TWENTY FIVE

Sam ran through the corridors beneath City Hall, faster and faster, twisting and turning. He could not believe what he had just on. His own sister. He had tried to kill her. Why? Had he sank so far?

Up until that moment, ever since he had been turned, he’d felt out of control, like he’d been in a haze. It had just been so hard to think clearly, to get a hold of his new skin, his new life, as if he had just been swept up in a giant wave.

But now, finally, the effects of being turned were wearing off, and he was finally able to see clearly, to think for himself. He realized that he had slipped. He had never wanted any of this. He despised Kyle and the entire coven. Most of all, he realized that he had been played by Samantha. She had wanted him to rise to power for her own sake, her own ambition. She had used him.

But he didn’t care about power, or the Sword, or any of it. He just wanted to be left alone. And far away from her. But first, there was one thing he had to do.

At that mom