City of Magic: The Complete Series by Helen Harper (book club recommendations TXT) 📕

A voice from the crowd yelled out with such confidence that I could only presume it was a plant. ‘But what about all the crazy magic? What if we’re still in danger?’

Max steepled his fingers together as if taking the question seriously. ‘Indeed,’ he said, nodding. ‘Indeed, I can see why you’re worried. You shouldn’t be, though. I have a secret weapon.’ He spun round in my direction and pointed at me. ‘This is Charley. She can perform enough magic to protect us all.’

Somehow I doubted that very much.

‘She’s a witch!’ someone else yelled.

‘Yes,’ Max agreed. ‘But she’s my witch. She’s on our side. She’ll do whatever I tell her because she trusts me wholeheartedly. Isn’t that right, Charley?’ Max crooked his finger.

Beyond him, Lizzy, Monroe and Anna were hauled into sight. Behind each of them was a hulking man holding a gun. I guessed that Max had given up relying on teenagers.

I didn’t answer immediately and Max’s expression hardened. ‘I said,’ he repeated, ‘isn’t that right, Charley?’

The man behind Lizzy raised his gun and pressed it against her temple. She blinked at me with big eyes. I breathed out, feeling the tension ease slightly in my chest.

‘Actually, Max,’ I drawled, ‘it’s not.’

And then it truly began.

Although Monroe was silent when he exploded from man to wolf, Lizzy grunted as her transformation took place. The man behind her leapt backwards in shock, dropping his gun to the ground.

The bloke behind Monroe might have been able to squeeze off a shot, but Anna had lightning reaction times. She scooped up the fallen pistol and swung it round in the nick of time. A loud crack filled the air and felled the man. The noise of the shot would have been deafening if we hadn’t already been deafened by the shrieks and screams of the crowd that had gathered to listen to Max’s proclamations.

I briefly registered the blood seeping out of the man’s thigh while Anna turned the gun towards Max. At the same time Monroe and Lizzy leapt towards the swarms of people desperately trying to escape from the naturally occurring amphitheatre. There were too many trees and too much dense foliage. I grimaced as people started stepping over fallen bodies and shoving those who were still upright in a bid to get out before the wolf and bunyip were upon them.

They didn’t know that it was all for show. The crowd’s terror became a creature of its own, mass hysteria affecting everyone and making the situation worse. Despite our best intentions, these people were going to get hurt – and without any help from us.

I hissed and raised my hands, ready to jet out two plumes of magic over their heads. I wasn’t aiming for people, I was aiming for the trees to clear a path so the suffocating mass could flee. Then I remembered the plan and my heart sank. We’d been counting on this audience; I had to stop them from killing each other but I also had to keep them here.

I turned my hands towards myself. ‘Loud,’ I whispered to myself. ‘Make me loud.’

My magic jolted through me, rushing through my hair and sending goosebumps across my skin.

‘Stop!’ I screamed.

I hadn’t expected it to work, but work it certainly did. My voice, high-pitched with fear and amplified by magic, reverberated round the small space to such a degree that the ground seemed to shake. Every single person clamped their hands over their ears. Several collapsed with silent screams of pain etched onto their faces. Even Lizzy and Monroe looked shaken.

Shit, shit, shit. I wasn’t trying to shatter eardrums, I was attempting to instil some calm.

‘Stop,’ I said again. My voice still boomed but at least it wasn’t at agony-inducing levels. ‘No one will be hurt, but you all need to look at me and listen.’

I licked my lips and prayed. Showing fear and trepidation, faces slowly turned to me, more out of terror about what I might do next rather than the desire to listen.

The realisation that I’d inspired fear like this was far more disheartening than I could have imagined. I felt my hands shake and beads of cold sweat break out on my forehead.

A small hand slipped into mine. I glanced to my left to see Cath. ‘You’ve got this,’ she whispered.

I bit my lip and nodded. Drawing in a breath, I made a start. ‘Manchester is not what we once knew – we all realise that. There are people like Max who think this is an opportunity to take the lead, to subjugate others and become as powerful as possible. But,’ I said, deliberately repeating myself, ‘Manchester is not what we once we knew, and neither are its people.’

I pulled back my shoulders. ‘I am an enchantress. That much must be clear. I didn’t plan for things to happen this way but they did.’ I held up my hands and wiggled my fingers, sending sparks into the air. Several people cowered – but they were listening.

I raised my head and looked at Monroe. ‘He is a werewolf,’ I said. ‘There are others like him in this city.’

I twisted towards Lizzy, who raised herself proudly onto her haunches. ‘She is a bunyip and there are probably others like her, too. We don’t know. None of us do. The person you’re standing next to could be capable of things you’ve never imagined.’

I spotted people glancing nervously from side to side. Good: they were thinking about what I was saying. They believed me. ‘Manchester is magic now but that doesn’t mean we’re not free.’

I returned my gaze to Max. ‘No one can enslave or hurt another person. These might be difficult times, but we don’t have to make them harder for ourselves. Hurt another person and expect consequences.’ I crossed my arms and glared. ‘Here endeth the lesson.’

Nobody moved. I glared harder. ‘Now get the fuck out of here. No shoving. No trampling. Leave.’

They got