn’t be happier to work with you all. Trisha Wooldridge, I love you more with each book we work on together. I know I’ve said it before, but you just get me and the way my mind works. I can’t tell you how amazing it is to read an editor’s comments and have them resonate so much that revisions are fun. Thank you for all you do to make my books the best they can be. To my team of copy editors, Joselle Vanderhooft, Laura Ownbey, and Rich Storrs, your meticulous work on this book is what gives me the confidence to release it into the hands of readers. Thank you for making sure everything is in order and as perfect as possible. To my cover designer, Lisa Amowitz, I think this is my favorite cover you’ve designed for me. You captured Ethan so well and I thank you for that. To Jennifer Allis Provost and Brooke DelVecchio, my marketing gurus, I absolutely love working with you both. Thank you for getting word out about my books.

To my daughter and best bud ever, Ayla, I promise I will let you read these books I dedicate to you one day. Sorry Mommy has to write such dark books before you’re old enough to read them. To my husband, Ryan, you continue to amaze me with your support. I doubt many writers have husbands who tell them not to worry about the bills and just write. It means the world to me. To my mother, Patricia Bradley, thank you for helping me get this book in shape before anyone else saw it. To my father Martin Bradley, you continue to be the best cheering squad I could ask for. Heather DeRobertis, my very talented sister, thank you for your support and for always being there to listen. To my friends and family, thank you for understanding how much writing means to me and for accepting that there are times when I dive into my writing bubble and don’t emerge until a book is finished.

To my street team, Kelly’s Coven, I don’t even know how to express my gratitude. Your support means so much to me, and every day you all remind me why I write. Thank you for continuing to support me and my books. And to my readers and the awesome book bloggers, thank you a million times over for reading my books. I couldn’t be an author without all of you.