Page 33

Chapter 33

Unwanted Guests

A s Natalie speeds to CSAMM, I perch forward in the back seat, poking my head up between her and Hazel.

“Do you think I’m right?” I ask, catching my breath. “That the Madsens are going to try to infiltrate CSAMM?”

Natalie’s jaw works. “It’s a theory we should take seriously. Did Freddie say anything else to make you think this?”

I sift through memories of our conversations. Nothing specific comes to mind, but this is about more than the words he said. “Look, I know it might sound weird, but sometimes, I can read people in a way that’s hard to explain.”

“You know I don’t think it’s weird,” Natalie says.

“Yeah, it’s useful,” Hazel chimes in.

My cheeks heat up. “Right. People just don’t take me seriously when I say—”

“You’re an empath,” Natalie says. “I believe you. What did you sense in Freddie?”

Fidgeting under her vote of confidence, I run my fingers along the coarse seam on the back of her seat. “It was scattered the couple of times we met. Like, one minute he’s a normal guy, friendly even, and the next, I want to back away. All I know is he’s dangerous. When we talked on the phone, he seemed genuinely convinced that something big was about to go down.”

Natalie exhales slowly. “And what would give him the audacity to think he could take on a building full of witches?”

“Exactly.”

“Jesus.” Natalie rubs her neck. “I think you’re right.”

I suck in a breath. As relieved as I am that she believes me, I’d rather not be right about this.

Sweat prickles on my back. I shed my bulky jacket, leaving a green t-shirt that still feels too hot.

Natalie taps the dash display, making a call. Skylar Zacharias appears, and the loud ringing attacks my ears.

“Your sister is in your phone as Skylar Zacharias ?” I ask flatly. “What am I in there as?”

She arches an eyebrow, confusion plain. “Uh, Katie Alexander?”

I scoff, thinking of the number of heart emojis and nicknames in my contacts.

Hazel turns in the passenger seat to meet my eye, a knowing smile on her lips.

The ringing stops, and Sky’s voice fills the car. “What’s up?”

“How’s the mission?” Natalie asks.

“A bust so far. No sign of Freddie.”

“Listen, I’m with Katie and her friend. They got hit with a curse.”

“Oh, shit. Are they okay?”

“Yeah, but it was a close call. Sky, we think the Madsens might be trying to distract us so they can break into CSAMM.”

She snorts. “Good luck to them.”

“That’s the thing. Katie thinks they might’ve gotten access to magic.”

A pause. “How?” Sky asks, a sharpness in her tone .

“We don’t know.”

“They’re after bio magic,” I cut in. “I think this is what Freddie meant by a plan in motion. The sighting was a false alarm—a lure to get you to leave CSAMM.”

Sky hisses. “Dammit. I knew something was… We’re on our way back.”

She hangs up.

Hazel slumps lower in her seat. “I have no idea what any of that meant, but consider me confused and terrified.”

Neither Natalie nor I have any reassuring words.

She pulls over at the steam clock, and we scan the area. No signs of the Madsens or anything amiss.

We get out, and before Hazel climbs into the driver’s seat, I stop her for a hug.

“Be ready to get out of here in case things go south,” I say into her shoulder.

She leans back, searching my face. “Are you sure I can’t help—”

“I need you to go get Ethel. You’re her godmother.”

She dips her chin and gets in, looking tiny and fragile in Natalie’s car. As she pulls the seat all the way forward and adjusts the mirrors, Natalie steps up beside me.

“Ready?” she murmurs.

I meet her dark eyes, finding a storm that reflects everything going on inside me.

I nod.

With a last look at Hazel, I back up and lean into Natalie. She slides an arm around my waist and tugs me against her, and we walk toward the steam clock.

The world distorts, as dizzying as ever, and I press closer to her for support.

CSAMM’s brick hallway ripples into form—and as we land, the ground jolts beneath my feet. I stumble, my heart slamming into my ribs as a quake rattles the world. The ivy on the walls twitches, bricks groaning and cracking.

I look up at the arched ceiling, grabbing Natalie’s arm as the corridor threatens to cave in and bury us alive.

As the tremor settles, a cloud of dust drifts toward us from the lounge. I cough. “Wh-what was—?”

An alarm pierces my eardrums, an oscillating howl that sends a chill to my core.

Natalie’s jaw is slack, her gaze unfocused, like she’s in shock.

“Earthquake!” Someone’s shout is all but drowned beneath the wailing alarm. “Everybody out! Let’s go.”

