by Lyra Winters
Well, shit. That wasn’t what I thought she was going to say.
“I’m going to take them down with you whether you like it or not. It just got personal.” A fire blazed in her eyes.
“I understand.” I didn’t want her involved but how could I stop her from avenging her parents? “What happened out there?”
She shook her head. “Can you grab me that bucket of water in the windowsill?”
I furrowed my brows but did as she asked. She grabbed the bucket and peeled off the gauze I had just wrapped on her wounds. She cupped some of the water and poured it on them. The water mixed with the blood and soaked the sheets as she put her hands over both wounds. A golden glowing light came from her hands as her flesh closed up.
It was the coolest thing I’d ever seen, even more than teleporting. A few minutes later, the only thing that gave away she’d been hurt was the blood left behind on the bed and her skin.
“The fuck was that?”
She yawned and rubbed her eyes. “Moon water. It helps me recharge my magic and makes spells easier.”
“Huh.” My mate being a witch was never going to cease to amaze me.
Her hands gripped the bottom of her dress and she yanked it over her head. My eyes were glued to her breasts as they bounced from the impact. “The dress is ruined. It smells of smoke and blood is all over it.” She turned and tossed the dress on the floor. Black markings on her shoulder blades caught my eye.
I reached out and grabbed her shoulder, angling her to get a look at it. A black triple moon tattoo was etched into her skin, covering her upper back. It was fucking beautiful.
I traced the moons with my finger and smiled. “Where did you get this?”
“My grandma gave it to me when I came into my magic. It’s actually a spell.”
Witches were weird as fuck, but also awesome. “That’s interesting. I didn’t know you could do spells for tattoos. It suits you.”
She smiled and turned toward me. “It’s a reminder of the constant flow of life, birth, death, and rebirth. At least, that’s what resonates with me. This symbol has so many different meanings.”
“I’m in awe of you.”
Her eyes shifted down as she smiled. “I ran after you and ran into those wolves. They said they were looking for you. Lockhart sent them. They were vile creatures. They attacked first, and I finished it.”
I tensed. “I’m sorry. I—”
She put a finger over my lips. “If I hadn’t run into them, I wouldn’t know who was responsible for my parent’s death.”
I grabbed her finger and kissed her palm before holding it to my lips. “What happened to your parents? I know the gist of it but not everything.”
She slipped her hand out of mine and wrapped her arms around herself. “My parents were the best. They would’ve loved you.”
“Loved me? So they didn’t hate werewolves?”
She snorted. “They loved every being. My grudge against wolves started with their death. I was only fifteen when they were killed.”
“Damn.” Fifteen was too young to lose her parents. I couldn’t imagine what that would’ve been like. Guilt ate away at me for not going to visit my own parents in so long, but they’d moved out of the Maxwell pack territory a year before I’d gone rogue, and I hadn’t had a chance to.
“I came home from school one day and as soon as I stepped in the house I could smell something rancid. My parents were nothing but clumps of flesh and bone scattered around my living room. The only thing recognizable was their magical energy that I absorbed when I found them.” Tears welled up in her eyes before rolling down her cheeks. “Bloody paw prints left trails everywhere, and werewolves were sighted near our coven that day.”
“Oh fuck, baby. I’m so fucking sorry.” I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her into my chest. Her warm tears dripped onto my chest as she leaned into me.
“That’s not even it.” She hiccuped. “My grandma had traced the source of the pack who’d done it but didn’t tell me who. We pleaded with the coven to help us avenge their deaths, but they refused.”
Her body shook so hard with sobs, and my eyes burned with angry tears from her emotions being sent through the matebond.
“Grandma decided to go after them herself and the coven’s elder sucked her life essence from her body in front of all of us. Grandma’s body dropped lifeless, and then that evil woman banished me from the pack in her next breath.”
My hold on her tightened. How could she have gone through so much yet still be so damn pure of heart? Shit like that could turn a soul dark.
