Page 40 of Spellcaster (Weatherstone College #1)

“Move faster, Paisley!”

Logan’s voice was a snap, and it took every ounce of my control not to throw the flames in my hands at him. Since the night

our dreams drove us together, Logan and I had fallen into a weird relationship. There’d been no repeat of the best sex of

my life, but he watched me closer now, with this fire burning in the icy green depths of his eyes.

Whether that fire was need or hate, I really couldn’t tell. He was expert level at schooling his features.

The one constant, though, was my training.

My power had grown under his, and I could do much more now than call the elements. Animals came to me in the forest, and whenever

we got close to the graveyard, I felt layers of darkness. Layers I couldn’t sort between, but I felt them.

Today we were by the lake so Logan could throw fireballs at me. His touch unlocked my energy, but he didn’t need to stay touching

me now. Once he initially released my power, I was able to access my magic the same as everyone else. This distance allowed

additional training. Like throwing a fucking fireball at me. The first time he did, I’d shrieked at the anticipation of my

hand melting, only to catch it like a harmless ball.

“Your abilities are lazy,” he drawled. “The power is there, but the desire to express it remains lacking.”

“Incorrect,” I shot back. “The desire to express my power is very much . . . unlacking. Or whatever. I want to use my magic, I’m sick of being limited to chants and spellwork through herbs.”

I released the fireball in his direction—he wanted me to be quicker, right?—and muttered an incantation under my breath while

I clutched the amethyst and aquamarine I’d stashed in my pocket earlier. Gran’s photos indicated those two would give me a

power boost.

Logan, deflecting the fire like it was nothing more than a fly, then jolted at the extra blast of my power which followed.

“What are you doing?”

“Shouldn’t you know, spellcaster?” I shot back, continuing with the incantation. This particular spell required it to be said

five times while channeling power. My magic swirled and heated, my other hand glowing bright, and with a thunder-loud crack,

Logan was flipped upside down and tethered to the branches of the oak tree above.

“See you at next training,” I called, strolling away as Logan glared down.

There was a thud as he landed a moment later, too strong to be contained by a simple spell, but at least I’d used an active

magic. If I could just figure out the way to use the crystals to enhance what I already had, and maybe unlock my magic without

Logan, I’d finally come into my own.

It was late Friday afternoon, and when I made it back to the dorms the school was buzzing. There was a huge party, college-organized

this time, tonight in the chapel. It was the Blue Harvest Moon Festival, a night for some of the strongest energy. Under the

blue moon we would bathe in her power and renew our own.

There was no debating whether I would go or not; Belle would hex the shit out of me if I didn’t.

She’d gotten very good at underhanded spellwork, and her current obsession was with hex bags.

She needed to stretch her magical muscles, but not in the same way as me.

She was already excelling in most classes, leaving her to strive for more.

We all enjoyed the subtle yet destructive magic of a good hex.

When I reached my room, as predicted there were three witches waiting outside the door. Sara and Belle chatted while Haley

read a paperback.

“You got your book order?” I said to her, excitement twirling in my stomach. “Any good ones?”

She jumped, so absorbed in her book she hadn’t heard me approach. “Pais! Oh my God, yes.” She pressed a hand to her chest.

“The one I finished last night is absolutely perfect for you.”

Haley was in her paperback era at the moment, deciding she needed the scent of a real book. When she finished a series, she

gave me the good ones to read, and to my absolute shock, I’d read at least thirty paperbacks so far this year. I’d discovered

a lot about myself at Weatherstone, but nothing more bizarre than my bestie turning me into a book-witch.

Haley rummaged in her bag, and I peered inside to see at least five books; any less and there’d be a real risk of running

out of reading material.

“This one,” she said, thrusting it forward. “Fair warning, the sequel isn’t out yet, but it’s about fae and these powerful

gods who...” She swallowed roughly. “Look, they do this thing with their tongues and have very interesting, uh—” her voice

got very low “—dicks. Anyway. I’m going to need you to read it so we can discuss.”

Trying hard to suppress my smile, I took the proffered book, noting the pretty cover, the title in large typography with glittery

symbols around. “No sequel yet though?”

