Caddie's POV:
I stood in my dorm's bathroom, staring at the mirror. My skin looked pale and sallow, and my blonde hair was pulled into a tight bun.
Out of the corner of my eye I could see the sun set from the window. In the dark of the night I would become invisible due to my black attire. I wore a black long sleeve shirt, dark pants, and combat boots. I raised my hand to my neck where the silver locket hung delicately on the chain.
I planned on taking it off for the night but my fingers hesitated on the clasp. The locket hadn't left my neck since the day I was given it. Turning swiftly from the mirror, I left the locket alone and hurried out of my room.
I had tried to reason with both Alix and Cam, but neither would listen to me. Neither one of them cared about their lives. Instead, they seemed more concerned about mine. They had said one day, "If you died tonight, I could never live with myself knowing that I had the chance to save you."
Allowing them to risk their lives because of me was one of the most selfish things I ever could have done. As I slowly crept down the main staircase, I thought of all of things that could happen in the next few hours. I was not physically prepared for a fight, and I wasn't mentally prepared for someone to die.
Dmitri stood by the exit with an impatient look on his beautiful face. Originally, I had thought that knowing his secret would improve my relationship with him, but I still hadn't forgiven him for not wanting to save his brother.
If I didn't force him to come along, he would have been sleeping soundly in his dorm room, forgetting all about his twin. My nostrils flared with anger, and I tried to dismiss the rage that was exploding within me. I hated how passionate I had become about Aleksander. For weeks I had been weary about my choice to save him but in the end, my decision never changed.
As I approached the enormous wooden doors, Dmitri muttered a few foreign words and they swung open. Outside, Alix and Cam were already waiting for us. Their faces were expressionless, but I could feel the anxiety in the air.
We had dealt with the dark ones before. It was a frightening experience that still haunted my dreams. No normal person would ever purposely search for the dark ones, then again what is normal?
There was a time when the only thing I wanted to be, was 'normal.' I would pretend to be an average teen, and fail miserably. The concept of normal had eluded me for fifteen years of my life. Until I realized I didn't care. Being normal is impossible, because nothing is normal. I'm different, weird, and possibly legally insane, but I'd rather be all those things than something I'm not. Some people scream my name out in fear others will whisper it in respect, but either way they can't dispute the fact that I am the Dark Witch.
"If we don't leave now, I'm going to back to bed," Dmitri said with an agitated expression on his face.
I reached out and grabbed his arm. He twisted uncontrollably as I seared his flesh. Once he began to squeal I let go and bounded over to Cam and Alix.
Alix looked smug. I knew that if the situation wasn't so serious she would have been laughing. Cam, on the other hand, continued to look concerned and devastated. I didn't understand why, but ever since he discovered that I planned on finding Aleksander he constantly felt betrayed.
"Does anyone know how to find the tunnels?" I asked and winced at how unprepared we were. We didn't even know where we were going yet, I couldn't even think about any other surprises we might come across.
Alix eyes glazed over momentarily before she spoke up, "I can see us travel five miles to the western part of the forest."
"Wait my brother was being held only five miles from the castle? A rescue mission would have taken thirty minutes at least!" Dmitri asked, his emotions continuously changed from amusement to anger.
"They didn't know the Dark Ones were hiding so close to us. Trust me my aunt is not happy about this discovery either," I explained to him in a hurried rush. I didn't have time to spell everything out for him, maybe if he had tried harder to care he would have found out earlier.
Dmitri was frustrated at that thought. The deranged psychos had managed to fool everyone. It reminded me of the crime shows I used to watch after school. Some of the craziest killers had been extremely intelligent. They were able to evade suspicion and continue with their psychotic games. Of course most of the killers grow cocky and mess up, which results in them being caught. It seems that the supernatural and mortals aren't completely different after all, I mused in my head.
"I think it's time to start hiking," Alix whispered to him with a malicious smirk on her pale face. Dmitri's gorgeous features contorted with distaste as he brushed her off. He shivered as if the thought thoroughly repulsed him, he then looked towards me- hoping I would give him an alternative solution.
"Unless anyone has any magic brooms, I think she's right." The wind blows Dmitri's dark hair across his caramelized skin. His full lips formed an 'o' shape as a horrified look danced in the depths of his blue eyes. I repressed a smirk that was worming its way onto my face as I turned to face Cam. His large figure stood tense at the top of the stairs. His muscles bunched under his black t-shirt as he clenched and unclenched his hands. A prominent frown formed on my face as I sifted through his emotions. He was angry, jealous, and of course there was an inkling of betrayal. My frown grew but I didn't have anytime to ask about his feelings, I needed to use his ability.
"Cam can you lead us to the location Alix described?"
Cam's golden eyes met mine for a prolonged moment before he sighed and solemnly agreed. He ran down the marble stairs, jumped into the air and transformed into a wolf. It was an impressive sight to see. We followed Cam into the night. Dmitri and Alix stayed by my side.
"I still don't understand why you brought them along," Dmitri said bitterly. He was still rubbing the burnt spot on his arm.
"They wouldn't let me leave without them," I told him exasperatedly. Alix and Cam made an approving noise in unison.
"Does your brother know what you're doing?" Dmitri asked Alix in a mocking voice.
The corners of Alix mouth turned upwards as she responded, "No, does yours?"
