Hazel

"I'll lead you to Rachel's place and you can hop in the car with us." Hazel tells him before he walks to his car.

"You okay?" Jules asks when we get into the car.

I silently nod and stare out the window. I feel Hazel watching me but I can't make myself look at her. If I see regret in her eyes I will definitely cry.

I keep staring out the window into the dark night. The moon is hidden behind some clouds and I can't see any stars. We're on a lonely road that has no street lights or any other cars on the road. The car ride is silent so it is hard to miss when it completely shuts down in the middle of the road. I turn to look at Hazel who looks just as confused.

"Stay in the car." She instructs us.

Juliet and I look at each other, concerned. Jake is right behind us. He pulls over to the side of the road and gets out to help Hazel look under the hood. Everything is eerily quiet.

Juliet's door opens wide and I turn to look at her first confused then in horror. Someone in a black cloak reaches in and takes her by the wrist. Her face is wide with horror but no sound comes from her throat.

I yell out loud and Hazel is instantly on top of the creature. They fight each other and roll on the side of the road. There are no houses nearby and the only source of light is Jake's car lights behind us. I try and get out of the car but the doors are locked and I can't get it to unlock. Jake appears next to Juliet and tries to pull her towards his car.

Another person with a black cloak appears out of thin air and pushes Jake aside. Hazel turns and flicks her wrist in the air. Both people in cloaks drop to the ground and stay down. I hear their moans but my heart contracts as I look at Hazel. She has blood on the side of her mouth and mud all over her clothes. She calls out for Leo who magically appears right next to her. They talk in a rush and the two figures on the ground disappear.

In a matter of seconds five more black cloaks surround them and it takes less time for both of them to take them down. I jump to the other side of the car when one of them lands on top of hood. More of them keep appearing and I can't keep track of what is going on anymore. I shut my eyes and pray that Hazel makes it out safe.

******

~Hazel~

There are too many of them. This is the most Rebels I have ever seen in one place. I am now breaking a sweat and my mind is not fully focused on what I am doing. I keep stealing glances at my car making sure that Amelia is safe. The protective spell around the car begins to weaken as Leo and I take more of them down and I know it is only a matter of time before Leo and I are left vulnerable and the spell is broken. I need to get her out of here.

Leo voice booms above all the noise and every one of them catch on fire. I look at him wide eye, he has never been able to do that before but I see now why he could. Jake is lying on the side of the road unconscious. Juliet is hiding behind my car.

All of us try to get to Jake but one last figure appears right in front of him.

"Give us the girl and I won't kill him."

Leo stumbles but then tries to run full force towards Jake. He instantly falls back a couple of yards, the figure only holds on finger up. Another figure appears and then another.

"Fuck." I say under my breath. Why has no one from the Roderick Coven shown up yet?

I take a second to pull Juliet behind me. What do they want with her?

"I give you guys less than a minute to leave before you regret it." I yell across the street. I don't risk looking into the car. I know Amelia is safe, the spell is still on the car.

"Hazel. Let her go." Says a familiar voice.

I look around at the Rebels but only one pulls their hood back.

"Adam?" Where the fuck is the Roderick Coven, or just any back up at this point? Leo is no use. I can't take on all of them and an ex-Start Dust soon to be leader. "Adam how could you? She's human!"

"I won't hurt her." There are dark circles under his eyes. His pale skin is almost glowing against the black cloak. He doesn't take his eyes off her.

"Enough," Says another Rebel. "We have to get her before the others show."

"I won't let her go." I push her further behind me.

Leo finally gets up and walks towards us. "Adam?" He's just as confused as I am.

"If you don't give her up we'll be forced to take him." Adam pleas.

"What are you doing with Rebels?" I can't hide the disgust in my face.

"She's my soul mate, this is the only way I can be with her."

"WHAT?" Jake and I yell simultaneously.

"You have ten seconds to hand her over or he dies." The same guy speaks again.

"Adam, they'll kill her!" I try to reason with him. I don't know if it's true but nothing good can come out of being kidnapped by Rebels.

"Juliet." Adam's voice calls for her.

I feel Juliet stiffen behind me.

I look at Leo and try to think of how we can get them all out of here safe. His eyes are glued to Jake's limp body on the ground.

