loved so much and I just wanted to scream. “Saraphina—"
“Stop saying that,” I shouted through clenched teeth.
He narrowed his pretty gold eyes. “That is your name.”
“Not for you—”
“What shall I call you then—
“You. Don’t,” I snarled and balled my hands into fists. “You lost the right to speak to me.”
I flicked my fingers and gold magic shot in a perfect straight line at his face. He sighed and dodged my attack. I cursed and threw more at him, one after another, but each one he dodged just by leaning over or ducking his head. He wasn’t even trying.
“I’m not going to hurt you, Saraphina.”
“You already did,” I growled back and shot more magic at his face.
He winced and tipped his head to the side to miss my attack. “I’m not going to fight you.”
“What’s wrong, am I too distracting today?” I waved my hand over my body and I was suddenly back in that plaid skirt outfit he’d loved so much. “Do I look dangerous?”
His eyes widened and his lips parted.
“Or was it lethal?” I flicked my magic over myself again and it was the leather pants combo. I saw his face that day I’d chased him down outside of school in Salem when he’d flirted with me over my thigh-high boots. I used to need a wand to perform this kind of magic, but being a Card came with perks. A quick flick of my wrists and I was in those thigh-high boots and tulle skirt that lifted with the breeze. “Maybe I look like a cute fairy from another damn realm? Huh, Riah? What’s wrong? You suddenly don’t like playing dirty?”
“Please just stop running from me and let me explain.” He shook his head and ran his hand through his hair. Then he threw his arm out to the side and an opening into the tunnel appeared beside us. “Look, there’s the tunnel. You don’t want to be stuck in 1944 in the middle of World War II, you want back to the future to be with your friends in The Coven. Just step inside and we can talk—"
“Talk?” I screamed. “What is there to talk about? You want to talk about what you did to me? How could you do that? How could you kiss me and then betray me? Was breaking my heart part of your job description—”
“I wasn’t faking that.”
“Oh, so you did it for fun,” I growled through clenched teeth.
He groaned and tugged on his hair. “NO. That’s not what I meant. That…with you…it wasn’t part of the job—"
“Bullshit!” I shouted and my wings fluttered behind my back. This conversation was a waste. He was a liar. He’d proved that. He’d wrapped me up like a present and then handed me right to my worst enemy. “I don’t believe you.”
I thrust my arms forward and golden glittery magic slammed right into his chest. He grunted and flew backward, flipping upside down. I dove for the tunnel opening but I felt the warmth of his magic beating against my back.
“Saraphina, please!”
Chapter Seven
Saffie
December 21st 1691
“Saffie? Wherever are you going?” My mother caught me at the front door. She put her hands on her hips and arched one eyebrow. Her silver eyes shined. “The Coven is beginning the Yule ritual promptly at sunset—”
“I know, Mother—”
“You’ll be upset all year if you miss it.”
I grinned. She knew me well. “I am not going to miss it, Mother. I will be back in time.”
“Where are you going? I do not like you going off on your own in times like this.”
Olli, my best friend and spotted hound, whined at my feet.
I chuckled. “Olli and I are going down to Uncle Leyka’s to see if he needs assistance for this evening.”
“Shouldn’t you leave Olli at home until he can behave himself?”
I gasped and covered Olli’s long reddish-brown ears. “Olli goes where I go.”
She sighed and stepped aside, unblocking my path to the door. “But if you see Althea or Aurelia—”
“I know, Mother. They are not my penance. I am not in The Coven. I am to leave them alone.”
She frowned and nodded. “Very well. Be careful. I want you at the ritual thirty minutes prior to sundown.”
“Of course.” I skipped toward the door, pausing only to press a kiss to her cheek. “Try to enjoy the holiday, Mother, for we do not know how many we shall have left!”
With a giggle, I bounced out our front door with Olli skipping alongside me. Snow had already begun to pile up on