Filed To Story: Claimed by the Alpha I Hate Book Read Free
Cordelia’s voice from across the room.
Her greying hair was woven into a thick braid that hung over her shoulder, and her eyes were sympathetic as they looked my way. She held a tiny amber bottle in her hands and pressed her thumb against the opening until a little droplet stuck to her finger. Rowena stood at her side, a white candle and a small leatherbound book in her hands.
“I’m reworking a reveal spell from my family’s grimoire. I hated it as a child, swore I’d never use it. It’s meant to uncover secrets, but with a few tweaks it should uncover the mark from the binding spell.”
Surprise flashed across Cordelia’s face, but she recovered a split second later. “The juniper oil is to protect and purify, and the frankincense to cleanse and reveal. I’ve anointed this candle with the same oils, as it’s what will tie you to the spell.” Rowena explained as Cordelia stepped forwards.
I could smell the oils on her finger as she brought it to my forehead and traced a pattern along my skin.
“I’ve set protection wards around this room. No one will be able to enter or leave while she’s preforming the spell.” Cordelia said softly, stepping back to admire her handywork.
My heart was hammering in my chest as I laid down on the spring mattress. Nolan hovered over my head; his calloused hands pinned my wrists down with ease. Breyona knelt by my feet; her eyes determined as she held them in place. She might not be able to shift, but she still had some serious strength.
“I won’t lie, this spell isn’t a pleasant one and I doubt this altered version will be any better. Revealing anything against its will is painful business.” A dull fire glowed in Rowena’s mossy eyes as she knelt between Nolan and Breyona, to my left. Cordelia took her place to the right, a spectator to what I knew was going to be a miserable experience. “Your wolf will not like me after this, so do try to keep her from k*****g me. Now, hold her down and let’s hope we don’t have to flip her over.”
I would’ve laughed if it weren’t for the serious look on her face. A thin sheen of sweat had already begun to coat my skin. As much as I tried to keep my attention on Nolan, I couldn’t help but watch as
Rowena took the white candle in her hands and lit it with another.
Clutching it between both hands, she closed her eyes and began to speak softly. Seconds passed, and
I watched the firelight dance over her hair, revealing the various tones of red. When she opened her eyes, the light within them had grown brighter.
“To reveal what’s hidden within, let the wax pull the mark from beneath her skin.” She said and placed the candle just a foot above my stomach, tilting it so that the melted wax veered towards my skin
What kid hadn’t stuck their finger in the melted wax of a lit candle? That split second where the warmth was almost painful, until the wax hardened from the lack of flame, forming a little cap on the tip of your finger. My mom had yelled at me a time or two for doing just that.
That was the pain I’d been expecting as I watched the melted wax pool beneath the flame. In one fluid motion, she left a trail of wax from one side of my hip to the other. Instead of a fleeting b**n, it felt like a red-hot dagger had pierced my skin and set fire to what organs it slashed through.
“Oh-‘” I gasped, lifting myself off the bed with enough force to make Nolan snarl. ” -that’s painful.”
‘Tell him to let us go.’ Maya’s snarl made my head buzz.
After what could’ve easily been several minutes, the searing pain flickered and faded, like a starved flame without anything to devour. Rowena repeated that same line a second time, and in one fluid motion, left a trail of wax down my left leg. The same searing pain commenced, and my body thrashed on its own, the adrenaline coursing through it demanded it fight.
“Don’t let go.”‘ I snarled, gritting my teeth, and clenching my eyes to keep myself from kicking out with my foot and sending Breyona flying across the room.
She continued with my right leg, and it took every ounce of remaining energy I had to hold myself back.
My mind was working on overdrive, fixating on Breyona’s left hand. She had broken that wrist when she was twelve, before I had ditched her for Scott’s fake friends. All I’d have to do was get out of her grasp and kick that wrist hard enough-.
Rowena continued chanting that same rhyme beneath her breath, holding the candle until enough wax pooled to splash across my b**e skin. As its stinging heat was poured down my left shoulder, dripping down my collar bones and into the lacy fabric of my bra, I let out a scream that was more rage than pain.
With each new pour the pain of an old one would fade. I could feel the hardened bits of wax on my skin, could hear them tumbling onto the mattress as I thrashed and bucked. Once my limbs and shoulders were covered, the pain was nothing more than a dull sting.
“…this one is going to hurt…” I swore I heard Cordelia say softly, her voice full of sympathy that failed to reach my ears.
Rowena poured the wax directly onto my chest, right where my heart was. Instantly I could feel something in my chest ignite. Where the fire had died out along my stomach and limbs, it flared to life in an explosion that made my back arch off the bed.
Like layers of burnt skin being peeled away, I could feel something rising to the surface. I half expected the mark to smolder like embers-but not only was it ice cold against my skin, it wasn’t even a mark at all.
Cordelia was the first to speak, “It’s a sigil-one I’ve never seen before.”
