Free White Winter (The Black Year Series Book 2) by D.J. Bodden

crossed his arms and squeezed his eyes shut. “Fine. Hold out your hands, like this.” Madoc put his hands out, palms facing Jonas, his thumbs and index fingers forming a triangle.
    Jonas mimicked the gesture.
    “Now do the same thing you did before, but picture the symbol between your hands and keep cycling. I doubt anything will happen, but it’s worth a try.”

 
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER 10
     
    Jonas focused on the space in front of him, picturing the three-spoked wheel and speaking the words as he completed each third of the motion. He felt a chill this time; it spread from his chest, traveling along his arms, until the air between his hands shimmered.
    “Keep going.”
    Jonas blinked as three strands of light formed, extending from his hands toward the middle, just like the diagram, except they didn’t quite meet.
    “Focus, Jonas, it has to be perfect.”
    Jonas shut out everything but the pattern, enunciating the words, feeling like a cool breeze was blowing across his skin. He shivered and a small flame, like the burning end of a match, flickered into existence.
    “Amazing,” Madoc said.
    Damien raised an eyebrow. “What’s he going to do, light candles with it?”
    Madoc scowled. “I spent weeks studying and trying to light candles before my master would let me learn more.”
    Jonas stared in wonder at the hair-thin strands of sunlight. They pulsed in turn as he spoke the words, shining gently as they spun like a slow whirlpool, so slowly it would probably take a full minute for them to make a complete circuit. He wondered what would happen if they spun faster.
    He shivered as his body temperature dropped sharply.
    Madoc turned toward him, eyes wide.
    The air distorted like Jonas was looking through a lens, and the candle flame spun into a sphere like a tiny sun. Jonas gasped, leaning away from it, then had to grab the edge of the tub to stop himself from falling in. As he dropped his hands, the sphere turned an angry shade of red and pulsed like a speaker playing heavy bass.
    “Run!” Madoc told Damien.
    Jonas panicked and tried to will the fireball away. He felt the heat flash along his arms into his chest, burning him, making him feel like his body was expanding. Jonas looked at Damien, wide-eyed, and said, “I’m—”
    Damien’s boot slammed into his chest and he fell backward into the tub of ice. The water seethed, Jonas screamed and thrust the heat outward, flashing the entire contents of the tub into steam, but it was too much, and Jonas, feeling his body go painfully numb, drew some of the heat back into him.
    It was all over before he had time to think about what he was doing.
    He sat up in the empty tub. He’d burned through his whole blood supply. His mouth was dry, his hands shook, and he couldn’t get warm. Madoc had his back against the opposite wall. The warded metal was “real” to him.
    Damien was smiling with his eyes again. “We’re going to have to work on that.”
    The tub was empty. The rest of the room was coated with a thin layer of frost.

 
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER 11
     
    “It’s nice out here,” Jonas said.
    “Mmm hmm,” Kieran answered without looking.
    Jonas tugged at his collar and pressed his head against the cool window, watching as they drove north on Lakeville Road. He hadn’t worn a suit since his father’s funeral. They drove past two-story houses and a country club, then through a town that still felt small to Jonas though it was several times bigger than Temperance had been. Kieran didn’t seem to be in a talkative mood, so Jonas used the time to check on his barrier.
    ♘
     
    “Hey Sam, how’s it coming?”
    “See for yourself, sir.”
    Sam keyed the code and the hatch unlocked, letting them climb on top of the casemate.
    His mind still hadn’t fully recovered from the fight with Fangston. There were craters and scorch marks all over the grounds outside the perimeter, and in some places where the demon had attacked, the ground was still