Shadow Demons by Sarra Cannon Page B

able to sneak up on me. I wanted to see everything.
    I tried to swallow my panic and connect to the core of my power, but it was hard when my heart was beating so fast. I forced myself to calm down. If only Zara were already here. She was supposed to be teaching me the kind of magic a Prima needed to know in order to protect herself. I opened my mouth and sucked in a long steadying breath. I could do this. Zara had taught me how to connect to my power. I let the breath out, feeling the power inside begin to flow through me.
    My mind went black. All of the day’s worries about Jackson and Brooke and the competition fell away. I kept my eyes open, but inside my mind, I could see a single blue butterfly flapping its strong wings in the darkness. My power spilled out of my core, trickling its cold heat through my veins.
    Now what? I had my power, but unless I was planning on glamouring it to death, I didn’t really know any great spells that could protect me in a situation against the crow witch or a group of the Others.
    A screeching sound rang out above my head. I froze, every muscle in my body tensing.
    Should I make a run for it? Or should I call for help?
    I lifted my hand to my neck. Shit. My necklace was in my bag.
    I’d had to take it off for the competition. It wasn’t part of the official uniform, so Mrs. King had asked us to take off all our jewelry. I should have put it on right after we performed, but it had been such a busy day, I just forgot.
    Shit. Shit. Shit.
    The bag was all the way over by the curb. If I tried to get to it and someone attacked, I wouldn’t have Aerden’s protection. Hell, I wasn’t even sure Aerden would come if I was attacked. He wasn’t there last night, and I still hadn’t been able to make sense of it.
    I concentrated on lifting the bag into the air. I may not have been good at other things, but moving objects with my mind was definitely one of my strongest abilities. The blue bag soared easily into the air a few feet, then began floating toward me.
    Above me somewhere on the roof, the bird crowed again. The bag dropped to the ground with a thud halfway between me and the curb. My hands were shaking. I’d completely lost my concentration.
    If it was the crow witch up there, I wasn’t equipped to handle her right now. I was too tired after a day of cheerleading competitions. I didn’t know enough magic to protect myself against such a powerful witch.
    I needed that necklace. It was my only chance to survive this.
    In my panic, I decided to make a run for it. I shoved off from the brick wall and threw myself on the ground next to the duffel bag. With shaking hands, I unzipped the bag and dumped the entire contents onto the grass. I reached out to search through the clothing when a black crow swooped down. A loud shriek sounded in my ear and a long, poisoned claw reached for my hand. I fell back and screamed.
    The crow’s talons looked long and pointy, and in that moment, I knew the crow witch had come back for her revenge. If she scratched me, I was dead.
    I was too exposed out here in the open. I had to find a place to hide. I stood and ran toward the gym. With all the power I could summon, I pulled the heavy door toward me. The metal groaned as it bent outward. I ripped it from its hinges and hurled it over my head at the crow.
    The door slammed into the bird, and I stared on in amazement as they both tumbled to the ground. I looked down at my trembling hands. What had I done?

It Had To Be There
     
    A single headlight rushed toward the school. All I could do was stand and stare as Jackson jumped off his motorcycle and ran up to me. He grabbed my shoulders, his eyes wide.
    “Are you okay?” he said, looking from me to the broken door. “What happened?”
    A tear rolled down my cheek. I couldn’t stop shaking. “The crow witch,” I said. “She came back for me.”
    Fear filled his eyes. He pulled off his leather jacket and wrapped it around my shoulders. “Where is she?