The Secret Circle: The Hunt (The Secret Circle #5)

From behind a stand of bulky trees came Max, his dad, and the two hunters who'd escaped from the rooftop - Jedediah and Louvera Felton. Each of them held a stone carved into the shape of the hunter symbol - the same relics they'd used to kill Suzan. Scarlett bolted at first sight of the hunters, disappearing into the woods. Why wasn't Cassie surprised? With all her big talk, of course at heart Scarlett was just a coward.

A quick look passed between Diana and Max. He frowned at her with shame and sadness in his eyes, like he might have been there against his will.

"Now!" Mr. Boylan screamed, raising his symbol into the air.

Adam shot his hands toward the principal, calling out a defense spell. Nick tried throwing his energy at him with a fire blast. But Mr. Boylan and all the hunters appeared to be resistant to their magic. They clung to their relics and chanted their own curse, unhindered by anything cast their way.

"We have to get those stones out of their hands," Melanie said.

Together Chris and Doug charged for Louvera's relic, but the moment they came within striking distance, they both dropped to the ground, holding their heads.

Melanie dove for Jedediah's relic, but she was also quick to fall, holding her head as if the relic had struck her.

Cassie, Diana, and Faye were still wearing the Master Tools. They joined hands and moved toward the hunters, chanting, "Earth my body, water my blood, air my breath, and fire my spirit."

Mr. Boylan showed no fear of the Tools. He stepped forward, holding his symbol out to them, muttering the same words Cassie remembered hearing on the rooftop:

I sum eius agens,

I occidere in eius nomen -

I sum eius agens,

I occidere in eius nomen -

Cassie could feel that the Tools weren't working. She felt weak to the bone and powerless, and the bracelet remained cool and lifeless on her arm.

Mr. Boylan seemed to grow stronger every second he continued his chant. He was getting the best of them. Laurel, Deborah, and Sean had all fallen down onto the ground. Cassie could no longer see anyone else. Her own head began to throb, her vision blurred, and she knew it wouldn't be long before she also lost all her remaining strength.

"Cassie," Diana said. "I'm ..." She folded to her knees.

Max turned to Diana and cried out. He ran to where she'd fallen, standing between her and his father. Mr. Boylan tried to wave him out of the way, but Max wouldn't budge. He placed his stone relic on the ground and raised his arms. "We have to stop this," he said. "Stop the curse."

Tears of joy and relief filled Diana's eyes. Max had come through for her.

Adam appeared at Cassie's side, winded and confused. "What's he doing?" he asked.

The hunters had been thrown off by Max's turnaround. For a brief moment they had ceased chanting, looking to Mr. Boylan for direction, but now they resumed again with full force.

Max's father picked up Max's relic from the ground and held it out for him. "Take this," he said. But Max refused to accept it. He stood tall with Diana behind him.

"Don't make a terrible mistake," his father said. "Obey your destiny."

Max glanced back at Diana and then returned his eyes to his father. "I am obeying my destiny," he said.

The Circle watched Max in awe. There were a few seconds of silence, long enough for Cassie to hear Diana inhale with a quick, shallow breath and stumble to her feet. And then with a swift swipe to the head, Mr. Boylan knocked Max out cold.

Diana dashed to Max's aid, but Jedediah pummeled her with a few ominous words. She spilled onto the ground beside Max's unconscious body.

Laurel crawled over to Cassie, horrified. "Do something," she screamed. "Whatever you did on the roof, do it again."

Faye leaned forward at Cassie's side, breathless. "You have to," she begged. "You're our only hope."

But before Cassie could say a word, Adam winced as if he'd been shot. Then he dropped facedown onto the ground. Faye also buckled and then collapsed, holding her head in her hands.

Cassie looked around. She was the only Circle member still standing. She locked eyes with Mr. Boylan and burned with a feverish heat. Book or no book, she had the power in her, and she knew it. All she had to do was let it take her over.

Cassie centered her mind and took a deep breath. She told herself that just this one time it was okay to give in, to let the darkness wash over her and surge through her veins. But suddenly her legs went out from under her. Her head felt like it had been cracked open, and a splitting pain assured her she'd acted too late. All her energy was being drained from her body. It was the sensation of dying, she was sure of it.

Through her hazy vision, she could see that Max had awakened and was trying to rise to his feet, but the other two hunters were restraining him. They held him back as they continued the curse, their relics still in hand.

The entire Circle had been overpowered. Each of them lay scattered around the muddy ground like insects left for dead. The hunters' chant became louder. Mr. Boylan had closed his eyes and raised his arms to the sky, ecstatic and triumphant. Cassie could hardly believe that after such a long, hard fight it could end so pitifully for her Circle.

But then Mr. Boylan's eyes shot open again and he suddenly drew back. "Not again," he said. "It can't be possible."

The other hunters anxiously scanned the surrounding area. They'd stopped mumbling their curse and tilted their heads toward the woods to listen.

Cassie faintly heard what they were hearing. Another language, both foreign and familiar. It was Scarlett. She was in the distance, walking toward them, chanting a dark spell.

Jedediah clutched his chest as he had on the roof. His face reddened as he gasped for air, and he screamed for their retreat. He and Louvera backed away from Max and fled in the opposite direction.

Max was dazed. He was squinting his eyes, searching the ground for Diana, clambering like a baby deer new to its hooves. And then he shrieked in pain, clutching his heart.

Chris, Doug, and Sean rose back up to a standing position. Deborah, Laurel, and Melanie did the same. The Circle was regaining its strength even as Max's waned. Diana cried out to Scarlett. "You're killing him!" But Scarlett was unstoppable.

Mr. Boylan hurried to Max and helped him to his feet. "It's an ancient," he said. "We have to run." He steadied Max's arm around his neck.

Max, writhing in agony, allowed his father to drag him away, and within minutes they were gone, swallowed up by the shadowy woods. Tragedy had been averted.

"I guess we showed them," Scarlett said, as she sauntered to the center of the pounded and baffled group. "Or at least I did." Her eyes were still dark from the forbidden spell.

Cassie recognized the aftermath of intense power and pleasure on Scarlett's face. It made Cassie envious, resentful even. How was Scarlett able to tap into her dark magic without losing all control? She appeared able to turn it on and off at will.

"Don't worry," Scarlett said. "I don't expect a thank-you. Not yet anyway." She made her way toward the car. "We'd better get out of here, in case they have any more surprises for us. We need time to regroup and restore our energy."

Everyone, a little dazed, obediently followed behind her as if she'd just proven herself the Circle's most worthy leader.

Cassie, Adam, and Diana hung back.

"I hate to admit it," Diana said. "But if we hadn't initiated her, we'd be dead right now."

"But that was black magic that she used against them." Adam glanced momentarily at Cassie. "Wasn't it?"

Cassie nodded.

"Well, whatever it was," Diana said, "she did it for us. She had the chance to escape into the woods and leave us for dead, and she didn't."

Adam was in agreement. "We still can't trust her, but maybe she can be useful to us after all."

"Maybe," Cassie said. But she knew better than anyone that one good deed didn't change who someone was.