Breaking away from the kiss, he turned his back on me. I quickly scurried to stand in front of him. Looking away, he fumbled with his lips, before talking. "I'm sorry. It was a mistake. Don't come here again." I rolled my tongue and grabbed his collar with anger. It was obvious from his deep response to my kiss that he still loves me. But why is he denying after raising my hopes up.

"No! You're lying. Why did you respond to my kiss then? I can see right through your eyes." He turned away with his wavery eyes. "Take it as you wish. I won't entertain your questions anymore."

Before I could utter another word, he turned his back on me and resumed walking. Burning with rage and desperation, I don't know what took over me. I felt a burst of energy in me, just like the day before. I couldn't control myself this time too. It was as if someone had taken control over my body.

My hands spread wide exposing an excruciating outburst of power. With my eyes raging from a light blue to dark blue color. Staring anxiously over his direction for minute, I felt a strong energy in me running all over my body.

It was difficult to stand up properly while my hair dismantled from the bun, running in the air like a kite. With my eyes wide open, my pupil surrounded with blue light as my hands spread out.

  A blast followed up when my eyes soared up with a darker light. My body emitted a dark aura engulfing me as I tried to remain sane. Stumbling back after the short blast, Max suddenly turned around, glaring at me in shock.

  "Clara!" he screamed glaring at me with flickering eyes. I couldn't answer his call when I tried to talk. It was even difficult for me to lower my hands too.

The ground shook when my eyes soared up again. The birds escaped from their nest flapping their wings for safety and squirrels looked desperately for refuge. With the commotion, the dark aura around me started to consume me slowly, erupting my sense of priority.

  "Clara!" he screamed. But this tim, he run back to me falling back just a feet from me. When he tried to stand up, the dark aura engulfed me slowly, strangling me by my neck. I couldn't breathe properly while a tear run down my cheeks.

My body felt weak after doing this. I could see the trees moving back and forth to the tune of the wind.  After a short kick on my neck, I touched my face, struggling to keep my eyes open. I collapsed on the floor and lost consciousness completely. My eyes grew dim, returning back to normal. She supported me, clinging to my hand.

I drifted off to sleep in her arms as Max dashed to us. The dark aura subsided, but still kept hovering around me.

  "Clara?" he yelled rushing to me. Cathy lowered her hands to pull my body up into her arms. Cathy rushed to me checking up my pulse. "Her pulse's disoriented. It seems she has been practicing magic with inconsistency."

He looked up surprised and confused. Holding me up in his arms, he rushed for his cottage and bashed the door open. He carried me in his arms with much difficulty and with the speed of bolt, got inside. When he managed to put me on the sofa, he stepped back holding his wounded part with his hand with a silent wince.

"Are you okay? Take these herbal medicine. I took them from the hospital. I'll change your dressing after checking her?" He didn't really listen to what she said. His eyes were on me as I laid immobile on his sofa. "Why did she collapse?" Sighing, he sat by me.

"Her powers are developed now. This happened to me a year ago. But it wasn't yet time for her. I think she forced herself to practice a high level magic, probably the life exchange magic." As he blinked his eyes, he turned to Cathy remembering the name of that magic. It was the same thing he required to save himself the day Ian stroke him.

  After looking at her state, he realized she lied to him about not listening to Ian. She practiced that dark magic to save him, and it wasn't the doctor that saved his life. Why didn't he even realize that?

"Diagnosing her state, I'm sure she hasn't practiced after doing that magic. That caused her meridians to clash with her mother's genes and react this way. Things might get out of hand if she keeps practicing dark magic."

Staring at me, Cathy's eyes furrowed. "Once you start practicing this, it's very effective. It can work on Ian, but the effects are gruesome. You might get consumed my the dark aura and lose your conscience. Did you teach her? How did she practice it in her own? Who told her about it?"

 "After Ian injured me, he mentioned that as my survival ticket. I didn't know she did that." After covering me with a blanket, she injected a sleeping pill through my wrist and made me drink a medicine.

  "I hope this can mend the disoriented meridians. She won't be awake for some hours." Max gaped at me in melancholy sitting by me with a sigh. "I can't hold this up for long. I have to find my hospital report as soon as possible. It might be at my mom's old house. This is the location right?" She nodded glaring at the note she stole from Ian. "I'll check there. You take care of her." Kissing my forehead, she nodded.

He turned back looking at the house. "What should I tell her when she wakes up?" He looked down sadly, wiping the tears gushing from her eyes.

"Nothing. But don't tell her I went to my mom's. Promise me?" She acquiesced holding back her tears.

He gazed at her for the last time, before closing the door after she got out with him.

"You have to be careful. Don't attack Ian without being sure. You must tell me before." He didn't assure her though. He just picked a gun from his bag and turned to her for the last time. "You're sending a gun? Max. Come back here. Max!" Catherine yelled.

