Autumn Storm (The Witchling #2)(8)

“It feels weird,” she said. A moment later, she understood. The magick slipped between her body and the pain, rendering her truly pain free for the first time in weeks. “Oh, my god.”

Beck grinned.

“Don’t encourage him,” Amber warned. “Honey, if you’re in pain, you can go lie down.”

“I don’t need to lie down,” Autumn said. “The pain never goes away. I deal with it. I’m not as weak as I look.”

“Easy there,” Beck said. “Amber’s not the ass I am. She means well. I’m the idiot.”

Amber was smiling. Autumn looked down, embarrassed. She hadn’t meant the words to come out quite so sharply. She was accustomed to people taking pity on her. She hated that as much as she did feeling weak. With Beck’s magick quelling her pain and his strange aura taking away her tension, she almost felt content.

Beck picked up an amulet. It flared bright white. Autumn shielded her eyes.

“They aren’t broken,” he said, perplexed. His gaze went to her neck.

She ducked her head, assuming he was staring at her scars, like everyone did. He reached forward and tugged her necklace free of her shirt until the amber amulet fell into his hand.

“You’ve already got one,” he said.

“Is it the same thing?” she asked.

“Yeah. But …” He met her gaze again and gave her a searching look.

“But what? I don’t have a soul?” she asked anxiously. “What’s wrong?”

“No worries.” He released the amulet. He twisted. “Amber, she’s got one. She’s good.”

“Awesome. Now that everyone has their souls” Amber laughed at the horrified looks on the faces of Jenna and Tanya “we can discuss how to keep them.”

Autumn listened.

“It’s simple. Follow the Light Laws,” Amber said. “You remember them?”

Autumn nodded, along with the others. Beck shifted so she could see all three without him blocking her. He left his hand beneath hers.

“They seem very … strict,” Jenna said.

“There isn’t much room for anyone to make mistakes,” Autumn echoed.

“There’s not,” Amber said, considering. “Beck?”

Autumn looked at Beck. He nodded.

“Normally, we tell people the Light Laws and let them fret over them until they go through their trial,” Amber said. “The key is not to break the Light Laws using your magick. You can without magick, though any wrongs you commit will still be recorded. You just won’t lose your soul.”

“So …who’s spying on us to make sure we do things right?” Jenna asked.

“I am,” Beck said, grinning.

Autumn looked at him, unable to gauge if he joked or not.

“Beck is the Master of Light,” Amber seconded. “He’s charged with herding the flock that is made up of Light Witchlings.”

“Beck?” Autumn echoed, astonished.

He gave her an amused look. Jenna giggled, and Tanya looked like she was holding her breath. Amber grinned.

“Not exactly a vote of confidence,” he said.

“Sorry,” Autumn murmured, face hot. “That’s just … interesting. I guess.”

“He’s a good sport. His brother, however …” Amber grew serious for a brief moment then shook her head. “Let’s go back to the orientation. I want to cover the elements and their magicks again. Do you remember?”

“Earth is protection; Air the peacemaker; Fire is action; water, purifying; spirit, intuition,” Tanya recited.

Autumn listened. She’d read the orientation but hadn’t paid as much attention as Tanya. She made a mental note to review everything again. Amber continued, and Autumn’s interest drifted. She hadn’t thought to bring her iPad, like Tanya and Jenna did. In her half-drugged state, she was luck to remember her shoes on her way out of her room.

She touched the crystal amulet on her desk, troubled it didn’t light up for her as it did everyone else. Beck snorted and touched it with a fingertip. It came to life for him. She waited for it to die down then tried again. Nothing.

Something wasn’t right here. It had to do with her. And the amulet. Pain pricked her temple as it did when she was trying to remember something. She pushed the memory away, not wanting a headache when her day was beginning.

They sat in the classroom all morning, reviewing the orientation, before Amber dismissed them at lunch time for the weekend.

After so many weeks with bad or no real food, Autumn didn’t want to leave the table until they had to roll her out. She ate until Jenna waved for her to accompany a small group assembled in the doorway. Autumn grabbed one last roll then walked with the two new girls through the Square to the road that wrapped around the small campus. Adam told them about the school as they went.

“We have bonfires most weeknights. On long weekends like this, a lot of the kids go home or travel or something,” he explained as they passed the dorms. “There’s a small stream down this road and a picnic area.”

As they emerged onto the road, Autumn felt a chill from the forest to their left. A small deer path led from the gravel road into the forest. Beside the trail, one of the trees bore a small wreath and plaque.