Wolf Bound

by Leisl Leighton

  ‘Adam.’ She gripped his arms, her fingers clenching. ‘You don’t feel quite real. I need you to feel real.’

  Amethyst energy crackled up his arm. ‘Shelley, no!’ But it was too late. She’d already poured some of her magic into him. It cascaded through him, over his skin, and everywhere it touched, it left sparkling purple energy in its wake.

  ‘Adam.’ He spun around to see his brother looking at him, joy and relief on his face. ‘I can see you.’

  ‘Yeah,’ he said, glowering down at Shelley. ‘Shelley poured her magic into me again.’

  ‘And that’s bad?’ River asked.

  ‘Yes. We can’t afford for her to use up her energy on me. Not now. Not when we’re so close to being able to get rid of the Darkness for good. Our coven is going to need all its energies to pull this off. She shouldn’t have wasted a skerrick of it on me.’

  ‘Well, I for one am glad she did. It’s insanely good to see you again.’ Jason looked like he wanted to pull Adam into a back-slapping hug. Adam would have liked him to, but that wasn’t the way this worked.

  ‘Can she do the same for Marcus? Can I see him again?’

  Shelley turned to Cordy, her pleasure at seeing Adam dulled suddenly with unutterable sadness. ‘Oh, Cordy.’ She began to shake her head.

  ‘Shelley. Please.’ Not a breath could be heard as Cordy stumbled towards Shelley, her hands outstretched, pleading. ‘Please, give him back to me. Let me see him.’

  ‘I can’t.’ The tears in her eyes now weren’t of laughter. ‘I wish I could, but I can’t.’

  ‘You can make Adam seen. Why can’t you help me to see Marcus?’

  ‘It’s not the same thing. Adam is still alive. My power is reacting to his life energy. Marcus is … dead. Nothing can bring him back to you.’

  ‘I want to see him. One more time. Please.’

  ‘I can’t. I wish I could. But I can’t. I’ll drop my shields now and then I’ll be able to hear him clearly and you can speak to him through me.’ She closed her eyes. ‘There, done.’ A few of the spirits lurched forward, but then stopped. None of them begged her for anything. She could still feel the press of their need, the push of them on her mind making her want to laugh hysterically or crow with triumph at the fact that she’d managed to do this without becoming a screaming mess. Although the screaming mess wasn’t too far away. ‘I can only give you fifteen minutes max at the moment.’

  ‘Fifteen minutes? Is that all?’

  ‘I’m so sorry. I might be able to do more.’

  ‘Shelley, no, you’ve already used up too much energy giving it to me.’

  She shot Adam a look. ‘I’ll be fine. This is what I’m supposed to do. It’s my fault I’m not better at this.’

  ‘It’s not your fault at all …’ he began but his voice died off as Cordy began to quietly sob.

  ‘I need more time. More time.’

  ‘This is torture,’ Marcus said and then he rushed forward.

  ‘Marcus, no!’

  Adam moved to stop him, but Marcus went right through him like he wasn’t even there. He turned just in time to see Marcus jump into Shelley’s body just like Adeline and Harrison had done the year before. Shelley jerked, her eyes snapping wide, her mouth opened on a pained gasp and then she slumped over.

  River caught her before she hit the ground.

  ‘What the hell just happened?’ Jason asked.

  ‘Marcus entered her body.’

  Shelley’s eyes flickered open and she lifted her head, her gaze finding Cordy. ‘Baby,’ she said, her voice deep, rough with the gravelly sound of Marcus’ tone.

  ‘Marcus?’ Fingers shaking, Cordy touched Shelley’s cheek.

  ‘Yes.’ Her arms wrapped around Cordy, gathering the smaller witch to her, hand cupping the back of her head in a way that was so intimate, Adam had trouble watching.

  ‘Marcus.’ Cordy’s voice was a muffled sob, her shoulders shaking. Then she leaned back, hands cupping Shelley’s face. Shelley looked down at Cordy, her eyes no longer violet blue, but the lighter, more electric blue of an Alpha. ‘Oh Marcus, it is you.’

  ‘Yes, baby. I’m here. I’m holding you. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.’

  ‘You bastard.’ The word was a snarl as Adam grabbed Shelley’s arm and jerked her around. Marcus glowered at him out of her eyes, her face. It was wrong. So wrong. ‘You can’t use her like this.’