This time too, he didn't turn around. He lied about going only his mother's house. He was going to end this all by himself. How would he do so in this state?

  "Max! You're going to get yourself killed. Max!" she yelled again. But he didn't turn around. He just kept walking away. Boarding a taxi, he stopped the driver at an old farm house situated in the middle of the city. As he stepped down and turned to the house, giggles lurked through his ears at each step.

  "Mom! Dad! See what I got!" A little boy screamed jumping on his toes. His parents stepped out of the car and rushed to him. Holding a kite in his hand, he went around in circles, running into the house.

  With a gulp, he closed his eyes and ascended the stairs slowly. As he looked around, the flower gardens were all dried up and dead. The compound was quite dirty enough to show the absence of people there. With another step, he opened the door with the passcode and walked along the hallway.

  The trees wilted gradually and the hallway brought so much memories into his head. Turning to his dad's office room, he opened the door. It was all dusty with cobwebs so he had to clear them with his hands. Pulling the drawer open, he took all the documents out and looked through them one by one. But in all, he didn't find his hospital file.

Unnoticed, he moved through the walls to check the other safe room. The door was locked so he pushed his body against it, breaking it open. Holding on to his opening wound, he closed his eyes and rushed to the other drawers. As she searched the files one at a time, he didn't find it here too.

 Suddenly the lights turned on on that hallway. Walking inti the room, he found a silhouette by the door with a file burning. Ian stood in front of him with a wicked smile forming from the corner of his mouth. "So you came after betraying me? Did you come for this?"

  He stretched his neck and swiftly moved to his back. No sound was heard. Realizing that he came alone, Max on the other hand glared at his hospital file burning into ashes. Thrashing it under his feet, he picked it up and read the unburnt part.

"You came alone, without Catherine?" he exclaimed silently looking down. Without much hesitation, he chucked at Max's amused face. "Do you think I don't know she's in touch with her sister? I let her be because I needed her to get you here. She was resourceful to you right?"

 Grabbing his neck, the file fel from his hands. He was too weak to fight him back and unprepared to fight his sudden attack. Pulling our a gun with difficult, he only managed to shoot past his chest

"You will get that girl here. I don't think she'll give you out to save people she doesn't know." Losing breath under his grip, Ian tossed the gun aside and pushed him against the wall. Laughing, Max tried to stand up, but he pressed on his wound and chuckled.

"Should I call her now or wait?" Ian asked moved closer to him. " You would've done great with me....but you chose to protect these fools. They'll betray you after they achieve what they want from you!"

 He surrounded him, with his vampire swiftness caging him in between after taking his foot off his wound. "She did that? Thunder's quite a fool, but he helped me indirectly."

Max gradually got back on his feet and took steps back, running out amid struggles. But as he got to the curve, Ian grabbed him by the neck and pushed him with full strength from the stairs landing him on the floor with a thud.

Wincing in pain while trying to get back on his feet, he realized that his wound opened up. Blood oozed out weakening him with each passing minute. "Let's get the game going!" Squatting by him, he raised his chin and smiled at him.

 As I laid unconscious, I started sweating profusely on the bed dreaming about Max's deadly encounter with Ian. My eyes opened abruptly simultaneously when my body sprung up.

Holding on to my chest, my heart was pounding in my chest, giving me a hard time breathing.

Seeing Cathy pacing about with a worried look, I got up quickly from the bed. "Where's Max?!" I yelled rummaging my eyes in the room. With no reply, I began going around the house in search of him.

 Cathy rose her head in despair staring at me with teary eyes. When she saw that I was looking for him, she hurriedly wiped her tears while looking away.

"He went out to get medicine." I twirled the bedsheets to the other side, feeling the floor with my toes. "Did he go to Ian? I can feel it. He's in danger. Tell me the truth!" I took to my heels dashing outside when she didn't reply me.

"Clara...wait! You can't go," she screamed running after me. She managed to get a hold on my hand to stop me at the door. "Please tell me where he is. I need to find him," I cried miserably while looking around. She realized that I won't stop even if she doesn't tell me.

  "I'll go with you." I shook my head head, "No. He shouldn't see you with me. Just tell me where he is". She sighed and replied, "He went to check his parent's old house. Let's go together. I'll follow from behind"

 Nodding, I dashed out running across the streets as the cars sped with utmost speed.

After crossing the last street, I recognized the house which fit perfectly to her description. I bashed the door open. But my jaw dropped when I noticed the house was in a disaster.

 Max was on the floor struggling to get up. His wound had opened up. Ian was standing by him holding a phone about to call me. He smiled sheepishly as he moved swiftly and grabbed Max by the neck in the air strangling him. "Good you came. I was about to call you!"

 "Max!" I cried running to him. Ian dropped his phone and rushed to me, pushing me against the wall. "Tell me where the spell books are!"

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