Bound by Spells (Bound Series Book 2) (33 page)

I got out of the shower and wiped the moisture from the mirror. With both hands on the pedestal sink, I leaned forward and stared at my face. It was the same face I’d been staring at for years, yet it was different. I had spent my life looking into mirrors and wondering who I really was. I would search my features and have silent conversations with myself, asking whose eyes or nose I had. Whether my laugh sounded like one of my parents or if it were my own. Now, I could call upon memories and see them as clearly as I saw myself.

I had my mother’s eyes, but the rest of my face was my father’s. I had the same collection of freckles over my cheeks and nose and my jaw was cut exactly like his. I had always wondered whether he had the same hassles while shaving. My dark hair matched my mother’s but my build my father’s. As I stared at myself, an emotion I hadn’t expected took hold. I watched the electric blue start from my pupils and work its way out to the edges of my iris. The alpha of my wolf spread through me, my need to show Amelia who I really was becoming paramount. I had to get to her. It was more than how I felt about her. I couldn’t help but believe in the prophecy, because an obsessive drive utterly foreign to me pushed and pulled inside of me, screaming at me to get to her.

When I finally emerged from the bathroom, the rest of the pack was in the dining room. I had made them all shower first, wanting to show I wasn’t the kind of leader who took first and gave last. As I turned the corner into the kitchen and came face to face with Bethany, I laughed out loud. She was wearing a bright yellow apron, her hands were covered in white powder, and she had pancake batter on her face.

She didn’t even break stride as she hip-checked me out of her way and resumed pouring batter into multiple skillets. “Cheese and rice, Aidan. You might have warned me your little horde was going to eat like a bunch of rabid coons.” She opened the oven and pulled out a pan of biscuits, turning the pan upside down onto the table. She had no sooner turned her back than hands were snatching them up. I heard a chorus of “Ouch!”, “Hot, hot!”, and “Ow!” as the table looked to be playing a game of hot potato.

“Where are Elias, Rynna, and the others?” I asked.

“Out back. Elias said they had some catching up to do, so I sent them with plates and let them be,” Bethany responded.

Bethany was flipping pancakes when I stepped up and stole the spatula from her hand. “Sit. Eat. I bet you’ve been at this all morning.” She blew a strand of hair that had escaped her ponytail out of her face and for the first time, I noticed how tired she looked. “Sit,” I said, more gently. “Thank you, but let me help.”

Bethany nodded, but as she sat in the chair at the head of the table, the one I knew had been reserved for me, she threw out, “If you burn my flapjacks, there will be hell to pay.”

Some of the younger AniMages I didn’t really know stopped eating and looked up, waiting for my reaction. I laughed and shook my head. “Eat, everybody. We’re going to need all the fuel and rest we can get. We go tonight.”

I took the time to meet the eyes of everyone at the table. I could feel their fear, but also their commitment. “Once you’re all finished, get some sleep. We’ll go back over the plan again this afternoon.”

I finished another round of pancakes and by then, a spot at the table had opened up for me to sit and eat as well. I took the spot to Bethany’s left and dug in. We ate in silence as the room emptied until it was just her and I left. I could hear both soft and loud snores coming from various corners of the house. I needed sleep myself, but not just yet.

“She was there—inside my head. I was able to help her and give her some of my power. I saw where they have her, even though I don’t know where it is. But she refused to believe I was real. She told me I was lying and just using her.” I watched Bethany as I spoke and her expression went from joyous, to questioning, to deflated. I could understand the roller coaster.

“But she’s alive and she’s okay. And, on some level, she knows we’re coming for her, right?” Bethany asked.

“I think so. She was in some kind of cell, so I don't know how okay she is, but I gave her what I could. I’m trying to open the door between us again, I’m just not sure how.” I dropped my fork onto the table and my head into my hands. I pulled at the roots of my hair and tried to remind myself I was still figuring all of this out, but I didn’t have time to waste.

Bethany’s hand covered mine and she pulled it to the table. She squeezed my fingers and I looked over at her. “You’re going to get to her, Aidan. As sure as the damn rooster I saw in the backyard is going to crow when the sun rises tomorrow, you will get to her. And what she believes as real is irrelevant right now. She’ll believe it when she sees you. She won’t have a choice.”

Chapter 28

It
took less time than I thought for the door to the chamber to open again. My annoyance with seeing Rhi was far overshadowed by my joy at seeing my brother. Cole looked good, healthy. I hadn’t laid eyes on him since I’d broken Rhi’s binds and Micah had brought me back from the brink.

Rhi shoved Cole forward and my brother turned to glare at him, his eyes glowing green. It was good to see, and feel, his power back to normal. The bonus was Rhi’s scowl as my brother reminded him his binds had been broken. Cole was wearing the cuffs again, but those would only bind him from using his power to fight, not from having it, just as it did for the women in the room.

The two of them were followed into the room by Queen Julia and then Joran. “The gang’s all here,” I muttered under my breath. Cole finally locked eyes with me and I was surprised to see his narrow. A strange look came across his face as his brows furrowed and his jaw tensed. I wanted to call out and ask him whether he was okay, but the answer came sooner than I could ask the question. I felt him probing at my mind and opened the door for him, proud that he had figured out how to make the connection.

