Winterwood Academy Book 4: Bonded

By Kate A. Fox

I’ve been pulled from the only home I’ve ever known. I’ve been called the Queen of Freaks.

I’ve been attacked and killed.

Yes, I know how that sounds.

I’ve been forced into hiding, captured and imprisoned but by far the worst thing, the thing that tops all that, is being told that I have to fight the sister I didn’t know I had.

I know what you’re thinking. Siblings fight all the time, right? Well, not like this. When you find out you are a magical twin all the normal family rules fly out of the window.

One of us won’t make it out alive.

Meanwhile, my sister has been training for this day all her life while I just found out a couple of weeks ago that I have a twin and we’re meant to kill each other.

But Celestria doesn’t plan to make things easy on me, and my father is on her side.
With my family and friends risking their lives to save me, I only have a few days to train and learn everything I can to survive.

Wish me luck.

• Language: English
• Publisher: JMS Books LLC
• Release date: Jul 17, 2021
• ISBN: 9780463173701

Book preview

Bonded

The Winterwood Academy Book 4

By Kate A. Fox

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Copyright @ 2021 Kate A. Fox. All rights reserved.

Edited by James Fox

Cover Design: Crystal Designs

WARNING: This book is not transferable. It is for your own personal use. If it is sold, shared, or given away, it is an infringement of the copyright of this work and violators will be prosecuted.

First published in Great Britain 2020 By Kate A. Fox

The right of K A Fox to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988

Right Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted or stored in an information retrieval system in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, taping and recording, without prior written permission from the author.

Note: This book is written in U.K. English.

Some spelling may be different to U.S. English.

***

To my parents, including my step parents, because I was lucky enough to get double the people in my life who believe in me. I couldn’t be half the writer I am today without you.

Also, a special thanks to my amazing cover designer at Cristal Designs for all the amazing work you do!

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Bonded

The Winterwood Academy Book 4

By Kate A. Fox

Chapter One

If not for the dim light of a single flickering candle, I might have believed that I was still lost in the darkness of my unconscious. The dank, musty smell was by far worse than anything my imagination could have come up with, and the aching of my entire body made me wish I was still lost to the darkness.

When I tried to move at all, every single muscle in my body screamed at me not to, and the hard surface beneath me creaked. Reaching with my hands at my sides, I felt the cold, hard metal of what appeared to be a bed frame, yet it was by far the smallest and most uncomfortable bed I’d ever laid on. The thin mat beneath me did little to protect my back from the springs, and I was sure that several of them were broken, sticking up through the musty material.

With a deep groan, I rolled onto my side and sat up, swinging my legs over the side of the camperlike bed.

Brianna? A hissed whisper sounded from the dark, making me jump, Bri?

Mum! Surprise and relief overwhelmed me as I finally recognised the voice calling my name. I moved towards the dim candlelight only to realise that I couldn’t quite reach the source. My path was cut off by heavy metal bars. When I lifted my hands to give them a shake, I found that they were entirely unmovable, my fingers finding small carvings in the cold metal.

Mum? Where are you? Where are we? I questioned, panic rising like a tide inside of me.

Try to calm yourself, sweetheart, my mum’s voice sounded through the darkness, and I suddenly felt as though she was close to me. Leaning against the dank stone wall where the metal bars joined the bricks, I felt as though I could sense her doing the same on the other side.

A flicker of movement from the corner of my eye made me look up, and I found a hand hovering before me as if she had squeezed her arm through the bars of her own cell.

Instinctively, I reached out until the cell bars began to squeeze my bicep, and I could move no further. It was just far enough for her to grip hold of my hand and entwine her fingers with mine.

Be calm, she said again as she squeezed my hand, comfortingly, We’re in the old wine cellar beneath the kitchens. Your great-grandfather had them refurbished into prison cells almost three centuries ago during the war.

What war? I found myself asking. I wasn’t a big history buff, but I was pretty sure there wasn’t a war going on three hundred years ago. Wait! My great-grandfather was alive three hundred years ago? The thought burst into my head. How is that even possible?

Witches live rather a lot longer than humans do, mum explained to me, almost as if she’d read my mind. Your great-grandfather, Thomas Winterwood, was the founder of the Winterwood Academy and remained its headmaster for almost seventy years before he died at the age of 192. He was assassinated by hunters during the witch wars. Didn’t they teach you about any of this in class?

It was as if she sensed my total confusion.

I didn’t exactly get to attend many classes before everything began to kick off, I admitted.

Then I suppose you’ll have a lot of catching up to do once all of this is over.

Yeah, I mumbled. If we make it out alive.

I thought it best not to say that thought out loud. There would be no point in voicing any doubts I had. They’d only make us both feel worse.

Is there anyone else down here? I asked instead. How long was I out?

A couple of hours, and no, nobody else is down here that I know of.

Then where are Zoe and Merrin? I gulped as fear gripped me. Had something terrible happened to them?

I never got to ask my mum what she thought on the matter because the sound of a heavy door opening down the hall made us both jump. We quickly snatched our hands back into our cells so as not to be seen by whoever was coming.