  ‘I know. I’m sorry. I won’t do it again. But just give me this one chance to say goodbye to Cordy. She needs it, man.’ Marcus never said much, but looking into his eyes now, Adam realised he never needed to. There was a wealth of expression in his eyes that told Adam that this wasn’t just for Cordy, it was for his pack who needed Cordy back with them. It was also for Marcus, so he could let go and move on as the Were were meant to. They didn’t hang around like human and witch spirits did—it simply wasn’t their way. What Marcus did was unusual, damaging to him and to Cordy, but Adam could understand why he’d stayed, given the way he died. He also understood they needed this for closure. What he didn’t understand was the toll this was taking on Shelley.

  ‘Say goodbye and then leave her. And be quick about it.’ He had no idea if it would make any difference now, but he hoped that if Marcus got out within the next few minutes, she wouldn’t be completely drained.

  Marcus nodded his thanks and then turned back to Cordy, cupping her face. ‘I wish I could kiss you, baby, but I don’t think Adam or Shelley would approve.’

  ‘Damn right,’ Adam growled.

  Cordy laughed, a hiccoughing sound. ‘I can see you in her eyes, feel you in her touch. It’s enough.’

  ‘It better be.’

  ‘Let’s give them room.’ Skye’s hand was on Adam’s arm, the power shivering over his skin, tingling at her touch.

  He moved away with the others, but didn’t take his gaze off Shelley’s body. If Marcus hurt her more than he already had, Adam swore, the dead Alpha would pay.

  Shelley’s fingers brushed down Cordy’s cheek. ‘I’m so sorry, my love.’

  ‘What for?’

  ‘For dying. For leaving you alone.’

  ‘I’ve not been alone. I could feel you here. I knew you shouldn’t be here, but I could feel you. It’s helped.’

  ‘Which was why I stayed.’

  Cordy nodded, tears glimmering in her eyes. ‘But you have to go, don’t you?’ she asked in a choked whisper.

  He nodded. ‘As soon as this is done. I can’t stay.’

  ‘I know. But we’ll find each other in the future.’ Her fingers tightened on his shoulders. ‘We’re mates. We have to find each other again.’

  ‘Yes.’ He pressed a kiss to her forehead. ‘But for now, the pack needs you.’ He glanced over at Skye. ‘She needs you. And her babies. And I owe the McVale Pack. You know why. I’m not here to pay the debt myself, so you will have to do it for me. Help the McVale Coven. Guide my successor in our pack when they step forward. Help us be strong once again. I know you can do it. You were always the strongest of us.’

  She blinked rapidly. ‘It hurts so much—being without you.’

  ‘I know. But you have me with you.’ He touched her chest. ‘Here.’ And her forehead. ‘Cherish the memories of us and do me proud, okay baby?’

  ‘Okay.’

  He kissed her forehead again and then let go of her. ‘I’ll be here until this has finished. I’ll be standing by your side.’

  She nodded, lip wobbling.

  ‘Please don’t cry, baby. I hate it when you cry.’

  She smiled through her tears. ‘You always did.’ She reached out, touched his face. ‘I love you, Marcus.’

  ‘I love you too, Cordy. Always have, always will.’

  ‘Me too,’ she whispered. He convulsed, eyes flaring wide. ‘Marcus! Don’t go.’ But it was too late. He was gone and it was Shelley standing there again.

  ‘Damn. I hate it when they do that,’ she muttered and then collapsed forward. Cordy caught her, but almost dropped her
—Shelley was much taller and heavier than she was. Jason and River were at her side in an instant, but Adam got there first.

  ‘Here. Let me.’ He took her limp form from Cordy, thankful right in this moment that the power she’d given him earlier now allowed him to do this; his energy aligned with hers so that his body was real enough not only to touch her, but to hold, to carry. He really couldn’t stand someone else touching her, holding her, right now, especially in this weakened state. She wouldn’t like it either.

  ‘I’m sorry she’s hurt.’

  ‘It’s not you who should be sorry,’ he growled at Marcus. He swung Shelley up into his arms and began to carry her across to the bed. She moaned, lashes fluttering open, and then her gaze focused on him. ‘Why are you carrying me?’

  ‘You collapsed.’

  ‘I did?’

  ‘Yes. Marcus took over your body.’ He placed her gently on the bed, not letting go of her hand.

  ‘That explains why I feel like shit.’

