Page 47

“It's possible that if it belongs to a human, a supernatural hunter,” he offers, and I hum, eyeing the house as if it will reveal the truth for me.

“That wouldn't quite make sense, would it? Not with the remaining coins we’re searching for, supposedly owned by a witch and a vampire. At least, that’s what the original owners were,” I mutter, confused and unsure.

“There's only one way to find out,” Ben says, making his presence known, and I nod.

“What do we do? Do we just break in? Or do we let this play out a bit calmer? Or we could?—”

“Politely, Little Witch,” Wylder interjects, tilting my body to face him.

“We're back in New York. I'm sure you had a great time with the girls when you were here, but you don't have the best track record, and keeping you safe is far more important than getting the coin,” he states, and Blaze grunts.

“Agreed,” he adds, and Ben smirks in amusement.

Without a word, the four of us take the short path to the front door, and as I lift my hand, ready to knock, my cell phone vibrates in my pocket, as does everybody else's.

Distracted, I pull my device out to see a message notification on my screen. Clicking on the text, I gasp with excitement at the picture of a coin with the short message underneath.

Lincoln: Got it. Update when we get back.

I sigh with relief. It was easy enough for them.

It's going to be easy enough for us, too, right? I take a deep breath and knock my clenched fist against the wood before stepping back. Every second spans a lifetime as I wait with bated breath. Just when I’m sure no one is going to answer, the door swings open and I freeze.

Brown hair frames the delicate features of the girl standing before me.

Again.

“Krystal?” I breathe, my veins running icy cold at the sight of her for the second time since I last saw her dead.

She frowns at me nervously, keeping the door almost closed, her face filling in the small gap. “How do you know my name?” she asks, and I glance back over my shoulder, noting the confusion on Blaze's face too.

He steps forward, pressing his chest against my back.

“How are you alive?” he grunts, and she gulps, hand pressing against her chest.

“I’m sorry?” she whispers, and Blaze scoffs.

“Doppelgangers are about the only thing I refuse to believe exist. So how about you tell me how I saw you dead, and now you’re standing here?” His voice is firm and I whack his arm, acutely aware of the fact that he's scaring her.

“I’m so sorry about him,” I interject, plastering what I hope is a strong smile on my face. “I just… we don't mean to be rude, but really, the last time I saw you, you were dead.” I keep my voice as soft as possible, hoping to appear a lot calmer than the vampire behind me.

“Are you aware of how ridiculous that sounds?” she says with a humorless laugh, and my mouth sets in a thin line.

“Sadly,” I admit, running my tongue over my lip. I take another deep breath, trying to get a hold of the situation. “Okay, how about we get to the facts instead of overwhelming you?” I offer, and she nods. “Where were you two weeks ago?”

She frowns, exhaling as her shoulders slump. “In a coma,” she admits, and I gasp.

“Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry.”

She waves a hand, brushing me off. “No, it's okay. I woke up in the hospital alone, no family, no recollection of my life, nothing,” she adds, and my heart literally aches for her.

“I’m so sorry,” I repeat, and amusement dances in her eyes.

“You already said that.”

I smile at her, a genuine one this time, but Wylder steps up to my left, tucking his hands into his pockets as he clears his throat.

“Let's get to the point here, shall we? I don't mean to come off any crazier than these two right here, but do you happen to own something that looks like this?” he asks, flashing his cell phone in her direction, presumably to show her the coin.

“Oh, yeah, it was the only item listed in my personal possessions when I woke up,” she states, disappearing inside before returning a moment later with a black velvet pouch, the coin perfectly nestled inside.

“Holy shit, it really is,” Wylder blurts with a grin, and she smiles from ear to ear.

“Well, I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I'm going to need to take that,” Blaze declares from behind me, dropping the temperature around us, and she shakes her head, instinctively stepping back.

She moves to close the door in our faces.

“No, I'm sorry, but no,” she starts, but before the wood can slam between us, Blaze wedges his foot in the gap, halting her retreat.

Dammit.

This is going to get out of hand.

“No, you guys need to leave,” she insists, panic in her eyes as Wylder presses against the door, forcing it open, and I cringe.

“I’m really sorry, Krystal,” I breathe as Blaze cuts the distance, wrapping his hand around her wrist. He pulls her tighter to him as he maintains eye contact.

“Blaze,” I call out, worry getting the better of me. I don’t want to hurt her, but he pays me no mind as he leans closer.

“Krystal, you're going to give me this coin without argument. You're going to forget you ever had it, and then you're going to go back into your house like none of this ever happened.”

I watch in disbelief as Krystal’s body relaxes and she offers him the coin freely, just as he asked.

The door closes a moment later and he spins with the coin in his hand.

“We need to leave now,” Wylder states, and I shake my head.

“We need to understand more. We can't just leave her here,” I insist, and Wylder plants a hand on my shoulder.

“We have the coins,” he murmurs. But it doesn't feel right. None of it feels right. “We need to go now, Polaris,” he repeats, and my heart aches.

Blaze places the coin in my palm and I subconsciously slip it into my pocket, slightly defeated at the fact that my gain is someone else’s loss.

Not just anybody’s; hers.

A shiver runs down my spine, my gut telling me to stay and talk to her, but when Wylder tugs at my arm, I go.

“I know it’s hard, Little Witch, but we’re one step closer to understanding not only your past, but the history of the curse.”