WendyWhenever I've pictured my death, it always had something to do with lying in bed, old and feeble, my grandkids gathered around me. That, or I figured I'd go out in a car accident like both of my parents.I certainly didn't see myself leaping from a tower, holding the hand of a vampire, while people who want to kill us simply for existing nip at our heels.Alec seems so confident that we wouldn’t drop to our deaths. That, somehow, we would—what? Float into the sky?But here we are, plummeting. My stomach flies into my chest, and a scream rips from my throat. I grip Alec’s hand tighter, and it’s just like they say: my whole life flashes before my eyes.My fifth birthday party. Seeing the ocean for the first time.Reading in the tree in my backyard, the sounds of the neighborhood around me. Looking out the window and waiting for my dad to come home. Seeing the cop car pull up the driveway and knowing my life was about to change forever.The dark ground rushes up to meet u
WendyIce floods my veins, and my legs feel like lead. It's impossible to move them. One of the Silver Hunters whistles, and there's a responding whistle in another part of the woods."You thought you could get away, hm?" A Silver Hunter approaches, and though they all look the same under the helmets, I recognize the voice. He was one of the hunters who tried to stop me in the wishing well.Did they get the Golden Coin?My heart squeezes.If the coin is as powerful as Alec says, if it has the ability to grant immense power and wishes to whomever holds it, would the Silver Hunters even be out here looking for us? Wouldn't they be back at Hawthorn, making plans to fry bigger fish?I lick my lips and take a step back. Alec presses against my shoulder. "Stay back," he growls.The Silver Hunter looks at one of his buddies and chuckles. The hounds are straining at their leashes, several of the hunters using all their strength to hold them back."What are you going to do, boy?" The
TyrStopping at the faded brick alleyway between the art gallery and some pseudo-New Age shop full of pointless crystals and sticks of herbs, I breathe in deep and center myself.This is it. This should be the place.So, why isn't the gateway here?Frowning, I walk along the cobblestones and into a small courtyard. It's quiet, nothing but the gurgling of a fountain fills the air. Even the sounds of the city are muted here."Damn it," I hiss.Apparently, you can't trust the word of someone you met in an underground werewolf bar. The entrance to Dyad Marketplace should be here, right past the—Something glimmers in the bricks on the other side of the fountain. Something bright and shiny.Striding across the courtyard, I approach the bit of metal stuck in the wall. A grin breaks across my face."Perfect." Placing my fingers on the thin strip of metal—something that would appear completely innocuous and meaningless to any basic person walking by—I speak the incantation. "Aperta
WendyFlames lick the sky, and smoke chokes the air. I push through the haze, my eyes burning from the heat. All around me, the walls are on fire.“Wendy!”My heart lunches. That voice! It’s Brynn!“Brynn!” I whirl around, looking for the first friend I made at Hawthorn. I haven’t seen her since we split up when the Silver Hunters attacked the school, and since then, I’ve constantly been wondering if she’s okay. Or if she’s even alive."Where are you?" I yell."I’m here! Help!"I spin around again, and suddenly, I'm in the wishing well. The cool water dances, and at the very bottom of the well, the Golden Coin sparkles."Up here!" Brynn calls.I lean back and catch sight of her at the very top of the stairs. She clutches the railing and looks down at me, her eyes wide and panicked."Hold on!" I run up the stairs."Hurry! They're coming!"A looming figure appears behind her shoulder, and my breath catches in my throat. I want to scream, to warn her, but it's like my voice
HeatherSomething creaks nearby, and I stiffen, every muscle in my body going tight. It's like there's a hand around my lungs. I can't breathe. I can't move.I'm a coward. The lowest of the low.Biting my lip, I peer through the crack in the ceiling. Several Silver Hunters walk down the top floor hallway, their swords in hand.So, they're still patrolling the school.Are they ever going to leave? Or do they just live here now?Tears fill my eyes, and I shut them, wishing all of this would just go away. None of it seems real. None of it is fair.What did I ever do to deserve this? I was just sleeping in my bed, minding my own business ... and then came the explosions and the screams.I tried to go out my dorm window, but there were Silver Hunters in the courtyard. They would have seen me if I escaped that way.So, I did the only thing I could do. I hid.The attic crawl space, separate from the main attic, has always been my secret spot. The only way to get into it is through
Wendy"I think that's deep enough." Alec stands back and wipes his brow, leaving a smear of dirt on his forehead.I twist my lips at the hole we've dug. We both know it could be deeper, but we've already hung around in one spot for an hour. We're pushing our luck when it comes to evading the Silver Hunters.There's an awkward moment as we stand there. Professor Trowles's body is next to the hole, her eyes closed and her face pale. All of her energy and sparkle is gone. She's nothing but a husk of the person she was.Anger and sadness ripples through me. I barely even knew her, but she was one of the few people at Hawthorn who welcomed me in with open arms. She didn't whisper when I entered a room or treat me like I had the plague.Which one of the Silver Hunters was responsible for her death?My fingers curl into the dirt. I want to find that person. I want to make them pay for what they did.Energy courses through my veins, and I close my eyes and focus on my breathing. I'm d
WendyBecause it seems like the best place to go when you need information, we head for the local library. After an hour of looking through archived news articles, we shift to the computers and try online searches."No Igor Rhodes anywhere in Maine." Sighing, I sit back in the chair and stare at the library's computer screen.Next to me, Alec's face bunches. He's been on his own computer, looking for leads."I guess he's someone who doesn't want to be found," he says.I scrub my face. The internet should be our best bet for locating someone, and yet it's taken us to a dead end."We just need to ask around some more," I say.He nods, but there's no spirit in it. We've already tried asking around. If only we knew where to start, maybe we'd have a chance. Instead, it feels like we're randomly bouncing around this city.A bell rings, and a voice comes over the speakers announcing that the library will close in ten minutes."Anyway, we can't stay here." I reluctantly close my bro
Wendy"You're sure this is it?" Alec asks.I check the address on the scrap of paper. Check it again."Yep." Nodding at the mailbox, I stuff the paper into my pants.Alec rubs his head. "I don't know. This seems off."It's hard to disagree with that. The address the old woman gave us brought us to an old warehouse. The place is definitely abandoned, and the whole place has a creepy vibe.The fence surrounding the warehouse is twisted like a pretzel. The chain link has tarnished with age, the metal corroding and warping. A tree has found purchase on the fence and grown halfway over, branches reaching out towards the warehouse as if to throttle it. The old warehouse has been abandoned for a long time, with smashed windows and a cracked sign.It looks like no one has stepped foot in this place for years.So, why would Igor Rhodes be here?Anger rises in my chest. "We came all this way for nothing," I grumble.That woman must have been lying. She tricked us into giving her that