"Hazel, they can help you too!"

A strong wind to form around us.

"They are helping people like us. They will help me be with Juliet for the rest of eternity. They can help you too!"

My jaw drops and Leo looks at me concerned.

A sudden dark cloud appears over all of us. A dark figure in a dark green cloak floats out from it. Dark magic crackles around the cloak.

Leo and I look at each other, this is the one who has been helping the Rebels.

"Adam," The figure says. It is a female's voice, strong and deep. She pushes the cloak back and I am surprised at what I see. Her hair is almost like a platinum blonde forming a halo around her head. Her blue eyes burn bright in the dark night and her light pink lips have a slight frown on them. "Please introduce me to your friends." She watches Leo and I with curiosity. I don't miss the excitement in her eyes as they fall on Juliet. The fact that she is showing us her face means she is confident that we will be dead by the time all of this is over. No Rebel would be dumb enough to show their face knowing they could be recognized by any us at the end of this.

Adam steps near her. He still can't take his eyes of Juliet. "This is Leo of the Roderick Coven and Hazel of the Concord Coven. Juliet is right behind her and Hazel's soul mate, Amelia, is in her car."

I form a fireball and hurl it towards Adam. My anger blinding me and making me act before forming a well thought out plan. How dare he expose my one weakness to all of these Rebels? The fireball disappears before it even reaches them but the distraction gives me enough time to teleport my car with Amelia inside of it and Juliet, who was leaning against the rear bumper.

"No! No! No! Juliet!" Adam begins to yell.

Leo doesn't miss the fact that we just got rid of our only leverage, which means Jake is most likely going to be killed. I try to shoot him an apologetic look be he stays still, focusing on the woman across from us.

She smiles slightly. "Impressive, for such a green witch."

I expected anger, like what Adam is displaying but her cool demeanor is much more intimidating.

"Adam," She pats his head and he instantly calms. "Don't worry. We will get her back. All in due time." She turns back to look at us. "So Hazel, I assume you made Amelia disappear in hope that we wouldn't get a good look at her?"

The way she talks to me, with familiarity, makes the hairs on my neck stand.

She snaps her fingers and an image of Amelia appears before all of us, right next to her is Juliet, both of them in my room, my parents comforting them and cleaning up the mess the car made.

"And I assume these are your parents, Ernest and Charlotte."

I feel the bile rise in my throat.

"What do you want?" Leo finally speaks. "Better get it out fast, my Coven will be here any second now."

Her stoic face breaks when she smiles. It looks more like a snarl but I can't get the image of my parents and Amelia being available to her whenever she pleases.

"Leo, I think you will also be very interested in my proposition." She takes a step closer to us and begins to pace. "I can help both of you be with your true love for all of eternity."

Leo freezes. She knows he has a human soul mate.

"And just how do you plan on doing that? No magical being has been capable of sustaining a relationship with a human without killing them in the process. Adam told me so." I glare at him. How could he feed into her bullshit when he has seen the facts themselves?

"I was wrong-" Adam tries to explain.

She lifts a hand and shakes her head. He gets quiet.

The black cloaks behind her start to shift uncomfortably. I see her smile tighten. While she looks calm and collected in front of us, the Rebels have probably seen unspeakable things. Her dark magic crackles in the air, coming off in waves.

I want to shrink back but I can't show any weakness. "So, Adam has Juliet, Hazel has Amelia, and Leo... Leo who is your soul mate?" Her eyes watch us, seeing every shift in our body, every breath that we take, and analyzing our next moves.

"I do not have one." He stiffens.

She begins to shake her head, disappointed. Her voice goes down an octave. "Let us be honest and clear with each other. After all, I mean no harm to any of you. I am just very curious as to how all of you managed to fall for humans in this little nook of the town. Must be something in the water." She sounds amused. "Well, my best bet is that whoever your soul mate is, they are here with us tonight. So..."

Her eyes trail past both of us. I expect her to look back at Jake and indicate that she knows. Her eyes though trail towards her right until they land on Jake's car. In all of the chaos I completely forgot about Rachel. Rachel who looks like she has just seen a ghost or twenty. Her mouth is slightly open and she's not blinking. This poor girl has been dragged into her own death. I wish I would have made sure she left with Amelia and Juliet, but there was no time. And I was so careless, how could I have missed her?