The sound of heeled footsteps was oddly familiar, but it was joined by a harsh thudding of more feet that I definitely didn’t recognise.

The light at the front of my cell began to grow as the pair drew towards us and I had to press myself against the bars in order to see.

My chest tightened when I recognised the hooded outline of Grand Priestess Celestria illuminated by the candle she held steadily before her. A taller, broader outline followed behind her, but I couldn’t get a good view of the man’s face.

Maybe it’s Tomas. I thought, hopefully. Even if he was on Celestria’s side, I at least knew he cared for me, even a little. Anyone else would simply be a further threat.

Well, Emelia, I never expected our reunion to come under such circumstances, said a male voice as they stopped just outside our adjoining cells. It was an oddly familiar voice that made me cringe.

Celestria lowered the candle so that the light was no longer a sheet concealing their faces, and I felt my heart stop. She was just as beautiful as ever, if not for the sadistic smile that stretched across her face.

The man beside her I had only ever seen once before, but how could I ever possibly forget the face of the man I had recently learned was my father. Just as I had seen him before, I could only see the profile of his rugged face and the thin layer of stubble that spread down his cheeks and covered the lower half of his face. Though his hair was dark in this light, I knew that it was really a thick, healthy mass of chocolate brown that framed his olive-skinned face. Clearly, I’d gotten all of my colouring from my mother with her thick red hair and porcelain, pale skin.

Augustus, I didn’t expect to find you at the Academy, my mum spoke as though she definitely wasn’t pleased to see him. There was a sneer to her voice that told me to be on my guard.

If I hadn’t already been here with the witch council, then I would have come the minute Grand Priestess Celestria contacted me to tell me you had been found at last. Augustus stepped up to the bars of my mother’s cell, making it harder for me to see him.

Found implies that I was lost, and I assure you I was far from it. I was shocked by the strength and defiance in my mother’s voice. For someone who had spent so long hiding from this man, she definitely didn’t sound as though she feared him. Perhaps it was simply an act.

I’m sure we’ll have plenty of time to discuss all of that, but for now, I believe that I have a daughter to meet. Augustus’s voice hardened, and I felt a fresh wave of panic threaten to overwhelm me as he stepped back and moved towards me.

Celestria crept up behind him as if on guard, although she kept her distance from my cell as he stepped up to the bars.

For the first time, I got a full view of my father’s face. Even though I loathed to admit it, I could see that he was handsome. With thick, arched eyebrows framing his brown eyes and chiselled cheekbones, he had a dark and dangerous beauty about him, much like Celestria herself.

The light in here is much too poor, he growled as he reached into the pocket of his blazer and produced a smooth stone around the size of his palm.

Hissing something in Latin under his breath, I was surprised by the harsh white light that suddenly pierced the darkness all around me, glowing from the stone in his hand.

Ahh, that’s better. Come closer so that I might take a look at you.

When he spoke to me, I realised that I had taken several steps back from the bars of the cell.

Lifting my head, determined not to show the panic that was boiling inside me, I did as he asked.

His face barely moved but for the lifting of one brow. He looked me up and down, examining my face for much longer than I was comfortable with.

I see now why Adreanna’s presence caused such a stir when we arrived. Augustus mused, lifting his free hand to stroke his stubbled chin.

The sound of my sister’s name caused a lump to begin forming in my throat. For so long, I had believed that I was nothing more than an orphan, and now, in the space of just a few short days, I had come to learn of my parents’ existence and a twin sister I never knew a thing about.

Most people who believed they were an orphan would probably have rejoiced at something like that but, save for the news of my mother, I was utterly terrified. After all that I’d heard of the Maxwells’ and their terrible need for upholding traditions, Augustus Maxwell was by far the last father I could have hoped for.

The likeness is uncanny, is it not? Celestria spoke up for the first time, and as usual, her voice sent a cold shiver down my spine. "Even living totally separate lives, they have still been moulded into fine, beautiful young witches."

Was that a hint of jealousy I heard in her voice?

I had to force myself to meet my father’s eyes as he continued to gaze at me, a dark flame of thought flickering in his brown eyes.

Yes, my dear, you are right. Save for that mark, of course.

I cringed as he gestured at the swirling mark between my eyebrows that signified my rebirth at the hands of the Goddess. I tightened my hands into fists at my sides, resisting the urge to move my hair to hide the mark.

My dear? That was an oddly informal way to address a Grand Priestess. What was it my mother had told me about them? That they had all once been friends? Even friends didn’t address each other as dear. Something felt terribly off to me, and my gut had been horribly right of late.

Why didn’t you tell me that she had such a mark? Augustus’s voice deepened with a hint of irritation, but Celestria simply smiled sweetly back at him as she replied.

I had not thought to mention it after the trauma of their attack.

Our attack? She couldn’t be serious. Sure, I’d attacked her in self-defence, but she had quite clearly been the one leading an ambush the moment we stepped through the wardings that protected the academy.

Has she told him about my other marks?

