Instead of worrying about the guy who wanted to keep me locked up so he could watch me shift into a wolf, I focused on saving my own life from the clutches of a cunning faerie.
Upstairs, it took me another five minutes to sort through the keys and get the library open. The minute the lock clicked, I threw open the door and ran inside. I skidded to a halt at the pixie lantern. Michael, who had followed, barely stopped short of running right into me.
“What? Is it here?” he asked, looking around at the objects under glass.
“The pixie is in here,” I said. The lantern lit up. “Hey there. I’m gonna get you out, okay?” I turned to Michael. “Can you break this open?”
“Sure, but I don’t need to.” Michael bent down and examined the underside of the pedestal until he found what he was looking for. He pressed something and the pedestal clicked. He straightened and lifted the glass up, grinning.
I bent down. “Hello in there. I’m still going to get you out, but you might want to hold on; I’m going to lift this thing up.”
The lantern light flickered, which I took to mean the pixie understood. I lifted it up and examined it.
“There,” Michael said. “On the bottom.”
He took the lantern and lifted it over my head so I could see that on the bottom there were tiny hinges and a small door, like most modern lanterns had for batteries. He pulled off the metal plate and a pixie came zipping out, wings buzzing like a fly. She was only a few inches tall and glowed as she hung in the air, flapping her wings.
She was gorgeous, burning with faerie light. Why Peter Yates had decided to keep her in such an opaque space was almost as confounding as his thinking he had any right to keep her at all. She gestured wildly, trying to tell me something, glitter flying from her wings like pixie dust. I didn’t understand and eventually she gave up and flew out of the room.
“Holy crap,” Michael said. “I didn’t even know pixies existed.”
“Neither did I, until this week,” I said.
“I thought you were an expert,” Michael smiled teasingly.
“On vampires,” I said. “And at this point, I think you’re probably a little more of one.”
Michael laughed, his fangs visible as he did. It was so still weird to see him like that, but I was getting more used to it.
“What time is it?” I asked.
“Eight thirty,” Michael said.
We’d spent more time fighting off Peter Yates and getting Dalan free than I’d realized.
“The book,” I said, and headed for the shelf where I remembered Peter putting it back.
My fingers moved over spines as I searched for the familiar cover. It couldn’t find it. It wasn’t there. I panicked, pulling out books like a wild woman. Seeing my panic, Michael helped, working on the shelf next to me.
And then, my fingers landed on a thick leather spine. I pulled it out and saw the words Curses and Cures. Relief washed over me like a tidal wave. I clutched it hard, unwilling to let it go until I handed it over to Ellianne herself.
“What happens now?” Michael asked.
“I guess we wait.”
Michael and I decided to wait outside. Dalan had dragged Peter into a room on the first floor, and the tiger roars and screams were enough to convince us to give him space.
As moments ticked by, my heart pounded harder. What if it was the wrong book? I’d double checked five times already, checking the cover page and contents, too, in case Peter had tried to slip the book’s cover over the wrong book in order to trick me. Not that the jerk had thought I’d ever get my hands on it. He’d been sure he’d have me in a cage.
It was definitely Curses and Cures by Leah Ladd.
At five minutes to nine, Ellianne came walking down the street. She wore an embroiled silver coat over gauzy blue skirts. Wind whipped her white hair in all directions around her face. I’d expected her to pop into place, so it was strange to watch her stroll at a steady pace down the road, like a human out for a walk.
“Good evening,” I said, my pulse racing.
Even though I held the book, I was waiting for something to go wrong. I wouldn’t be able to relax until the stupid faerie mark was lifted and I was out of her clutches for good.
“The time has come to pay your debt,” Ellianne said, coming to a stop a few feet in front of us.
Her snowy white skin glowed, though it wasn’t as pale as Michael’s. A young man who might have been her twin, with a shock of white hair, trailed behind her. He smelled of pine and snow. No doubt this was the guy who’d broken in to my room. He frowned at me like I was dirt in his Cheerios.
