Hunted (War of the Covens 1)

The thought terrified Caia. That she had the ability to do something so horrendous to a person. That she would most definitely have to do something like that to Ethan in order to protect the pack.

A more terrifying question pierced her mind.

“Do you know what kind of warlock Ethan is?” she asked quietly.

“Fire.” Marion smiled triumphantly.

Caia could see Marion thought she was more than capable of taking him on because she was a water witch, but Caia wasn’t so sure. She’d only just been told she was a water witch. And now here she was, three days later, exhausted and in pain from the smallest of tasks.

“Do you need to take a break, Caia?” Marion asked. She then stroked the air with her fingers and a glass of lemonade appeared in her hand. She gave it to Caia who blinked incredulously.

“If you’re just a fire witch, how can you conjure things from nothing? And if I’m just a water witch, how could I blast Alexa off her feet and make furniture move?”

“The element is just the base of our power. Gaia would never be so selfish as to bestow only measly gifts upon her children. We can have, and do, whatever we want, but we have rules to protect ourselves and the human society.”

“I guess you should tell me about them.”

“I’ll get around to it.”

“But what if I break a rule in the meantime?”

“Are you going to use your magik to kill a human?”

“No.”

“Are you going to use your magik to force a human or Daylight supernatural from their own free will?”

“No.”

Marion grinned. “Then I think we’re OK for now.”

Caia smiled back at her. “It’s kind of like you’re Robin Williams and I’m Aladdin.”

“Excuse me?”

“You know … ‘Genie, I want you to make me a prince!’”

The witch shook her head in confusion and apparently worry. “Are you OK? Maybe you’re getting too much sun.”

Caia sighed in frustration. “Aladdin? Disney? Can’t kill anybody, can’t make people fall in love, can’t bring anybody back from the dead …‘It’s not a pretty picture, I don’t like doing it!’”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“You’re killing me here.”

“Maybe we should just proceed to manipulating water.”

Caia nodded, feeling more of an alien freak than ever in the company of her pop culture–ignorant companion. “I was kind of hoping you could help me control the telekinetic thing first. I’m getting tired of being my own personal poltergeist.”

Marion shook her head again, pulling Caia to her feet. “You are the strangest girl.”

Lucien tried not to wince as he watched Marion train Caia to control her telekinetic abilities. The first few hours were grueling as the witch taunted Caia with her past and insulted her abilities in every possible way in an effort to incite her temper. At first it didn’t seem to work, and Lucien laughed quietly from his place at the kitchen door, amused at Marion’s disgruntlement and Caia’s ethereal coolness.

But when she mentioned Adriana’s name, the hose pipe they’d been using earlier suddenly whipped into the air and missed knocking Marion’s head off by an inch. The witch smiled triumphantly and continued to push Caia until the young lykan-magik was able to control the telekinesis and stop it from happening whenever her emotions were toyed with. Now they were working on Caia’s ability to utilize the telekinesis whenever she wanted. Marion was nearly killed by many a flying object.

“Shi—” he hissed and ducked as a large branch flew at him. It crashed into the kitchen, skidding across the table and smashing his mother’s fruit bowl and some glasses. He turned wide-eyed to see Caia smirking. “It’s Okay!” he called. “I’m Okay.”

Marion walked toward him. “Sorry, Lucien, that was an accident. Didn’t know you were there.”

“I did.” Caia smiled too sweetly.

Lucien groaned. “Still like that, is it?”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

Marion frowned at her protégé. “I think we should take another break.”

Caia nodded and headed into the woods. Lucien eyes followed her. When would she stop being pissed at him? He’d said he was sorry.

Marion strode up the porch steps and smiled sympathetically, giving Lucien a reassuring pat on the shoulder. “She doesn’t hate you. She just needs someone to be angry at right now.”

He grunted. “That makes me feel so much better.”

“Well, the fact that she’s chosen you as the one to be angry at should make you feel better.”

“And how’s that?”

“Generally, to be angry at someone means they’ve done something to upset or hurt you, and to be able to upset or hurt someone means you meaning something to them in the first place.” She smiled and slid past him into the house.

Lucien stared at the spot Caia had entered the woods. He hoped to Gaia Marion was right about her, because if they were going to get through the next few weeks, Caia would have to like him enough to trust him.