by C. Larsen
“Once I saw that, I knew,” she continues.
“Knew what?”
“That I had to protect you, at all costs. It’s not every day a deity comes to Earth to meddle in the lives of humans.”
I stare at her, unsure how to respond. “Well…thanks for your help. If it wasn’t for you, a lot more of us would have died.”
She nods at me, then moves away, disappearing in the crowd.
I'm only alone for a minute or two before strong arms wrap around me from behind. I sigh, breathing in his scent. Gray nuzzles my neck, a deep purr vibrating from his chest.
"Mmmm," I say, turning in his arms to bury my face in his neck.
"I love you," he says, hands tangling in my hair. "My brave little volchonok. You saved my life. You saved all of ours. You are so much stronger than I ever thought possible. And I thought pretty highly of you to begin with," he says, a smile in his voice.
I bury my face in his shoulder. "I love you too, solnyshko. You're sure you’re okay?"
After Caroline fled, I doubled-checked him and the other wolves caught in Gabriella's spell to make sure all of her magic was gone. They all appeared to be fine, completely free of her taint, but I can't help worrying.
"Yes, luna, I'm fine. Better with you in my arms. Speaking of which, how's your arm?"
I look down at the bite marks Gabriella forced Gray to inflict on me. "Fine. Barely a scratch."
"I'm so sorry, baby."
"Stop apologizing. You didn't do it; Gabriella did." I pull his head down to mine and kiss him deeply. He groans before pulling back.
"I have to go with Nikolay and James for an emergency meeting. Looks like you’re getting your truce, and without having to join James' pack. Nikolay’s agreed to let you stay in Haven Hollow to figure out what you can about the prophecy. I'll come by your house when I finish up with the meeting and fill you in on the rest. It might be late, though."
"I'll wait up."
He kisses me again. I watch him walk away, sighing, a small smile on my lips. Once he's gone, I glance over at Caiden. Screw it. Those people need treatment, and it will take hours before Caiden can get to them all. He needs help. If he's too terrified of the big bad wolf, he can shove it.
Chapter 51
I stride over to Caiden, my chin lifted defiantly. He watches me approach, his eyes wary.
"Need some help?" I notice several of the witches back up, averting their gazes. I expected such reactions, but it doesn't make it sting any less. They're the ones who came here with the full intention of torturing and murdering, yet I'm the monster here?
"Yeah," he says, eyes downcast. "A lot of them still need some pretty extensive work. I've managed to plug the majority of the serious wounds to prevent anyone from bleeding to death, so everyone is stable right now, but I could use some help fixing them up the rest of the way."
I nod to him, then look out coolly over the cluster of injured witches.
"Is there anyone here who doesn't object to being healed by a half-breed?"
Several scoot further back, terrified eyes fixed on the ground. I feel Caiden's gaze burning a hole in the side of my head but I ignore him. Several beats pass, then a young woman not much older than me steps forward.
"My mom could really use your help. If you're willing," she adds.
I meet her soft brown eyes. I don't recognize her, which means she must have been part of Gabriella's coven.
"Which one's your mother?"
She points to a tiny older woman lying on the ground near the back of the group. Her eyes are squeezed shut in pain, her breathing shallow.
Caiden meets my gaze. *She has severe internal injuries. That boy really did a number on her. I doubt she'll live.*
Boy? Does he mean Max? My chest tightens. Poor Max. No one should have to live through what he did. A stab of worry pierces me at the thought of what the pack will do with him now. Will he be punished for losing control like that again? Surely even Nikolay wouldn’t be so cruel. Max has been through enough for a man five times his age.
*You didn't try to heal her?* I ask Caiden, trying to distract myself from these worrying thoughts.
*I have a dozen others just like her. If I were to expend that much energy on her, I wouldn't have any left for the others that also need serious attention. I had to prioritize.*
My eyes travel over the group of witches all waiting for their turn to be healed. Caiden’s right. There are too many for just him. Aren’t there any other witches here with healing abilities?
Before I turn back to the woman, Caiden's low voice stops me. "How come you didn't tell me?"
I don’t have to ask what he’s talking about. "Because I know how much you hate them. Hate us."
"I could never hate you."
I look away from the intensity of his eyes.
"How's Gray?" he asks.
"He's fine. No lasting injuries. It looks like they'll all work out a truce.”
He nods. "Good. That's good."
Awkward silence hangs between us for a moment. Then I turn away from him, back to the young woman. "Let me take a look at your mother."
Even after everything I've seen, everything I've done, what I find makes my blood run cold. Her intestines are shredded, stomach pierced. I can see where Caiden tried to mend it, but it's barely enough to keep her from bleeding to death.
Drawing on the energy still buzzing through my veins, I set to work, healing what I can. It takes a long time. I have to stop often, making sure that I'm piecing the small intestines together correctly. There are so many shredded pieces, I first line them all up before I begin mending them. But, eventually I sag forward, finished. Her daughter is kneeling over her, hands clasped tightly over her mother's.
"She has to take it easy for the next few weeks. Though I've mended the tissues, they're still weak. There was a lot of damage. But with enough rest, she should be okay. You might want to get her checked out by the healer in your coven when you can, though."
