“Are you out of your minds?” Kyle shouted.
“Do you understand what you almost did?
You could spend years in prison and destroy every chance you have at a future!”
His voice echoed through the hallway as he glared at his fraternity brothers.
If they had succeeded in assaulting Madison, the consequences would have been severe under any circumstances.
The fact that she was a recognizable actress would guarantee national attention, relentless news coverage, and pressure on both the university and the fraternity.
Expulsion and criminal charges would be only the beginning.
Their privileged backgrounds, university connections, and promising careers would disappear the moment the story became public.
They had brought the disaster upon themselves.
Kyle had not participated in their plan, but he had helped organize the party and belonged to the same fraternity.
When the university administration and national organization investigated, his name would still appear in every report.
That possibility terrified him.
Kyle had grown up in a poor neighborhood and worked hard to earn a place at Tulane.
He saw education as his best opportunity to build a better life, and the actions of several reckless fraternity brothers could now threaten everything he had struggled to achieve.
Had Charlie not already been holding the Glock, Kyle might have attacked them himself.
The young men finally began to understand the seriousness of the situation.
Alcohol, drugs, and lust had pushed them forward without allowing them to think beyond the next few minutes, but the sight of Kyle’s fury and Charlie’s weapon forced them to confront reality.
Fear replaced their earlier excitement.
Charlie watched them for a moment before gesturing toward the stairs.
“Get out of here.”
There was no reason to keep them trapped in the hallway.
He was not going to shoot several college students and turn the fraternity house into a crime scene from an open-world video game.
More importantly, Madison would probably kill them once she regained consciousness.
Allowing the group to escape might be the only thing preventing the hallway from becoming a slaughterhouse.
Charlie had stopped the assault and saved Madison, which was enough for one night.
Whether the frightened fraternity members would learn from the experience was another question.
Based on their behavior, some of them might repeat the same mistake after enough alcohol and encouragement from equally stupid friends.
Charlie could not control the rest of their lives.
The fraternity members helped Archie Brener stand.
He remained bent forward with both hands protecting his injured groin, and every step sent another wave of pain across his face.
No one argued with Charlie.
They carried Archie toward the staircase and disappeared from the hallway as quickly as they could manage.
The loud music below continued without interruption, and most of the partygoers had no idea what had nearly happened upstairs.
Kyle watched his fraternity brothers leave before turning toward Charlie, Zoe, and the unconscious Madison.
Shame and anger fought across his face.
“I’m sorry.”
The apology sounded sincere, though there was nothing else he could say.
Kyle turned and followed the others downstairs because he still had to end the party, remove anyone carrying illegal drugs, and decide how to handle what his fraternity brothers had done.
Charlie watched him disappear.
Kyle Spencer had been one of the tragic figures in the original story.
Madison would have used her telekinesis to flip the fraternity bus after the attack, killing most of the young men inside and leaving Kyle horribly dismembered.
Zoe would later ask Misty Day to help restore him from the recovered body parts.
Because Charlie had intervened, Kyle remained alive and whole.
Charlie had unintentionally taken the role that might have brought Kyle into the witches’ world, but preventing him from becoming a stitched-together corpse could only be considered an improvement.
He holstered the Glock and moved to Madison’s other side.
“Let’s find somewhere quiet.”
Charlie and Zoe carried her into an empty bedroom away from the crowded hallway.
They placed her on the bed and turned her onto her side so she would not choke if the drug made her sick.
“I’ll find some water and wet towels,” Charlie said.
“Stay with her and make sure she keeps breathing normally.”
Zoe nodded and sat beside Madison.
Charlie returned several minutes later with bottled water, damp towels, and a trash can.
He checked Madison’s breathing again, then helped Zoe cool her face and neck while they waited for the drug’s effects to weaken.
Nearly half an hour passed before Madison finally moved.
She groaned and lifted one hand to her forehead.
Her eyes opened slowly, though the confusion in them showed that her mind had not completely cleared.
“What happened?”
