Filed To Story: Claimed by the Alpha I Hate Book Read Free
I decided this was worse than being shot at in the middle of a crowd, worse than being hunted down by a power-hungry vampire king or ran off the road by witches.
There wasn’t a single one of us not entangled in this mess…not Breyona with the vampire for a mate or
Nolan, the Alpha who named a tribrid as his Luna. Mason and Sean suffered the d***h of their mates, while Dad was staring at the second chance he never thought he deserved.
“I’m so sorry to throw all of this on you, grandma.” I mumbled against the scratchy fabric of her cardigan. “…and I’m sorry we pulled you away from the bake sale to steal your blood.”
She chuckled and pulled away. Humor danced in her eyes but did nothing to cover the confusion and hurt she clearly felt. Grandma was never one to hide her emotions.
“You were a bit forceful about it. Almost dislocated a hip when that mate of yours shoved me into the car-” She smiled roguishly and wound her arm around my own.
“Would it help if I asked nicely?” I teased, then cleared my throat. “Grandma, would you kindly allow us to draw some of your blood for a magical reversal spell that will unlock my mystical powers?”
“That didn’t help at all.” She shook her head, and an unsure smile played on her lips. “…I’ll let you have my blood, but would you mind if I watched in on this…spell?”
“Of course you can stay.” I replied, leading the two of us up the porch stairs. We stopped at the screen door, “…you know since your sister’s a witch, that means you’re one too.”
“Nonsense, I can’t be a witch.” She frowned, “…that mean’s ma would’ve been one.”
“Mom said something about your baking-that no one was that good. I thought she was joking at the time, but she might be onto something.” I shrugged and held the screen door back before following her into the house. “It’s just a theory, you could always ask Rowena or Cordelia if it’s possible.”
“Ask if what’s possible?” Rowena’s warm voice traveled down the hallway to where we stood.
Two seconds later I caught sight of her auburn hair as she rounded the corner. She had changed out of her sundress speckled with dainty red flowers for something more comfortable.
She potted grandma and let out a happy gasp. “Oh it’s so nice to meet you again. I can’t thank you enough for the lavender!”
I waited for grandma to ask, and when she didn’t I quickly changed the subject.
“It’s nothing important.” I shook my head, “…how’s things coming along for the spell?”
The clear note of worry in my voice caught Rowena’s attention and held it long enough for our previous topic to flee the room.
“We’re actually all ready for you. Nolan and Breyona are back there too.” Her smile was understanding.
“You haven’t asked how this spell is supposed to go…I take it your nervous?”
“That’s an understatement.” I laughed lightly and followed her down the hall. Grandma’s soft footsteps trailed behind us. She was silent, but that only meant she was listening to every word being said. “So how does this work? I’m not going to catch on fire and b**n the neighborhood down, right?”
The thrifted coffee table Mason and Sean carried in for Rowena just a few days ago was pushed against the wall, leaving a wide stretch of open floor. There were no sigils painted onto the slats of dark hardwood, only a shag carpet sat on top.
Cordelia stood nearby but was occupied as she dipped pieces of thick black thread into a metal bowl.
The faint scent of oils wafted into the air, carried by the breeze rushing in from the opened patio doors.
Now that we were getting closer to removing this binding spell, I swore I could feel something in the darkest depths of me stretching-waking up after such a long nap.
“Of course you aren’t, and even if you did catch on fire that’s what Cordelia is here for.” I waited for Cordelia to laugh or smile, to show some sign that Rowena was joking, but all she did was nod. “Plus your friend has a fire extinguisher.”
Breyona held up the fire extinguisher and grinned, which did absolutely nothing to ease my worries.
“What’s going to happen to her?” Nolan’s voice held an edge that silenced the room. He looked at me as he spoke, softening his tone so it didn’t sound like he was ready to start murdering people.
The smooth lines of Rowena’s face sharpened, and she gestured to grandma. “First I’ll be needing her blood. It’s the final ingredient in the potion Daisy and are to drink. From there I’ll unravel the bind by hand.”
“I thought Cordelia was removing the binding spell?” I asked, shuddering as I repressed a rush of fear that whispered something had gone wrong.
