The Kuthun Read Free Page B

how do you explain to your best friend that your witch of a mother was murdered by a centuries old enemy?
    As we pull into her driveway she says, ‘You wanna come up for a bit?’
    ‘I can’t tonight, Phoebs, thanks anyway. Aunt Lily and Uncle Jo are making a birthday dinner for me.’ I feel bad for lying but I am intrigued to find out more about the charm. I have to understand what it all means.
    ‘Fine, but before you go I have something for you,’ she says as she runs inside. I hop off Billie and lean her against the apple tree in Phoebe’s front garden. A few minutes later Phoebe comes back out holding a gift-wrapped box. She passes it to me.
    ‘We said no presents remember?’ I take the box from her hand.
    ‘Yes but I lied. Just open it, E.’ Phoebe is the only one allowed to call me E. I tried to call her P once but that didn’t go down so well.
    I carefully unwrap the present and inside the box is a gold necklace with a locket on it.
    ‘It’s beautiful,’ I gush. Opening the locket I find a picture of me and Phoebe in one side and a picture of Mum in the other, the features of her face reflected in my own. ‘How did you do this?’ I ask her, my voice wavering with emotion.
    She shrugs. ‘Your aunt helped me find an early photo of your mum from among your uncle’s old boxes and I had it made smaller. Here, turn around,’ she says as she helps me to put it on.
    ‘Thank you,’ I whisper, blinking back tears. I touch the locket at my chest with tenderness.
    She gives me a hug. ‘She’d be proud of you, E.’
    ‘Thanks, Phoebs,’ I whisper.
    ‘Okay get out of here, I’ll ring you later.’
    We say our goodbyes and I turn for home. I could probably write the events of today off as being different, not extraordinary, but I can’t shake the feeling that something big is happening.
    As I’m riding home my mind is deep in thought as to what is occurring. Mum wouldn’t have given me the charm today unless it was for an important reason. Did she know its power? The questions that I need answered are racing through my mind at an alarming speed. Something inside me is stirring, I can feel it. ‘You have to find the answers, Elena.’ I hear her voice in my head. ‘You must find the light.’
    Suddenly my senses heighten and I stop the bike, turning towards the prickly sensation that I feel emanating from the opposite side of the road. The willow tree stirs its branches, swaying with the light breeze, giving off an eerie, ghostly whisper. I stay very still, waiting to see who will emerge, my skin crawling with warning.
    ‘Maley ramere,’ I whisper, releasing a projection spell that directs my magic towards the dense thickets of bush that encompass the roadside.
    I feel the magic leave my body and wind its way across the road and into the brush in a snakelike motion. It lies low to the ground—weaving; winding; feeling its way through the undergrowth—and then all of a sudden it hits something and bounces off. I jump with a start, hoping I wasn’t going to feel anything, but somehow it felt like my magic had hit a brick wall. Like someone, or something, was blocking me.
    I quickly pull the magic back and turn to find Magi standing right next to me, looking in the same direction and growling low, with hackles raised.
    ‘You feel it to girl?’ I place my shaky hand on her head, my eyes never leaving the spot where I felt the wall. ‘Let’s get out of here, Mags,’ I say with uncertainty.
    I ride the rest of way home, pedalling faster than before, with Magi running close beside me. It takes all my courage not to look back.
I will not be afraid.
    When we reach the farm I jump off Billie and with trembling hands I unlock the front door. In my rush to get inside I almost trip over the threshold and without realising it the Cole magic expands around me in a protective shell. I lock the door quickly and lean against it heavily. Magi looks up at me, whimpering nervously, concern shining through her