Zoe looked toward Charlie.
He nodded, allowing her to explain.
Zoe described how Madison had disappeared from the party, how Charlie had found her unconscious upstairs, and how the fraternity members had been carrying her toward one of the bedrooms.
She did not soften the details or hide what Archie and the others had intended to do.
Madison’s confusion vanished.
“What?”
Rage twisted her face as the truth sank in.
Picture frames exploded against the walls.
A wooden chair shattered into splinters while the bedside table flipped into the air and crashed across the room.
The chandelier swung wildly above them.
A shard of glass flew past Charlie’s cheek and struck the wall behind him.
“Madison, stop!”
Charlie grabbed her shoulders and forced her to look at him.
“Calm down before you bring the entire house down on us.”
His grip and voice broke through her fury.
Zoe moved closer and spoke more gently, reminding Madison that she was safe and that the men had not managed to hurt her.
The room continued trembling for several seconds.
Madison finally pulled her power back under control.
The remaining objects dropped to the floor while the chandelier slowed above them.
She looked around at the destruction before turning toward the door.
“Where are they?”
Her voice was cold enough to make Zoe uneasy.
Madison Montgomery was not accustomed to being humiliated or made helpless.
She had killed a director for criticizing her during a rehearsal, and the men who drugged her had done far worse.
“They’re gone,” Zoe answered.
“Charlie stopped them before anything happened.”
Her expression hardened as she remembered Archie’s suggestion.
“I also kicked the one who drugged you.
He won’t be forgetting it anytime soon.”
“I heard something crack,” Charlie added.
“You can consider that a personal message from Zoe.”
Madison’s anger eased slightly, but she was still prepared to hunt them down.
Charlie kept one hand on her shoulder.
“There are hundreds of people downstairs.
If you use your powers in front of them, the Coven’s secrecy will be gone by morning.”
Madison understood what he was warning her about.
She could kill the fraternity members, but the resulting investigation would bring police officers, reporters, and federal agents into her life.
Even Fiona Goode would struggle to hide a massacre witnessed by an entire college party.
Madison looked away and released a frustrated breath.
“Fine.”
The answer did not mean she had forgiven them.
It only meant she had chosen not to destroy the fraternity house tonight.
The music downstairs continued as though nothing had happened.
Students still danced, drank, and shouted over one another while Charlie, Zoe, and Madison sat in a damaged bedroom above them.
None of the three wanted to remain.
Madison was exhausted and furious.
Zoe had lost any interest in the party after seeing what the fraternity members planned to do, while Charlie had already accomplished the main purpose of the night.
They slipped out through the quieter side of the house and returned to Miss Robichaux’s Academy together.
That same night, Cordelia worked alone inside the academy’s greenhouse.
Rows of medicinal plants surrounded her while the warm scent of herbs filled the enclosed space.
Cordelia often spent her evenings there preparing remedies and studying the practical uses of magical plants.
She was not alone tonight.
A tall blonde woman stood near one of the worktables with a drink in her hand and an amused expression on her face.
She carried herself with effortless authority, as though every room belonged to her the moment she entered it.
Fiona Goode had returned to New Orleans.
She was the reigning Supreme and the most powerful witch of her generation.
She was also Cordelia’s mother.
Fiona had spent years traveling the world, enjoying wealth, luxury, and attention while leaving the responsibilities of the Coven to others.
She rarely visited the academy and showed little interest in the young witches who depended on it.
Her sudden arrival made Cordelia suspicious.
Their conversation resembled a mother-daughter reunion only in the loosest sense.
Old resentment filled every polite sentence, and Fiona responded to Cordelia’s criticism with sarcasm rather than regret.
The sound of the academy’s front door opening interrupted them.
Fiona turned toward the greenhouse windows.
Walls and distance blocked her view, yet her instincts told her who had returned.
“Two young witches and a boy,” she said.
“That must be the survivor Myrtle dragged here.”
A faint smile touched her lips.
“The man she claims lived through one of the Benson family’s deadliest gifts.