Her sobs turned into heart-shattering cries as I stroked her hair. I couldn’t grasp how her coven had such disregard for life. I understood her fear of abandonment, and I’d make damn sure she’d never lose me too.
FIFTEEN
Harlow
The moonlight splashed down its white-silver glow onto the path as it bathed us in the full moon’s light. The trees were silhouetted against the deep navy sky, and the tree spirits rejoiced as the moonbeams coiled glowing tendrils upon whatever it came across.
As Xavier and I walked, my feet caressed the velvet flesh of the forest ground.
“I’ve never gone on a full moon walk before,” Xav said.
“Really?” I crinkled my nose. “I figured you’d be out howling at the moon.”
“Stereotypes are hurtful, Harlow.”
“Sorry for the assumption then.”
“Nah, I totally howl at the moon.” He shrugged, and I threw my head back in a giggle. “Listen, you know I love you right?”
I stopped mid-step and caught his gaze. “I mean, yeah. I can feel it through the bond and with my empath powers.”
He reached up and scratched his head. “Not the response I was hoping for, but…”
Rolling my eyes, I stepped closer and kissed him softly. “I love you.”
His hands cupped my face as he deepened the kiss. Kissing my soulmate under the light of the full moon was the most amazing experience in the world. It was something about bearing my soul to him underneath the moon.
He broke the kiss and rested his forehead on mine. “I didn’t react the best the first time you told me.”
I snorted. “No kidding.”
He’d stormed out after I proved that I hadn’t cast a stupid spell that I doubted even existed. You couldn’t fake the bond we had.
“But I need you to know what you mean to me.”
“I can feel it.” I took his large, calloused hand and placed it on my chest. “Right here.”
He leaned in and his breath mingled with mine. “What else do you feel?”
Heat pooled between my legs as I held onto his hand. He traced his fingers between my breasts and bit his bottom lip. My desire for him fogged my mind.
I would’ve wrapped myself around him and paid him back for the pleasure he’d given me nights before if unfamiliar voices with warm magical energy hadn’t interrupted us. I’d sensed them the same moment Xavier had.
He gripped my shoulders and flipped me around to where my back was against his chest and his hand covered my mouth. He moved us off the trail and against a tree to stay hidden.
I inhaled the magic of the forest and cloaked us. Him holding my body against him made my nerve endings explode with pure want. I had to push those thoughts away as I focused on the six witches who walked the path we were just on.
“I sense her here. She must be cloaking herself,” a woman said.
“She’s strong for being on her own.”
“Harlow! It’s me, Deb!”
Relief flooded my body, and I relaxed against Xavier as I stopped cloaking us. He loosened his hold on me, and I stepped away from the tree and back on the path with him behind me.
Deb stood in the middle of five older witches. The one beside Deb looked just like her, and I assumed she was her mother. The other four were older and would be considered elders. I was sure they were wise beyond their years. While I was curious about this
coven, I was weary. Covens were capable of sinister magic.
“Thank goodness we found you! We’ve been wandering this area for ages,” Deb said, running her hand through her unruly hair.
The elder with snow-white hair stepped forward with the kindest eyes I’d seen in a long time. “Harlow Oak. My eyes must be deceiving me.”
I tensed. “How do you know my last name? I never told Deb my last name.”
“I’m Ingrid. I was part of Hollows Coven when I was your age. I used to watch over and guide Josephine.”
My mother’s name struck a nerve. Xavier’s warm hand settled on my lower back as if he knew I needed comfort. Which of course he did, he must’ve felt my unease through our bond.
“Ingrid, I’ve heard of you.” I swallowed hard. “The elders in the coven told horror stories of your bloodthirsty nature, but my mother discounted everything they said about you as did my grandma. She told me how kind you were and how she considered you a second mother alongside her own.”
She smiled wide. “Gwendolyn was a force to be reckoned with.”
“Grandma always was.”
