Veronica falls to her knees beside me, using a sweater to pat at the flames, but the fire is dying faster than it should. I glare at her. Even if she doesn’t care about getting in trouble with our high priestess, even if she thinks no one in our coven will ever find out, this place is crawling with Regs. If anyone saw her using magic to put out the flames, it could spark a repeat of our town’s most infamous history. Witch Hunters may be a thing of the past, but it’s not a past I’m eager to repeat.
Gemma rushes forward to help, but the fire’s stubborn. It’s only a matter of time before Evan and Nolan roll this way. And if their clothes catch on fire, this night will get a million times worse.
Someone knocks into me, throwing me off balance. I fall forward, and my magic reacts on instinct, ready to protect me from the flames. Ready to expose a centuries-old secret.
Hands grip my arm, then circle around my waist. I’m hauled upright and my magic recedes. When I’m standing on my own, I turn and fling my arms around the person standing there. They just saved me—and my entire coven—from exposure.
I pull away to see who it is. “Benton.” The blush on his cheeks makes me step back. It probably wasn’t the best idea to hug him so soon after turning him down. “Thank you.”
Benton grips the back of his neck, his face still blooming with color. “Yeah, no problem. It’s the least I could do after the whole . . . well, you know.”
“No, seriously. Thank you. That would have . . .” That would have been the end of life as I know it. “Thanks.” I turn back to check on the fire, but my help isn’t needed. A few of the guys have dragged over the keg and are spraying down the flames.
“Like I said. No problem.” Benton spares a fleeting glance for the dead animal hanging from the tree and grimaces. “I’ll catch you later.”
I grin, but I don’t think the pun was intentional. “I’m going to hold you to that pool day.”
“Only if you bring those triple chocolate brownies you made last year,” he says, and I’m surprised he remembers. I agree, and Benton waves, heading back toward the main bonfire.
Once he’s out of the way, Gemma rushes in and wraps me in a hug. “Thank god Benton was there.”
“I know.” I squeeze back and release her.
Gemma’s gaze trails after Benton as he leaves, and she lets out a dreamy sigh. “I should have spent the night with him instead of Nolan. He’s much more my type.”
“I thought you were over him?” I promised Benton I’d forget about our awkward encounter, but I don’t want Gem to set herself up for heartbreak either. She shrugs, and I nod in the direction he disappeared. “Come on, we should get out of here.”
“But we have to wait.”
“For what? The guys will get the fight under control.”
Gemma shakes her head. “That’s not what I meant. Savannah needs a doctor, and I—”
“Oh, Gem. Please tell me you didn’t.” Her stubborn look says she most certainly did. She already called for an ambulance. I sigh. “The paramedics don’t need us here to do their job. Let’s go. Unless you want our parents to find out you were drinking.” At that, Gem loses her smile and nods.
But before we can take more than a step, sirens wail and police lights pierce the trees.
* * *
• • •
Paramedics wrap Savannah in blankets and load her in the back of an ambulance; its flashing lights create a patchwork of dancing shadows in the woods. Gemma and I stand huddled together as police swarm around us. They question classmates and send them home, confiscating keys from anyone who seems even a little bit tipsy, forcing more than a few teens to call home for a ride.
Veronica approaches, all her earlier bravado gone, the smirk wiped clean from her face. “Can we talk?”
Gemma casts me a glance. I nod, and she steps a few paces away. In her absence, Veronica leans against the tree beside me. “That was pretty intense, huh?”
A police officer comes near, so I make a noncommittal noise. Once the officer passes, the fear bubbles up again, and I can’t hold it back. “Do you think she found us?” My voice shakes, but Veronica knows who she is. The Blood Witch in New York who took control of my body, who forced me to my knees, with only a single drop of my blood. “We have to tell our parents.”
“No, we don’t.” Veronica grips my shaking hands in hers, and I almost feel safe. “There are no Blood Witches in Salem, Han. This was a prank. We’re fine.”
“But—”
“Hannah, no.” Her words grow harsh, and she drops my hands. “We swore we would never tell anyone about what happened on that trip.”
“But if she’s here—”
“But nothing. She’s not here, and what we did in New York could send us straight to the Council. We could lose our magic.” Veronica goes silent as another officer walks past. “Use your head.”
“We have to say something,” I whisper, scanning the crowd for any members of Salem PD I recognize. “My dad will hear about the raccoon and pentacle at work.”
“So? Your dad is smart enough to know this is either a Reg prank or some kind of pagan ritual. Either way, it doesn’t involve us or our coven.” Veronica sighs. “I’ve worked too hard to miss graduation. I’m not going to skip my speech because you’re afraid of a Blood Witch who doesn’t even know what state we live in.”
When she puts it like that, I can’t deny the logic in her words. But I hate admitting that she’s right. “Fine,” I say, clipping the word short. “I won’t say anything about tonight until after graduation.”
Veronica looks like she wants to argue, but she shakes her head. “I’m going with Savannah to the hospital. You good?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.” I bounce forward on the balls of my feet and ignore the stinging in my eyes. “Go ahead. You don’t want to miss your ride.”
Veronica worries at her lower lip. I think for a second she might say more, but she shakes her head and disappears into the back of the ambulance.
My chest aches to see her like this. Vulnerable. Afraid. Not trying to make my life miserable. It’s so much easier to deal with all the emotions swirling inside—the betrayal, the hurt, the lingering attraction—when we’re fighting.
“Hannah?” Gemma steps close and wraps her arms around me. “You okay?”
“I will be.” I soak in her warmth and watch the ambulance drive off. Someone took down the mangled raccoon, bagged it up, and carted it away. I’m not sure what happened to Nolan or Evan after the fight. I didn’t see either of them in handcuffs, so that’s probably a good sign.