Burned: Wild Magic Book 2
Table of Contents
Title Page
The Wild Magic Series
Copyright
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Burned
Wild Magic Book 2
Danielle Grenier
The Wild Magic Series
Book One: Wild Magic
Book Two: Burned
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © Danielle Grenier 2020
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form on by an electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review.
Cover Art by 100Covers (100Covers.com)
Editor: Karen Boston (https://kbostonedit.wixsite.com/kbostonedit)
Chapter 1
Alice trudged down the street, frustrated and tired. It seemed like every time she worked the closing shift at the movie theater, some jerk spilled a jumbo-sized soda. She then had to spend the better part of an hour scrubbing the sticky mess and trying to absorb as much of the liquid as possible from the seats. It was supposed to be an easy job to make extra money while she was in college, but it was turning into more trouble than it was worth.
Snap.
Alice jumped at the sound, then paused and looked around, trying to see where it came from. It was dark, but the street she was on was pretty well-lit despite being just on the fringes of what most people considered the “bad” part of town, where abandoned warehouses attracted all sorts of vagrants and criminals. The street was full of older but still pretty decent apartment buildings that were affordable for students. A man down the street was walking his dog, and a car drove by every few minutes, but the street was pretty empty at this time of night. Alice glanced down the alley next to her and squinted, trying to see if anything was down there; nothing looked out of place, so she just shrugged and kept walking. Toronto was well-known for raccoons in dumpsters, and she had no desire to run into one of them.
Alice pulled out her phone as she walked, checking her class schedule for the next day. She’d made it a few more blocks when the hairs on the back of her neck stood up and she stopped suddenly. She looked around but didn’t see anything strange. Still, something felt off. Like someone was watching her. She tucked her phone into her pocket and reached into her purse, quickly finding her keychain. She found the little pink cylinder of pepper spray a friend had given her and held it in her right hand, finger on the trigger. Alice picked up her pace, looking left and right as she went, the feeling of being watched staying with her. She told herself it was all in her head, she was just overtired and stressed.
She turned the corner, and as her apartment building came into view, she breathed a sigh of relief – just as something heavy slammed into her from behind, smashing her face against the pavement before she even had time to scream. Pain overwhelmed her as her vision faded to black and she lost consciousness.
Chapter 2
The phone rang. Again. Angel didn’t even bother to check the Caller ID; she knew who was calling, and she wasn’t planning on answering. Not today, and probably not any day in the future. The phone rang a couple more times, then fell silent. She felt a tightness in her chest and set down the rest of her lunch, the sandwich turning dry and tasteless in her mouth. It had been two months since she’d set foot on pack land. Two months since she’d seen Caleb. Two months since she’d been able to work.
After the incident with Jones, she’d been placed on paid leave. The Agency didn’t want her using blood magic in the field, as it was way too much of a liability. Angel could understand their caution, but she figured after taking down a former WEA Agent gone black witch, she would have received a little more than a pat on the back and the cold shoulder. So, in an effort to keep herself occupied, Angel prepped her garden for winter, painted her bedroom, studied new spells and potions, and reported once a week for physical and mental evaluations. Her superiors wanted to measure the amount of blood magic she retained, and for how long, and they wanted to make sure she didn’t feel the need to go out and get more. Fortunately for her, she had a lot of self-control; her wolf was a hell of a lot stronger than any potential addiction she could find, especially since she was being denied her Mate. For a short while, Angel had imagined she and Caleb might actually have a chance. Unfortunately, a good night’s rest and a little distance had made her realize it wouldn’t work. Sure, Caleb was attracted to her, but thanks to the ring that hid her scent, he’d never know she was his Mate. She could come clean and tell him she was a hybrid, but once he knew, his family would know. Then his pack. And then it was only a matter of time until she was out to all the wrong kind of people and everyone she ever knew would be at risk. So, they might have a couple weeks, or a couple months, but eventually it would end, and it probably wouldn’t be pretty. Her wolf disagreed wholeheartedly, confident the risks were well worth the reward.
Tell him the truth, she urged, day after day, he is our Mate, he will protect us.
Angel wanted to believe her other half, she truly did, but she knew it would never work. At first she’d answered Caleb's calls and made excuses for why she couldn’t see him, too afraid to deny him outright. Eventually, he’d stopped accepting her excuses, and she’d been forced to lie to him. She told him she didn’t want to see him, that they’d had a little fun but it couldn’t go any further. Obviously, he hadn’t believed her. He continued to call her, at least every other day, and she made the decision not to answer anymore.
She knew eventually Caleb would get the hint and stop trying. Of course, it would be a lot easier if Angel hadn’t somehow become best friends with his sister, Sara, almost overnight. The bubbly little wolf called Angel every other day to talk about everything from the weather to sports to how annoyed she was at the males for treating her like a porcelain doll. Given that Sara was eight-and-a-half months pregnant and already looking ready to pop, Angel couldn’t really blame them. One thing Angel truly appreciated about her friendship with Sara was the she-wolf never discussed the situation with her older brother.