  ‘Bron?’ he asked, but she was there already.

  ‘She’ll be fine.’ Her eyes unfocused in that way that told him she was reading Shelley’s aura. ‘She’s just been drained.’

  ‘How much?’

  Bron glanced at him, surprised by his tone. ‘She’ll be fine. She just needs to rest for a day or two.’

  ‘Fuck.’

  ‘It’s fine,’ Shelley said. ‘I’m glad I could help Cordy.’ She smiled wanly at the other witch.

  ‘It’s not fine. Not even close.’

  ‘What’s wrong, A?’ Jason came up beside him.

  ‘When’s Samhain?’

  ‘On the first of November, as it always is,’ Skye said.

  ‘I know the date. I mean, how many days away is it?’ When they all looked at him as if he’d lost it, he swore and said, ‘Time moves differently where I’ve been. I have no idea of the date.’

  ‘It’s the twenty-eighth of October.’

  ‘Make that the twenty-ninth,’ Jason said, looking down at his watch. ‘It’s just turned midnight.’

  ‘Shit.’ He focused on Bron. ‘Will she be okay in two days? Is that enough time?’

  ‘She will be if I help heal her.’

  ‘No!’ The word exploded from his mouth, making Bron jump. River was suddenly there pushing in front of his mate, getting between her and Adam, a warning growl low in his throat. Adam held up his hands. ‘Sorry, mate. I didn’t mean to shout at Bron. But she can’t use any of her powers for the next few days.’ He glanced at Skye. ‘Neither can you. You’re all going to need everything you have on Samhain Eve.’

  ‘I’ll be fine,’ Shelley said, her face paler than some of the ghosts hovering around. ‘Two days is heaps of time.’

  ‘No, it’s not. Not when you have to find that spell and meld this stone with the Nexus.’

  ‘What stone?’ Skye asked.

  ‘What are you talking about?’

  He pulled the Goddess stone out to show them, repeating what he’d learned from Morghanna. ‘Shelley needs to use the spell in her family’s grimoire to make this part of the Nexus so it will stop you all from exploding with the excess power of using the ley lines to get rid of the Darkness. She needs her full powers and she needs them now. She can’t do this spell on Samhain Eve and then turn around and use her powers to pull what we need from the spirits to make this work. She needs everything she has. Fuck.’

  ‘I’ll help,’ Cordy said, voice small.

  ‘This is a disaster.’

  ‘I’ll help,’ Cordy said again, louder this time. ‘I can help. I can give Shelley the juice she’ll need to do what needs to be done.’

  ‘But you’re already giving the babies some of your energy to help balance theirs with mine.’

  ‘I have enough for both.’

  ‘Are you sure?’ Bron asked, taking Cordy’s hand in hers. ‘You’re still very weak.’

  Cordy’s chin lifted, her eyes becoming steely. ‘This is my fault. It’s my problem to fix. Let me fix it.’

  Bron looked at Adam. ‘Are you sure this is necessary?’

  ‘All I can tell you is what I’ve learned. You, Skye, Shelley and Eloise are essential to fighting the Darkness. You will need your full power for that. Apart from the spell that will need to be done to weld the Goddess Stone with Eloise, you can’t use any of your powers until Samhain Eve when we all come together to expel that shit from our world.’ He looked at Cordy—she seemed so frail, brittle with grief, yet there was a determined spark in her eye, one he was certain she needed to fan to see her through the hard times ahead. ‘We need Cordy to do this. Shelley needs her power. It’s essential.’

  Bron stared into his eyes for a moment and then moved away from the bed. ‘She’s all yours,’ she said with a gesture to Cordy.

  ‘Right.’ She placed her hands on either side of Shelley’s head and stared into her eyes. ‘Keep still,’ she admonished Shelley when she went to flinch away from the intimate contact, obviously a too-close reminder of the moment just shared between Cordy and Marcus using her body.

  Shelley nodded and then held Cordy’s gaze, despite her obvious exhaustion. Adam could feel her need to close her eyes and sleep. ‘Just stay with us, Shelley. It’s important.’

  ‘I’m not going anywhere.’ Her gaze met his, full of the stubborn determination he loved. Then her gaze slid away and she closed her eyes.

  Cordy let go of her after a few minutes. ‘You really shouldn’t be this drained. I know you’ve finally been studying your power, but you’re still fighting it. We’ll need to do something about that when this is all over.’