Ellianne noted the book in my arms and smiled. It wasn’t a friendly smile. “Did you find a copy of Curses and Cures? I’m impressed. I’ve been seeking it for years.”
“I did,” I said, still holding it close. “And once I hand it to you, this is all over, right? Our bargain is settled, and my debt is paid.”
“That’s correct,” Ellianne said. “All you need do now is hand me the book and the matter is settled.”
I went over her words in my head, prodding and poking them, checking for loopholes. Hand her the book and the matter was settled. That sounded straightforward enough.
Heart pounding, I took a deep breath and extended the book out, away from my body. Cold rushed in to fill the space. I ignored it.
“Here it is. Curses and Cures by Leah Ladd.”
Ellianne’s smile didn’t waiver, but she didn’t reach out and take it.
“I am impressed you’re willing to let it go,” the fae man behind her said mildly, as if bored beyond all reason but forced to make conversation.
“Shush, Edwin,” Ellianne said, and he clamped his mouth shut. But she shifted slightly, still not taking the book. “He does have a point, though. I did not expect you to give it up so easily.”
I frowned. I wanted her to take the stupid book and end this. Instead, it hung heavy in my hands.
“Well, I am. Here it is.”
“If you insist,” she said, still not taking it. Why wasn’t she taking it? I wanted to be rid of it already. “I really rather thought you’d want it for yourself so you could try the cure to your own curse. But if you want to hand it over…” She trailed off and met my eyes. Hers were cold, steely blue.
Cure to my curse? My mind reeled. I’d flipped through the book to be sure it was what it said on the cover, but I hadn’t looked closely at any of the spells. It wasn’t like I’d had time to pursue its contents. But she couldn’t mean was I was hearing. It was impossible.
“You’re saying this book contains a cure for being a werewolf?” I finally stammered.
Beside me, Michael sucked in a breath. Edwin, the fae man, smirked.
“You didn’t look?” Ellianne’s smiled widened. “And yet you’re so curious about books. I was sure you’d read it cover to cover.”
“I just found it,” I muttered, still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that I might be holding a book with an actual cure for what I was.
There had been months—no, years—where I would have taken any cure for lycanthropy that I could find. Except I’d never found one. I’d gone through every book in Ellianne’s library, every dark web werewolf forum, looked into every piece of lore and every legend, and never found so much as a whisper of a cure existing in reality.
And now Ellianne was telling me it was in this book that I’d spent the last three days doggedly hunting down.
Instinctively, I pulled the book back toward me.
“Charlie, it’s eight fifty-eight,” Michael warned. The deal was to give her the book by nine. Neither of us knew how strict the time limit was, but given that Ellianne was a faerie, we’d both agreed it was best not to push it. They tended to be pretty exact about that stuff.
I swallowed. Nodded. I didn’t have time to worry about what the book did or did not contain.
“Whatever. Just take the book,” I told Ellianne, again extending it out to her.
She reached for it but stopped short of touching it and I wanted to scream. “If you’re sure. But I should warn you that this book will go in my private collection. If you give it to me now, I will never allow you to borrow or see it again, and the cure it contains will be lost to you.”
Sweat beaded on my upper lip. My arms ached with the weight of the book and its secrets. My veins buzzed, and I swayed unsteadily on my feet. Part of me, the part that dreaded the upcoming full moon and the pain of transformation and a life lived in the shadow of a wolf whom I could not control, wanted so badly to say screw it and take the book back. I’d done one favor for this faerie. I could do three more, and then I could be human again, assuming the cure worked.
And once I was human and sure the cure had worked, Michael could make me into a vampire like I’d always wanted.
But there was another part of me that had come to like having my keen sense of smell and a little boost to my normal human strength (even if part of that was Raff forcing me to work out). Being a werewolf wasn’t as bad as I’d once thought. Heck, I was starting to almost enjoy it. I got to be a supernatural creature without having to totally miss out on seeing the sun or being cold as a corpse.
