Wicked: The Witch's Daughter #44

Instructions

Kendra's POV: I had been practicing magic for nearly an hour when I heard something downstairs. At first, I thought it was just the castle settling, but then I heard voices. Lots of them. I froze with my hand still raised toward the small wooden box floating in front of me. The voices were getting closer. "Mom?" I called nervously. The box dropped onto the table. Mom hurried into the room, followed by Dad and Chistery. One look at their faces told me something was wrong. "They're back," Dad said. My heart jumped. "The guards?" Mom nodded. Before I could say anything else, a loud crash came from somewhere below us. "We have to move," Mom said. We hurried into the corridor, but the sound of boots was already echoing through the castle. Guards were coming from several directions. My heart was pounding so hard that I could barely think. I knew I was supposed to stay calm when using magic, but this wasn't a lesson. These were real guards, and they had come for us. I looked around desperately and saw a heavy table near one of the doors. Without thinking, I raised my hands. The table suddenly slid across the floor and slammed into the doorway. "Kendra!" Mom called. "Keep moving!" I moved another table into place, then several chairs, stacking them together to block another entrance. My hands were trembling, but somehow the magic was coming more easily than it had during practice. "I can hold them back!" I said. Dad looked at me with a mixture of surprise and concern. "Just don't push yourself too far." Footsteps thundered down the corridor. A moment later, several guards appeared at the other end. They stopped when they saw the barricade. "Stand aside!" one of them ordered. I shook my head. "No!" I raised my hands again, and another piece of furniture slid into place. The guards began forcing their way through. The barricade shook. I concentrated harder. "Kendra, come with us!" Mom called. "I'm not letting them through!" I shouted. The first barrier gave way, and the guards pushed through. I threw my hands outward, and suddenly the tables and chairs around us lifted from the floor. They began moving in a wide circle around me, Mom, Dad, and Chistery. I stared in amazement. I wasn't controlling each object individually anymore. Somehow, I was keeping all of them moving together. Every time a guard tried to approach, a table or chair drifted between us, forcing them to stop and move around it. "Kendra!" Mom shouted. "Stay focused!" I nodded, though I was terrified. I could feel the magic growing stronger inside me, and I tried to keep the objects moving without letting them get too close to anyone. For a few moments, it worked. The guards couldn't reach us. Then one of them found an opening. Before I could react, he rushed through and grabbed me. I gasped, and my concentration shattered. Every table and chair dropped to the floor at once. "Kendra!" Mom cried.