Chapter 17
Natalia sighs, and her lips flatten. “Well, this isn’t going how I expected or even hoped.”
I chuckle. “Did you expect me to give up just because of your little warning?”
She shrugs. “Pretty much.”
I guess I can’t blame her for that. That’s what I would have done before. At least, I would have considered that option more heavily, but not anymore.
Drake was right earlier when he said I deserved better. But not just with my living conditions, with everything in life, and I’m going to start demanding just that out of the universe.
My mate grabs hold of my elbow, turning me back toward him. His eyes are on me, swirling with emotions I can’t understand when he’s blocking me out.
I hold his cheeks in my palms and smile. “I can handle all of you. You don’t need to hide yourself from me.”
He shakes within my hold. “What my rage did to you earlier, I can’t let that happen again.”
“You didn’t give me a chance to figure it out on my own,” I tell him. “I know what will happen now. While I appreciate you trying to protect me, I can handle this and so much more. Next time, give me the chance to show you.”
He drops his forehead to mine. “I’m sorry, My Dove. I didn’t know what else to do. I don’t want you living with what I have. It’s not fair.”
I push up onto my toes and lightly press my lips against his. “Fairness doesn’t matter when we’re mates. Part of the purpose of the bond is so that we can share each other’s burdens, not hide who or what we are.”
This time he grins. “Who are you and what have you done with the Spencer I met outside the portal?”
My laugh is deep and rumbly. “She’s still here, I promise you that, but I realize life isn’t as black and white as I was trying to force it to be.”
“As fun as it is to be a third wheel in your newly formed mateship,” Natalia drones, “I apparently have work to do, and unlike the two of you, I’d rather not have an audience.”
I’ve crossed lines tonight, threatening her past a point that I’m honestly surprised she’s still willing to help us. Knowing that, I don’t comment on her attitude, because it’s not undeserved.
“We’ll leave, but nothing changes,” I tell her. “You offered to break the curse on Drake’s wolf, and we understand the risks. How long do you need to make this happen?”
Her hardened stare begins to soften, and she shakes her head with a heavy sigh. “You’re lucky I know how pure your energy is.”
I’m not sure how I’m supposed to respond to that, so I don’t, waiting for her to answer my previous question.
“Give me all of tomorrow and the following night,” she says. “That will allow me enough time to break down Drake’s blood and possibly learn more about Kel. The more I know about her magic, the easier it will be to not kill him.”
Drake growls from next to me, but I’ve known Natalia long enough to understand that she doesn’t talk about killing my mate flippantly. If he were to die, the witch wouldn’t take that lightly, even if she might try to pretend otherwise.
“We’ll be back the following morning, then,” I say as I lace my fingers through Drake’s.
Natalia holds up a hand, her gaze appraising Drake with undisguised scrutiny. “Wait a minute. Why did she spell you in the first place?”
“Because she’s a fucking psycho,” he spits out with disgust.
The witch clicks her tongue. “Try again, without all that pent-up rage.”
My chest tightens and the need to comfort Drake nearly overwhelms me until I find myself stepping closer to him and placing a hand on his arm. No words are spoken out loud, but the moment I touch him, his gaze is on mine.
I’m frozen in place as if he’s seeing into my soul and there’s nothing that I can do but stand here and let him have a look around.
The thought frightens me, but only for a split second. The longer we’re focused on one another, the more a sense of relief I feel, as if I’m truly being seen for the first time in my life.
A minute or two goes by and he finally nods, then gives Natalia his attention again. “I met Kel in Tartarus. She kept crossing paths with me and trying to strike up conversations. I casually brushed her off, but she started insisting that we should be together. When I snapped at her one day, she decided that if she couldn’t have me, then nobody could. I spent over nine hundred years frozen in my current state, unchanging but aware of my surroundings, while she basically took over my home and life.”
Natalia crosses her arms and taps her foot on the ground as she seems to mull over the information. “That’s helpful. I’ll need more blood from both of you, assuming you didn’t bring back the vial I returned, and then I’ll get to work, but I mean it. Don’t return before the following days’ morning or you’ll risk ruining my process. My shop will be closed while I concentrate on this spell.”