That was the one she knew I had, the Triple Goddess mark that had been the first to appear at the base of the back of my neck. Of course, as far as I was aware, she had no idea that mark had spread practically all the way down my back.

I decided that it was probably better to keep my mouth shut on the subject rather than causing a conflict between them right now. Of course, it might work in our favour if they were arguing, but it could also work against us too.

Now that you have laid eyes upon her, should I call the witch council together as we discussed? Celestria asked, breaking me from my thoughts, talking as if I wasn’t even there. Her voice was soft, almost intimate, and it made me feel sick. Not just because she had mentioned the witch council but because she seemed all too familiar with my father.

Yes, I do believe it is well past time to invoke the Rites of the Gemini. Augustus nodded.

My blood instantly froze as I broke into a cold sweat.

Wait! What? No!

I wanted to scream the words at them, but I knew an outburst like that would do little to help me now. In fact, it would probably do the complete opposite and make me look weak.

You can’t do that! Emelia screamed from her cell, and I heard a harsh clashing sound, almost as if she’d thrown herself at the bars in an attempt to get her hands on them.

You have left me with no other choice, Emelia! Augustus snarled, and his eyes snapped from my cell to hers.

I might have shrunk away from such a gaze, but my senses told me that my mum was standing stock still, glaring back at him.

Augustus, for the love you once bore me, I beg you not to do this.

There was a pleading in my mother’s voice that left me hopeful.

You should be proud, Emelia, Augustus said, his voice hard and sadistic, One of your daughters may just become the most powerful witch this world has ever seen.

Witch? Not witches?

My father truly meant for me to battle my own sister to the death.

How the hell was I supposed to have any chance of winning that? Sure, I had no idea of my sister’s power, but I was well aware of my own limitations thanks to Celestria syphoning my powers and leaving me six feet under. If it hadn’t been for the intervention of my Goddess, I would still be there now.

They are your daughters, Augustus, not a means for you to wield power.

Emelia sounded desperate now, as if she was attempting to reach some small part of him, but I got the distinct impression that part did not exist.

Who is to say that they cannot be both? he asked with such cold contempt that I knew he had barely listened to her desperate pleas. Don’t worry, Emelia, though you have wronged me terribly, I shall allow you to live long enough to see the outcome as long as you do not do anything stupid.

Live long enough to see the outcome?

Did that mean he intended to have her killed once all of this was over?

I probably shouldn’t have been too worried about all of that. The likelihood of me being around to find out was slim.

Come, my love. Celestria reached out with her free hand to grip hold of Augustus’s, and bile began to rise in the back of my throat. We have wasted far too much time in this Ungodly place.

I couldn’t help but cringe as I watched my father turn to her. He removed his hand from hers just long enough to caress her cheek before he took hold of her fingers once more.

You are right, my love, he replied and turned back to me just long enough to add, Do not fret. You shall soon meet your sister.

Was that supposed to be a good thing? I didn’t exactly feel the urge to meet her, not if I was to be pitted against her.

I never got the chance to voice it as he turned away then and began to lead Celestria back down the cell block. The light receded with them, and the single candle seemed even dimmer than before.

No longer held up by my panic, I dropped down onto the cold, stone floor, my hands wrapped tightly around the bars of my cell.

I’m sorry, Brianna, Emelia said sadly in defeat. I never should have brought you here.

***

For some time afterwards, there was nothing but silence. The candle slowly burning down until it began to flicker in and out of existence. I longed for the all-consuming darkness of unconsciousness where I could pretend that none of this was happening, but it would not come to me.

I pressed my forehead against the freezing bars of the cell, my fingers tightening around the metal as I tried desperately to think of a way out of the situation.

I attempted to call the elements to me several times, asking fire to warm me and air to ease my troubled mind, but they did not come. Even when I asked water to quench my growing thirst, I did not feel the usual swell of a stream around me or smell the salty scent of the ocean.

As if she sensed my vain attempts, my mother finally spoke up, It’s no use trying to use your powers down here. Every metal bar and stone has been carved with anti-magic runes.

So we are completely at their mercy down here? I sighed, trying not to begin panicking all over again.

The only person who could will us out of these cells is the Goddess herself, mum said, and a small spark of hope flared in my stomach. Selene had brought me back to the Winterwood Academy for a reason. I could only hope that it wasn’t to perish at the hands of Celestria and my own father, or worse, my sister.

I was about to open my mouth to point out what I’d just been thinking about when I heard the sound of the door opening once more at the end of the hall.

Hurry, you don’t have long. If we’re caught down here, we’re both dead.

That voice, with its slight French lilt, was so familiar that I instantly straightened up and grabbed hold of the cell bars, trying to angle myself to get even a glimpse of Lecturer Tomas.

Yet it wasn’t him I saw coming down the corridor towards me.

A lump formed in my throat, and my heart skipped a beat, betraying the anger I felt deep in my gut.

New Girl? Booth called out my nickname as though the last two weeks hadn’t happened. As if I was still the innocent new student who knew nothing of our mad Grand Priestess or the goings-on of the Winterwood Academy.

For a moment, my