Thornhill Academy (By Sheridan Hartin) novel Chapter 160

Chapter 160

Allison

DEA

The world doesn’t end. It just rips itself apart and then slams back together in the wrong order. One second there’s fire, screaming, the Council’s eyes on me -then everything collapses into shadow. Cold, endless shadow. We hit the floor hard, as bits of wood splinter under us and dust explodes into the air. The old shack groans like it’s as surprised to see us as I am to be here. I can’t breathe for a second; my lungs won’t work.

Kael’s voice cuts through first, rough and disoriented. “What the-what the fuck-” He’s on his side, chest heaving, one arm twitching as he tries to push himself up. His eyes are unfocused, pupils blown wide.

Evander isn’t much better. He’s halfway rolled onto his stomach, dragging himself closer to me with a low growl that’s more dragon than human. His scales are half-formed, flickering in and out of existence as if his body can’t decide what it is.

“Ally-” he rasps, voice breaking. “You-okay?”

I try to answer, but nothing comes out. The power’s still moving under my skin, too much, too fast. It’s not fading-it’s multiplying. My whole body flickers with shifting light, colour and texture. For a second, my arm glows gold with Evander’s dragonfire, then it blackens with Kael’s hellhound shadow, then veins of green, silver, and scarlet crawl up my throat-witch, fae, vampire, warlock-everything I siphoned today and more. The air crackles, and the wooden floor

beneath us starts to smoke.

Kael groans, clutching his head. “Okay-okay, that’s-new-”

“Don’t-” Evander reaches out and grabs my wrist. His skin burns against mine, power sizzling between us. He jerks back with a hiss. “You’re burning up,

Allison. You need to stop.”

“I can’t,” I manage, voice trembling. “It won’t stop.”

Every breath feels like inhaling lightning. My vision flickers between colours-the world tinting blue, then red, then gold. My magic doesn’t know what to be. None of it belongs to me, but all of it’s inside me now, fighting for space.

Kael drags himself up to his knees, sweat slicking his hair to his forehead. “Trouble, you’re gonna blow the roof off if you don’t get control of that.”

The roof creaks ominously like it heard him.

“I’m trying!” I shout back, and the words come out laced with raw power. The shadows in the corners of the shack recoil, then surge forward again, reaching for me like they recognise their master. The glow along my arms turns from blue to silver to crimson,

Evander’s hand finds my shoulder, steady and firm even though his own magic’s in pieces. “Breathe. In, out. You’ve done this before.”

“No,” I whisper. “Not like this.”

He moves closer, ignoring the heat radiating off me. His golden eyes are softer now, desperate. “You have to anchor it. Focus on something-someone.”

Kael huffs out a weak laugh. “Focus on me, trouble. I’m easy to look at.”

Even half-dead, he’s still cocky.

I reach for him, fingers shaking, and the moment our skin connects, there’s a spark, Power arcs between us. His back arches with a groan, but he doesn’t pull away. Evander grips my other hand, and suddenly, there’s balance, two forces grounding me. The burning eases enough for me to breathe. I collapse forward, gasping, my forehead hitting Kael’s shoulder. He catches me instantly, wrapping an arm around my waist.

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17:13 Thu, Jan 1 M

Chapter 160

“There we go,” he murmurs, voice low and hoarse. “You’re okay, trouble. We’re okay.”

Evander exhales shakily beside us. “Define okay,” he mutters, but there’s relief buried under the exhaustion.

My skin’s still flickering with faint traces of other people’s power, my chest still heaving, and my head still pounding but I no longer feel like I might

combust.

Kael tilts his head back against the wall, still holding me close. “Where the hell are we?”

I glance around. The shack looks smaller than I remember-walls half-collapsed, roof patched with rusted tin, floorboards warped from years of rain. The air smells like old smoke and damp earth. “My old hideout,” I say softly. “Used to come here when I was unregistered. Nobody ever looked this far out.”

Evander raises an eyebrow, half-smiling despite everything. “You really are full of surprises.”

“Yeah, well.” I swallow hard, glancing at the charred prints our bodies left on the floor. “So are you two.”

Kael lets out a rough laugh, though it sounds more like a cough. “Can’t believe you dragged us through the shadows. I think my soul’s still back on the

training field.”

I force a weak smile. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be.” His hand squeezes mine. “You saved us.”

Evander sits back against the wall beside us, running a hand through his hair. “And nearly tore the realms apart in the process,” he mutters, but there’s no anger in it. Just awe. “I’ve never seen power like that, Ally.”

“Neither have I,” I admit. My voice cracks. “It felt like-like everything was screaming inside me. Like the world was trying to decide if I should exist.”

Kael leans his head against mine. “You do exist. You’re here. We all are.”

The words shouldn’t help, but they do.

For a while, we just sit there in the fading light filtering through the holes in the roof. My body’s still trembling, each pulse of borrowed magic trying to settle somewhere under my skin. The marks along my arms flicker, fading in and out, and I trace them absently-hellhound smoke curling over dragon scales, flecks of gold burning beneath the blue sigils from Rhaziel, faint silver veins of Cassian’s magic still clinging to me. Too many powers in one body. Too much to hold. Evander notices my hands shaking and reaches over, covering them with his. His warmth steadies me again.

“We’ll figure it out,” he says softly. “We’ll find a way to control it.”

Kael hums in agreement. “Yeah. Preferably before you accidentally set me on fire in my sleep.”

“I’ll try,” I whisper, and despite everything, a small laugh escapes me.

The exhaustion hits hard after that. It crashes through me like a tide, dragging all the adrenaline away. Kael must feel it too because he slumps sideways, his head hitting my shoulder. Evander’s already half asleep against the wall, his chest rising and falling in slow, heavy breaths. I look between them-their faces pale, their magic drained-and guilt twists in my chest. I did this, I took too much. I hurt them even while trying to save them.

My vision blurs again, and this time it’s not from magic. “I’m sorry,” I whisper to the quiet. “I didn’t mean to.”

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