This Coven Won't Break - Isabel Sterling Page 0,78
doorframe for balance. I catch him as he slips and get my first glimpse of the Hunters in the hallway. Of the tranq guns trained on us.
“Freeze!” A man stalks closer, three more Hunters on his heels. “Hands in the air.”
Ellen steps past us into the hall. “I’m pretty sure those are contradictory commands.” She raises her hands anyway, her power surging with the motion. The air pressure in the hall drops so fast my ears pop, and with a flick of her wrist, gale-force winds whip toward the guards. The Hunters fall back like rag dolls, and Ellen grabs my hand. “Let’s go.”
We run, Ellen dragging me while Archer staggers after us. It takes him a few strides to get his feet under him while the drug courses through his system, tearing apart his Caster magic. Tearing apart the constant connection he has to his potions.
“What the hell, Cal?” Ellen yells and drops my hand. “I thought you said the hallway was clear!”
It was! It is! He types frantically on his computer. They must have noticed the looped footage and overwritten the live feed. I don’t see you anywhere.
“Argue about it later,” I say, my lungs protesting each word. “Get us out of here!”
I’m working on it. A second later, the Hunters are shouting behind us. Alarms scream through the halls, and angry red lights flash warnings from every side. Do you still have a smoke screen?
“No.” Archer’s voice comes out rough and broken. He pushes more speed into his legs and closes the gap between us. “I mean, I do. But none of it will work.”
But why— Cal’s voice dies. He must realize what Archer means. Oh my god. Ryan . . .
We reach the same stairwell we came down earlier, and Archer yanks open the door. “We’ll deal with that later. Can you tell if the stairwell is clear?”
As far as I—
“Everyone up,” Archer says, not waiting for him to finish. Another round of darts flies past as we slip through the door. The Hunters are almost on us.
We’re at least three stories beneath the lobby, and my legs are screaming after the first staircase. Below, the door slams against the wall, and heavy footsteps follow.
Cal shouts something unintelligible, and the van door slams shut.
Calm down, hacker bro. It’s me. Alice’s voice sounds far away, but it’s unmistakably her. She must have taken the don’t-wait-for-us rule seriously. Please tell me this is a fire alarm.
“Unfortunately not.” Archer surges past me as the second subfloor door swings open. He smashes his elbow into the side of the Hunter’s head, and the man collapses to the ground. “Deep breaths, Hannah. Keep going.”
I nod, but my thighs are screaming. Why does there always have to be so much running with these Hunters?
The air fills with the soft pop of the Hunters’ tranq guns as they gain on us. Drug-filled darts bounce off handrails and the backs of our spelled jackets, and I’m so grateful Cal is the one who made that particular potion. But there has to be more I can do. I can’t let them drug Ellen, too. I can’t let anyone else I love lose their magic. Not when we already destroyed their main supply.
I reach for the thrum of magic in my chest, crossing my fingers that it’ll heed my call. Pain ripples up my back, and I trip on the edge of the stair, smashing my shin. I turn until I’m facing the Hunters racing up behind us. I raise my hands, searching for the thread of air in their lungs or the water in their blood.
Nothing.
“Alice!” I shout. “Alice, can you hear me?”
I’m here. What do you need? Her voice is closer now. She must have turned on her own comms device.
Doubt stalls my tongue, but the Hunters are still coming. Above me, Ellen sends another rush of air to slow them. I grip the handrail to keep from falling. “Can you control my blood from that far away?”
I don’t know.
“Try. Please.” I push deeper, searching for the well of power inside my chest. “Hurry!”
A moment later, Alice’s magic tingles up my spine. It’s sharper than Morgan’s, elbowing its way through my body, foreign and grating. But in the next moment, my own power explodes inside me, a vast pool that’s all mine for the taking. I grab hold of the first element I can reach. Water. Blood. I infuse the water with my will and let it crackle with cold.