The Witch Born to Smoulder (Inferno Book 4)

one went flying. The other soared through the air, directly towards me. It was about to land on me when it was hit by a bolt of fire, evaporating before my eyes.
I cried out and glanced all around. There, sitting in a dinghy next to my boat, was Jet.
‘You okay?’ he whispered.
I tried to speak, but nothing would come out.
Not far away, the coastguard was heading straight towards us, its headlights seeking us.
‘Come into my boat,’ said Jet, standing, holding out his hand.
I tried to rise, but my legs gave way and I fell onto the hard bottom of the boat.
Jet didn’t hesitate. He jumped into my boat and tied the two boats together, then helped me back onto the seat. He sat beside me and held me close while he produced mist that hid us. Then he took up the oars and steered us from the path of the coastguard, which roared past where we had been only moments before.
As the coastguard boat steamed forward, Jet followed it until we rounded the corner of the headland. Then the coastguard turned back around. For a few moments, it cast its spotlight on us before we fell into darkness. Had they seen us? As the first larger wave picked us up and tossed us around, the coastguard cut its engine. From the boat came shouts, confirming we had been seen.
‘Search the waters!’ came the unmistakable cry of Max, whom Orpheus must have released from jail – allowing him to hunt me to his heart’s content.
Jet leaned close and whispered, ‘Let’s get to the beach.’
‘I’ll steer,’ I whispered, taking the oars from Jet, who moved to the front of the boat, mist flowing from his body.
I could no longer feel my body properly, but I worked on instinct as the first wave picked up the dinghy, surging us forward into choppy waters. As the boat tipped precariously to the side, Jet rebalanced it. From a distance, I heard Max curse as he searched for us hopelessly in the fog. Again, another wave arrived. This time, it hit us sideways and we were picked up and washed towards the rocks. Using the oars, I swung the boat back around, keeping us upright.
‘Hold tight,’ Jet whispered as the biggest wave of all reared from behind us, its white crest threatening to crash over us.
I straightened the boat and held my breath as we rose up through the water and were collected by the wave, which propelled us forward like a freight train. We were nearly onto the shore when a sideways wave tipped the boat on its side and threw me out into the cold water.
The waves dragged me down. I tried to push myself towards the surface, but the sea was stronger. My breath became tight in my chest. And then I felt as though I might explode. Slowly, the pain ebbed and I started to slip away with it. Voices drifted by.
‘Eva!’
The promise of nothingness took my hand.
‘Come back to me!’
I felt the tug of recognition yanking me back. But the pain was too great.
‘Don’t you dare give up! Your family, they need you! I need you! Please, Eva, come back to me.’
The grip on my hand tightened, but so did the one that was calling me.
‘I love you.’
And just like that, Jet’s love hauled me from the place of death. I reached up and he clutched my hand and pulled me from the water. I re-entered my life, but it felt far worse than what death had promised me.

Chapter Seven
Jet’s face was a dark shadow above me.
‘Oh, thank God. For a moment…’
I tried to move, but I felt as though someone were sitting on me, holding me down.
‘Easy does it,’ said Jet, helping me to sit. ‘You okay?’
I nodded and glanced around. We were on the beach, behind the rock, mist hovering low around us.
‘The coastguard?’ I croaked out.
‘They’ve moved away from the coast…for now…but we need to get back to camp.’
‘Jet?’
‘Yeah?’ he said, peering out from the rock towards the ocean.
‘I don’t know…how to thank you. If you hadn’t arrived…the creatures…they would have taken me.’
Jet’s dark gaze pierced mine. ‘I said I’d always be there for you and I meant it,’ he said, an edge to his voice. He turned his attention back to the ocean. ‘I’m going to hide the dinghy. I’ll be back in a minute.’
My voice deserted me, but I managed a nod before he left.
As the seconds ticked by, cool air stung me and the sand became like a bed of dry ice. The reality of what had happened, the danger my family were in and the truth of my break-up with Ezra crashed over me like the waves streaming onto the shore. I started shaking uncontrollably.
‘Ready?’ said Jet, crouching next to me.
I tried to reply, to nod, but I couldn’t move.
‘Come on,’ said Jet gently, putting his arm around me and helping me stand.
I tried to walk, but my legs gave way. As I fell, Jet stepped in and collected me in his arms. Any other time, I would have been mortified and struggled to be free. But the truth was, I had nothing left. His body moved effortlessly across the beach, and I laid my head against his chest.
When we reached the cliff, he released more mist, placed me on his back and ascended the face of the cliff and back into his camp. He set me down in his camp chair and crouched before me to check over my injuries.
‘Where’s Boy?’ I stuttered out, never having wanted to see him as much as I did in that moment.
‘He’s on lookout at the cliffs. Did those…creatures do this?’ he asked, taking a closer inspection of the grazes and cuts all over my arms, chest and face.
I nodded and wrapped my arms around myself, trying to stop my body from shaking.
‘We need to get these cuts cleaned up and get you warm,’ he said, heading to his tent and returning with fresh clothes