Chapter 43 Alaric
Alaric
Something had happened to the witch. I left our building, intending to go to the gym before the usual crowd of shifter assholes showed up, but a wave of magic hit me as I crossed the quad. The tether in my chest tightened and pulled so hard I nearly dropped to my knees.
What the actual fuck was going on? Fuck my life. How did my father cope with this every day? Maybe it was why he’d slapped a magical collar on my mother. I’d always assumed it was to prevent her from shifting, but maybe it also stopped the endless pull of the bond?
Goddess, I’d do anything to cure this awful pain.
I rubbed my chest and forced myself to keep moving, one step at a time.
Concern for the witch threatened to drive me back toward the dorms, but I had a feeling she wasn’t there.
And besides, if anything bad had happened to her, I’d know about it.
If the witch died, I’d be dealing with a lot more pain than a bad case of heartburn.
Perhaps her magic had gone crazy again?
A twinge of guilt triggered more pain. After our last disastrous magic lesson in the courtyard, I’d made excuses. Too busy. Off campus. Or I’d simply ignored her when she tried talking to me. Yes, I was being an asshole, but the thought of spending time alone with her had me breaking out in hives.
I couldn’t handle it. My attraction to her was hard enough to resist as it was. Seeing her most days, chatting with her friend or wandering around with her head in the clouds, was pure torture.
Even though I’d promised to help her with her magic after she tried to burn down the corridor, I quickly changed my mind once I’d moved out of her orbit.
I’d been thinking with my dick, not my head. As usual. Just the thought of her begging me while on her knees had me hard. Fucking witch.
When I reached the gym, the merman stumbled out through the door that led to the swimming pool. I never ventured in there. Swimming wasn’t really my thing, and besides, I’d heard stories that the water did something nasty to non-aquatic species.
The merman looked almost as ill as I did when he passed. He caught my eye but didn’t say a word. The fucker was odd. I’d seen him watching me sometimes. Like he knew something I didn’t.
I’d also seen him staring at the witch more than was polite.
Fuck knows why. Merpeople never pursued relationships outside their species.
The merqueen was even more entrenched in her ways than my father.
Obsessed with keeping mer bloodlines pure.
It was all rather incestuous, considering the mer population was way smaller than it had been a century ago.
Human-caused environmental pollution had taken as big a toll on the oceans as it had on land, which had affected the aquatic species. But that wasn’t my problem.
I entered the gym. The horrible pulling sensation in my chest faded as I reached the changing room. Thank fuck. I quickly changed and shoved my clothes in a locker, but just as I stepped inside, the incubus appeared.
My eyes widened when I saw the state of him. Blood and guts and fuck knows what shit all over him. Goddess. The apple hadn’t fallen too far from the tree. Zane was his father’s son, for sure. An absolute unhinged lunatic.
“Do I need to call the council enforcers?” I asked, while taking a step back. I wasn’t afraid of the incubus, but I was wary.
He chuckled. “No. Just taking out the trash.”
“You should clean up. The serial killer aesthetic isn’t a good look for you.”
“How are you feeling?” From his smirk, he knew something I didn’t.
I glared before stalking over to the weights. “Why?”
“Oh, just wondered if you’d felt a powerful burst of, say, witch magic recently?”
His smirk widened.
“Again, why?”
“The little witch has claimed her first mate.”
The kettle bell I’d just picked up dropped to the floor with a clang, missing my foot by a hair.
“Mate?”
The incubus cocked his head to one side.
“Have you been smoking witch weed again? That shit’s seriously bad for you, dude.
” My fists clenched as my temper flared.
Why couldn’t he have led with that instead of feeding me breadcrumbs?
But losing my shit wouldn’t get me any answers.
As much as smiting the asshole incubus with a well-timed lightning strike would be satisfying as hell, I needed to know more.
“Which asshole has she mated? The bear, I assume.”
Zane smirked while clapping slowly. Outside, the wind turned from a gentle breeze into a raging hurricane. Thunder crashed. Lightning struck trees. Even the magically reinforced windows rattled in their frames under the onslaught of wind and rain.
“Yep. Care bear is her first claimed mate.” I almost laughed at his stupid nickname for the bear shifter but quickly schooled my face into a bored expression.
Zane hummed while watching my reaction, still amused, although I detected a faint hint of jealousy. Was he another one of her soul-bonded mates? I assumed so, or he wouldn’t be this interested.
Zane was many things but invested in the love lives of witches and mages was not one of them. Not unless they were throwing an orgy.
He mostly hated the mages, which was hardly surprising given how they treated his father.
“So are you next?” he asked eventually when I failed to respond.
“Me? Why would you think that?” I sat down on a bench and made a show of retying my laces.
“Oh, Ricky. You don’t need to pretend with me. I’m not like your father.”
The mention of my father brought a scowl to my face. “Even if the stupid witch and I were soul-bonded, which we’re not, I’m engaged to Kinara Blake.” I stood, deciding to skip my workout because this asshole didn’t look like he planned to leave me in peace.
“You can’t fight fate, Alaric.”
When I looked up, Zane had gone.