The dark magic witch brings her hand slowly up to her temple and she seems to flinch. "We don't have much time," With a huff she turns to Adam reaches for his forehead with her forefinger and he falls to the ground.

They are all gone before his body hits the floor.

******

~Amelia

"Do you girls need anything else?" Hazel's mom asks us.

Her kind brown eyes remind me so much of her beautiful daughter. Hazel's father also looks kind but I can tell us being here is not a good thing for them. After he removed the car from the room he clean up the mess and cursed under his breath until he finally left the room. I felt like I could breath once he stepped out. I noticed the similarities between his and Hazel's seriousness. I stopped myself before my thoughts turned to Hazel. I need to know she is safe.

I wrap my arms around Juliet's shivering figure and shake my head.

Just as she is about to leave I call out for her. "Mrs.Holt." My voice is raspy.

She turns back to face us. "Please call me Charlotte."

I briefly look at Juliet. "Give me a second, I'll be right back."

She looks deep in thought but nods anyways. Her blue eyes are bleak and her hair is sticking up all over the place. The color on her cheeks is slowly returning.

I walk next to Charlotte and we stop right outside of Hazel's room.

"Is Hazel safe?" I brace myself for an answer.

She places a hand on my shoulder, avoiding to make any skin to skin contact like Hazel usually does.

"We heard back from the Roderick leaders a couple of minutes ago, Hazel is safe. It seems the Rebels had a spell fort around them making it hard for anyone to get through, but everyone made it out safe."

I sigh in relief and that is when I feel the tears trickling down.

Charlotte looks concerned but makes no move to say anything else. She watches me closely.

I wipe the tears away but they keep falling.

"Amelia, has Hazel seen you outside of her lectures?"

I nod and sniffle a bit. "She's always there when I need her the most." I can't imagine my life without her. If anything had happened to her I would crushed.

"I see." She says quietly. Her frown deepens and she sighs. Her arms wrap around me and I feel a yearning in my chest. It feels heavenly to be held like this. It reminds me of being in my mother's arms.

I cry a little harder. "If anything happens to her..." I gasp for air. "I can't even..."

She hushes me and rubs my back. "She is safe, my child. Now get some rest. We will take you home as soon as it is safe." She pulls away but I hold on to her hand.

"Can I ask you a question?"

She looks uncomfortable but nods.

"I heard them talking about soul mates." I bite my lip trying to figure out the best way to go about this. "Is Hazel my-am I Hazel's soul mate?" I feel like I know the answer before she says anything.

"Charlotte." Her husband's voice interrupts us. He is standing down the hall, holding his hand out for her. Charlotte sighs and gives me a small smile.

"Get some rest, Amelia."

******

Juliet is lying on Hazel's bed but I can tell she's not sleeping.

"Juliet." I come up behind her and spoon her.

She sighs and stays silent.

"Are you okay?"

More silence.

"Juliet," I pull her tighter.

"You knew didn't you?" There is no emotion in her tone.

"About what?" There was so much that happened tonight. What could she be referring to?

"That they had powers." She simply states.

"I did. Leo and I found out a couple weeks ago but we couldn't tell anyone."

She stays quiet and then turns so that we're facing each other. "He said he was my soul mate. What does that mean?"

I shrug. "Hazel never told me about that. But I am guessing it is not something they can control."

She looks past me, lost in her own little world. "I felt like I have known him all my life."

I suck in a breath. But he is a Rebel.

"He looked at me like I was his whole world. I have never had anyone look at me that way."

"Jules, he is not a good guy."

Her eyes snap back to me. "What do you mean?"

"Ladies." Hazel's dad walks in the room.

Juliet and I sit up and turn to look at him.

"We will be taking you home now. Be rest assured that we will be keeping an eye on your for the next couple of weeks until we catch the person behind the kidnappings." He has his hands behind his back. "Until then, please do not mention this to anyone."

I can see the look of disapproval on his face when he looks at me.

I shrink back wishing Hazel was here.

"Can we wait until they get back?" I sound more confident than I feel.

He shakes his head. "I am sorry you two were dragged into this, but don't worry, you will no longer have to deal with it."

