Seventeen

Iris was in full-blown Hunter mode.

Dressed in her sports bra and leather hunting pants, she strutted down the street with confidence, holding her head high. Her hips swayed with an exaggerated swagger as she weaved in and out of trick-or-treaters, drawing nearer to the Nomads with every step.

Showtime.

Iris held her breath as she passed the witches. She knew what she had to do. She was ready.

Grabbing her phone and placing it to her ear, she mustered up the most obnoxious, high-pitched voice she could.

“Like, oh. My. God. I dropped like three thou’ on a Prada wallet today. And I saw a guy in there that was wearing an Abercrombie shirt! I mean, Abercrombie. Poor people make me sick.”

A flutter rose into Iris’s chest. She watched as a redheaded witch standing at the front of the group perked up, slowly turning her head. She tracked Iris as she walked by. Her stare was raw. Animalistic.

Realizing she had sparked interest, Iris continued, “And I’m thinking of getting some lip injections and maybe a boob job. Why not, right?” Iris laughed as pretentiously as she could.

She hated how stupid she sounded. Her throat tightened. She hoped they bought it, but more importantly, she hoped they wouldn’t kill her before she made it back.

Stay focused.

“Oh, I think she’s a good one, Katalina,” Iris heard a witch with wavy, golden-brown hair say.

“I’m not so sure, Veronia,” another witch replied. “I can’t get a good read on her.”

“Didn’t you hear what she was saying,” the redheaded witch snapped with authority. “She’s the perfect sacrifice.”

Gotcha.

Iris turned the corner and slipped down a side street, picking up her pace. She didn’t want to move too fast and draw unwanted attention to herself, but the Nomads were narrowing in by the second. Iris quickened her step, but the witches just matched her speed.

They were getting far too close for comfort. A wave of fear smashed over Iris’s body like a stormy ocean tide. She looked over her shoulder and her stomach flipped. More witches were joining the ranks, appearing from shadows with each passing house. The group of ten Nomad witches turned into twenty. Thirty. Forty. And finally, fifty.

Her eyes widened in horror. Knox and Arlo weren’t expecting this many witches. She had to warn them. “Knox! Arlo! Can you hear me?” she whispered in the com.

Silence.

“Dex, are you there?”

No one said a word.

“You jerks better stop messing around ’cause I think we’re in trouble here.” The com turned to static.

It was time to run.

Iris planted herself and set off into a dead sprint, her feet angrily slapping at the pavement as she raced toward her team. The Nomads were fast, but Iris was a Hunter. Her legs pumped like the pistons of a racecar and she sped ahead of the pursuing witches, their cackles fading behind her. Finally, she saw Arlo and Knox waiting in position at the small park at end of the street.

“There’re over fifty witches coming our way!” Iris yelled, frantically waving her hands.

Knox stepped back, his eyes widening. “Fifty witches? How the hell did that happen?”

“I have no idea. They just came out of nowhere,” Iris panted. “And I tried Dex, but our coms have been tampered with. So I’m guessing if he can’t hear us then he can’t see us either.”

Arlo glanced at his bow and quiver of arrows before looking up at Knox. “I know you didn’t want to use your guns, man, but there is no way I can handle this alone.”

“I’ve never heard of that many being together at one time.” Knox ripped open his bag, removing his Hunter rifle and several magazines filled with tox.

Arlo readied his bow.

“Knox, what’s the plan here? We’re running out time and we—” Iris screamed.

Not a normal scream. The type of scream that gives you goose bumps and sends shivers down your spine. The type of scream that makes you believe there’s evil in the world. The type of scream that scars your soul.

The redheaded witch was faster than the others and had caught the Hunters off guard. She jumped off a rooftop, landing beside Iris and scooping her up by the throat before leaping backward. The witch let out an cackle as she held Iris high in the air.

Iris flailed and reached for her blade, but the witch extended her fingernails into talons and swiped at her wrist, tearing her flesh to ribbons.

Iris cried out, but the pain went quickly as her body started to go numb.

“Put my sister down, you stupid bitch,” Knox shouted as he raised his rifle and put a beam on the witch’s head. Arlo drew his bow and prepared to loose an arrow.

The Nomad cackled, holding Iris directly in their line of fire. “What are you going to do, sweetie? Kill me if you want, but you’re outnumbered. There’s nothing you can do.”

The other Nomads slipped out from the shadows, gathering around their leader. The Hunters were more than outnumbered. They were screwed.

Iris coughed as the witch tightened her grip. Her face turned red as she struggled to free herself.

“I’m counting to three, witch, and you’re dead,” said Knox. “I give you my word, I won’t hesitate to kill you.”

“Oh you’re threatening me, are you?” the witch cooed in a sexy tone. “Fantastic.” She flared her nostrils and closed her eyes, taking in every moment of Knox’s frustration.

