1 Chapter One

Elia

The gentle and cool waves lap around my bare legs as I stand knee-deep in the beautiful turquoise waters of this hidden oasis. I wiggle my toes in the silky sand underneath the water. Soft sunlight breaks through the thick canopy of every shade of green leaves far above our heads, creating a glittering pattern on the surface of the water. Beside me, Meera's long oceanic colored hair blends beautifully with the water as she bends down to rinse one of her shirts. I reach towards the small bar of white soap floating in front of me. Just as I'm about to take a small step towards it, a small wave wraps around the soap and pushes it towards me. I glance up at Meera to find a small smirk playing on her lips. I scoff, roll my eyes, and grab the soap. I start rubbing the soap against the light pink tank top in my hand.

"That's no wave, M!" A loud masculine voice comes from behind us. We turn in time to see Roan run at us at full speed. "This is a wave!" He uses all of his Vampire power to jump over our heads and let out a howl, only to land in the middle of the lake and create a wave that knocks us both off our feet and simultaneously soaking us. I laugh as he surfaces, the biggest grin on his face. He shakes his wet black hair like a dog and swims towards us. Meera stands up and drags her fingers through her hair, pulling the water away from her body as she does it. She holds up her hand in front of her and the water wraps around Roan, freezing him in place. His grin vanishes.

"My love, your wave was pretty," Meera's beautiful voice echoes over the lake and against the tall rocks surrounding the lake. "But don't forget who the actual Siren is." I laugh again and stand up next to her, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Admit defeat, Roan, before it gets embarrassing," I say, earning a high five from Meera. Roan hangs his head in defeat.

"Very well, I admit my defeat to the mighty Siren of this unnamed lake in the middle of nowhere," Roan says dramatically making Meera and I chuckle. Meera drops her hand and Roan swims to shore. Meera turns to me and starts pulling the water from my clothes by holding her hand in front of me. I watch in amazement as the water that soaked me forms a ball in front of her hand, leaving me drier than when we first touched the water. Roan comes up behind her and wraps his arms around her waist, placing a kiss on her cheek. I smile at them and start to untangle my long pale blonde hair. A cold feeling spreads through my body followed by worry. I sway on my feet.

"Guys?" I ask weakly as my vision blurs and the last thing I see is the shock and fear in both Roan and Meera's eyes before the darkness takes over.

I open my eyes again only to find myself alone in the woods. Looking myself over, I'm still wearing the same clothes that I had when I was awake. A pair of white shorts, a light pink tank top, and black boots. I recognize these woods. We came through here yesterday, on our way to the lake. I walk forwards, dragging my hands along the bark of each tree that I pass. I keep silent. Making no sounds, just like Aiden taught me all those years ago when he found me. A branch breaks behind me and I twirl around, calling my magic to my hands. But nothing happens. The usual, comforting bright pink color of my magic is kept hidden. This isn't real. It's a vision. The thought calms me down at the same time as it scares me. As one of my visions has never been wrong. A group of people, men with guns and crossbows come towards me. Each of them scanning the woods. One of the men leading the group stops and kneels. He places his palm on the dirt floor of the forest. His hand moves over the ground, scanning it, feeling it. He smirks and looks up at me with icy blue eyes. His gaze is cold and calculating and terrifies me to the very core.

"They're good. Hardly anything to track them by." His voice is gruff and almost vibrates. "But if there is one thing that I can do. It's catching supernaturals." My breath catches. Hunters. He gestures his group forwards. The group behind him shout battle cries and take off through the woods, some run through me. The man gets up slowly and starts walking towards me. He can't see me. It's just a vision. I'm not here. I'm not here! I scream it in my head over and over again. But the man doesn't stop. Not until he stands right in front of me. I hold my breath. "I can't see you, Witch. But I have heard of you, and I know enough about magic to feel its presence. Take this warning, Witch. I am coming for you. For all of you." He points in the direction in which his men ran and suddenly I am flying through the air. My feet barely touch the ground as I zoom through the forest, branches, and trees going right through me. The men come into view and I watch as they spread out, forming a circle around a meadow. The men know what they are doing, they stay just within the trees as they take aim at something on the meadow. I fly through their ranks and onto the meadow, looking around frantically. There. My friends sit in a circle on the grass and enjoy the sun. I look to my right in the direction of the lake where my body is along with Meera and Roan. I have no idea how long I have before the hunters come for us. I need to warn them.