Ferrah Onyx led me through the narrow hallways and deeper into the palace. I had no idea what to expect from the elders he was bringing me to see. I knew that his priestess would be there. She was the one that had created this situation.The hallways of the house were decorated with depictions of moonlit forests and mountains. I tried to focus on those images to avoid looking at Onyx. His words as we entered the house were still ringing in my ears. “Our future.” The sensation in my chest was impossible to ignore with him so close to me. Why did he have to phrase it like that? He meant the future of our people, not the two of us. We don’t have a future…we never would. I was surprised by how empty the palace was. I expected the elders to be heavily guarded, but other than the two standing at the entrance, there were no guards in sight. It seemed like every room we passed was empty. I didn’t see any lights beyond the hallway lights. Onyx led me into a large room where six p
Ferrah“Don’t be too hasty,” Gilliam said sternly. “I’m not convinced that this witch is anything more than a poorly disguised spy.” I laughed. I couldn’t help it. “Disguised as what?” I asked in disbelief. “A prisoner?” “She’s hardly tried to hide her identity,” one of the other elders chimed in. He was a broad shouldered man with a shaved head and a graying beard. “She attacked Onyx. That’s not exactly keeping a low profile.” “I agree,” Priestess Adelaide echoed. “I’m not convinced. It’s going to take more than a flimsy story like that to earn my trust.” Gilliam’s frown deepened. “For all we know, she was creating a distraction to allow her companions to enter the village.” “We would know if there were witches in the village,” another elder noted. “Our defenses aren’t that easily thwarted.” “They wouldn’t be able to use their magic, even if they did make it past the guards,” a fourth pointed out. “I don’t know what her plan is, but I know that she must have one,” Gil
OnyxThe walk back to the packhouse was silent and tense. Ferrah stayed close to my side and continually scanned the street for any signs of a threat. She had been uneasy on the way to the meeting, but not scared. Not like this.My blood was absolutely boiling. Gilliam’s threatening behavior and intensity had put her on edge. I didn’t blame her. Despite my promise to protect her, she was still in hostile territory. She would be naive not to be on alert after Gilliam made it clear that there were some shifters that would never accept her here. The way she had stood up to him proved to me once again that she was a proud woman. It was satisfying to hear her throw his attitude right back at him. Gilliam was a bully and most were unwilling to stand up to him. It was becoming obvious that Ferrah wasn’t like most people.Of all the alphas and elders that I had to deal with. Gilliam was the only one I actually disliked. He wouldn’t be satisfied until every witch was killed and he had
FerrahIt took me hours to calm my nerves after the meeting with the elders. That bastard Gilliam had crossed the line, and I had wanted nothing more than to punch him square in the nose. That wasn’t what had me so worked up, though. It was Onyx. It was the way that he had defended me. He had been so attentive to my mood during the entire meeting and had stepped in to comfort and soothe me in ways that were so subtle that I didn’t fully appreciate them until I was back in this prison of a room with nothing to do but reflect. It bothered me immensely that he had done that for me, but it bothered me more that I had been so reliant on him. It had seemed so natural in the moment for us to behave the way we did. I hated myself for it. I had to remember that he was the enemy. No amount of kindness now could undo what had been done. Once the bell was rung, it couldn’t be unrung, as my grandmother always said. I cupped my chin in my hand and leaned against the windowsill. The su
Ferrah I was drifting in the nebulous space between sleep and consciousness when I felt a stinging sensation on my arm. I was so exhausted that I forced myself to ignore the feeling. It wouldn’t stay away for long, though. Throughout the night, the sensation would return and pull me towards wakefulness, only to be pushed aside by my stubborn desire to sleep. I don’t know how long this went on for before I was forced to give up and let myself be pulled into full consciousness. I opened my bleary eyes angrily and sat up in bed. Anything that pulled me out of this soft, warm bed was my enemy, as far as I was concerned. I glared down at my left arm, expecting to see a puffy red insect bite. I gasped aloud when I saw a long, thin cut down the back of my arm. It was surrounded by flaking blood and there was a small stain on the blanket beneath me. I had no memory of injuring myself in such a way. This was obviously done with a very fine, sharp blade. I didn’t have anything
FerrahI stared at the band around my wrist in silent astonishment. I never would have expected Onyx to think of something so clever. Making his anti-magic wards into a shackle was impressive enough, but he did it in a way that wouldn’t compromise the freedom of movement that he had promised me. “What do you mean?” I asked. I tore my eyes away from the iron and looked at him questioningly. I should probably be angry, but I was too surprised. “Think of it as insurance,” he answered. “I had this band made to make sure that you can’t use magic in pack territory. I have the only key, so in a way, it’s personal insurance as well.” I let his words sink in before speaking again. “You know that the threats on my life were working just fine, right?” “Were they?” he asked curiously. “Have I done any magic since I got here?” I shot back in irritation. He shrugged and the ghost of a smirk crept into his expression. My own expression froze in response. Did he somehow know about t
OnyxI leaned against a large oak tree and watched Ferrah as she stepped gingerly through the garden. The care she was taking while harvesting the plants reassured me that I made the right decision in bringing her here. I knew that whatever herbs she might need for her healing potions, she would find them here. Mother used to muse that this garden of hers would get her accused of witchcraft if she kept it in the village. At the time, it seemed like she was just being silly. Now that I knew more about witches, I understood her meaning. There was so much paranoia about witches among certain packs. If rumors started that the Luna Queen was dabbling with magical potions and ointments, it would cause a lot of problems. This garden made her so happy. It helped her to find peace in the chaos that we were living through. The fact that she had to hide it bothered me. The way that Ferrah’s face lit up when she saw it reminded me of the way mother smiled in the spring when the first bloo
FerrahThe door of my room slammed shut and I turned to glare at the wood. Onyx had practically shoved me inside the second the door was open wide enough. I nearly lost my balance, but I managed to keep myself from crashing to the ground. I listened to his heavy footsteps as he stomped off like a petulant child. I took a few deep breaths in an attempt to keep myself calm. I couldn’t remember the last time I had been this angry. I walked to the desk and emptied my pockets carefully. Once the plants I had carefully collected were safely out of them, I threw myself down on the bed and shrieked into my pillow as loud as I could. I heard one of the guards in the hallway exclaim at the sudden sound, but the door remained closed. I couldn’t care less what they thought. It wasn’t as if they were going to help me, so what good were they? I screamed again and dug my fingernails into the pillow. I wanted to break something. I wanted to trash this entire stupid room, but it wouldn’t do an