Natalie breaks into a run, and I hurry to follow, sprinting down the hall. The noise fills my head, smothering our footsteps and rasping breaths.

In the lounge, dust prickles my nose, a haze obscuring the air. Thunder rumbles through my bones that might be falling bricks. People rush through the debris toward the exit, indiscernible figures that could be anyone.

“Millie!” Sebastian shouts, his voice breaking.

“I’m here!” Millie yells.

The panicked cries spike my pulse, my every sense on edge. Natalie sweeps an arm out and pushes me behind her as people stampede past—five, ten, twenty witches heading in the opposite direction toward the steam clock.

Natalie reaches into the crowd to pull someone out. “Will. That wasn’t an earthquake.”

Will stares back, searching Natalie’s face as he processes her words. His gaze darts to me, a flicker of blame in his furrowed brow, as if this somehow has to do with me. But then, to my surprise, he says, “Beginning to think I was wrong about you. Good to have you back. ”

A strange sensation trickles through my heart. Before I can think of a response, Fiona’s voice rises over the din.

“Not an earthquake?” Through the haze, she lifts her hands toward the ceiling, mending a large crack in the bricks. She catches Natalie’s eye and arches an eyebrow. “What was it, then?”

Natalie flicks her hand toward the corner as if to throw something, and the alarm quiets. The room descends into a ringing silence, footsteps fading down the hall as people rush to the exit.

And there—another sound. Footfall, but moving away from us, along with…

A chill sweeps through me.

A panting dog, and heavy paws thundering across the hard floor.

“Madsen!” Natalie roars. “Security breach! Every available person to the lounge!”

Screams break out. There’s a flurry of movement as the remaining people gather closer.

“What do you mean?” Fiona snaps. “They can’t possibly—”

Freddie’s laugh echoes off every surface in the crumbling room. I grit my teeth, fury coursing through me at the sound of him—this man who almost killed my best friend.

“Freddie!” Natalie breaks into a run. “You’ve made a mistake coming here.”

Will sprints after her, his hands raised as he summons rubble to use as a weapon.

I’m numb, my body and mind disconnecting. It’s really happened. Freddie Madsen has breached CSAMM.

I race after Natalie, wishing I could do magic, wishing I could do anything to help.

“You all should’ve left when you had the chance,” someone yells, and before I can process who said it and what it means, an explosion ahead rattles the world .

Shrapnel stings my face. I throw my arms up, catching the rest with my forearms. The ground jolts, and my knees crack against it, followed by a stab of pain in my wrists. The heels of my hands skid across rocky debris.

Coughing on grit, I stay down, trying to get oriented.

Someone lets out a terrible scream.

“Wh-what’s going on?” I choke out, my voice faint beneath a hollow whoosh in my ears.

I try to stand, but my knee bumps something soft. I look over—and cry out, recoiling. It’s a person . Someone is lying on the floor.

“Oh my God…” I crawl closer, grabbing their arm. “Are you okay?”

White skin, brown hair, short beard…

“Katie?” Natalie says, her voice distant and panicked.

I’m frozen, not comprehending what I’m seeing.

It’s Will . His eyes are open, glassy.

I scream, letting go of him and falling back onto my hands. “Natalie! Will is— He’s—”

“What? No!” Natalie drops to her knees beside me. “Will!”

The world tilts. My stomach churns, acid rising.

“Everyone, back up, or you’ll be next,” a high voice snaps.

“N-Natalie, he’s dead,” I say numbly, the words choking me.

I knew the Madsens were capable of murder, and I’ve seen with my own eyes how dangerous they can be, but to see Will dead on the floor…

Natalie grabs my arm, her grip painful, and pulls me to my feet. My legs threaten to give out, trembling as I lean into her.

Wyatt barks frantically, the sound reverberating through the lounge.

“The Shadows are on their way back!” Natalie shouts. “Surrender before you get hurt.”

“They’ll be just in time to see the end of the coven’s reign,” Oaklyn says, raising her dagger. “ God , it feels good to be on a level playing field for once. ”

Three people come into view against the far wall—Freddie standing with Wyatt crouched between his legs, Oaklyn with her dagger, and a middle-aged woman with fair skin and white-blonde hair woven into a thick braid. She can only be Sophia.

Across from them, Fiona, Sebastian, Millie, Agnes, and Amir stand with their backs to the courtyard, breathing hard and coughing.