She nods gratefully. "I’ll have Bridget check on her tomorrow. Thank you. We don't have a healer," she says. “And I'm sorry. About your friend. And that little boy..."
Unable to stop myself, I look her in the eye and say, "Why? Why did you go along with this? With them?"
"We didn't know what they had planned. I swear. Gabriella told us the pack was attacking. We thought we had to fight them to keep them from killing us. I know now that that wasn't the case. And I am so sorry about that man and his son."
Her expression of sympathy and regret is mirrored on several of the other witches around us. The scent of guilt and remorse hangs heavy in the air. Taking a deep breath, I turn to the rest of the group.
"Who's next?"
Hours later, I sigh as I sink into my soft mattress, muscles aching with weariness. We spent hours healing the others, me and Caiden. Bridget joined us after a while and we all worked ourselves near to collapsing before everyone was healed.
I check my phone again. No calls. Guess Gray’s meeting is still going on. Yawning, I try to keep my eyes open, but I’m too tired to stay awake and wait for him; my eyelids are too heavy.
I don't know how long I've been sleeping when I'm woken up by the rumble of a truck. Gray, finally.
I jump out of bed and rush down the stairs to the door. My dad's sleeping upstairs and I don’t think he’d be thrilled about a late-night visit from Gray.
There are still a few hours until dawn. I smile at the thought of sneaking off to Gray’s house for the next several hours.
Gray’s expression when he walks through the door knocks the smile off my face. He looks shell-shocked, his scent a strange mixture of fear, anger, desperation, and despair.
“Gray, what's wrong? Did they refuse the truce?”
He doesn't answer, just continues staring at me, mouth open. There’s a stark helplessness in his eyes that scares me more than Caroline and Gabriella combined.
“Gray, what happened? Talk to me.”
“They...th
ey formed a truce. The packs and Night’s Hollow.”
“So, why do you look like you've been punched in the gut?”
“They... Nikolay and James... part of the agreement is that I have to... me and Olivia...” he rambles, not making any sense.
“What about you and Olivia? Gray, what are you talking about?”
“They want us to mate,” he finally spits out, panic overtaking his expression. “To join the packs. It’s part of the truce…”
I feel like the air is knocked out of me. “Mate?” I ask stupidly, sure I’ve heard him wrong. “Mated, as in mated? Like, married?”
He jerks his head up and down once, as if not trusting his voice.
“But...why? What about us?” Panic claws up my throat, threatening to choke me. This can’t be happening. Gray loves me. I know he does. There’s no way he’d agree to be mated to my best friend. It’s just not possible.
“I talked to Nikolay,” he says. “I begged...but he refuses. He said...”
“Said what?”
“That you’re only a half-blood, and as the future Alpha, my children need to be full blooded. He’s ordered me to mate Olivia. I don’t…I don’t have any choice…”
"But..." My eyes fill with tears as what he's saying starts to sink in.
"Don't worry, luna." He crushes me tight against his chest. "We'll figure something out. I'll figure something out. I promise."
I don't know who he’s trying to convince: me or himself.
Author Message
Thank you for reading Shattered Circle! It is readers like you that encourage me to continue writing more novels. If you enjoyed this book, I’d be very grateful if you’d post a short review at your favorite retailer or book review site. Your support really does make a difference and I read each and every review so I can get your feedback and make my books even better.
Thanks again for your support!
More Books by C. Larsen
The Witches Circle
Silent Circle: Book 1
Deceitful Circle: Book 2
Gray’s Dilemma: A Witches Circle Novella
Shattered Circle: Book 3
Sacrificial Circle – The fourth and final book in this series will be coming out in 2019!
Simple Witchcraft
Wicca: A Beginner’s Guide to Witchcraft, Spells, Rituals, and Magick
Simple Candle Magick: Easy, Powerful Candle Spells For Beginners to Wicca and Witchcraft
About the Author
An avid reader of urban fantasy and paranormal romance, C. Larsen has been dreaming up stories from a very early age. She is the author of the young adult fantasy series The Witches Circle. After nearly a decade of practicing Wicca, she has recently published a new non-fiction series, Simple Witchcraft, to help guide beginners in the craft.
For all the latest news and updates, visit her website at https://larsenbooks.wordpress.com/ or follow her on Twitter @LarsenBooks
Don’t miss the first book in the series, Silent Circle!
“Most teens get a car for their birthday. Me? I get inducted into a freaky coven of witches.”
When Emerson wakes up on her eighteenth birthday, she has no idea that her life will change forever. After her mother’s inexplicable suicide three years ago, she’s gotten used to the scorn and sideways looks of her classmates. She knows that everyone believes her mother was crazy, and that it’s only a matter of time before Emerson cracks herself. So when Emerson starts seeing auras and hearing voices, she begins to think that the rest of the town may be right.
That is, until Caiden, an enigmatic boy from her class, tells her that she’s a witch, just like her mother. With the truth revealed, a whole new world opens up to Emerson, a world she soon discovers holds its own dangers.
Caiden agrees to help Emerson navigate this secret world, training her to control her newfound abilities. But Caiden isn’t the only witch in town. When a rival coven shows up to recruit Emerson, she has to decide whether to join Caiden’s coven, or risk facing these dangerous witches alone.