Page 115 of Black and White, Twice the Might

Suddenly, from inside we hear a scream. I bolt for the barn, as more screaming is heard, wishing now that we had parked closer.

I’m not really taking any interest in the barn; I’m more concerned about what could be happening inside.

The wolves race past me and reach the barn first; I run in next and slide to a stop.

Sly stands there laughing, as his family are either huddled together or unconscious on the ground.

I feel the others run into the barn and stop by me.

“So, we weren’t needed then,” Titus says, looking around.

I rush over to Sly. He opens his arms, and we hug. I pull back and look at his face, touching his cheek. “Are you alright, babe?”

Sly nods. “Physically fine, but apparently you brainwashed me.”

“Damn, and here I was hoping you’d never find out,” I reply, grinning at him.

“Are the boys, okay?”

I nod. “Yeah, they phoned me, and John is looking after them.”

He breathes a sigh of relief. “Thank goodness.”

A man suddenly laughs.

I turn to look at him. He looks like an older version of Sly, but with mean eyes and a snarl on his face.

“This is just perfect; I couldn’t have planned this better if I had tried.”

Sly steps forward. “What have you done, Father?”

“Watch and learn, boy,” he spits out.

I have a really bad feeling about this, and as quickly as I can, I throw my magic out to protect my friends. I feel the other true witches doing the same, when suddenly there is a loud explosion all around us, blowing us off our feet. I hear some screams of pain, then nothing.

I look around and see the shield we set has kept us all safe, as fire rages outside of our protection.

“Anyone hurt?” I ask, as Sly and I stand up, brushing each other down.

“Nope, looks like we were all just blown off our feet,” Sal replies, standing up.

The true witches check their partners and let us know the wolves are also fine.

“Do you think that explosion killed your family?” Nix asks softly.

Sly shakes his head. “Not if they had any sense, but this is my family we’re talking about, so who knows. Let me deal with the fire, and then we can see.” With that, he mutters a spell and claps his hands together, and the fire is instantly extinguished.

We all drop our shields and look around; the barn is completely destroyed. I see a couple of bodies that have been burned, but no one else.

Sly is staring at them.

I take his hand. “Who were they?”

“My youngest brother and a cousin. I might not have liked them, but no one deserves to be burned to death. I would say, I can’t believe my family left them behind, but this is my family, I’m surprised there aren’t more bodies, to be honest.”

“What do you want done with their bodies?” Elliot asks gently, coming up and standing next to Sly, a hand on his shoulder.

“We can bury them somewhere well away from Cadenbury,” he replies.