Blood of Egypt (Witch Fairy Book 8) by Bonnie Lamer Page A

person on the other end of the line responded, the wind has kicked up around us, leaving us in the eye of the storm.  The sand and wind form a wall around us that we cannot see through.  None of the sand is actually touching us, but it’s definitely bringing out my latent claustrophobia.  It’s moving us closer together as it roars faster and harder.
     
    Eliana’s attention is focused on something the rest of us can’t see.  There is something out there that she’s protecting us from.   A threat she was able to detect when neither Kallen nor I could.  If we were dealing with magical creatures, we wouldn’t have been taken by surprise.  We can’t sense human malice, but I’m suspecting Eliana can.
     
    Agent Amman is holding the phone closer to his ear, desperate to hear what is being said through it.  His face is dismal and growing more so by the second.  After a moment, he snaps the phone closed.  He takes a deep breath before he’s able to speak. 
     
    Over the roar of the sand tornado, he says, “We were obviously not supposed to survive this little game.  Since we did, we must wait until morning for his next instructions.”
     
    Meaning, the guy didn’t have a plan B.  Great.  I sure hope he doesn’t take this out on the agent’s wife and daughter.
     
    My attention is dragged from my worrying about that to worrying about the strain on Eliana’s face.  She’s struggling to either keep the sand going or let it go.  I can’t tell which.
     
    I’m not the only one who notices.  “Eliana, what’s wrong?” Josh shouts close to her ear.
     
    “I can’t let it go,” she yells back.
     
    She can’t let it go?  This was something that she was convinced she had perfected control over.  Why can’t she stop it?  As I’m thinking this, the sand begins to move in.  It whips at our hair, our faces, and our bodies.  The crushing pressure of it becomes too much.
     
    Eliana drops to her knees and screams as she tries to gather more power.  I feel Kallen draw magic and he sends it out to her.  She’s surprised at first, but when she feels it flowing through her, she figures out that he’s trying to help.  Josh takes her hand and she climbs to her feet again with his help.
     
    “What’s happening?” Agent Amman shouts.
     
    “I don’t know!” Eliana shouts over the roars of the storm.
     
    Kallen’s face is showing strain now as well.  I can tell that their combined magic is keeping the sand storm somewhat at bay, but it’s not lessening it in the slightest.  I don’t want to do this.  I really, really don’t want to do this, but I don’t have a choice.
     
    I give Kallen and Eliana my best ‘I’m so sorry, but this is going to hurt’ look.  Kallen nods slightly, dread filling his eyes.  Drawing magic up from beneath us, I fill myself with it.  I let it build and build until it must overflow.  Then I push it out.  All of it.  I push it through Kallen and tears flow from my eyes and down my cheeks as I hear his cries of agony.  Then my magic follows the trail of his magic, which he is somehow able to maintain, to Eliana.  She’s never felt my magic.  She has no idea what is about to happen, and I don’t have time to explain it to her.
     
    My magic burns hot and fast as it tears at her from the inside, clawing to get out, reaching out towards her hold on the sand.  Then it clamps on to hers.  She couldn’t let it go now if she tried. 
     
    “What are you doing to them?” Josh yells, dropping to his knees next to Eliana’s collapsed body.  “You’re killing her!” 
     
    My magic has one goal.  Stop the sand.  Let us out.  It takes the power from Kallen.  It takes the power from Eliana.  Like a B rated action movie, it stops the sand.  Instantly.  It falls in a heap around us.
     
    “Stop whatever you’re doing!” Josh yells, even though the sand is no longer making it hard to hear him.
     
    Agent Amman moves in front of me and reaches out