That makes me feel mildly better. Though, I didn’t have any doubts before that she would take this seriously. If I did, we wouldn’t be here.
“Will you be able to tell if Kel is close?” I ask since she’ll have traces of the witch’s magic.
She nods, relieving some of my tension caused by the fear I have of putting my family in danger. “I’ll set up a perimeter spell that will warn me of any dark magic linked to that in the blood of your mate. It should give you enough time to act, but if that happens, you’re on your own.”
Fair enough.
“Then, I believe we have a deal,” I tell her, stepping forward to offer my blood first. “Take what you need.”
I’m in a hurry to get back to the house and make sure nothing is off there. I’ll need to have a chat with Kasha about protecting her home with as much magic as I can offer on top of whatever the hybrid is capable of. If Kel is as powerful as Natalia has been saying, then I have to assume she can track Drake, which means she’ll know where he’s been.
Though, if the witch bitch comes for him or my family before we find her, she’ll have one hell of a fight on her hands, even if we’re not entirely ready.
The next morning, after only sleeping for a few hours, I wake to the sound of Peter’s laughter. For a brief moment, I allow myself to forget we’re all still in danger and just smile, because it’s been too long since I’ve awoken like this.
Drake is lying next to me, staring at me with a deep crease between his brows.
My body tenses, and I sit up quickly in bed. “What’s wrong?”
“Your phone has a message on it,” he says gruffly.
I tilt my head, wondering who could upset him that would have my number, but I can’t think of a single soul.
Reaching for the device, I see several messages and frown.
Natalia: I actually need the two of you to come by today. Unlocking his wolf can’t wait.
Natalia: Don’t ignore me. I’m trying to help you.
Natalia: You won’t like it if I have to come to you.
Natalia: You’re such a pain in my ass.
“Huh.” I set the phone down, then stretch, but Drake still isn’t pleased.
He grabs my shoulders and forces me to sit up. “That’s all you have to say. ‘Huh.’ I tried waking you several times, but you wouldn’t budge. We need to go find out why her plans have changed.”
The last message was sent only ten minutes ago. Not that I don’t have a sense of urgency for this situation, but I know Natalia. She’s not going to leave the safety of her shop when she’s working on something so important, and I’m not in a hurry to find out if my mate is going to die today. Though, I don’t tell him that.
Still, I don’t want to cause Drake any more stress. I pick up my phone again to text her back, letting her know we’ll be there within the half hour and her reply is immediate.
Natalia: Hurry your furry ass up.
Fucking witch. While I intend to do as she’s demanding, there’s something else I need to do first and that’s check on my family before having a little chat with Kasha. I need to know if what we’ve learned changes her mind about protecting my family.
Getting up, I reach for his hand and offer him a grin. “Just a quick check in with the others and then we’ll head to Spells.”
As we dress, I realize nothing feels different between us. My head and heart know this man is my mate, but the pulling sensation, the desire to touch him… None of that is present.
“You’re still blocking me out,” I state, keeping my frustration from my voice. He frowns and reaches for me, but I step back. “Tell me why first.”
“I already did.” He sighs. “I don’t want to hurt you.”
My head shakes, and I can’t hold back the echoing growl coming from my chest. “And I made it clear that you didn’t give me a chance to show you I can handle whatever hurt you’re hiding.”
This time, when he comes for me, I don’t back away. Drake holds both of my hands and bends until we’re eye level. “Give me until after Natalia frees my wolf at least.”
He’s asking for a compromise, and I don’t want to yield, but he can’t keep the pain out of his eyes. I’m learning that when they’re all black, it doesn’t just mean he’s furious. My mate is also hurting.
Leaning forward, I kiss him, lingering for several extra seconds. “Okay.”
He seems surprised by my agreement but doesn’t comment. A loud thud echoes from outside the shed and then I hear Peter’s voice.
“Sorry, Pence,” he shouts, making me grin.
Drake follows me outside where we find Mom and Peter in the yard, playing catch with a lime-green ball that seems to have seen better days. Even still, they’re both grinning and seem to be having a blast. Not what I expect the day after that jackass died, but who am I to say how they should process murder?
Peter waves. “Want to play?”
