Beautiful Monster 2 (Beautiful Monster #2)(51)
Author: Bella Forrest

I shut my door and met Sarah in the hallway.

“That’s new,” I said, commenting on a black lace coat that dropped to the floor.

She shuddered. “Connor got it for me. And after being in that frilly dress, I needed some Goth time.”

I laughed, taking her arm as we made our way through the back of the school and out to the field. There was a fire burning, which I hoped no one would notice. It was a bit suspicious to have a blazing orange fire surrounded by a few people in the back of the school, where we did outdoor theater.

Standing by it and warming her hands, was a tall woman, dressed nonchalantly, save for a huge pentagram pendant around her neck.

“Are you Arianna?” I asked.

She looked up. “Amy,” she said, reaching for my hand. She was in her mid-thirties, with a bit of extra weight around her middle, and chipped nail polish on her chewed fingernails. I didn’t know what I was expecting, I had never met a witch before. But now I realized how easy it must have been to pass them on the street, to never be aware of this whole world that I was now deep inside. “It’s so nice to meet you. And you must be Sarah, oh my.” She pulled her hand back from Sarah’s handshake, smiling. “Definitely a Shield.”

“Yep,” Sarah replied, looking about. “The boys are coming.”

I looked up, seeing their two figures approach in the darkness, and took a step back.

I had seen Liam before in his vampire form, but never Connor. With their fangs coming over their lips, and their eyes dark as coal against their pale faces, it was a bit frightening. I noticed they kept their distance from us as well, keeping to the other side of the fire.

“Are we ready?” Liam addressed Arianna, and his voice seemed growly, deeper than it normally was.

Arianna nodded. “Whenever you are. I need you here, and you here, and Connor, is it? You need to be the anchor between them, here.”

“I’ll just… be here.” I took a step away from the triangle she had made.

Liam glanced up at me. “You don’t have to be here, Amy.”

“It’s ok. I want to be. It’ll be ok.” I rubbed my arms for warmth and then stepped back, as Arianna took her place over the fire.

I could feel the magic in the air as soon as she started chanting. Everything felt alive, stronger, and louder. I felt like I could see colors that I couldn’t before, like the world was a different place, with a whole new power I could never feel. The trees seemed to be talking to the grass, and the wind communicating with the sky.

I turned to Connor, who was standing on my left and saw him wincing as his fangs receded straight away. I could almost see Sarah glowing, as if her power was manifesting off her and washing over Liam.

Arianna’s eyes had gone completely black, and I wasn’t sure if she could see or hear any of us as she chanted words in a rhythm that I didn’t understand, probably pulling out spells from thousands of years ago.

Liam grunted and doubled over, and I moved towards him. Connor’s hand came out, pulling me back.

“No, you must let the magic happen.”

This time, Liam full-out groaned, and I felt my heart wrench as I saw his hands tremble.

“But he’s getting hurt!” I cried, turning to Arianna. “Stop, something’s going wrong!”

She didn’t even acknowledge that she heard me, chanting over the flames that rose so high I thought they would engulf her. Liam bellowed in pain and I struggled against Connor as I saw blood trickle down his face.

“Liam!” But I was no use against a vampire, even one who was being kept half human.

Suddenly, there was a giant flash of light and what I felt like was a sonic boom. The force of it threw both Connor and me to the ground.

My head connected with the hard dirt and I saw stars in front of my eyes.

I took a deep breath, gritting my teeth and willing myself to gain control.

After a moment, the pain subsided and I was able to push myself up on shaky hands. It took another moment before my vision cleared.

Liam was lying, sprawled on the ground, a few feet from me. Immediately, I pulled myself towards him, reaching to grab his shoulder and roll him over.

“Liam,” I said, and then gasped, moving backwards with haste. I hadn’t expected him to still be in vampire form, and it startled me. Normally, I was a few feet away during his transformation.

His eyes met mine, disorientated, and then he snarled at me.

I leapt back with a little screech and felt Arianna’s arms around me.

“It’s ok, Amy. It just means the spell worked. Liam is no longer bound by the laws of Shields. Bound to Sarah, he is protected from them.”

Sarah was sitting up half a meter away, rolling her neck from side to side. Her brand new coat was dirty, spotted with mud, and she looked paler than normal, but otherwise, happy. She wore a wide grin on her face as her head swiveled from Liam to Connor.

“Are you still human?” she asked.

“Indeed, and it’s a bit unnerving,” Connor replied. “You can’t turn it off?”

“This is permanent, right?” Liam spoke at last, standing up. He seemed taller than he normally did, and no longer in pain. “As long as Sarah’s close, I’m forever immune to anything?”

“Anything supernatural,” Arianna said, looking at her watch like she was ending a casual coffee date. “I really should go.”

“Thank you.” Liam nodded to her, looking down at his hands, and then up at the stars, as if taking the world in for the first time. “The money will be in your bank account within twenty four hours.”

“Good. Nice to meet you all,” Arianna said, and then headed off towards the school parking lot.

I guess for her, this was an everyday occurrence, changing people into toads and re-arranging the laws of nature. I knew that the binding spell was forbidden by witches who worked in a coven, but it was clear from her attitude that Arianna worked alone.

I looked to Liam, who was rooted to the spot.

He gave me a slight smile. “It’s ok, Amy. Your blood is just as tempting as ever.”

“Gee thanks,” I managed, but still didn’t move any closer.

This wasn’t the Liam I knew, full of compassion and kindness. This Liam was someone else, even if the one I knew was trapped inside.

But then he cocked his head in that familiar way that I found adorable, and gave me a wider grin, winking at me, and I found the man I had fallen in love with again.

I moved forward into his arms, feeling his body as a vampire for the first time. He felt more solid, built and I could feel the power in his muscles. He wrapped his arms around me and I knew that it was the safest place in the world to be: that nothing at all could harm me.