And the silence from my Coven-mates was deafening.
There were no jokes. No laughter. No hushed voices or whispers. Just silence.
They were scared. I felt it in their auras prickling on my back. Tennessee and Tegan walked in front of the group, with me and Riah right behind and the rest of our group behind us. Our Coven Leaders may have walked with their heads high and shoulders back but I doubted any of us missed the emerald green shade of their soulmate glyphs. They were anxious and worried. Their pulses were high.
I glanced down at my chest to the aquamarine heart-shaped crystal and tears stung my eyes. Happy tears, for the first time in a long time. This shade of our glyph meant our love was so old and strong it could withstand anything. All I wanted to do was rejoice in this moment with my soulmate and celebrate…but I could not let myself be happy while one of our own was down.
Especially one that was related to me.
Kenneth had always reminded me of my little brother Cyrus. He was the spitting image of him. This felt like losing him all over again. As if he knew what I was thinking, Riah squeezed my hand tight.
Finally, we stopped outside a stone building that looked like it was part of a castle.
Mother turned to face us and exhaled. “Before we go in…we stabilized him and tried everything we could to revive him but we’ve yet to see a change.”
“Witch’s Shock?” Riah asked quietly.
Mother nodded.
Tegan half-turned and held her hand out. “Bentley?”
The group parted and then little Bentley Bishop came hurrying forward mumbling under his breath. His golden eyes were dark and red, his dark hair disheveled. “…all my fault.”
“We all would take the hit to protect each other, Benny,” Tegan said as she wrapped her arm around his shoulders. “Let’s just see if we can help him.”
Tennessee cleared his throat. “We’re ready when you are, Myrtle.”
She smiled, nodded, then pushed the doors open and walked inside.
Riah and I followed Tennessee, Tegan, and Bentley through the door, but then my steps faltered. I had known he’d gotten Witch’s Shock from saving Bentley a few months back and that he had not recovered as of yet, but I had deeply prayed he would’ve been on the mend. I wasn’t even inside the room fully and the sickness of his aura stung my eyes.
The room was a pristine white from the floors to the walls and ceilings and even the furniture. It wasn’t a large room, there was only one bed with a single chair beside it, but the windows in the two walls on either side of him made it feel bigger. The windows were wide open, letting that glorious cool salty breeze sweep through the room. The late afternoon sun filled the air with a soft golden haze.
I sighed as the sudden urge to lay down and take a nap settled in.
Easton groaned. “Damn, Hunter, is that you? Imma nap right here if you don’t stop.”
“That’s not me,” Hunter whispered.
“No, it’s Crone magic.” Riah’s voice was low. “It’s for deep healing.”
And then I saw him…lying in the center of the bed across the room from us.
Kenneth.
His long silver hair was fanned out under his head. He looked alive on the outside, like perhaps he was just taking a nap but something lurked under the surface. The sickness I felt in his aura was a surface wound, the depth of it went deeper into his soul.
I stepped around Tegan and Tennessee and walked straight up to Kenneth’s bed, then took his one hand in both of mine. His skin was dry and cold to the touch despite the thick heat and humidity in the air. A soft blue light shined from his skin, one I didn’t think anyone else could see…it meant he was dying. His soul was preparing to depart his body yet something was holding him back.
I closed my eyes and pushed my magic out. Show me, Kenneth. Let me feel what you feel.
My body went weightless. I felt myself lift off the ground and hover over the bed. A dark, heavy pressure slammed into my chest, knocking the breath from my lungs. It was like someone was lying on top of me, or something. I was pushing and pushing but the object wouldn’t move. Sharp electricity pulsed from my left forearm, even with my eyes closed I saw the light flashing from the Mark on his skin. It crackled and popped like a fire struggling to catch flame. With every passing second I felt weaker and more tired.
Except it wasn’t me feeling that at all. It was Kenneth.
“His soul is weak,” Riah said softly from my side.
I cringed and opened my eyes. Bentley stood across from me, holding Kenneth’s other hand. The rest of The Coven was huddled in the far side of the room, just watching.
“What do you feel, Saffie?” Bentley asked with a strangled voice.
I glanced to Paulina who hid in the far corner of the room. She nodded.
I cleared my throat. “He’s alive but he isn’t strong enough to push through the amount of magic he has—” I gasped then spun back to Paulina. “You sacrificed your Mark to live…”
Paulina frowned but then her brown eyes widened. “Dios mío, yes. Why didn’t I think of that?”
“Ohhhhhhhhh…” Tegan slammed her hand against her forehead. “Idiot. Of course.”
Tennessee narrowed his eyes on me. “Yeah but…Kenneth hasn’t regained consciousness so that we can tell him he can do that.”
I bit my lip and eyed his IX Mark. And then an idea formed. “Can we strip him of his Mark?”
“What?” Cooper shrieked from the far side of the room.
“It’s like Jackson and Deacon told me, most of you have been Coven members since you were kids or so long that you don’t remember life before it. Or you were human. But being a Card in The Coven requires an intense amount of magic running through our veins at all times. It fuels us with power like nothing else yet it can also be the thing that keeps you from living. If the soul is too weak it will not push through.” I pointed to him. “He will never pull through if he’s trying to keep his Mark.”
“But how does he forfeit his Mark if he’s asleep?” Cooper scratched his head. “I’ve already tried going into his dreams but it doesn’t work.”
“I can try—”
“No, Deacon.” Paulina shook her head. “Your magic does not work on those that are not fully living.”
“There’s only one thing we can try here. He’s only got one chance left and not much time to do it.” I looked to two of my closest friends. “You have to strip him of his Mark.”
Tennessee cursed and hung his head.
Tegan frowned.
“It’s his only chance. We remove his Mark and he’s just a civilian, and that’s a lot less magic to push through.”
Bettina rubbed her hands over her arms. “Okay, so how do we remove his Mark?”
“We don’t,” Constance said with a frown.
“They do,” Timothy grumbled. “The Coven Leaders have the ability to strip any Card or civilian of their magic.”
Tegan nodded. “She’s right. This is what we have to do. Babe?”
Tennessee cursed then pushed his hair back. “Okay, yeah. Let’s do it. Let’s strip Kenneth of his Mark.”
I squeezed Kenneth’s hand. Hang on, we’re coming for you.