And I’d missed them both with everything I had.
“I do not sense their presence anymore. Have they left this realm?”
My chin trembled in response, telling her what she needed to know. She pressed a wrinkled hand to her chest and rubbed it. “Oh child, I’m so sorry. What befell them?”
“My parents were slaughtered by werewolves from the Lockhart Pack. My grandma was killed by the coven right before my banishment from them.”
Ingrid’s eyes became misty but I didn’t miss the hint of fire behind them. “Hollows Coven is full of evil, and I’ve heard of terrors by the hand of Lockhart before.”
The back of my throat burned as I kept the tears at bay. “I hate them.”
Deb stepped over and put a hand on my shoulder and squeezed. “You have every right to hate them.”
Ingrid nodded. “Yes, she does. However, please do not be consumed by revenge. It is so easy to allow that to fuel you.”
“It’s a little too late for that.” I hesitated. “This is Xavier. He’s my mate.”
“Oh my gosh. Let me tell you all, those two are absolutely adorable.” Deb squealed as she clapped her hands gleefully.
“Is that so?” One of the other witches asked.
“Yes.”
“Strange. I haven’t heard of a witch being mated to a werewolf before.”
“I hadn’t either, but I’m grateful.” I grabbed Xavier’s arm.
Ingrid gave me a look as if she was seeing someone else. “I loved your mother and your grandmother. You look just like her, and I am terribly sorry you’ve had to lose them both.”
I shook my head. “It’s just part of my destiny, but I’m confident I’ll see them again.”
“And that you will.” She glanced at her coven who shared knowing looks. “Please consider this a formal invitation into the Lunar coven. We are small, but we are family. I would like to show you the kindness you were deprived of in your previous coven.”
“Say yes, say yes, say yes!” Deb chanted.
My heart dropped into my stomach, and the acid swallowed it whole. I’d never considered joining another coven. Covens to me were prisons of power and abuse. I couldn’t devote my life to one again.
Xavier’s lips brushed my temple as he moved his mouth to my ear. “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”
I held onto his arm tighter. He was right, but the witches seemed so kind. Ingrid knew my family, and Deb was a treat to be around. Even the other witches felt warm. Magical energy did not lie, and everything inside me told me they were good.
“Can I think about it? My mate and I are going on a journey starting tomorrow to avenge my parents.” And his first mate. “Can I answer after we are successful?”
A frown etched its way onto Deb’s face. “But Harlow...”
The woman that looks just like her grabbed her shoulder. “Deborah, it’s alright. It’s a big request. Harlow has been through a lot and needs to work through some things.”
“But Mom, Harlow needs family,” she whined.
“Sybil is right,” Ingrid said. “Harlow, it’s completely up to you. I’d love to look after you for both your mother and grandmother. Take the time to decide. But please, take this.” She handed me a bracelet with iridescent crystals.
I held my hand out and she dropped it into my palm. The crystals were as warm as her magic. “What is it exactly?”
“It’s a beacon. You just wear it and call upon us when you’ve decided or when you’re in trouble. We will come to you, no matter where you are.”
“Thank you, Ingrid.” I slipped it onto my wrist. “I appreciate it.”
“What are you getting yourself into, child?” She sighed. “You have spunk. Your grandma would be so proud. I hope to hear from you soon.”
“I’ll have an answer for you as soon as we finish this,” I promised.
“Or if you’re in trouble. We will lend our magic to you, Harlow. We really are a family, and we would like you to be part of it.” She grinned before addressing the rest of the witches, “Let us take our leave.”
Deb nudged my shoulder. “Okay, magic is super cool. Watch what I learned!” She ran over and joined the witches in a circle.
“She’s always so hyper,” Xav grumbled.
I leaned into him. “You have no idea.”
They all joined hands as the wind picked up, and they disappeared with the wind.
“Okay, that was pretty cool,” he said. “Did they use the wind to teleport?”
