Chapter 41
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
“Are you ready?”
Elijah watched his anchor draw in an unsteady breath and nodded.
He’d kept his calm during the interaction with Grumly and with the police, but the closer they got to this moment, the more turbulent his emotions became.
Elijah understood, and did his best to reassure him as the spell circle was set up in the forest and the family prepared to lend their assistance in any way they could.
Not the spell circle near the family home, they wanted to give Alistair a little more of a buffer if his magic reacted poorly to being blocked for so long.
Isaac had shown them a clearing in the forest that was large enough, and they set up there, while Elijah and Alistair watched and waited.
Agatha stood just outside the circle, clenching her hands to stop herself from wringing them like she had been for the last ten minutes. Alistair wasn’t the only one who was worried. The energy around the spell circle was tense, which wasn’t at all helpful in this situation.
“Mrs. Silverbreeze, if I may? Anxious family members aren’t going to help Alistair relax.
” Agatha studied him for a moment before nodding.
With only a small spell, since he was only encouraging calmness and not forcing it, Elijah sent his magic out to the family in the area.
One by one, they relaxed by increments and collectively took deep breaths.
Even Agatha reacted, relaxing her hands and breathing deeply.
“Thank you, Elijah. You said you have enough power to handle this spell. Are you sure you don’t need a boost from us?”
Elijah shook his head. “I want to limit outside interference. The only magic present should be my anchor’s and mine.”
She seemed hesitant but was forced to trust him. She gestured to the spell circle. “In the center is best. We’ll keep our distance, but the shield is for everyone’s safety. Will that be an issue?”
He shook his head. He already took that into account, which was why the circle was so big.
He wanted his space for this, so the family would stay among the trees until Alistair’s bands were removed and whatever happened with his magic happened.
Alistair made him promise he wouldn’t remove the bands until he was sure it was safe to do so.
Since he could connect with Alistair even with the bands in place, Elijah agreed.
Agatha gave her grandson one final hug before shooing them into the spell circle.
Alistair squeezed Elijah’s hand tightly, his footsteps hesitant but his trust in Elijah unwavering.
Elijah felt himself smile, but didn’t comment.
They sat together in the center of the spell circle, holding hands, and Elijah emptied his mind of everything but the man sitting in front of him.
“Okay. I’m going to begin soon. From my research, you might experience a flashback or something to that effect during the process. That’s normal, and I promise, you won’t be in it for long. I’ll be right next to you the whole time.”
There was more information about this kind of spell removal than he’d expected.
Apparently it was something that happened with POWs, and it was possible if Alistair had stayed in the institution a little longer and learned to trust the staff, they might have caught this.
Elijah had nearly lost his temper when he read that.
He hated Alistair’s ex in-laws a little more when he realized Alistair could have been helped, if he’d just been given more time to heal.
“Focus,” Alistair chided, the barest of smiles pulling at his lips.
“Sorry,” Elijah mumbled, clearing his mind again. Instead of sending his magic out, he tightened it around his anchor and focused inward, chasing that link between them that kept them intrinsically connected.
Just before he began working, he filled that connection with all the love he felt for the man who claimed him. They would get through this. He was sure of it.
Alistair felt Elijah’s determination, and it bolstered him a little. He trusted his mate to do everything he could. Only time would tell if it would be enough.
He closed his eyes, focusing on meditating like Elijah had suggested.
He kept his mind open for Elijah, feeling the warmth spread through him as Elijah sank deeper into his memories to find the spell that had been left behind.
He knew when Elijah had found it because between one breath and the next, he was shoved into a flashback so intense, it felt real.
His hands were tied behind his back, his body aching from the number of beatings he’d taken in the past few days.
They wanted specific information from him, and they were pissed that none of their spells were getting past his shields.
They’d turned to physical incentive, hoping he’d be too hurt and exhausted to block them after enough time.
Alistair was shunting every ounce of his power into his mental shields to keep them out, wishing he could use his power to kill everyone in the room.
They kept him in a spell circle that prevented him from attacking, so he focused on protecting his mind instead.
“You’ve disappointed me,” the accented voice of his captor said above him. Alistair was too weak to stand now, and the man seemed to enjoy the sight of him on his knees, taking every opportunity to loom over him. “I’m running out of patience.”
Lifting his head, Alistair glared at him. They could hurt him as much as they wanted, but he wasn’t giving them shit.
A blood curdling scream from the next room made his head snap around. He knew that voice. They were hurting Myra. She and Gio had been taken with him. He hadn’t seen them since.
“Stop it! Let her go!”
The elf shook his head slowly, an evil grin spreading across her face. “You have all fought well, but the time to play games is over.” His hand started to glow, and a spell Alistair didn't recognize formed in his palm. It wasn’t like any spell he’d ever seen.
“Do you like my new creation?” the elf asked.
