Chapter 48
Chapter Forty-Eight
Siobhan
I flip the first card—Helen’s—to reveal the Ten of Swords. I show it to the camera, then set it back down in its place.
My hand rests on the second card, but Helen interrupts before I can flip it. “Are you going to explain what it means?”
“Oh, sure, I can do that now. I normally like to see the full picture first.”
“Right,” she says, turning away. “Whatever. Do it your way.”
I flip the second card—mine—which is Six of Wands. Again, I hold it up for the camera before moving onto the last one.
The third card—chosen by the deck, universe, Moon Goddess, whoever—is Judgement.
“Hmmm.” I glance up through my lashes at the camera, trying to up the drama. “Interesting,” I murmur.
“What do they mean?” Helen asks, clearly trying to hide her impatience.
“Well, it’s a bit of a mixed bag. Your card indicates an ending or defeat of some kind. Misfortune, something not working out. Normally, I’d say it would be related to work, but…” I trail off, glancing at her, then the camera, then Aury.
Helen’s barely-serene expression falls and she clenches her jaw, glaring at me, before hissing through her teeth. “Are you trying to tell me I’m a failure?”
I shake my head with a shrug, throwing an apologetic look at the camera again.
“I wouldn’t say failure, but it’s definitely not good.
The Ten of Swords normally hints at an ending, and not a good one.
Since I was focused on our content and the ritual…
” I trail off again and raise my hands in a ‘what can you do’ type of gesture.
She grinds her teeth together, and I decide to move on before she completely loses it. Although when she hears what mine means, she might anyways.
I run my fingers along the edge of the second card. “Six of Wands indicates a—” I stop myself before saying success. I glance at Helen again, nerves making me hesitate. I clear my throat. “A job well done. It could hint at a reward coming, or some sort of career recognition.
“The third card,” I quickly say, figuring speed is the best option right now if Helen’s icy glare is any indication, “Judgement, says we’re approaching a significant point in our lives, probably in our career since, again, that’s what we’re focused on here.
Judgement encourages us to pay attention to how our actions are impacting others.
” I swallow hard, realizing this reading is hitting pretty close to home.
“It might indicate awakening or self-reflection, finding purpose or improvement through change, and taking responsibility for conflicts.”
Helen is shaking her head, and I turn to look at her. She has her hands fisted on top of the table, leaning on them heavily. “Give me a different one,” she demands.
“You want me to pull another for you?” I ask, frowning. Perhaps she wants some clarity on the Ten of Swords—which, can’t blame her, to be honest. I would too—it’s not a good omen.
“Yes,” she whispers vehemently. “Do mine again.”
“Okay,” I say, gathering my cards and shuffling them quickly. “Tell me when to stop.”
“Stop,” she snaps, and I draw the top card. I would normally have someone pull their own card, but there’s no way I’m letting her vile energy any closer to my deck than it already is.
I flip the card over and gasp, not quite stifling it in time.
“What!” Helen says, grabbing my shoulder and spinning me towards her. Two alpha growls and a third rumble that sounds remarkably close to an alpha growl surround us. Helen blinks in surprise and releases me, raising her hands in surrender.
I slowly turn the card around so she can see it, keeping my eyes locked on her. “The Devil,” I whisper.
Helen screams.
My mouth falls open as my eyes bug out of my head. The Devil isn’t always a bad card, although if she’s not familiar with tarot I can see how she might think—
She snatches up her bowl of ritual ingredients, shrieks as she raises her arms over her head, and then throws the entire thing at me, bowl included.
Dirt and sticks, crushed herbs and pebbles, even a decent sized crystal rain down on me while the bowl bounces off my shoulder, only narrowly missing my face.
I try to duck, but it’s too late. She’s already doused me in whatever awful spell she was doing.
Her chest heaves as she glares at me, chaos and rage filling her gaze.
Ice drips down my spine and my lungs constrict.
She sneers, then swings her arm across the ritual table, flinging everything on one side to the ground.