“Looks like it.” I was actually impressed. I hadn’t seen anyone teleport that way before.
“Why is it different from what you do?”
“Because I use an ancient form of teleportation. I call upon the different dimensions.”
His mouth dropped open. “That’s badass.”
My mouth quirked into a smile. “Well thanks, my mom taught me.”
“So, what’re you going to do? Are you going to join their coven?”
Joining their coven didn’t sound restrictive like I’d thought. Instead, it sounded kind of nice. I’d loved being alone, I was introverted. But it made me happy to have the option to belong to a coven, a family, again. Especially one with such warm magic.
I shrugged. “I’m not sure yet.”
He shifted his weight on his feet. “What will that mean for us if you do?”
“What do you mean? Nothing has to change. I don’t have to live with them to be part of their coven.”
“You don’t?”
“No. We would just meet every full moon or whenever they requested.” At least, that was my assumption. I wouldn’t join if otherwise, but I still needed to think about it. Ingrid knowing my mom and grandma was a factor.
“Good.” He let out a sigh of relief. “In that case, I will back your decision.”
“Wouldn’t have backed it otherwise?” I chuckled.
“I would’ve. But I would’ve been less enthused.” He smirked, pulling me into him and nuzzling my neck.
I shivered at the sensation that spread through me.
His mouth rested on the base of my neck and it was heaven. “I will place my mark here,” he mumbled against my skin.
My back arched into him. The process of marking didn’t scare me as much as before. In fact, the thought of his teeth piercing my skin sent a pleasurable wave through me.
I gasped. “Xav.”
He kissed the spot before pulling back. “But not until you beg me.”
My mouth dropped. “Xavier!”
He was playing me. He knew exactly what he did to me. “Sorry, little witch. You’re just so easy to fuck with.”
“Ugh!” I slapped my forehead. I had to pull myself, and my hormones, together.
He threw his head back and howled with laughter.
I rolled my eyes at him as we started walking back toward the cottage. We had a l
ot of supplies to stock up on for our trip. He said it was about a three-day walk in human form but two days if I let him carry me in wolf form, which was what we decided to do. I could’ve teleported us, but it was such a long distance I didn’t want to zap out my magical energy before going into a place I wasn’t familiar with. Besides, we had the chance to spend time getting to know each other. Thinking of riding a huge wolf in the forest was comical, but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t excited. It sounded fun, and I trusted Xavier not to smack into a tree.
Our journey to the Maxwell pack began in the morning, and I was nervous to meet Xavier’s former pack. I was also excited to see where he came from, and what made him so strong.
SIXTEEN
Xavier
It took us two days to reach the border of the Maxwell pack. We didn’t stop to rest except for snack and bathroom breaks so I was fucking exhausted. Harlow was pretty much dead on her feet. I doubted she’d ever stayed awake for so long.
And yet, all that exhaustion was wiped away as nerves bubbled up in my stomach once we stood on the edge of that damn border I’d walked across just over a year ago.
“Are you alright?” Harlow placed her hand in mine and squeezed.
“Yes. I’m fine.” I shrugged it off like it was no big deal, but really I was nervous as hell. I loved this pack, but getting away from it had been freeing. Everyone walked on eggshells around me after Liv was killed, and it sucked.
“I’m here with you. I can always manipulate your emotions to calm your nerves.” She smiled up at me and it melted my heart.
Fuck, I was wrapped around her perfect little finger. Bewitched by her completely.
“Sure, if it’ll help.”
Her eyes lit up. “Really? Okay, I’m so glad you agreed. I can feel your anxiety coming off you in waves.” She let go of my hand and grabbed my face, bringing my lips against hers.
My lips began tingling and a warm flush of liquid swept through my body from it. My nerves were gone with one kiss from her.
“How many people have you done that for?” I rested my head on hers.
“Oh, too many to count.” My eye twitched. “Negative emotions are impactful. I can’t stand them, so if I can make them disappear, I do.”