The amusement drained from Dmitri's face and Alix smiled triumphantly. I gave her a disapproving look. I didn't have any patience for funny insults at that moment. She gulped at the sight of my dark expression and said, "I'll go walk with Cameron to make sure we're on the right path."
Her red hair flew aimlessly in wind as she ran to catch up with him. We trudged through the forest. It wasn't an easy task since we couldn't see more than two feet ahead. The faintest sound freaked me out, and my previous encounters with the dark ones continued to flash through my mind.
I had been doing well recently, and the dark ones hadn't been a concern of mine. Now, though, they were the only thing I could think about. Dark ones were deranged creatures that had no remorse for killing people to gain whatever they wanted. I had fought them off before, it shouldn't be hard to do again, I told myself, but didn't actually believe it.
"You're shivering," Dmitri noted, looking at me with worry.
"I'm just cold."
It wasn't technically a lie. It was the middle of December in Massachusetts. "Cold" was a mild word to explain the temperature.
"There's something else," he said, narrowing his eyes as he analyzed my behavior.
"You're scared."
"Aren't you?" I cursed myself as I heard my voice crack.
His expression softened. "I'm terrified, but I didn't believe that anything could scare you."
"I'm probably more frightened than you," I was surprised by how true the words were. I was shaking from fear, but I kept trudging forward.
"You have more to worry about," he said and looked pointedly at Cam and Alix. "You shouldn't have let them come. They have no reason to be here."
"Neither do I and yet I'm still here. I don't even know Aleksander," I reminded him, but he shook his head.
"My brother and you have known each other your whole lives. Ever since he first heard about you he wanted to know you. We were about six years old when he told me that he had met you in a dream."
I remembered the dreams from my childhood, the ones when Aleksander and I were little kids. Begrudgingly, I let Dmitri continue to talk but I knew where his speech was going.
"I told you before that the legend was true, you love my brother. That's why you are risking your life and the lives you care about."
A low cry came from Cam. I stiffened and tried to control my anger. I refused to believe it. I was doing this because it was the right thing to do.
"I can't love someone that I don't know," I argued.
"I agree, but that doesn't mean that you won't grow to love him," he offered.
I sulked in the shadows and grumbled, "Maybe you're right, but if we don't find him then we'll never know."
Dmitri pushed a low-hanging branch away from my face and began to pick up the pace. I stumbled over logs and stumps as he pulled me beside Alix and Cam. I glowered at Dmitri but it was pointless. He couldn't see my face in the dark.
Suddenly, Cam stopped. He pointed his snout to the ground and began to walk in circles.
"Is something wrong with him?" Dmitri asked.
I searched Cam's emotions for anything to worry about. My senses heightened: Cam found something. Cam had found a way to get into the tunnels. He stood perfectly still, his golden eyes wide as he tried to tell us about his discovery through his movements. Alix dropped onto her knees and began to dig through the snow and dirt.
"There's a tunnel down here," she told us.
I gave her a confused look. I hadn't been in Massachusetts for a long time but I was pretty sure most forest didn't have manholes in them. Dmitri and Alix tried countless spells but none of them worked. The door stayed shut, and my hope waned.
"Move," I ordered, kneeling by the door.
"No offense, Caddie, but you're not exactly a master at spell casting yourself," Alix said in an offensive voice.
"I don't need to be. The door is sealed with dark magic. None of your spells will open it."
I pressed my hands against the cool metal surface of the door and forced my magic in my palms. Sparks began to escape from my fingertips, and the metal liquefied.
I heard an inappropriate, low whistle from someone behind me. I scowled and turned my anger into power. Once the hole was large enough for us to slip through, I stood up and stumbled from the entrance.
"I guess you were right," Alix unwillingly admitted.
We all stared at the hole in the ground, but none of us moved.
Fear constricted my heart; I couldn't move my body. Cam disappeared behind the trees, but before I could feel abandoned, he returned in human form. Black shorts hung lowly on his hips, he stood by my side and grasped my hand tightly.
Dmitri was the first snap out of the frightened haze. He walked over to the hole, took a deep breath and lowered himself into the tunnel. My breaths became shallower once he disappeared. Cam squeezed my hand one last time before jumping down the hole. Alix and I were the only ones left.
If I concentrated hard enough, I would be able to see the terrified look in her green eyes and how tightly she pursed her mouth. She was just as scared as I was, but instead of telling me she said, "We have to do this, Caddie. You were right. Someone has to save him."
Every nerve in her body was screaming at her to walk away from the hole, but Alix was brave and she jumped into the tunnel. I watched her disappear and then it was my turn to be brave. An owl hooted off in the distance, I jumped and rubbed my hands rapidly over my arms. A shiver ran up my spine as I heard tree branches shake.
I had a chance to run away and maybe return to the comfort of my old life. I looked away from the hole; I had no reason to be there. My friends shouldn't have risked their lives. Maybe there was a chance that we could all go back to Nox Haven and pretend this never happened.
Without consulting my mind, my body began to edge closer to the hole. The same feeling I felt in dungeon began to creep into my mind. Every step I took brought me closer to the entrance, and with every step I wished that I was moving backwards. My feet touched the edge of the hole, and if I wanted to, I could have turned around and left. I wanted to leave more than anything, but I was already falling through it.