I’m fine, Ame. Are you okay? What the hell is all this?

Relief coursed through me.

I’m okay. These women are Julia’s science experiment. They can’t have babies with magic. It’s the real reason behind all of this. She’s been capturing these women and forcing them to have baby after baby. She has tried everything to give the babies power so they aren’t born human and since she’s failed, she wants me to do it.

Cole finally made it to my cell door. His eyes widened as he passed Lilith and Nell. They both growled at Rhi, but he ignored them, waved a hand, and my door opened. I stepped back and waited for him to un-cuff Cole. He shoved him harder than necessary and Cole stumbled into me. The door slammed back closed and we were left facing Julia, Joran, and Rhi. I knew exactly why there hadn’t been any argument with bringing Cole to me and prayed my instincts about Joran were right.

Julia stepped toward us, her arms crossed and her head tilted to the side, as if she were studying animals at the zoo. “You said you required your brother to temper your power. I have brought him, much to my son’s dismay. You’ve clearly been hard at work while I’ve been away.” Her eyes flicked toward Lilith and she was rewarded with a deep growl and a snap of Lilith’s massive jaws.

“Tell me, girl,” she said, scowling, “how is it your brother can do what you cannot do for yourself? And don’t try to lie to me, dear. You know it won’t work.” She snapped her fingers and Joran stepped toward me, but his face was a mask of indifference, giving nothing away.

I pretended to be thinking while I explained to Cole what was about to happen.

I’m going to tell her a story, but I’ll tell you the truth as I go. Listen carefully.

I kept my gaze directly on the Queen while speaking to Cole through our connection, hoping I could hold two conversations at once.

“Just as I was infused with the power of the Keeper, my mother found a way to give Cole the ability to calm me and my power.”

I’m going to take off the cuff and you have to help me stay focused on breaking the binds the Hunters have put on these women so they can fight for themselves.

“I wear the cuff so the Keeper does not overtake me during my day to day, but in the times I need to use her power, I have to have balance. Without balance, she’ll overwhelm me and do whatever she wants. Her power is stronger than mine could ever hope to be, but it is very much separate from me.” That got exactly the reaction I had hoped from the Queen. She finally looked interested. Rhi, on the other hand, looked suspicious.

You stay with me. Don’t leave my side. We have to start with Cora, though. She can create a shield to protect us.

“If you want me to take the risk of removing my cuff and helping these women, then we all need the protection only Cole can give. He has to be able to touch me—skin to skin—or it won’t work.”

Then we have to free the tiger and the cheetah. They will do the most damage and help keep the Hunters from us. I’m counting on Julia not wanting these women killed. Make sure I get to all of them. Every woman leaves here.

Cole finally interrupted me.
No! You can’t help them all, Ame. It’s not possible. I won’t sacrifice you!

“It’s easier if I can also touch the women. The power exchange is more direct and we will have a better chance of success.”

I’m doing this, Cole. She takes their children and likely kills them. This cannot continue. She has to be stopped.

Cole was yelling inside my head and I had to block him out. I focused on Julia, Rhi, and Joran. His face was still blank. Julia turned to him. “Joran, does she speak the truth? Can he do what she says? Do we truly have a chance of succeeding after all of these years?” I hated her excitement. I could feel the truth behind her emotions and it wasn’t excitement for these women or their children. It was excitement over her ability to finally rule a people she could control. She could choose who had children and selectively force me to only help those she wanted. As Micah’s wife, I would be the ultimate puppet, so long as the full prophecy wasn’t fulfilled. If she knew how I controlled the power, she could control me.

I held my breath as I waited for Joran to speak. Cole was finally silent as well.

“Yes, your majesty. She speaks the truth. Of course, we should test her theory, because it is just that, but she wants to help these women.”

I had to force myself not to smile. Joran had told the truth and confirmed my words without having to lie himself. Tricky, tricky.

The door to the cell clicked open and swung wide. I turned to Cole and he gave me both a frustrated stare and a short nod. Like it or not, we were doing this.

Chapter 29

The
sun had set and we were moving as a unit through the forest. A few of the AniMages had shifted into horses and allowed Rynna, Nathaniel, and Derreck to ride so we could make good time to Cresthaven. Rynna and I were in the lead, with her directing. Bethany had stayed back at the cabin with Charlie and Onyx guarding her. She wasn’t pleased, but she also understood she was more of a liability than an asset at this point.

As we neared Cresthaven, Rynna hopped down from Eliza’s back and waved for the others to do the same. She crept up to me and whispered, “Tell them all to shift into the fastest, most quiet animal they can. As long as we can get to the maze door, we can do this, but the span of distance between here and there is the most dangerous. It looks like the maze top is open, but the enchantment includes a shield. If they try to fly in, they will be repelled and give us away.”

I couldn’t answer her while shifted, so I simply nodded. I communicated the message and watched the rest of pack shift into various forms of cats. Everything from what looked like a house cat up to Elias’s panther. I had yet to shift into anything but a wolf and wasn’t sure exactly how to instruct the change.