I’d also discovered I was not a patient person, and the wait for the next books in a series drove me a little insane.

“Just read it,” she snapped, before calming herself once more. “Please.”

I laughed, unoffended. Her passion for books was one of my favorite parts of her personality. “You got it, Hales. I’ll get

back to you with my thoughts soon.”

Belle, who had no time or interest for fiction books, tapped her foot impatiently. “You need to get your ass ready, Paisley

Hallistar. The event starts in thirty minutes.”

“I’ll be ready in twenty,” I promised, and with that I hurried into my room and the girls followed. While they sprawled out

on my bed, I rushed to the showers for a quick rinse, brushed my teeth, and slapped on some makeup.

We were nearing the end of my favorite month: October. All Hallows’ Eve was around the corner, where we would not only party,

but partake in a mass spelling through the school to raise our collective energies on the night when the veil between the

living and the dead was the thinnest. In a school built by necromancers, it was highly celebrated, and was graduation day

for us all.

It was hard to believe we were so close to graduation, but for now I was focused on this party.

Dressed in jeans and a tank top, I threw a black leather jacket over top and slipped on my black boots. My hair was left down,

and it was freshly blow-dried—thanks to Sara’s air power. She might have taken a while to claim her affinity, but was more

than excelling at all air related activities these days.

“Okay, we good to go?” Belle asked, face lit up with excitement.

“I’m ready for a boost.” The blanket wouldn’t stop us absorbing the moon’s energy, but it would stop us doing anything too fun with the extra power.

“Oh, and, Pais, I asked about that book in the library. The one Dad mentioned, and they don’t have any record of it. Did you find out?”

We hadn’t spoken about her father since parents’ weekend. I’d checked long ago with the library and knew they didn’t have

a copy. Haley hadn’t been able to find it in the bookstores her family ordered from for her either. It was growing abundantly

clear that this information wasn’t easy or simple to track down. I planned on searching harder when I returned home and could

get to some of my favorite witchy stores.

“Can’t find it anywhere,” I admitted.

Belle’s face fell. “What about the witch massacre he referenced?”

Now that one wasn’t as hard, but it was as equally frustrating. “Found it, but not enough information in the text to make

sense. I have all these questions, but the answers are vague and confusing.”

“I hate vague and confusing,” she muttered, and I was right there with her.

“I found it mentioned in multiple historical tomes, but only in the most minute of details. Odd, considering they keep referring

to it as one of the largest witch massacres in our history. Witches killed by our kind. Allegedly these witches were dabbling

in magic they shouldn’t have, and they referred to them as demon-witches. Then they cut their heads off.”

“Demon-witches...” Haley wrinkled her brow. “What does that mean?”

That was the frustrating-as-fuck part. “I have no idea. I read every single text but there was never more detail than that.”

“We need that book,” Belle said decisively. “I bet that has more detail. I’m going to push Dad over the break.” As much as

I wanted to call off her talking to her dad about it, he already had all the information, so we might as well make him useful.

When we were on the way to the festival, Belle’s worried expression eased up as we joined the hundreds of students streaming

outside. This was a night to relax and absorb this moon energy that only flowed once a year. With no threat of monsters hanging

over us, we could enjoy this college milestone.

Unless, whoever was behind the creatures, was waiting for a night like this. Waiting to use the preternatural boost of energy

that I already felt ebbing and flowing in the air. If there was ever a night for the culmination of a monster plan, it was

tonight.

After that terrifying thought, I felt very relaxed , and didn’t jump at random noises around us. Right.

“You seem jumpy,” Belle said, side-eyeing me when I flinched. A student raced past, already half-naked, eyes glazed from the

power.

“What, no,” I replied in a rush. “Very calm. I... just need a drink.”

Or eight. Regular alcohol would not get the buzz going that I desired.

At a college-sanctioned party, there’d be nothing stronger, so I’d just have to drink hard and fast. Even a small reprieve

from my brain would be better than nothing. Not that I wanted to be pissed off with myself, but why did my mind choose this

year to start attacking me? The bloom of my magic brought sexy dreams, uneasy darkness trailing down my spine, and wonky magic

into my life. It was a lot—and not enough at the same time.