Unruly Magic Read Online Free PDF Page A

be like roommates.”
“Chyler, you can’t stay here.”
“Why not?” She looked affronted and there was the tiniest flicker of a sneer rising on her lip then it was gone.
    “I’ve known you less than an hour and I don’t actually know you,” I said gently. “Plus if you’re here, someone might have followed you and we’re not prepared. So please go to your safe place while I work out what to do.”
    “Fine. Whatever.” Chyler scooped up the book and stood up. I saw her mouth move as if she was saying words inside her head, but some of it couldn’t help but leak out. In the split second before she winked out of existence, her eyes widened, her pupils dilating. “Stella, help me,” she pleaded, her voice nothing more than a whisper.
    I sat there for a while, staring at the space she had occupied wondering what the hell I should do. I wasn’t stupid enough to think I was a one woman army who could take on who knew how many witches. I knew I wasn’t strong enough to take them all; I couldn’t really rely on being able to take one and that was if I was looking after myself, not as well as protecting a teen witch who had asked for my protection. Crap. It didn’t matter which way I was looking at it, things were not looking good.
    I made myself a cheese sandwich and a packet of crisps – I still couldn’t get my head around calling them chips – and munched them down while sat at the table, deep in thought. I couldn’t help the feeling that there was something horribly wrong with the whole situation. More wrong than Chyler had even said, thanks to the unnerving feeling I got from the strange vision.
    I quickly cleaned up after myself, brushing crumbs into the bin and rinsing my plate before I went into the living room and settled in front of another film about some kind of group of dysfunctional friends searching for love. I must have snoozed for a while because when I woke up, my head against a blue cushion, the movie had gone off and the digital clock on the DVD player was flashing a quarter after six. I’d have to get a shuffle on to get myself ready for my night of forced socialisation which would be better than staring at a wall willing my brain to come up with a great plan.
    I forced myself off the sofa and into my bedroom where I pulled out a clean pair of jeans and a white shirt with a little button down detail. I finished the look with tooled leather cowboy- style boots with a low chunky heel that I’d picked up in a sale when out shopping with Annalise. They were starting to look appropriately worn in, just like everyone else’s did around here. Perhaps footwear was the first step of small town assimilation, I thought with a smile as I sat in front of my dresser. I added the lightest dash of eye shadow and some mascara to make my green eyes pop and ran my hair through my fingers, pleased that it looked sleek and glossy brown.
    Earlier I had put a bottle of wine to chill in the fridge, and I grabbed it by the neck before letting myself out the front door. As my house was side on to the street, I didn’t immediately see my neighbour’s home but when I stepped off the porch I could see they had a good number of visitors already. Two trucks were parked on the wide driveway next to Annalise’s car and Gage’s motorbike. Several more cars of varying sizes and ages – nothing ostentatious or showy – were parked along the side of the road as there were no restrictions here. I could hear music and laughter drift over and I let it wash over me, trying to make it sink in. I could have fun. I would have fun. I repeated that to myself two or three times, hoping it would actually stick.
    When I got to the end of my drive I almost faltered, but just then two people I recognised as Annalise’s friends drove up and parked and waved to me so I went in with them as it would have been rude to just turn around and walk away. Plus, I’d have looked like an idiot. As I went in, I couldn’t help look over my