Page 15 of How to Charm a Coven (How to Flirt with a Witch #2)

“ T hink Sophia’s here to kill us or get the chimera?” I ask, sucking in rattling breaths, the salt air burning my lungs.

Beside me, Natalie follows my gaze to our guest, her body tensing. “Shit. Probably both.”

Great. This mission just went from catch-or-jail to catch-or-die.

While Natalie tries to force the bird downward, Sophia advances along the brick boardwalk with her arms out.

Her fingers curl like claws, raising a swirl of debris to match Natalie’s.

Her white-blonde braid whips in the wind like a snake ready to strike.

She looks way too confident for someone who’s been a witch for barely three months.

“Wish I’d known you planned to visit our vacation house yesterday,” she shouts over the rumbling train. “We would have prepared the guest room for you.”

“Keep her busy,” I tell Natalie, edging toward the bird. The sensation of magic is overwhelming, slamming into me from all directions, and I fight to stay focused .

Natalie dips her chin and faces Sophia, the air crackling as she prepares to unleash her magic. “Sorry we left the place a bit messy. Nothing insurance won’t cover, I’m sure.”

I inch closer to the bird, which Natalie is forcing lower beneath the vortex of debris, but it’s still too high. Sophia’s gaze snaps to me, and then overhead, her eyes narrowed and calculating.

“A little cold for a beach day,” Natalie says, pulling her attention back.

Sophia chuckles. “I’ve got eyes everywhere, honey. A chimera shows up, and I know within the hour.”

I lift the net, but it’s like trying to catch a bullet.

Natalie barks out a humorless laugh. “Eyes everywhere, huh? Too bad that hasn’t helped you catch one. Must be frustrating, failing over and over.”

“Failing?” Sophia sneers. With a flick of her wrist, wood splinters fire at Natalie like a swarm of arrows.

Natalie redirects one of her hands to raise a shield. But her divided attention isn’t enough to protect her, and she grunts, stumbling back.

Bright red lines appear on her face. My heart lurches into my throat.

“Natalie!” I abandon the chimera and race toward her. The sight of her blood makes any other priority fade away.

“Katie, don’t,” she says firmly. “Remember why we’re here.”

I freeze, torn between what I’m supposed to do and the need to protect her. “You’re hurt,” I choke out.

“Go!” She wipes her eyes and smears blood across her face. “I can handle—”

Sophia sends another barrage at Natalie, who struggles to deflect it. Overhead, the cone around the bird breaks apart.

My chest constricts. Dammit, Sophia was talented with magic last time I saw her, but has she gotten even better? The ground beneath her feet cracks with each step as the earth bends to her power .

“I know the coven sent Guardians to Whistler this morning,” she snarls, her eyes blazing purple. “I know where a dozen chimeras are and how they’re migrating. I know Katie arrived at YVR on Tuesday at 3:46 P.M., and you, Fiona, and two Shadows were there to greet her.”

My insides turn to ice. Has Sophia been watching us? Or is she paying other people to watch us?

Natalie falters, red rivers trickling down her cheeks and neck, and the bird seizes its chance to blast through a gap and away from us.

White-hot anger mixes with the fear in my gut, churning and unsettled.

I want to hurt Sophia for everything she’s done to Natalie—and seeing the blood streaming down her perfect face only makes it worse.

My nails dig into my palms, a tremor passing through me.

I step forward, torn over which direction to run.

Then, like a shimmering mirage, a cheetah takes form again, bolting away across the rocky beach.

“Don’t lose it, Katie!” Natalie grits out as she barely deflects another attack. A chunk of concrete slips past her shield and slams into her shoulder, making her cry out.

The sound lances through me. But she’s right—I can’t let it get away.

Fighting every instinct to sprint over and defend her, I force myself to chase after the chimera. Each step away from Natalie feels wrong, like I’m tearing myself in half. My legs are slow and clumsy, but I push on, desperate not to lose it.

Both Natalie and Sophia send obstacles into the chimera’s path before returning their attention to each other. Sophia’s movements are chillingly casual as she sends boulders flying. The world fills with debris like we’re stuck in a tornado. All that’s missing is a cow.

“Leave this chimera to me, and I’ll stop fighting you,” Sophia growls, her long fingers stroking the air as she manipulates her surroundings .

