WILLOW.Ugh.What was I thinking?Waiting till ten? I am not that patient!Under normal circumstances, I would have flown off the edge and taken the girl myself.Fortunately -or unfortunately- depending on the perspective, the ingredients I would need for the ritual are in my house. The one where I had kept Lyra all these years.Which is why, I am now trekking around the moist forest floor, heading there.I wave away the weaved enchantment hiding my access and come into the clearing, only to stop dead in my tracks.There are people here.Wolves.I guess that answers my question. Lyra is in the Varon pack.Still, this is fast.I did not expect to manage to track me down this fast. There is no way she could have been able to direct them here. She doesn't know anywhere.This was somebody else.I fall back into the shadows, watching as they move around the place before walking into the house.This… is a complication.I know they are here for me and by all logic, I should just kill them a
NATALIE.The filtering rays of the sun are what wake me up from my deep sleep.I haven't slept that well in… well, forever.Benefits of having reconciled with your mate I guess.“...Natalie, I need you. I didn't even understand how much until you arrived. You… you complete me…”“...I will have you. I will have you forever…”His words keep resounding in my ears, tickling me and making me feel all kinds of fuzzy.“I am glad you two have finally reconciled,” my wolf says faintly.“You are back! That was fast. Usually, it could take up to a week for you to be able to crawl out,” I tell her.“Hmm. Being near our mate helps me.”“That is good then, 'cause I think we are going to be staying after all,” I tell her.“I heard and I am glad. It is about time you two made up.”“I won't lie, I didn't think it would happen, with the way everyone was behaving toward me.”“You are his mate. No amount of logic or thinking or opinions can change that. He just needed time, that is all.”“Hmm. You are ri
DAMIEN.“Something is wrong,” my wolf announces, interrupting my conversation with Lucas.“What?” I ask out loud.“I said, Maya hasn't made contact yet, but we shouldn't worry. She left just two days ago, after all,” Lucas replies.“No. Not you, my wolf. He says something is wrong.”“Like what?” I don't answer, instead, I focus on my wolf.“What is wrong?” I ask.“I don't know. I can't pinpoint it. The feeling started yesterday, but it is worse now.”“Yesterday? Do you think it is Maya? That something has happened to her?”“How would I know if something has happened to her? Am I her mate? No, this… this has to do with Natalie. Something is wrong with Natalie.”At his words, I get off my seat, senses on high alert.“What?! What is wrong?” Lucas demands as he follows me out the door.“Something is wrong with Natalie,” I answer as I race over to her room.“What? Like what?”“I don't know Lucas. That is why I am heading to her room,” I snap.Just before we reach the landing, we hear a
DAMIEN.Witches.Again.Those damn witches.“And before you go on a rampage against all witches,” Lucas says. “I think we can narrow our target to one specific witch. Willow.”“Who else would it be?” I snark as I turn away from him and punch the wall. “I swear, I am going to take my sweet time killing her when I find her.”“Assuming, of course, that Maya doesn't kill her first.”“Of course.”I turn back around to face him, my gaze falling on Elias’ crumpled body. “Have someone come to take him back to the clinic,” I tell him.“Yes, Alpha,” he says as he walks over to Elias’s body and picks it up before leaving the room.I turn back to Natalie’s form. At least she looks calmer now.But what was that? The flash of light? What kind of curse did this Willow put on her that could do that?“You know what we are going to have to do, right?” my wolf asks.“What do you mean?” I ask back.“We are going to need to contact a witch.”“No!”“Oh, don't be stubborn. This is our mate we are talking a
DAMIEN.Lucas and I both exchange a startled glance at her swearing, not knowing what to make of it.“What? What is wrong?” I demand.“What is wrong?!” she exclaims again. “Can't you feel it?”“Feel what?”“The power in here! It is like a battleground!”“A battl-, what in all of Hades are you talking about?” I snap.“Fredja,” Lucas starts. “I can call you Fredja, right?” At her nod, he continues. “What my Alpha means is that you should please explain what you see or feel. You see, we have no experience with the world of witches, all these are pretty new to us.”“Hmm, of course,” she says before taking a deep breath and carefully steps into the room. She stops there at the door, her eyes screwed shut in what looks like agony or concentration or a mix of both before a thin sheen settles over her.It is so faint, I almost miss it, first there and then gone.She opens her eyes and it is like whatever she is feeling has disappeared, her shoulders relax and she starts to breathe easier.“W
DAMIEN.I watch from the window as Fredja is escorted out of the premises by Lucas.A week.How am I going to stay sane for a week?How am I supposed to just watch her as she fights for her life and be completely useless to help her?“You are not useless,” my wolf says.“I beg to differ. Look at her,” I say as I turn to the bed. “She is fighting for her life and all I can do is sit around and feed her bitter concoctions. That is not enough.”“And what else can you do? You can't find the witch. You can't break the curse. All you can do, all we can do is offer her all the comfort we can. It doesn't make us weak, it just shows we are willing to do anything we can do to help, in any capacity we can. Don't take that for granted.”I sigh heavily at his words.“You are right. I know you are right. It is just… I have never felt this incompetent. It is like every time we come together, from the moment we first met, I just keep hurting her or something keeps keeping us divided,” I rant.“Hmm,
WILLOW.Craaash!“You need to call down,” the punk says as he sips his wine, ignoring my tantrum.“Easy for you to say!” I snap. “You are not the one whose powers are waning because of a useless brat!” I rant as I throw another vase against the wall.Once we had cleared up the clearing after self-sacrifice, he had booked for me a hotel close to the Varon pack, where I would be available when the notice for a witch is sent out.But nothing had been sent out!It has been three days already and the pack has been silent. Do they not know that she is running out of time? They are both running out of time.And because of the immense amount of power it took to create this spell, I too am running out of time.The thread on her would be weakening because of the spell.This is not how this was supposed to go.Why are they wasting time?!“Maybe they are still trying to figure it out,” my friend says. “You know with their healers and all that.”“Don't be silly. Damien is not an idiot. If he was,
DAMIEN.“What do you mean you were attacked?” u demand.“Can we at least go inside before we make a report?” Fredja asks. “Some of us are barely standing as it is.”I look over to her and see that indeed, they all look battered. Two of the women are leaning on each other, while the rest are on the floor.“Of course,” I say. “Please, come in.” Turning to Lucas, I ask. “Where are the witches you lost?”“In the back of the car. We couldn't leave them there.”I nod at his words as we all walk inside.“I will call for the pack healer,” I say as I turn to leave them settling in the sitting room.“No need,” Fredja says. “Just an empty room, a small mortar and pestle, and some hot water.”Right, witches.“Of course.”I walk out of the living room and head to the other wing of the mansion. The one where key, single members of the pack reside. Arriving at a red mahogany door, I knock and wait.In the span of two minutes, the door creaks open to reveal a pair of tired brown eyes that widen upon