My heart plummets into my feet. Everyone else must have left the building. Between the curses planted to get the Guardians out, the fake sighting to lure away the Shadows, and the quake to force out the remaining witches, the Madsens have tricked CSAMM into clearing the way for them.

Freddie catches my eye and cocks an eyebrow as if to say, Told you so .

I scowl back, my teeth clenched.

Sophia Madsen steps forward, her full lips twisted into a cruel smile. Between her high cheekbones, flawless skin, and piercing blue eyes, it’s easy to see where Freddie and Oaklyn got their looks. She looks like she’s one musical number away from being a real-life snow queen. But there’s nothing beautiful about the way she’s sneering. “Show us where you store biological magic, and nobody else has to get hurt.”

Wyatt’s low growl ripples over my skin, raising the hairs on my arms. He flashes his gleaming fangs, his hackles rising as he waits for a command.

Fiona steps out from the witches, blood on her cheek. “You’re a guest in our house, Sophia, and I don’t think you’re in a position to be making demands.”

She twitches her fingers, and in a blink, an iron sconce rises from the rubble and rockets toward the Madsens.

Oaklyn is quick with her dagger, snatching the sconce out of the air with a long, whip-like root .

“Well done, sweetie,” Sophia purrs, a purple glint in her eyes. She raises her arms, her manicured hands curled like claws. “That’s no way to treat a guest.”

A wooden table groans and cracks, lifting into the air.

Well, we know which Madsen is in possession of earth magic.

Natalie and several others react, and the table disintegrates into splinters before Sophia can use it as a weapon.

Sophia grins, undeterred. She’s been waiting for this for decades, and she’s enjoying every second of it. “All we need is a tiny hint.” Her voice ripples through the lounge. “We could search each corridor, but it would be a shame to have to render the whole building into this state.”

“Don’t let them move,” Fiona barks. “Block everything. Whatever it takes.”

The witches turn their attention to the corridors, lifting rubble and furniture in the air to barricade them as quickly as possible. Plants weave into nets, and bricks stack to form new walls.

“You must be a Director,” Sophia says to Fiona with a little bow of her head. “Kids, have her share where they hoard their magic supply.”

Oaklyn flicks her dagger like a whip, and Freddie shouts, “Get ’em!”

Roots snap out of the dagger like tentacles. Wyatt rockets toward Fiona.

Natalie and the others respond, raising a wall of rubble to block the attack and launching pieces of it like bullets.

“Push them back to the exit!” Fiona shouts.

Sophia’s lips curl into a twisted smile as the lounge explodes into chaos, debris flying. Natalie steps in front of me to shield me from it. Still, a sharp sting hits my shoulder, followed by a warm trickle of blood.

I hiss. Adrenaline surges through my veins, telling me to run, to hide, to do something. “Natalie, I need the gauntlet.”

To my surprise, she nods and pushes me back. “Agreed.”

Dust swirls, filling my nostrils and turning the air opaque, making it hard to see where the Chambers corridor is. “It’s still in my room.”

Natalie shakes her head. “When you left, Elizabeth had to vacate your suite. I grabbed your stuff and kept it safe.” She takes my hand, tugging me with her. “Come on.”

We follow the rush of people barricading the corridors. Furniture and rubble continue to pile up.

As we cross the lounge, barking erupts, the pitch higher than Wyatt’s boom. The French bulldog, Greg, tears inside from the courtyard, yapping his head off. Wyatt barks back, his jaws snapping, but Greg is quick and bites at the larger dog’s heels.

“Greg, get out!” Agnes yells, adding to the din.

Natalie pushes past her toward the Chambers corridor. “We need to get through.”

Agnes turns her bulging eyes onto us, her pigtails in disarray, her teeth bared. “Where do you think you’re —”

“Bring back something useful, Natalie!” Fiona shouts from nearby. “Agnes, let her through.”

Ignoring Agnes’s outrage, Natalie uses magic to open a hole in the barrier, just big enough for us to slip through. The ease of passing through it doesn’t bode well for Sophia being able to do the same… But at least it’ll impede Freddie and Oaklyn.

Beyond it, I sprint after Natalie, gritting my teeth against the throbbing pain in my ankle. The roar of the fight fades into the distance, replaced by my ringing ears and loud, frantic breaths. We follow a maze of hallways to a four-way intersection with a street lamp in the middle. There, she leads me to a corner suite with the number 52 on the door.

My heart skips. Finally, I get to see Natalie’s room—and it’s on the day this whole building might be destroyed.