Now it’s my turn to shriek. I dive at the table, desperate to save my tarot deck and crystals, but before I can reach them, I’m surrounded. My pack is here, menacing growls filling the air around us.
As a beta, Helen isn’t as affected by their growls as an omega would be, but they’re putting out enough hostile energy that she cowers away anyways.
I duck under Aury’s arm and quickly wrap up my alter cloth with the cards and crystals inside.
I hope none of them get damaged, but better safe and slightly damaged than irreparably harmed.
I clutch the bundle to my chest and back up, only stopping when I hit a warm wall. Aury’s arms circle around me, and I lean back into his lithe strength.
“You have two minutes to get out of my sight,” Jayce growls, the words barely understandable.
“You can’t—” Helen yells, but the alphas only up their volume and take a step towards her, cutting her off.
“Get. Out. Of my. Sight.” Jayce’s voice is so threatening it makes me cringe into Aury’s hold. He must sense my reaction through the bond, because he glances back at me, then rolls his shoulders and forces his growl down a notch.
Helen scrambles away, tripping in her haste. She grabs her camera and tripod, but leaves everything else. The ritual table, her ingredients and spell jars, her ring light and decorations. All of it gets left behind. We see headlights through the trees a few minutes later, and then she’s gone.
The difference is palpable. It’s like a heavy presence lifts from not only our shoulders, but the forest and trees, plants and animals alike. Suddenly I can hear the crickets singing, the burble of a stream nearby, and the wind as it caresses the trees around us.
I slump into Aury’s hold with a gasp.
Hayden spins around and darts over to me. “Siobhan. Are you okay?”
“‘Mm fine,” I say, attempting to wave them off, except my hand doesn’t work right. It’s sluggish, feeling far too heavy and taking ages to lift. And when I finally get it up in the air, it’s shaking.
“Adrenaline crash,” they murmur. “Aury, bring her over here. Let’s get her sitting down somewhere away from all that negative energy.”
“Stream,” I mumble.
Hayden takes a moment to eye me, then nods. “Okay, it’s not far.”
We make it to the stream in one blink, and Aury sinks down into the grass with his back against a boulder.
I shiver in the chilly night air, and Jayce shrugs out of his jacket and tucks it around me.
I snuggle into it and Aury, sucking in deep breaths of their scents.
I still have everything in my altar cloth clutched against my chest, and I think my arms are cramping in this position.
I whimper and my bottom lip trembles. I hate feeling helpless and overwhelmed.
“Shh,” Aury says, whispering into my ear so the others don’t hear. I’m glad they didn’t hear my pathetic whimper either. “You’re okay. We’re right here with you. It’ll all be okay, Moonbeam. Deep breath.”
I follow his breathing, letting his rising and falling chest guide me. Hayden swings by to cup my cheek gently, then drop a kiss on the top of my head. They trail their hand through Aury’s hair, then disappear again.
“Where are they going?”
“Just taking care of everything back there,” Aury says. He doesn’t mention anything specifically. No names or items, and I’m grateful for it.
“I don’t want it in our truck. Jayce’s truck, I mean.” My voice quivers and I hate it.
“Our truck, pretty omega,” Jayce rumbles, and I jump, not realizing he was so close. “And don’t worry, we’re not taking any of it with us. Only your things.”
“Okay.” I relax back into Aury, letting him surround me.
It feels nice to be comforted and taken care of.
There’s one tiny voice that says I shouldn’t rely on them, that everyone who is supposed to love me disappears, that they’ll let me down—but its hold on me is fading.
I don’t think I believe that voice anymore.
Not when it comes to my pack, anyways.
I want to bond them.
The thought spears through me, taking my breath away.
I bonded Jayce in a fit of heat madness, but to voluntarily have this desire is shocking.
I’ve never consciously thought it before.
There’s always been that part of me that yearns for a pack, for belonging, but never have I had such clarity like this.
I glance up at Aury. His jaw is tight, but his dark eyes are soft. Jayce and Hayden are nowhere in sight. My lips twist, and I realize I don’t want this night associated with that anyways. I’ll wait to tell them. It needs to be perfect.