“Aw, afraid you’ll lose?” Natalie taunts, but I don’t miss the hitch in her words as she deflects a chunk of concrete. Blood and sweat trickle down her face, but she can’t afford to drop her hands to wipe it away.

The cheetah makes it to the water and transforms into a seal, diving through the shallow tide toward the open ocean.

My stomach drops. “No!”

I change course and sprint back to the pier, determined not to lose it.

Rocks rain down in front of the seal like meteors, slowing its pace. I can’t tell if it’s Natalie or Sophia doing it, but it doesn’t matter—I’m the one with the net, and I’m the one who’s going to catch it.

God, I have to catch it.

My feet pound on the wooden planks as I follow the seal’s path. Rocks continue to rain down, forcing it closer.

“Yes, keep doing that!” I shout, not daring to look back and lose sight of the dark shape beneath the surface.

I slam into the railing, knocking the wind out of me, and unfurl the net—but the seal vanishes under the pier.

“Katie, hurry!” Natalie shouts, her voice strained as she holds Sophia back. The desperation in her tone cuts through me.

“I know!” My heart is beating out of my chest as my strategy dissolves into don’t miss and don’t die.

I race to the other railing and climb up, wobbling as I lean over with the net ready. The cold spray hits my face, mingling with my sweat.

Abruptly, the net jerks in my hands like it’s being pulled. I tighten my grip, nearly losing my balance. “Hey!”

Back where I came from, Sophia is forcing Natalie back with a park bench—and one of her hands is extended my way.

Oh crap. She’s not only here for the chimera—she wants the net.

And based on how easily she’s deflecting Natalie’s attacks, there’s a chance she might get it. It tugs again, and I keep a tight hold, jumping off the railing before she can send me tumbling into the frigid water .

The train is coming to its end, the last car visible along the shore. We’re running out of time—and I’ve lost sight of the chimera beneath the waves.

A chunk of wood rips up at my feet, and I hop aside to avoid the gaping hole.

“Katie, get off the pier!” Natalie shouts, her voice strained with the effort of fending off Sophia. Even in the midst of a fight, she’s thinking of me first—always protecting me, always putting me before her.

My eyes prickle. Bundling the net tightly in my arms, I do what she says and break into a run.

The pier disintegrates beneath me, making me stumble as I sprint for safety.

Fuck, Sophia ruined my chance. The chimera is probably halfway across the bay.

But maybe that doesn’t matter right now—not when we’re being destroyed by a woman who shouldn’t be this powerful.

Her magic is so strong I swear I can see it, like purple mist emanating from her pores.

As she sends a hunk of the pier at Natalie, knocking her off her feet, it’s sickeningly clear that we might not make it out of this alive.

Sophia laughs, taking pleasure in watching Natalie cough and splutter on the rocks. My vision narrows, a haze creeping in at the edges. I’ve never wanted to hurt someone so badly before. If I had magic right now, I’d use every drop of it to make Sophia pay.

The ripping pier trips me as I reach the end, and I fall to my knees, pain jolting through my legs.

“You can’t protect her forever, Natalie!” Sophia sings.

There’s a pause—a heartbeat of absolute stillness. A ripple passes over me from head to toe as something shifts in the wind. I suck in a breath as if it’s my first gulp of oxygen after my head was trapped underwater.

The air crackles like we’re in a thundercloud as Natalie straightens up, her chest heaving, blood streaming from a dozen cuts. Even from here, I catch the spark of fury in her eyes—a dangerous flash of purple to match Sophia’s.

I’ve seen Natalie angry, but there’s something different now. I’m looking at a witch whose father was tortured and whose mother was killed by the woman standing before her. And now Sophia just threatened my life too.

At the look on Natalie’s face and the low, rumbling quake beneath us, Sophia’s sneer falters.

I get to my feet, backing away on shaky legs.

With a roar, Natalie sweeps out her arms, and the ground under Sophia ruptures. Bricks rise out of the boardwalk like a tidal wave, concrete splits and reforms into deadly spikes, and the rocky beach surges upward in a violent explosion that knocks Sophia off her feet.

Sophia lands with a shriek, flinging her hands out to catch herself.

“Not so confident now?” Natalie advances, gathering more ammunition, until even the train beside us shakes with the force of her power.