“Don’t worry so much, Daisy. Everything will turn out fine, and the bind will be removed.” Her smile was reassuring, as was the confidence in her eyes but it couldn’t wipe away all my worries. ” Natural magic is one of the seven I mentioned. It’s what I’m primarily skilled in. Healing, coaxing emotions, or even unraveling a binding spell is well within my skill set. Besides with the restraints Cordelia is spelling, she won’t have the energy to unbind your magic.”
“These are just a precaution. There’s no telling what will happen when we unlock magic that’s been bound for over ten years, but there’s also a very good chance nothing will happen. They won’t hurt, but you’ll be pinned to the floor until we’re sure you’ve got everything under control.” Cordelia added and turned towards Rowena. “Are we ready?”
I winced when the curved athame sliced into grandma’s hand. Scarlet beads emerged from the slice, gathering in her palm as the wound already began to heal. She tilted her hand and let the thick fluid trickle into the goblet Rowena held.
“Does this have anything to do with blood magic?” I asked Rowena, tearing my eyes away from the blood that filled the room with a mouth-watering scent.
She shook her head and sloshed the contents of the goblet around until the blood was mixed into the dark colored liquid. “This is very different from blood magic. Your grandma’s blood is being used as an ingredient in a spell, but with blood magic, the blood is the power. There would be no other items used.”
I wasn’t sure I’d ever get used to drinking blood in front of other people. It was even worse considering it was the blood of my grandma. When I brought the goblet to my lips, there was no warmth that rushed through me. I couldn’t taste a hint of her blood, but what I did taste was oddly familiar.
“Is this wine?” I asked curiously.
Rowena smiled and took a drink herself. “Sure is. It’s my favorite potion base. Most of the time it just tastes like spiced wine.”
“Wait until you get my age, you’ll get drunk off of one measly potion.” Cordelia shook her head shamefully, making the younger witch laugh.
I felt nothing as the wine trickled down my throat and continued to feel nothing until Cordelia wrapped one of those black threads around my wrist.
Laying sprawled out on the carpet was awkward enough, but the moment the damp piece of thread hit my skin, my arm fell limp to the floor. It was the same for my legs, which were glued flat to the floor. I could only lift my knees an inch or so, but the movement made my muscles ache.
“These…are impossibly strong.” I grunted, absolutely hating the feeling of helplessness. Even with
Maya’s strength enhanced from our vampire side, there was no budging with these restraints.
“Quit thrashing and relax, Daisy. We’re about to begin.” Rowena smiled encouragingly, then took a deep breath and squared her shoulders.
‘Are they really that strong?’ Nolan’s voice was warm and smooth like whiskey and helped pull me from the edge of a full-scale nervous breakdown. I smirked at the hidden meaning in his voice. ‘…maybe the witches aren’t bad after all.’
I laughed out loud which made Breyona snicker from where she leaned against the wall, right beside the patio doors. Her eyes were bloodshot from crying earlier today, but the fact that she refused to blink or look away didn’t do her any favors either. Through the glass doors I could see the backyard that opened into the forest and spotted the writhing shapes lurking within. Always watching, always so d**n curious.
‘I doubt Cordelia’s going to let you borrow these for what you have in mind.’ I teased, wishing I could hold onto this light-hearted mood that I knew would vanish the moment his voice left my thoughts.
Nolan pushed one of the armchairs out for grandma to sit in, who watched the whole ordeal with her eyebrows smushed together.
Rowena knelt on the floor beside me, her hands clasped together as they began to take on that dull emerald glow. It turned the tips of her manicure green and made the light in her eyes dance.
“The more I stop the harder it’s going to be to remove this thing, so no interruptions.” Rowena warned the room and promptly turned her attention to the exposed sigil on my chest.
I kept my eyes on Nolan, who held my gaze and fed me his courage and love even though we couldn’t speak through the bond during the spell. The grip of the restraints no longer felt so crushing, and the feel of Rowena’s nails against my chest weren’t as sharp.
She placed one hand over the circular sigil, but nothing happened as her glowing fingertips pressed into my skin. It wasn’t until she began pulling her hand away that my entire body locked up, and something dark and wild thrashed from within.
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?