And yet… once I gave the book to Ellianne, that was it. I’d probably never find another copy, given how nearly impossible it had been to find this one, and I doubted there was another cure out there. I’d already searched high and low for it and come up empty.
I thought about my pack and all the werewolves who barely knew me but had helped me anyhow. I thought of Raff and his gorgeous smile and sexy muscles. I thought of the idiotic fight tomorrow that might take him from me.
Being a werewolf wasn’t so bad. But being one alone, without him? That thought was unbearable.
“Eight fifty-nine,” Michael said urgently.
“I could do three more favors for you and keep this,” I said to Ellianne, whose smile grew radiant and dangerous. And I knew that I could. Whatever she threw at me, I’d find a way to overcome it. Except that wasn’t what I wanted. I cleared my throat and continued, “But I don’t need a cure. Being a werewolf is actually kind of cool.”
I shoved the book against her chest, letting go so she had no choice but to take it. She caught it and held it, looking stunned.
Immediately, light swirled around me. A heaviness I hadn’t realized I was carrying evaporated from my shoulders. The light flew off into the sky, and I was left feeling weightless and relieved.
Ellianne stared at me, holding the book with her brows knit together as if she couldn’t understand what had just happened. Behind her, Edwin glared openly in my direction.
Michael put his hand on my shoulder.
“We should get going,” he said gently.
I nodded. Raff’s ceremony was soon, and we needed to get to the Orchard.
“Enjoy your book,” I told Ellianne and headed for the car.
Chapter 16
I stood in the barn’s parking lot in the cold, feeling weird about going in.
“Want me to be your date?” Michael asked, joking.
Werewolves didn’t seem to like vampires on the whole, and I didn’t know if they’d appreciate me bringing one to a sacred werewolf ceremony or whatever the heck this was.
“I’ll get a ride home with Raff,” I said, and turned to hug him.
I stopped short, unsure if I should let a vampire that close to my throat. Michael ignored my hesitation and hugged me first. He was so cold it was like hugging a snowman.
“He’s going to be impressed to hear you gave up a werewolf cure,” Michael said.
He sounded pretty impressed himself, which was fair. I’d spent the last three years living with him and resenting what I’d accidentally become. If I’d been given the option of a cure for lycanthropy in exchange for doing a few lousy favors for a faerie, I would have jumped at the chance. Funny how much things can change in such a short span of time.
“When I get time to tell him,” I said.
If I got time. I knew there wouldn’t be a good time to fill him in on the past week’s events tonight, and tomorrow was Levi’s challenge. And there was still a chance he wouldn’t survive.
I inhaled a shuddering breath that shook my shoulders.
“I’m really proud of you, Charlotte,” Michael said, catching me off-guard.
“You are?
Michael shrugged. “You’ve changed. But like, for the better.”
I smiled. “So have you.”
The barn door opened. Michael cleared his throat. “I should get going before I cause you any trouble. Take care, okay?”
I nodded.
Zara, one of our pack’s remaining warriors—many had been killed by a group of werewolf hunters—called to me: “Gonna stand out there all night?”
“I’m coming,” I said and hurried to the barn while Michael headed to his car.
Inside, I found the rest of the Northern Washington Werewolf Pack. There had been fewer than fifty of us when I’d first come to a meeting, and now there were fewer than thirty people milling around the barn. Most I now recognized, though I couldn’t have named them all.
Noticeably absent were Sasha and Raff, but otherwise, I didn’t see anyone missing. This was one of those mandatory pack events, so that made sense.
Fairy lights hung around the inside of the barn, keeping lighting dim. Buffet tables had been pushed against one wall, with folding chairs set up in rows in the center of the barn. I headed for the food. Now that I’d paid Ellianne back and didn’t have a Faerie Mark hanging over my head like the Sword of Damocles, my ravenous appetite had returned. Plus, I’d barely eaten all day.
