Page 30 of Spellcaster (Weatherstone College #1)

Over the next week, while the college was still filled with council members and elders investigating the attack, I did the

minimum study, shelved personal research, and focused completely on stalking Logan Kingston. Yeah, it broke the pact, but

I was too embarrassed to mention it to the girls. No doubt they’d think it was my obsession with him and not the very real

fear that he was up to something suspicious.

Most of the time I watched Logan and Noah because they had quite the bromance going on. Even conversing in Italian, which generally ended in one of them getting

punched. So I could only assume they liked to sling their joking insults in foreign languages.

It would be adorable, if I wasn’t desperate to know what they were chatting about.

In other regards, I’d learned they enjoyed the gym, working out for two hours every morning, dressed in tanks and shorts.

This was the point I kicked myself for not figuring out this plan earlier—I almost died at the sheer volume of ink on Logan’s

body. I hadn’t gotten close enough to make out any of the images, and I absolutely didn’t want to know.

Liar.

After they tormented me at the gym, they took a swim in the lake, and then attended most of their classes for the day.

It was growing more apparent to me why I never crossed paths with him in general.

He didn’t seem to enjoy the confines of the buildings, spending most of his time outside.

He also never ate breakfast, which was about the closest personality trait I’d seen to finding his psychopath side.

Every other part of him was normal. So. Freaking. Normal.

Normal and powerful. That part was innate, as he went about life as a spellcaster, blessed by the goddess to use the energy

of the world itself. It surprised me how rarely he took shortcuts though. He never used magic to assist in weight training,

which explained the corded muscles under the canvas of his tatted arms. He also never used it to power himself through the

lake as he swam laps. He was disciplined, calculated, and appeared to consider every decision before he made it.

By the time Friday night rolled around, and I was once again staring at the curtains of Nightrealm Hall, I found myself frustrated,

both sexually and otherwise. This was a stupid-as-fuck plan, and it wasn’t working.

Logan was the perfect student during the day, and I couldn’t access his room at night to know what he was up to. My last hope

was to catch him leaving his room at night, which meant I had to sacrifice precious sleep and wait him out. It was risky,

of course. For the first time, my stalking wouldn’t be during daylight hours, but desperate times and all that jazz.

After getting ready for bed, I slept for a couple of hours, groggily coming awake when my alarm beeped at midnight. Dressing

quickly in dark jeans and a black long-sleeved shirt, I threw my sneakers on and made sure the thorny spell was in my pocket.

The last second before I left the room, I grabbed all three of my crystal necklaces, and slipped them over my head. Help me out tonight, Gran , I prayed silently.

This was the first time I’d worn them since returning, and as I pressed them to my skin, there was a buzz of energy along my spine.

I hadn’t had time to delve into the crystal theory yet, but part of me already believed they could elevate my magic.

I hadn’t forgotten that when I got rid of the monster in the graveyard, I’d been wearing a crystal.

My conclusion was that the reason the spell didn’t work the second time was my lack of crystal connection.

Leaving my room, I closed the door quietly and moved as stealthily as I could into the dimly lit hallway. Witch lights were

scattered enough that I could slip into shadows on my way toward Logan’s room.

The curtains were closed as always, and I peered inside to find that there wasn’t a single light in this hall. A void of eternal

darkness. I shook off the tingles along my spine. They weren’t the bad ones yet; this was general unease.

I couldn’t sit outside of his door, so I made my way over to a small window seat in Aura, set in a wall recess. This spot

kept me out of sight but let me view the Nightrealm curtains. Knowing this was going to be a long night, I settled in, wishing

I’d thought of bringing coffee. Even cold leftovers from dinner would have helped.

At some point, despite my best efforts, I drifted in and out of sleep, and this time my dreams were much darker than usual.

Silver tendrils of the inkiness that had filled Nightrealm chased me through an endless hall, and when I jerked awake I realized

that my hands, which were wrapped around the necklaces, were glowing.

Releasing them, I shook my head to clear it, and that’s when I felt it: my warning system was in full swing, the tingles racing

down my spine. Too scared to move, but knowing I had no choice, I shifted forward a few inches and heard a scrape from farther

down Aura.

Holding my breath and praying I’d imagined the sound, I moved slowly until I could peek around the side of the window seat. Please be a student. Even before I saw it, I knew from the energy roaring through my body that my silent plea had failed.