  Shelley didn’t say anything, but Adam noticed the white around her mouth and nostrils. ‘Shelley might not want that.’

  Cordy’s gaze pinned Adam, a question in them that he was unwilling to answer. He would never make Shelley do anything she didn’t want to do after this. If she wanted to ignore her powers and leave them all, then he’d help her do it. He’d be unhappy and missing a part of himself for the rest of his life, but he’d still help her do it if that’s what made her happy. Her happiness was truly all that mattered to him.

  Cordy’s eyes widened, but then she shook her head and turned her attention back to Shelley. ‘She might not have a chance.’

  ‘I’m lying right here, you know.’ Shelley glared at them both. ‘I will decide what happens in the future. But the future is not right now. Right now, we’ve got other things to worry about.’

  ‘You’re right. The first is to re-energise your powers. So, close your eyes and try to rest. This is going to take some time.’ She took in a deep breath and blew it out slowly as she put one hand over Shelley’s chest and the other over her belly. ‘Think happy thoughts—it will help with the energy transfer. Do you have something to think of that fills you with joy?’

  Shelley’s gaze flickered to Adam then away. ‘Yes.’ She closed her eyes.

  Adam blew out a breath and stood there watching until Jason called him over to the other side of the room. ‘What is it?’

  ‘You said that Eloise was needed for this?’

  ‘Yes. She’s essential. It’s kind of what the Nexus was built for. I assume given she’s not here that she, Iain and Patrick are still searching for her missing relative? Can you call them back in time?’

  His lips quirked up. ‘I just did. They’re only an hour away. Eloise said she needed to come back. She couldn’t explain it, but she had an overwhelming feeling like this was where she needed to be.’

  ‘Maybe the Goddess called her?’ Bron suggested.

  ‘Or because she’s the Nexus and can feel what’s coming,’ River added. ‘The Goddess did tell her she’d know the path she had to take once she’d chosen which way she was going to go.’

  ‘That makes sense,’ Skye said.

  ‘And what of you?’ Jason asked Adam. ‘What part do you have in all of this? Why did Morghanna take you?’

  Adam’s mouth quirked into a derogatory smile. ‘Don’t you know, I’m t
he most important part of this?’

  ‘Of course you are,’ Skye said. ‘Jason always said you were more important than any of us knew.’

  Adam’s smile faded as he turned to his brother. Jason’s gaze was intent, serious. ‘You have always believed in me,’ Adam said.

  ‘Always.’ He coughed, clearing the husk from his throat. ‘I always knew you were one of the most important members of the pack—and not just because you were my brother. I felt it here.’ He touched his chest. ‘You are special, Adam. I didn’t need the Goddess or Morghanna to tell me that.’

  Adam cleared his throat and shoved his hands into his pockets, fingers tightening around the stone. ‘Thanks, J.’

  ‘We all believe in you,’ Bron said, River nodding behind her. ‘But in this instant, can you be more specific? What is it precisely that you are supposed to do?’

  He told them about what a Trickster was, his empathy, his power that stood outside the pack, the partial mating bond with Shelley.

  ‘Fuck. That must be excruciating, A.’

  River nodded at Jason’s words. ‘To have the bond there but for it to be out of reach.’

  ‘Yes.’ Both men knew what that was like—they’d both almost suffered the same fate as him. He was so glad neither of them had. ‘It is what it is.’ He blew out a breath, looked down. ‘Whatever else happens though, it had to be. I’m the one who can let Shelley do what she has to do so we have the power of not only the living, but the dead. And I can only be of true support, be a true channel, if she is bonded to me in a way deeper than friendship, deeper than pack. If we all live through the next few days, then both Shelley and I will have to find some way of living with it.’ His lips cocked. ‘And you never know, maybe there is a way I can make this all work out in the end.’

  ‘If anyone can, it would be you,’ Bron said. The others all nodded their agreement, their love and friendship warming him in a way he didn’t realise he needed.

  Jason clapped his hands together. ‘But none of that tells us how to get you back. How do we heal your body and get you back into it?’

  ‘It can’t be done until the Darkness is expelled. There’s a small piece of its evil in the wound, stopping it from healing. The only way to make my body heal and accept my astral spirit back into it again is to get rid of that Darkness. When we do the spell, it should be drawn out along with all the other pieces of Darkness in this world.’