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It was like two stars were trapped inside. In the one with my alpha powers, the light flickered and swirled with a glowing red orange center and yellow and white along the edges. The energy in the bruja jar shone vibrant blue and green on the outside with a pure, bright white center. It looked like they should be burning, but both glasses were cool to the touch.

I took a quick shower, and when I was done, I felt maybe ten percent better. But I couldn’t scrub away that oily feeling. I couldn’t shove aside the knowledge that something had been stolen, and even if I could get it back, I might never be the same. I’d never trust in the same way again.Advertisement

The worst part was, I didn’t trust myself anymore.

I felt like everything I’d done since the Tribunal was a mistake. I tried to let go of my anger and frustration, but it wasn’t easy. If only I could learn lessons the easy way…

I reached through the shower curtain for a towel, but found it much closer than it was supposed to be. I peeked out to see Dastien leaning against the wall, holding a towel out to me. I hadn’t noticed when he’d come in, which said how out of it I was, but I was glad he was there. I wrapped myself in the towel and got out. The first thing I did was grab the jars.

Dastien watched me without a word as I left the bathroom.

Everyone was in my bedroom. Meredith and Chris stood up from where they were sitting on my bed when I walked in. No one was talking. I was back early, and they knew that I wouldn’t be here—not speaking—unless something terrible had happened. They all had to know something was wrong. Majorly wrong.

I didn’t have a free hand to make sure the towel was tightly wrapped, but I couldn’t bring myself to care.

“What’s in the jars?” Donovan said.

A tear slipped free and I shook my head.

“Cherie.” Dastien’s voice rolled through me. His body heat warmed me as he stepped close, his chest brushing my back and I closed my eyes. “What’s in the jars?”

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I kept my eyes shut tight as I held up the one in my left hand. I didn’t think I could take their sympathy and hold it together. “Alpha.” I held up the one in my right. “Bruja.”

It was quiet for a second before Donovan spoke. “She’s been stripped.”

It was chaos after that. Questions. Arguments about whether or not it was possible. About how it could’ve been done.

I couldn’t handle it. Not then. Especially not in a towel.

I turned to Dastien. “Hold them please. Don’t break them.”

He nodded, and took the jars.

I moved to my closet, and grabbed out some clothes. I’d feel better once I had clothes. Probably.

I quickly dressed in the bathroom. It was only then—as I brushed my hair—that I looked at myself in the mirror. My eyes were a dull brown. My skin looked pale and tinged with green. My cheekbones stuck out, and my eyes were sunken in their sockets.

I looked sick. Half-starved. Weak.

I put my hair in a loose braid and went back into the room.

“—Even if it were possible, it would be black. No one would do that. Not when the cost is so high. It’s impossible for—”

“Believe me, the scent of sulfur and the heat and the fire under my skin—when she dies, Luciana will pay a high price for what she’s done.” My voice sounded flat even to me. “La Aquelarre is lost. Rupert Hoel is working with them. He’s the one who wanted my alpha power. She wanted my witchy stuff. They absorbed some of it into themselves, and drained the rest into these jars. And now I’m left with nothing. My only hope is that when I open the jars, I’ll have everything back. That it won’t just escape into the world at large, and I’ll get back whatever they’re still carrying. But we don’t have time to research or do anything about it now. Luciana will attack soon, and we need to be ready.”

“Can we stop it?” Meredith said.

“It’s coming whether we want it or not. The coven never cared about me.” I pointed to the jars. “That’s what Luciana wanted, and she got it.” I swallowed. “All we can do now is prepare for a fight.” I glanced at Dastien. “I’m hungry, I think?”

Dr. Gonzales stepped forward. “You look sick. Can I help?”

I shook my head. I didn’t want anything from her bag o’ tricks. “I don’t think anything’s going to fix this except opening those jars, but I need to hold off until tonight. If I open them now, they’ll change their plans. We might not be ready for them next time.” Meredith moved aside as I went into my closet, digging through to find a backpack. The backpack that Claudia and Raphael had given me. I didn’t have any potion vials left, but it still had some other weapons. pqdm.com