Once Bitten (Shadow Guild: The Rebel 1)

“Told you.” Mary nudged Coraline. “What else did you see, Carrow?”

I described the pink smoke and the words that the person had said, hoping I got them right. The witches seemed satisfied, at least from the looks on their faces.

“Do the brooch now,” Mary said.

I touched the brooch, which burned like hell. Blackness exploded in front of my vision, and I surged backward.

“Shit.” Shaking my hand, I looked up. “I couldn’t see anything besides darkness.”

“Well, that Ophelia is a bitch.”

“And she’s now a brooch?” I looked down at the metal.

“Yeah, and we’ve got to get her out,” Beth said.

“I thought you said she was a bitch,” I said.

“Yeah, she’s our bitch.” Coraline grinned. “What exactly did you see in the brooch?”

“Blackness, like I said. Let me try again.”

I touched it once more, and a shrieking sounded, followed by a bright flash of light in the shape of three triangles overlapping each other. I opened my eyes and described it to them.

Mary nodded. “Thanks for your service. You’ve confirmed what we thought and told us the spell that turned her into that thing.”

I didn’t remember telling them a spell, but they seemed satisfied. “No problem.”

“Jeeves will bring you the potions to change your appearance.” Mary looked at Mac. “You both need to take them.”

“In the meantime, enjoy the party.” Beth grinned.

“We kind of need to get a move on,” I said, my head still woozy.

“Well, you’re going to need to walk off your drunk a bit,” Coraline said. “Might as well do it here.”

“Yeah, sure.” I looked at Mac, who nodded.

The three witches left, hurrying off with their box. Which contained their friend.

Weird.

Mac looked at me. “I’m going to go try to find something so we can sober up some.”

“Cool.” I turned and looked at the glittering room. People still danced, seeming to sway in front of my vision. A flash of movement in the corner caught my eye, and I blinked. “What was that?”

“What?” Mac asked.

“I swear I saw something.”

Mac frowned. “You’re pissed.”

“Maybe. But I saw something.”

“Go investigate. I’ll find you soon.”

“Deal.” I staggered toward the flicker of movement against the dark, glittering wall. My steps became more graceful the farther I walked, but I was still pretty out of my mind. Fortunately, the drunken dancers around me hid most of my awkwardness.

As I neared the wall, the air seemed to vibrate slightly. I pushed my way through the rest of the crowd, finding a hallway. It was shadowed and apparently empty, but it beckoned to me.