Myrtle never misses an opportunity to make herself feel important.”
Cordelia’s expression cooled.
“It isn’t a claim.
She placed several herbs into a glass jar and met her mother’s gaze.
“Myrtle brought him here because he already knew about witches and because his survival may be significant.
At least she still cares about the future of the Coven.”
The criticism was obvious.
Fiona lifted her glass.
“Are you suggesting I don’t?”
“I’m saying the Supreme has spent years caring about herself.”
Fiona showed no anger.
If anything, Cordelia’s accusation appeared to entertain her.
“Well, that is about to change.”
Cordelia paused.
Fiona had briefly noticed Charlie’s arrival, but she did not consider him important enough to investigate.
To her, he was only an unusual human boy whom Myrtle had collected and placed inside the academy.
Her attention remained focused on the young witches.
“I’ve decided to help with their education,” Fiona announced.
“Beginning tomorrow, I’ll be teaching at the academy.”
Cordelia stared at her.
“You?”
“Try not to sound so horrified.”
“The Council will want to know why.”
“The Council will be delighted that its Supreme has taken an interest in the next generation.”
Fiona’s tone left no room for negotiation.
As the Supreme, she possessed the authority to involve herself in the academy whenever she wished.
Cordelia could not reject her publicly, and the complicated bond between mother and daughter made a private refusal equally difficult.
Fiona finished her drink and placed the empty glass on the table.
“It’s settled.
I’ll begin tomorrow.”
She left the greenhouse without waiting for an answer.
Cordelia remained among the rows of plants and watched her mother disappear into the mansion.
Worry settled across her face.
Fiona did nothing without a personal reason.
She had not suddenly become a responsible mother or a devoted leader.
Whatever brought her back to New Orleans had something to do with the young witches and the future of the Supreme.
Cordelia only wished she knew what her mother wanted.
Charlie knew nothing about Fiona’s interest in the academy.
After escorting Madison and Zoe to their rooms, he returned to his own bedroom and locked the door behind him.
He removed the Glock from his holster, unloaded it, and secured the weapon with the rest of his newly acquired supplies.
His first full day in New Orleans had been far more eventful than expected.
He had met the academy’s young witches, obtained a handgun, collected a blessed cross, a Bible, and holy water, and prevented Madison from being assaulted at the fraternity party.
Despite several dangerous moments, everything had followed his plan remarkably well.
Charlie sat on the edge of his bed and reviewed his preparations.
He had weapons that could deal with ordinary criminals and physical threats.
The religious objects might provide some defense against ghosts or demons, though their effectiveness remained uncertain.
The final requirement was a powerful supernatural partner.
Charlie had already chosen one.
Madison Montgomery possessed some of the strongest telekinesis among the academy’s young witches.
She could throw grown men across a room, crush objects without touching them, and eventually overturn a large passenger bus with a single burst of rage.
Her personality was difficult, but her combat potential was undeniable.
More importantly, Charlie had just saved her from an experience she would never forget.
Asking her to accompany him on a dangerous investigation would now be much easier than approaching her as a complete stranger.
Zoe was not a suitable choice.
Her deadly ability required intimate contact and offered little protection against ghosts, monsters, or armed attackers.
Charlie also had no intention of deliberately placing his girlfriend in danger when he could recruit someone better equipped to fight.
Nan’s telepathy had almost no direct offensive value.
Queenie could transfer injuries through her living voodoo-doll power, but Charlie had not yet built enough trust with her to request something so dangerous.
Cordelia was the headmistress and would demand an explanation.
Approaching Fiona Goode would be even more reckless than confronting a ghost alone.
Madison was the most practical option.
She was powerful, impulsive, curious, and now owed Charlie a significant favor.
Because he had no interest in competing for the position of Supreme, she would have little reason to consider him a future threat.
Charlie smiled as the final pieces of his plan came together.
If gratitude was not enough to convince her, he still had patience, charm, and a face she had already shown considerable interest in.
Everything was ready.