Semua Bab Temptations of The Coven: Bab 51 - Bab 60

The High Council chambers were never meant to feel small. Carved from the trunk of an elderwood so ancient it had been named in the Old Tongue, the hall was built to intimidate: vaulted roots arching overhead, walls etched with glowing runes, floors humming with wards layered over centuries. Tonight it felt tiny. Too small for the twelve witches standing in it. Too small for the fear buzzing in the air. Too small for the thing they were trying to keep caged. Councilor Mara slammed her palm onto the warding table. The runes flickered violently in response. “We have lost control of the Grove,” she hissed. “And we all felt the seal buckle. The veil screamed before it closed.” 

No one could sit still after that. Darcy paced the living room like an anxious cat. Tonya reread the same page of her hex book so many times the ink was probably insulted. Dakota stood at the window, staring into the shimmering, closing tree line with the tense posture of a wolf hearing a distant howl. Dylan wasn’t just Dylan right now. His beast had risen close to the surface — too close. His eyes glowed even in the dim morning light, and every breath he took was a deep, territorial growl barely contained under his skin. He stood behind me, one hand resting at the small of my back, claws half-formed, ready to tear apart whoever dared approach the house. “Thea,” he murmured, “your magic’s spiking again.” “I know,” I whispered. Everything in me was humming, thrumming, vibrating like a plucked string. The Grove responded. Branches leaned toward the cottage. Roots shifted beneath the floorboards. A soft glow pulsed outside — like the forest itself was breathing with me. Ton

The envoy’s warning was still hanging in the air when the Grove went silent. Utterly silent. Not a peaceful quiet, though. It was a predatory quiet. Dylan’s arms tightened around me, claws brushing my hips as he shifted into a full protective posture. His beast was awake — fully awake — snarling just beneath his skin.Niklaus straightened from the hit he took, cloak torn, chest still scorched, and eyes glowing a bright, cold silver. When he turned his head toward the path, his fangs descended.Tonya closed her hex book slowly with her finger still marking a page. “They’re here.”Dakota nodded, jaw clenched, shoulders squared like an Alpha awaiting war. “All of them.”Darcy swallowed hard. “Then we’re not enough.”I whispered, “The Grove is.”It was. The trees shuddered. Branches bowed. Roots dug deeper. The entire forest shifted — subtly at first, then with more force, then with terrifying purpose. A pulse throbbed beneath my feet, like a giant heart. The Grove wasn’t just alive. It w

The Gate was still open. The ghost-man hovered in front of it, translucent and flickering like a candle caught between two winds—one pulling forward, one backward.Dylan slammed against the barrier protecting my friends for the tenth time.“Let me out!”The ghost glanced at him. "You can’t stop with what’s coming. You’ll only ruin my dramatic entrance, and, of course, mommy dearest's rightfully deserved revenge arc.”Tonya pinched the bridge of her nose. “He really is Thea’s offspring.”Darcy nodded. “I’ve never been more afraid in my life.”Niklaus still couldn’t breathe. He stood frozen, silver eyes wide as the ghost’s gaze lingered on him like gravity itself was holding him in place, but the moment shattered.Because the forest suddenly screamed a high, keening wail that rippled through the branches, leaves, and roots—like the Grove itself had sensed something wrong inside its borders. It had. More than thirty High Council witches tried to storm into the clearing behind the willow.

The first thing I felt was Dylan's warmth. His body pressed against mine, solid and slow-breathing, one arm loosely caged around my waist like he’d fallen asleep guarding me even in his dreams. My right leg was thrown carelessly across his hips, hooking him closer in my sleep. My left cheek rested against his chest, and the steady thump-thump underneath my ear might’ve been the most soothing sound I'd ever hear.I didn’t move at first-didn’t breathe too deeply- because I didn’t want to break whatever spell had settled over us during the night. His fingers were curled in the hem of my shirt — not gripping, just holding, as if he’d anchored himself to me on instinct. His pinkie lay on the small of my exposed back like a secret caress.I smiled. It was small and sleepy and entirely involuntary. I shifted just enough to look up at his face.He was already awake. His eyes were open, soft, blue-gold in the morning sunlight, watching me with a tenderness so unguarded it made my chest ache. H