Angel stared blankly at the spell book she’d been reading, then cursed out loud and tossed a pencil across the room. Her wolf paced inside her head, furious that
she continued to ignore their Mate. Knowing she wouldn’t be able to concentrate on anything right now, Angel stood up and headed to her bedroom to change into running clothes. With so much free time, and so much anxiety, she’d started running farther and farther every day. Circling her property didn’t even wind her, so she took to the rural roads and ran and ran and ran. Some days she completely lost track of time, running until well past dark. The first few times, she’d simply turned around and run home, arriving tired, hungry, and sore. One time, frustrated that she’d lost track of time again, and upset the blood magic in her system wasn’t dissipating very quickly at all, Angel had decided to try teleporting home. Surprisingly, it had worked like a charm. One moment she’d been at least thirty kilometers from home, and the next she was in her own back yard. And so, in an attempt to burn off the blood magic in her system, she began teleporting more often, trying spells she wouldn’t normally have the power to perform. It was fun for the first few weeks, and eventually some of the spells became difficult for her to manage, but her ability to teleport seemed to stay with her.
Changing quickly, Angel checked the time before heading outside. It was only 1pm, so she still had lots of time before the sun set, even this late in the year. Setting out at a very fast pace, she hoped she could tire out her wolf enough to get a good night’s sleep.
Chapter 3
Caleb slammed the phone down a lot harder than he’d intended. The sound of cracking plastic made him frown. Lifting the receiver gently, he saw the mouthpiece was crushed beyond repair.
“Damn,” he muttered to himself.
“Be nice to the phone, Caleb,” Sara scolded from her comfy chair by the fire.
“Yeah, we can’t afford to keep replacing them every time you throw a tantrum,” Ryan teased.
“Shut it,” Caleb growled at his brother. “I’m not in the mood.”
“Oh, relax,” Ryan said, holding up his hands defensively. “I didn’t mean anything by it.”
“Don’t tease him, Ryan,” Sara warned. “Or do you not remember what happened last time?”
The “last time” Ryan had teased Caleb about Angel not answering his calls, the younger wolf had found himself thrown out a second story window. Caleb had apologized, but it didn’t mean he wouldn’t do it again. Wolves were tough and healed quickly, but it still hurt when they broke bones. Dropping into one of the empty chairs, he sighed deeply. Sara was reading a book, while Wyatt hovered nearby, pretending to read his own book. Ryan was playing some sort of game on his phone that involved hurling birds at pigs.
“Why doesn’t she answer?” Caleb asked aloud. He looked to Sara, since she was the only pack member who’d interacted with Angel in the past two months.
Sara sighed, marked her place in her book, and set it down on the coffee table.
“We’ve been through this already,” she said, “I haven’t discussed it with Angel. She obviously has her reasons for not wanting to see you, but she’s not sharing them with me. The best thing you can do is give her time to figure things out.”
“I’ve given her time,” Caleb exclaimed. “I’ve given her lots of time, and she still ignores me. Did I do something wrong?”
“Women are complicated,” Sara explained, “some more than others. You didn’t do anything wrong, but you should stop calling her so much, and eventually she’ll contact you. Trust me.”
“I don’t see why you’re so hung up on Angel,” Ryan commented absently. “I mean, sure she’s hot, and she’s pretty tough – for a witch – but there’s lots of females here who wouldn’t dream of ignoring your calls. I mean, it’s not like she’s your Mate or anything.” When Caleb didn’t immediately respond, Ryan looked up from his phone and gave him an incredulous look. “She isn’t your Mate, is she?”
Sara, Wyatt, and Ryan all sat forward expectantly, while Caleb tried to figure out how to answer. The truth was, he really did have to think about the answer. He’d never been so hung up on a female before; in the past, he and his wolf had been perfectly content to hook up with any of the available females in his pack. As Alpha, it was pretty easy for him to find someone to spend the night with. But since he’d met Angel, he hadn’t been with anyone. Her scent had intrigued him from the start, but Caleb had always imagined finding his Mate would be more spectacular - like the world would stop spinning or fireworks would magically appear. With Angel, the attraction was obviously there, but it felt like something was missing. It was strange, and he couldn’t explain it, but that was how it seemed to him.
“Honestly, I don’t know.”
Ryan let out a long whistle.
“Damn. That sucks.”
“I’m sure you’ll figure it out eventually,” Sara told him. “Sometimes these things just take time.”
Caleb made a noncommittal sound.
“In the meantime,” Ryan said, “I think you need to get out of the house. Get her off your mind for a bit. Tomorrow, we’re going out, and we’ll find you a nice she-wolf to spend some time with. Or maybe even a human, whatever you want.”
“I really don’t think that’s such a great idea,” Sara cautioned.