The buffet sported trays of cut vegetables, cheese and deli meats, mini-quiches, and little hot dogs and meatballs on toothpicks. At the end of the tables sat coolers full of drinks. On the other side of the room were ice buckets full of champagne bottles, but those weren’t open yet, and I suspected they were for the celebration after.
I loaded up my plate and then stood in the corner, trying not to stuff my face as my stomach, which had been clenched tight and full of acid all week, growled.
“Glad you made it,” Miles said, sidling up to me. He wore all black, the uniform of wolf warriors, and his bald head shone. He had dark skin and gorgeous brown eyes. “I was worried you wouldn’t come.”
“Why wouldn’t I come?” I asked, my mouth totally not full of half-chewed food.
“I’m sure you’re concerned about what’s going to happen tomorrow,” he said.
Miles was another of the remaining pack warriors, and he’d always been kind to me, but with those words, he suddenly felt like the only person in this whole barn who understood the gravity of what was happening.
I swallowed, the food no longer tasting as good.
“Do you think I should be worried?”
I was almost afraid to ask, because I knew Miles was the type of guy who’d give me an honest answer. Miles considered the question for a long moment.
Finally, he said, “I think we should all be worried. But if anyone can beat Levi at this game, it’s Nathaniel.”
I nodded. Nathaniel Rafften was Raff’s full name, though he’d never asked me to call him anything but Raff.
“I just wish we could, like, cancel the challenge, you know? Tell Levi to shove it.”
Miles smiled. “Yeah. Me too. Last thing this pack needs is more loss and heartbreak. Not that I think Raff will lose but… you just never know. The Portland Alpha is determined. And kind of a jerk.”
“That’s the truth,” I agreed.
Levi was handsome and powerful, and he’d become their pack Alpha for a reason. He willing to do whatever it took to get what he wanted.
“You know, he tried to talk me into betraying our pack and joining up with him,” Miles said, shaking his head as if he couldn’t quite believe it. “I was like, you are barking up the wrong tree, my dude.”
“What a jerk,” I said, not wanting to admit he’d done the same to me.
My stomach roiled again. The remaining food on my plate no longer looked appetizing. I guess I should have realized I hadn’t been special. Levi had appealed to everyone in our pack he thought he could turn to his side.
A woman whose name I thought was Dina or Dana or Diana moved to the front of the room and whistled to get everyone’s attention.
“If you’ll all take a seat, we’re ready to start,” she said.
The crowd filed into the rows of folding chairs and sat. I sat with Miles in the front row. I wanted Raff to see me and know I was there, just like I’d promised.
Sasha came through the back door and stepped up to the podium. Instead of her usual business suit attire, she wore a sky-blue evening gown that glittered with sequins. Her short hair was styled around her face. She looked like she was up there to present an award, not resign her position as pack alpha. She smiled like a beauty pageant contestant, but it didn’t reach her eyes, which were slathered in concealer to cover the dark circles beneath them.
Raff came through next. Instead of his usual funny t-shirt and jeans, he wore a suit. It was slate gray and cut to fit his form. The shirt beneath the jacket was a silken blue that matched Sasha’s dress, and his tie was silver. His blond hair was neatly combed. My breath caught at the sight of him all dressed up. He was always handsome, but I’d never seen him look so dapper.
“Good evening, werewolves of the Northern Washington Pack,” Sasha said, her voice loud and clear. She spoke loudly and with confidence. “It’s been an honor to be your Alpha for the last ten years. But lately, I have failed this pack.”
Sounds of dissent came from the audience. Sasha smiled weakly and waited them out.
“We have been attacked by outsiders and lost many of our own.” She paused. In my periphery, I saw those seated beside me nod in acknowledgement. “It’s been a difficult year for our pack, and I’ve made the decision to stand down, to allow someone else to take over as our Alpha.”
There were no gasps or sounds of surprise. Everyone had known what this meeting was about. Instead, a sadness seemed to settle over the crowd like a soft blanket of snow.
Moon Bound (The Reluctant Werewolf Chronicles Book 3) Page 12