“You’re sure you’re alright?” Nolan asked for the second time, the only sign of his worry was the crease between his eyebrows and how his attention kept drifting from the road to where I sat in the passenger seat.
Cordelia had taken a couple of photos of the sigil on my chest, the one now hidden by the oversized t-
shirt I wore, to investigate herself. An ‘x’ with frayed ends like fletching of an arrow, with a long slash that went vertically through the center. I tried not to worry too much that this one had left her stumped, and instead tried to stay optimistic. Breyona had sent the pictures to her parents, who would now be on the lookout for any texts or relics that matched.
“It doesn’t hurt anymore, but it is strange …now that I can see this thing, it feels kind of familiar. I’m positive I don’t have any memory of it though.” I wished I could fully reassure him, but the strange feeling bubbling in my stomach had surfaced along with the sigil.
I knew that the pain I had experienced wasn’t the only reason Nolan was asking if I were alright. He’d always have a healthy dose of suspicion towards the witches, but he also trusted the gut feelings I had around them. The ones that told me both could be a threat if they wanted, but not to myself or anyone I held close.
‘Alpha, Luna…’ Nolan’s Beta’s voice filled our heads without warning. ‘Just got a phone call from a doctor up at Grove Hospital. There’s a woman there who’s just woken up from an eighteen-year coma.
The picture of the symbol on that witch’s hand, this woman has one that matches.’
Nolan and I locked eyes, undoubtedly thinking the same thing. Somehow, this woman is tied to the witch that had tried to k**l me. So far, she was our only connection.
“Let’s go.”‘ I told Nolan with a firm nod, ” I’ll let my dad know we’re stopping by afterwards.”
We had been just a few minutes away from Nolan’s parents house, where dad, grandma, and Sean were still staying. I was dreading having this conversation with him, because he already looked years younger since moving into town, but I had to ask about mom. There was every chance that she had something to do with this binding spell, and even though the though I hoped she wasn’t involved, I had long ago realized there was a lot I didn’t know about the woman.
The drive was a long three hours, but the views made the trip worthwhile. We were on a long highway that curved and winded through the mountains, past streams and over a long bridge. Halfway through, the exhaustion from the ritual Rowena had done weighed my eyelids down. The gentle hum of the highway faded in my ears as darkness swallowed me whole.
I woke startled, my heart thudding beneath the sigil on my chest. A dream I couldn’t remember floated just out of reach, the details becoming hazier as more and more awareness seeped into my veins.
“Did we just get here?” I mumbled to Nolan, who sat in the driver’s seat tapping on the screen of his phone.
As I sat up, I realized he had covered me up with his sweatshirt. Rather than giving it back to him, I slipped it on.
“Got here half an hour ago.” He set his phone down and smirked, eyes trailing down my face to his sweatshirt. The remnants of his warmth still clung to the fabric. Not only was I drowning in the fabric, but also his masculine scent. “You looked like you were getting good sleep for a change.”
The halls smelled of bitter antiseptic, with undertones of artificial fragrance within the soaps and cleaners used. Seeping through the veil was undertones of blood and pus, mixed with stale cafeteria food.
I’d never been to a hospital myself, but I hadn’t imagined it this busy. Werewolves weren’t sick nearly as often as humans, so most of the wolves were here for some wound or another. There were a few humans in the mix, being treated first since their healing was much slower than ours.
“Oh!” The young receptionist’s cherry- colored lips popped open. The middle- aged RN in baby pink scrubs, who looked like she spent more time here than at home, was unfazed and even snorted at the receptionist as she tittered, “Alpha, what an honor.”
“Dr. Anderson told me you two were coming.” The RN gave the receptionist a side-eyed look and shook her head disparagingly, motioning for us to follow her down a wide hall. “Nice to meet you Alpha, and
Luna. Saw that speech of yours live. You didn’t disappoint.”
“Good to know I didn’t scare everyone off.”‘ I replied with an awkward chuckle, ” It was a risky plan.”
“Risky, but us werewolves don’t scare easy.” She nodded in agreement; her strong chin held high. “My grandson was there in the crowd, saw the whole thing. Wouldn’t stop talking about it for days, mind you. I reckon it was hard on you, Alpha. Seeing your mate get shot like that.”
“I contemplated hiding in the crowd myself.” Nolan’s smile was polite, but myself.” Nolan’s smile was polite, but anyone could see the truth in his eyes.
“Now that would’ve been a sight to see.” She replied with a small chuckle. We turned down three separate hallways, each one bustling with nurses and patients. The RN stopped at one of the many doors and placed her badge against a small scanner. “Might’ve taken a day off for a change to see that.
New Book: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Dayson was the alpha of the largest pack in North America. Powerful figures from other packs sought to offer gorgeous girls as potential mates for Dayson. He steadfastly rejected these advances, he was not a pawn to be manipulated. But eventually there came a mysterious girl he could hardly say No. Who was she?