“It’s a great idea!” Ryan assured her. “A night out, and a maybe quick romp to get his head on straight. Get some perspective.”
“Caleb, do you really want to go out bar hopping with Ryan?” Sara asked.
Caleb, who’d only been half-listening to his siblings, looked up at Sara’s concerned face and Ryan’s excited one. “Sure,” he replied, then a little more forcefully, “why not?”
“Excellent!” Ryan crowed, standing and slapping his brother on the shoulder. “I’ll get the word out – we’re gonna paint the town red!”
Chapter 4
Angel had just stepped inside the door with an armful of groceries when her phone rang. Fumbling to set down the bags quickly without crushing anything, she managed to pull the phone from her pocket before it went to voicemail.
“Hello?” she answered, belatedly realizing she hadn’t checked the Caller ID.
“Angel, sweetheart,” her mother’s voice rang through the ear piece, “how are you?”
“I’m fine, Mom,” Angel replied. “Bored out of my mind, but I’m fine.”
“Well, chin up, dear,” her mother encouraged her. “I’m sure they’ll let you get back to work soon. In the meantime, how would you like to help me out with a little project?”
Elizabeth Myers had this uncanny ability to make something sound like a question when it really wasn’t. Angel knew she had two options: either argue with her mother about getting involved with whatever her “project” was and end up helping anyway, or just agree to help now and save herself the trouble.
“Sure,” Angel replied dejectedly. “What kind of project?”
“Oh, you’ll see,” Elizabeth assured her. “Just be at my house tomorrow morning, ten a.m., and be sure to wear something nice.”
Again, Angel decided to take the path of least resistance. “Alright, I’ll see you then,” she said, hitting the “End Call” button and setting the phone down on the counter. As she set about unpacking her groceries, she tried not to think about what her mother would have waiting for her the next morning.
At 10am, Angel pulled into her mother’s driveway. She was wearing a dress (because her mother would have made her change into one if she’d worn pants) and holding a very large cup of coffee. Elizabeth greeted her enthusiastically, grabbed Angel’s arm, and dragged her through the house and into the back yard, which had been transformed into some sort of Autumn wonderland.
“Uh…wow,” Angel said, turning on the spot to get the full effect. Small dining tables dotted the yard, decorated with fake leaves and felt turkeys. A cornucopia sat in the center of each table, spilling fake fruits and vegetables artfully onto the tablecloths. Similar decorations adorned the porch and most of the trees. “What is all this?”
“I’m throwing a little Thanksgiving party,” her mother exclaimed, clearly excited.
“But
Thanksgiving is next weekend,” Angel corrected her.
“I know that,” Elizabeth replied, “but next weekend everyone will be spending time with their families, so I figured I would throw my party the weekend before.”
“OK, then, where’s all the food?” Angel asked, knowing her mother wasn’t exactly skilled when it came to cooking.
“Oh, the caterer should be here any minute,” Elizabeth replied, fussing with the place settings on the nearest table. “They’ll get everything set up, and all we have to do is entertain the guests.
“And the guests would be…?” Angel prompted, mentally preparing herself.
“Just a few friends,” Elizabeth replied vaguely.
“Alright, then,” Angel said, barely containing a sigh and resigning herself to the fact that she’d probably get introduced to every eligible male before the food was even served. “Anything you need me to help with?”
“Oh, yes, could you please set up some warm spots around the yard? I want to make sure no one gets cold while we’re eating.”
“Sure thing.”
Starting by the back door, Angel set up small spells around the yard that would work like little radiators and ward off the fall chill. It wasn’t a difficult spell, but the yard was a decent size, so it took about half an hour to finish. By the time she made it back inside, the caterers were there, working on the final preparations for lunch. It looked like her mother had arranged for a full Thanksgiving meal, and though she didn’t agree with extravagance, she had to admit, it smelled heavenly. Unfortunately, any attempts to pilfer a snack were thwarted by her mother, who showed up just as Angel reached for a slice of turkey.
“Wait until lunch,” Elizabeth scolded. “Besides, I need you in the back yard to greet guests and show them where they’re sitting.” She handed her daughter a seating chart. “Use this, but try to look it over now so you don’t need to keep checking it for everyone who arrives.”
Angel frowned but took the seating chart and planted herself in one of the chairs on the porch. Glancing at the chart, she recognized most of the names as belonging to relatives of Council members. The Warners, one of the most important witching families on the Council, were conspicuously absent. It probably had something to do with the fact that Angel had shot their eldest son two months ago. It had only been a stunning spell, but apparently some people held grudges about that kind of thing. Not surprisingly, Elizabeth had seated Angel at a table with only men. Though she couldn’t tell by their names alone, Angel was willing to bet they were all single, and just around her age. It seemed despite her last attempt failing in such spectacular fashion, Elizabeth was still dead set on getting Angel hitched as soon as possible. Resisting the urge to roll her eyes and attempt an escape before any guests arrived, Angel continued to study the seating chart.