I dig my nails into my palms. "Will I be able to see Hazel tomorrow?" I push.

His voice is steady. "You will not. Hazel was supposed to keep her distance from you. I am sorry you had to find out this way but you will no longer be able to see her. It is not safe for either of you. She does not wish to see you any longer, she just wants to keep you safe."

My throat tightens. "No." I shake my head. What why? Juliet's arms wrap around me.

"Please come out into the hall when you are ready to leave."

******

~Hazel~

"How could you put them in danger?" My father voice bellows.

We're in his study, days after the incident. I have not had the chance to slip away and see Amelia since my mother and father took them home that night. I have sent her little notes assuring her that everything is fine and we are keeping an eye on all three of them while things settle here. I have been keeping an eye on her but each day she looks more and more discouraged. I need to see her soon. My father's face was almost purple the night Leo and I walked in. Leo was holding Jake in his arms and Rachel was in mine. Once Adam awoke the Roderick Coven took him away. I have yet to see him, I have so many questions but they will have to wait. He was going to be under watch until he confessed to everything.

I haven't see Leo either, I need to see if he has gotten anything out of Adam. Who was that woman with the Rebels? How did she get Adam to join them? Was there any truth to her promises? I can't see how she found a way to allow us to hold any relationships with humans.

"Father, they would have kidnapped Juliet if I did not bring her with us."

His hand lands on the table with a loud bang and I flinch. "You do not get to decide how to keep them safe. Hazel you are not a leader yet, but your actions show that you might not be ready to take on such responsibilities in the future. You put their lives in danger."

I hold on to the chair's armrest, blinking rapidly. He is going to take her away from me.

"You kept seeing her after I told you not to. You put her life at risk over and over again and now she has a target on her back by one of the most dangerous witches in the world. We have yet to figure out who she is but she knows about her now."

I had to come clean and tell him about each time that I saw Amelia. Every time I talked his frown would worsen. I wish my mother was here so he could be less harsh, but in all reality he is right. I should have stayed away from her. That evil witch would have never found out about her and none of this would have ever happened. She would have never fainted in my arms or be at risk of being kidnapped at any second.

"You are grounded. You will only attend your lessons and stay in your room until we find the Rebel's leader."

I want to scoff, I have never been grounded in my life. My parents have always treated me with respect and talked to me like I had sense. Now though I think this is reasonable. I should probably stay away from her until this all blows over. I won't be able to protect her the way our Coven can. My heart contracts painfully still.

"Can I at least say goodbye?" My voice breaks. I have already had such a hard time staying away from her. I can't imagine how she feels.

"Absolutely not. I do not trust you to be level headed about this. Now get ready, we have a hearing to go to."

He leaves me sitting there.

******

My mother and father sit on their thrones, I sit a level below them in the grand room. The floor in front of us is open. The high windows create a natural spotlight for whoever stands in the middle of it. This is an emergency meeting called only thirty minutes ago. We usually have a line of people waiting to speak their peace, once a week, so whoever called this must carry some weight. There is also usually a crowd as well but not today. The room is quiet. I don't turn to look at my parents. My mind is on Amelia. I won't even get to say goodbye. She will be confused and assume the worst. My father has officially cut off all of my communication with her and I feel myself panicking slowly.

"Leo." My father's voice interrupts my train of thoughts.

Leo strides in with determination. His eyes briefly meet mine. What is he doing here?

"Thank you for agreeing to see me on such short notice." His voice carries over. He's wearing his red and black robe. There are dark circles under his eyes. He looks like he's been through hell.

I grip my seat and sit up straight. Leo called this meeting?

"Please, go ahead and express your concerns." My father gives him the floor.

"I need help. I believe I have put my soul mate's life in great danger and would like to erase his memory. At least any memory of myself."

"Leo, no-" I yell but my father shoots me a glare.

"Enough, Hazel." Clearing his throat he turns to Leo. "Continue."

"I am extremely fortunate that the evil witch is under the impression that Rachel is my soul mate and not Jake. I need him to forget about me so he will stay away. I do not plan on pursuing a future with him so it is the only logical solution." Is this why he refused to have Rachel's memory tampered with? He would let her believe she is his soul mate so Jake will be left alone?