It was another monster, slinking through the hall, moving from shadows to light. Terror choked me, rising from my chest into

my throat, as the horrific creature leaped and landed ten feet away from me. Scrambling to my feet, I blinked as it disappeared

again, almost as if it’d never been fully here to start with.

Too petrified to scream, I groped in my pockets for the vial, and when I pulled it free I popped the lid to remove the thorn.

The monster appeared in the light once more, rearing up on its hind legs. This beast was nothing like the other three, with

antlers, huge and webbed, standing three feet above its head. A head that was cylindrical in shape, and I swore only one huge

eye blinked at me before the creature flickered and then vanished again.

How did it keep vanishing? The others hadn’t done that.

My brain came back online, and I turned to sprint, only for it to reappear and slam its heavy weight onto me, knocking the

air out of my lungs as I landed hard. Feeling my chin split, I cried out and dropped the thorn, but managed to find it again,

almost stabbing myself in the process.

Its weight vanished, and I flipped to my back, to find it flickering into existence once more. This time it attacked, a clawed

front arm emerging from its fur, slicing across my shirt, leaving an agony of burning in its wake. The pain was instant and

excruciating. Shocked cries spilled from my lips, as I forced myself to keep moving.

If I stopped fighting now, I’d be dead in the next few seconds.

I slammed the thorn into its skin, with only a momentary panic that its thick, dark hide might repel the attack. It sank in with ease. My incantation breathless as my power surged, and I fought the pain and darkness dancing on the edge of my vision.

The creature reared up once more, but it didn’t strike, backing away and desperately gnawing at the thorns in its arm. The

spell hadn’t disintegrated the monster as I hoped, but it gave me a chance to escape all the same.

Pulling my body along the floor, leaving an impressive bloody slide that would get a serial killer hard, I managed to gain

some distance and stagger to my feet. Adrenaline kept the pain manageable, and by manageable I meant absolutely destroying me with each step as I clutched my ribs. It was a deep wound, warm blood pulsing against my

hold.

Ragged breaths caught in my chest as I stumbled along the hallway, footfalls quiet against the carpet, which absorbed the

blood dripping from my side.

The edge of my vision grew fuzzy, but I pushed forward, aware that the beast wouldn’t be held off long. Just one more step. Just one more step. It was a haunting melody in my head, urging me on, even as I grew weaker with each of those steps, until those words were

a mere whisper.

I had a small head start thanks to Belle’s spell, but its claws had already done their damage, tearing through my flesh and

embedding deep in my magical essence.

Fear faded with each drop of lifeblood that escaped, and when I stumbled past the curtains, I decided to get off the beaten

path.

Nightrealm Hall.

In my haste to escape one monster, I’d found myself in the lair of another.

With the heat of blood pulsing against my hands as I attempted to keep my insides... well, inside . . . there was still enough life within me to feel fear. Only this fear tasted different, tainted with hate and regret.

Against all common sense, I found myself stumbling to the one door I’d refused to approach before tonight. The only indication

of the powerful and dark being who resided behind it was a carved minotaur in the center of the wood paneling.

With my right hand clutching my ribs, my left rested beside the minotaur as I swayed forward and almost smashed my head on

the frame. When I pulled back, there was a streak of crimson left behind, as if I’d marked this door with my energy. Not that

I really had energy left to do more than sway on the spot.

Lurching dangerously forward once more, the scuffle of the monster sounded close by. With no other option, I dug deep for

the strength to lift my hand and knock, only to find the door opening before I even made contact. Cold air rushed around me,

like a slap in the face, almost waking me up. Almost.

In the doorway stood my enemy.

But tonight I needed him.

To fight a monster, I needed a monster.

Unless he was the one who set it on me in the first place. But still, he was the only warlock strong enough to stop this attack.

His cold gaze traced over me, and that perfect face that haunted my dreams grew harder. I opened my mouth to explain, but

I had nothing left to give. Swaying forward, I fell, expecting to hit the floor. Instead, strong arms wrapped around me, crushing

against the wounds on my side. Even beyond pain, I still felt the weight of his hold.

“Precious?” he murmured, that one word dripping with fury. Maybe it was my sanity failing with my life, but it didn’t sound as if his ire was directed at me. For once. “Who hurt you?”

Logan Kingston pulled me closer, and I knew that this was the defining moment of my existence. He held all the power, and

as darkness won its battle and I closed my eyes, I wondered if my enemy would hand me to the beast or save me.

Time would reveal all, but it seemed I was out of that.

For tonight at least.