“I made it specifically for you and your team. Your little friend is experiencing it first hand, but she’s already given up a lot.
I’m curious how you’ll react to it.” He reached for Alistair, his eyes widening with glee as pain exploded through his temples, and he gritted his teeth against the urge to scream.
“Maybe now your leaders will finally stop underestima–”
His monologue cut off mid-sentence. The change in what Alistair remembered was so sharp, he looked up, surprised to see Elijah standing in front of him. Panic filled his chest at the thought of the sweet man being captured like he had, and he fought against the binds on his arms, screaming at him.
“Run! Eli, run!”
Elijah didn’t look at him, his attention on the elf, who looked a little confused.
“How–”
“Trust,” Elijah answered calmly. “And love. Something you didn’t think to account for when creating this spell.” Elijah lifted a hand and gold swirls formed into a ball in his hand. “You should have known better than to leave yourself connected to your victims. You left yourself vulnerable.”
The elf stumbled back, shouting words in his language that Alistair couldn’t understand, despite having taken enough lessons to be considered fluent.
The pain in his mind subsided as the elf pulled the spell back, but Elijah’s spell shot forward and hit him in the chest before he could remove their connection.
The elf screamed, trying to claw it off, but his body began to turn to ash as the spell expanded along his skin.
There was nothing he could do to stop it.
“His mind is mine! If I go, he goes with me!” the elf shrieked.
“No,” Elijah replied steadily. “He’s mine. And I’m more than capable of protecting him.”
With that statement, a gold blanket of magic wrapped around them, blocking the black sludge-like spells the elf threw at them.
The memory began to fade, and the darkness of the cave was replaced with bright white light.
When the elf finally succumbed to the magic and disappeared, Elijah turned around, gifting him with that soft smile Alistair loved so much.
“What did you do?” he croaked, his voice still feeling raw even though he knew what just happened wasn’t real.
“I used the connection he’d set up to torment you and turned it around on him.
” He reached down and helped Alistair to his feet, the ropes around his wrists gone and the pain fading like it’d never been there.
“While removing the spell, I noticed a connection that didn’t look the same as the connections you had to your family.
I followed it back to the caster. He was using it to send you into flashbacks.
It was the reason you couldn’t maintain your reality.
I took that power away. He won’t be able to hurt you anymore. ”
Taking his hands, Alistair shook his head slowly. “You’re amazing, Eli.”
Elijah shrugged, a sheepish smile on his face. “I’d do anything for you.”
He couldn’t stop himself from yanking the telepath into his arms and holding him tightly. When he’d decided to give Elijah a chance, he never thought it would lead to this. He trusted fate a little more after having been handed the perfect mate to pull him back from the brink.
“Ready to take off the bands?” Elijah asked against his shoulder.
Alistair’s heart stuttered, and he swallowed hard. “You’re sure I won’t hurt you?”
“I promise. Take a deep breath.”
He closed his eyes automatically, tightening his grip around Elijah even though he knew everything that was happening right now wasn’t real. They were in his mind. It was reality that he had to worry about.
A snap made him suck in a sharp breath, and it felt like the weight of the world was lifted off his shoulders, followed by a wind so strong, it nearly knocked him over.
With it came the connections he’d been missing since the bands were put on; the love and support from his family he’d lost, followed by the spirits he’d grown up with that were the foundation of his magic.
It was overwhelming, and it felt like he couldn’t breathe, but just when it felt like too much, Elijah’s magic swept in, soothing the riled spirits and easing the emotions he couldn’t seem to control.
That feeling of warmth and safety wrapped around him and for the first time in years, he finally felt like he could breathe.
“Open your eyes, Alistair. It’s okay,” Elijah encouraged.
It took more effort than he expected to leave that safe space in his mind that Elijah had given him, but he followed the coaxing of his mate’s voice and opened his eyes, finding his head pillowed in Elijah’s lap and the bright blue sky above them.
The magic of the forest danced around them, welcoming him back.
His heart still pounded wildly in his ears, but Elijah’s fingers gently stroking through his hair settled him little by little.
“How do you feel?”
He drew in a slow breath, letting the lost connections settle in his chest. “Alive. Connected.” He locked eyes with Elijah. “Good. I feel good.”
Elijah smiled, rubbing a hand over his chest where the echoes of the pain he’d felt in his memory still lingered. A touch of magic sank under his skin, and the pain faded, until only the memory was left.
“I can remove them, if they’re too painful for you, but I think you should speak to a therapist first. Removing memories without dealing with the underlying pain might not help as much as people might think. The emotions would linger without you being able to understand why.”
He wasn’t willing to make any commitments right away and Elijah didn’t rush him. They had time to talk about stuff like that.
“All the time in the world,” Elijah reassured him. “I’m here for you, Alistair.”
“Will you marry me?”