I give him a big smile. “I’d love to, but I need to do something this morning. When I’m back, we’ll have some fun, okay?”
“Sure!” He goes back to tossing the ball in his hand until Mom nods, but before she does, her head cocks sideways. I wonder if she’s seeing something we need to know about. When she doesn’t say anything, I don’t overthink the situation and head inside, hoping Kasha is around so we can talk.
I’ve spent months telling her that the shed is enough for me and now, without notice, I’m going to ask her to keep the two people I love most in the world safe from a threat we know very little about.
Nothing to worry about at all.
Drake and I enter through the back door at the kitchen and she’s sitting at the table, drinking a cup of coffee, her face grim. “I was hoping you would come see me.”
Great. I was hoping my worry would be for nothing, but maybe not.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, not sitting, but standing tense behind one of the chairs with Drake beside me.
“We need to talk,” she starts, tracing circles around the rim of her steaming mug. “And you can’t be angry with what I say next.”
I harumph because my previous disappointment is suddenly being eclipsed by the way she’s starting this conversation. “What did you do?”
Kasha nods at the backyard. “I used magic on your mother and brother.”
The rumble in my chest is so loud that it echoes through the kitchen. “You did what?”
She stays seated, seeming unfazed by my wrath. “Based on what I learned last night, you have a lot going on, but your family needs you. Except you need to be there for them in other ways, at least for right now. So, I solved a problem for you. I made it so that they remember what happened, but they don’t have an emotional response to the…incident.”
My mouth opens, and I’m certain the fae-wolf is about to wish she never existed, except that’s not what happens.
Rationality kicks in just before I verbally rip into her. “Did something happen last night?”
She nods. “Peter woke up screaming, and your mother couldn’t stop crying as she tried to console him. I had to do something, and I was pretty sure you weren’t home or at least didn’t want to be interrupted. I couldn’t let them suffer.”
What comes out next seems to shock everyone in the room. “Thank you. You made the right choice.”
Kasha blinks several times before chuckling. “You’re welcome. Though, I expected more of a fight. I even doubled my caffeine intake to deal with you this early in the day.”
I nod my head toward Drake. “This is your fault,” I tease. “You’re making me soft, and you’ve only been here a day.”
He merely shrugs and takes a seat first. “I’m a murderous shadow shifter. Whatever changes you’ve made are on you.”
He’s full of shit. He’s the biggest cinnamon roll I’ve ever met. One that melted the icing around my heart quicker than I could have ever thought possible.
While I also blame the magic of the mate bond, there’s no denying that Drake holds a goodness within himself that appeals me to him even with him blocking our bond.
He might have come out of that portal raging, but he had every right to be. The fact that he changed his plans—foregoing his vengeance temporarily—the moment he saw me is all I need to know for now.
Giving Kasha my full attention again, I take her in, observing her bright blue eyes and her genuine smile as she sips her coffee. I can easily admit that Drake’s kindness isn’t the first I’ve succumbed to, regardless of all the warnings my mother had given me growing up.
“Considering you made sure they’re mentally okay, I hope that means you don’t have a problem still protecting my family once I tell you that the witch who cursed Drake isn’t just any old hag. She’s possibly one of the original dark witches and several millenniums old.” I drop the bomb of information casually, but I don’t expect her response to be just the same.
Her eyes begin to glow, and she grins. “Magic has never scared me, in any form. That’s not changing today.”
Huh. I maybe should have been getting to know Kasha these last few months instead of keeping her at arm’s length. She just might be more badass than I’ve been giving her credit for.
“There will be no place safer for them than my home,” she adds, sitting a little taller in her chair, a prideful glint in her eyes. “I can assure you.”
For the first time in maybe ever, I accept her promise without feeling the need to question or threaten her. When I do, a light around her intensifies so briefly, I can’t tell if the flicker was only in my mind or her showing off or a reminder from my little mental shakedown last night.
“We need to head to Spells, but we won’t be long,” I tell her as Drake stands from the table, reminding me that his eagerness to be free is just as important as anything else.
Kasha grins behind her mug. “Have fun with the witch.”
Yeah, that’s not going to happen. At least not until I know my mate isn’t going to die today.