A surge of victory hits me as Sophia scrambles back on her hands, shouting in pain as the bricks roll over her. She tries to deflect, but Natalie is relentless, sending an endless torrent of brick and stone at Sophia while she’s down.

“You think because you stole magic, you understand it?” Natalie’s voice carries over the chaos. “Magic isn’t just power—it’s sacrifice. It’s protection.” She sends a precise attack, burying Sophia under more rubble. “It’s everything you’ll never understand.”

Awe ripples through me—and like before, a twinge of fear as a different side of Natalie breaks through.

This is the part of her I’ll never fully grasp, the magic flowing through her veins that I can sense but never have.

In moments like this, the gap between us feels enormous…

And yet, somehow, it was my name on Sophia’s lips that unleashed this storm .

Her chest heaves and sweat beads on her face as she lifts her arm for another blow—but the last train car rumbles past, giving us an audience again.

Under the gazes of at least thirty people on the other side of the railway crossing, Natalie hesitates, her arm still raised. Her face twists in frustration as the desire to stop Sophia butts up against her duty to keep magic hidden.

A car engine revs. Behind the crowd, a silver Toyota FJ Cruiser turns off the road and motors down the concrete steps toward the pier like an advertisement for a four-wheel drive vehicle. The crowd splits in a panic, shouting and grabbing each other.

My stomach drops. Oaklyn.

“Natalie, look out!” I scream.

The car swerves onto the pedestrian path, tires squealing as it barrels toward Natalie. She spins, but there’s not enough time to raise a shield. She dives aside, rolling over the broken beach while the car misses her by inches.

I gasp, my legs weak. The image of what could have happened flashes before my eyes, and I shake it away, forcing my feet to move.

Sophia blasts free from the rubble and limps to the car. As she whips open the passenger door, the deep bark of a German Shepherd with a grudge fills the air, and I stop dead, ready to catapult myself into the nearest dumpster.

But Sophia pushes Wyatt back and climbs in. I catch a glimpse of her face—no longer sneering and confident, but pale with fear. It’s the look of someone who just realized they’re not the most dangerous person in the fight.

The engine revs, rocks spitting out from under the tires as Oaklyn drives away.

Natalie raises her hands.

“Don’t,” I say, glancing at the crowd .

She stands frozen, trembling as she watches them escape. For a moment, it looks like she might run after the car and unleash another attack—her body is as tense as a drawn bow. But then her gaze finds mine, and she softens, the purple fire in her irises dimming.

They leave us with shattered bricks, twisted metal, splintered wood, and a lot of explaining to do.

Not to mention a missing chimera.

“Fuck,” I say under my breath, loosening my grip on the net. At least she didn’t get it from us.

Natalie growls in frustration and strides over. “You—okay?” she asks between ragged breaths, scanning me for injuries. The purple in her eyes is gone, replaced by concern so intense it makes my chest ache.

“Fine. But the chimera got away.” Another step closer to prison.

“The least of our worries.” Natalie pulls me into her strong arms, trembling. “Good job keeping the net safe.”

It hardly feels like a victory worth celebrating. Our first attempt is over, and we failed. Plus, now that Sophia knows we have the net, how long will we be able to protect it?

“Hey,” Natalie says softly, pulling back to meet my eyes. Her brow is pinched, her gaze tender beneath all the blood and dirt streaking her face. “This was only our first try. We’ll be okay.”

I blink, but it’s too late to hide the way my eyes are stinging and wet. Every one of her cuts and bruises is agony to see.

Before I can put on a brave face, she cups my cheek and kisses me.

It’s unhurried and desperate, stealing my breath.

Her lips are soft and salty. For a moment, the world falls away—no chimeras, no Madsens, no looming prison sentence.

Just Natalie, solid and real in my arms, her heart beating strong against mine.

When we break apart, she takes my hand, our damp and gritty fingers interlacing. “We need to get out of here before someone asks why Animal Control caused thousands in property damage. I’ll have Sky come by to fix all this.”

Leaving the beach in shambles, I follow her, the warmth of her palm a small comfort as disappointment sits heavy in my gut.

But really, did I ever have a chance of catching the thing, even if Sophia hadn’t interfered?

Aside from the chimera’s ability to shift into a bug the second I threw the net at it, I was getting in my own way. Hesitating.

Not to mention hearing voices.

I need to figure out what’s going on…and what this might mean for our plan to ca pture magic.