“Just let me have the girl, and we won’t kill you,” the Nomad witch bargained. She smiled gleefully as she continued to hold Iris as if she were as light as a feather.

“That’s not going to happen,” Knox said firmly, still holding his gun high. His grip was firm. His stance, strong. “How about you drop my sister and we won’t kill you.”

“Ha.” The witch let out a laugh. “Is that what you really want, Hunter? For me to drop your sister?”

“Yes. Let her go.”

Then, faster than Iris could comprehend, the witch did let her go, but she found herself rising upward, high into the sky, and felt something sharp digging into her back. It was a large hawk summoned by the redheaded Matas witch. She slashed behind her with her knife and a second later, the hawk released its grip and loudly cawed.

Iris was now plummeting back toward the ground. Her eyes went wide as she reached for something, anything, but found nothing.

Everything was happening in slow motion: She watched from the sky as Arlo and Knox fought off witch after witch. There were splashes of black blood. It was fresh, messy, and dropping all over the place. They were still outnumbered but fighting hard.

Iris started to fall faster. With every second she moved closer to the ground. This is it. She closed her eyes.

But instead of smashing into the pavement Iris hung and felt a strange tugging sensation. She dared to open one of her eyes and saw that she was suspended in midair, just feet above the ground.

The remaining Nomads clutched at their heads, howling as they fell to their knees.

Knox and Arlo stepped back, their heads swiveling from side to side, searching for a possible explanation.

Then, a woman with long, blond hair appeared from nowhere. She threw herself in front of the Hunters, her open hand extended toward Iris.

It was the queen of the Hollywood Coven.

Belinda closed her hand and Iris dropped several feet, landing to the ground with a weak thump.

Iris breathed a sigh of relief. She was safe.

For now.

Belinda shifted her attention to the Nomads, still writhing in agony. Belinda waved her hand and the witches slowly rose to their feet.

“Get behind me,” Belinda commanded Arlo, Iris, and Knox.

They followed her orders. If for some reason Belinda was saving their lives, now was not the time to argue about it.

The Nomads hissed and bared their teeth, inching closer.

“Enough!” Belinda boomed, her voice echoing through the neighborhood. “Leave now and I will spare your stupid lives.”

“You pathetic witch. You think you can steal our sacrifice?” a Nomad with cocoa-colored hair spewed.

The Nomads charged forward and Belinda threw out her hand sending forth a powerful gust of wind. The witch closest to her exploded, chunks of her black, viscous blood flying in all directions.

Then another Nomad exploded, and another, until all that was left was a thick sheet of black goo.

Belinda lowered her hand and stumbled forward. She looked exhausted, or even weak. Iris’s mouth nearly dropped to the floor. She couldn’t believe her eyes.

What the hell is going on here?

Belinda turned around, facing a stunned Arlo, Iris, and Knox. The witch locked her gaze on Iris, standing before her drenched in black blood. Iris couldn’t find her voice. She couldn’t move a muscle.

“Um … thank you?” Arlo said, breaking the silence. He extended his hand, smiling.

Belinda just stared at him.

“B!” Levana shouted running toward Belinda. “Where did you go? Why did you just run off—” Levana clapped her hand over her mouth, staring at the blood and guts covering the field of grass. “Oh. My. God. What happened?”

The witch stiffened. “Um … Let’s just get out of here, Lev.”

Iris stepped forward. “Belinda. Wait.” She held out her hand. “Why would you help us?”

Belinda stared at Iris but said nothing.

“Tell me!” Iris pleaded. “I need to know!” Iris was shaking, on the verge of tears from the shock.

A moment later Belinda disappeared into the darkness.

“Great.” Iris sighed deeply, steadying the impending lump in her throat. Suddenly, she heard static in her earpiece.

“Guys, can you hear me? Hello?”

“Dex! What the hell happened? Where were you, man?” Knox shouted toward the sky.

“The coms went down and the chopper just got a mind of her own. She started flying in circles, dude. Have you seen any witches yet?”

“Unbelievable,” Iris muttered.

“Forget it,” Knox said. “Just bring the bird around. We’re going to need a mass Idas spell, like right now. And get a recovery shot ready for me.” Knox touched the open wound on his side and winced. “Make it two.”

The Nomads’ black blood had already begun smoking and would soon disappear, leaving no evidence. But the fight had drawn too much attention.

“Roger. One mass Idas spell and two recovery shots coming right up,” Dex said, bringing the helicopter in close. A bright beam of blue energy emanated from the chopper’s spotlight, hitting every house and car window.

The sky thundered and it started to drizzle. Iris looked up, closing her eyes as the rain of Ethas hit her face. She sighed slowly as it washed away the last bit of blood from her hands.