Selena POV:
The next morning, I woke up to find myself entwined with Duncan. Our limbs were a tangled mess. It was hard to tell where one of us began and the other ended. I was slowly learning that Duncan was a close contact sleeper. I was also learning that I liked it. A lot. When I was in his arms, I felt safe, protected, and at ease.
“You’re awake,” Duncan said softly. I turned to see he was watching me. His eyes filled with softness. “We better get going. I have arranged the run to happen before breakfast and no one wants to keep a bunch of hungry wolves waiting.”
My stomach clenched with panic. I didn’t think the run would take place as soon as I opened my eyes. “I, uh, I am not sure I want to go. I don’t feel so good this morning.” My lie was pitiful at best. I could have said I was tired but Duncan knew that was not the case. Even my injuries were healing surprisingly fast.
“Selena,&rdq
Selena POV:A week had passed since then and practice was still as hard as always. Runs with the pack were invigorating and so much fun. I had gotten used to being protected and feeling cherished. It was one of the days as I cooked that Duncan ran into the house with a frown. “What’s wrong?” I asked immediately, feeling him watching me anxiously. I turned to look at him, putting the spatula down.He hesitated for a moment. “A couple of wolves have been checking out the parameter of the pack,” he said quietly. “They are not rogues, then. Why would wolves move away from their pack land and come to another one… in a group?” I asked slowly, to myself. “It might be the magic eater influencing everyone,” he said silently. “I just got the call. Do you want to check it out?” he asked. I thought about it for a moment. “I am cooking right now. Are they nearby?” I
Selena POV:I raised my hand to stop him from talking. “Firstly, pack members are treated a certain way and I wasn’t. Therefore, I have no ties to you. Secondly, you forced the young, unmated women in your pack to go into heat and hunted them down. That is against moral bounds. You also forced a half-breed who was not of age and tried to use her as a pleasure station.” I didn’t want to say it in front of Duncan, but I had to. “I am sure the council would be ready to hear my side of the story. Considering that I am mated to the Alpha of the Blue Moon Pack, I am automatically a member of this pack. You have no jurisdiction over me. If you wish to try me for killing that slimy beta of yours, you can ask the council and the witch coven. I would be happy to comply with any demands you have.”“Witch coven…” he whispered to himself. I felt Duncan curl his arm around my shoulder in a show of support. I didn’t
Selena POV:Ruth wasn’t as puzzled as we were with the situation. In her opinion, she had found her mate and she didn’t need to think about it. And I understood. She wasn’t obligated to defer her mating because of pack business that Duncan and I were supposed to take care of. I commended her for her stand. As Duncan and I thought about what to do, we received notice a few days later that Ruth’s family would celebrate the mating. Once Duncan announced it to me, I was filled with mixed reactions. “Wouldn’t they get a honeymoon period? You know, to get used to the bond before the celebration?” I asked. He smirked. A flash of mischief came through our bond. “A honeymoon? Is that what we had?” he teased, taking a strand of my hair and playfully wrapping it around his fingers.I blushed, wishing that I had used another word. His smirk grew wider and he gave in to a full laugh. He leaned into me and
Selena POV:Meredith’s house was filled with most of the adults in the pack who would be participating in the rituals. Archer, Brandon, and the other wolf were there as well. I didn’t know why they needed to be there, but they looked worse than anyone else in the room. People were standing in groups, talking quietly, most of them standing near Lamont and the huge map on the dining table that now included another red circle and date in the area that I seemed to know. I stare at the mark from my seat next to Meredith. It felt like it was mocking me for feeling happiness just an hour before. All the witches, wolves, animals, and vegetation in the area had been eradicated. Did they get a chance to perform the ritual or did they fail?Would we ever find out?A body blocked my view and I blinked rapidly to switch focus to the person in front of me, bringing me back to the present. I looked up to see Argon standing over us with two cups of w
Selena POV:“Duncan, I know that you have more experience in being the leader of the pack, but I am not dumb. And I am not without knowledge of being a witch. My instincts have helped me a lot and I haven’t been wrong when I listened to them. I trust your instincts as the alpha and want to approach Meredith for help. I know you thought it was the right thing to do, but please trust me,” I whispered. He stopped the movement of his hands and remained quiet for another second. His emotions revolved around us, but none of them were anger. “I know you are not dumb. You are a talented witch and alpha female. I just forget sometimes that you are capable of so much more. All I want to do is protect you…” he said sincerely and then spoke softer. “…because you are mine.”He pulled me along him so that we were lying chest to chest, my face above his. A wave of sweetness rolled inside me, seeping into my pores as that
Duncan POV:As soon as we were back from wolf training, I practically dove in to get the witch notes out. I placed the package on the table and carefully unwrapped it to find an old, beat-up, leather-bound book nestled within it. A frayed red ribbon was stuck between the pages and I gently opened it to the section marked. A crude ink drawing of a circle took up one side while scribbles of what looked like notes were on the other. The only thing that I could read with ease was the top note in larger scrip that said: “Negating dark energy.”“What did you find?” Selena asked quietly, taking a seat beside me and leaning over for a better look at the contents. I pushed the books towards her so that we could share, hoping she might be able to decipher some of the faded writing on the pages. We were both quiet for a few minutes as we studied the content. Selena broke the quiet with a sharp intake of breath and sat back. Her emotions had changed
Selena POV:The home phone rang as I was cleaning the dishes. Knowing that it was most likely Duncan trying to contact me, I hastily wiped my wet hands on a dishtowel and managed to answer it by the fourth ring. “Hello?”“Selena, Lamont needs us to head over to the greenhouse to go over the new ritual. Should I come to pick you up now?” Duncan asked, getting straight to the point. “Sure, that’s fine,” I told him, feelings tingles of stress and strangely enough, eagerness when he said the word ‘ritual.’“Great. I will be home shortly,” he said before quickly disconnecting the call. Did that mean we could use this new ritual? I had transcribed the segment and felt unsure about it. But it was still worth a try. .The greenhouse was alive with activity when Duncan and I walked through the back door. My eyes landed on Argon, who was helping Lamont lift a large pot
Selena POV:I walked out of the bathroom after my hot bath and found Duncan fully dressed and looking at the journal next to him. Lamont had handed him the book before we left with a request to bring it with us to tomorrow’s practice. He was dozing off and when I approached him, he started awake. “Sorry,” he mumbled, sitting up and rubbing a hand across his eyes.I laughed at how boyish he looked and perched on the edge of the bed next to him to rub his neck. “With you running around all day and emotionally supporting me, you are more tired than me. I am surprised you are still awake.”He smiled sleepily and leaned towards me to rest his chin on my shoulder. I reached my other hand and massaged the top of his head, enjoying the feel of his soft hair and the gentle waves of contentment radiating from him, relaxing me in return. “Nice,” he sighed, setting more against me, drifting back to sleep. I g
Warning: There is sexual content up ahead. Please beware.Selena POV:“Selena, thank god!” Meredith exclaimed into tears the moment I walked into the greenhouse. She ran over to me and hugged me tightly, sobbing into my shoulder. I hugged her with as much intensity, needing a moment with her after passing through the destruction. I felt nothing but gratitude to the powers that had allowed me to live and see the people I love alive. With everything that could have gone wrong, it was truly a miracle. We pulled away but kept our arms around each other. Meredith’s face was a contradiction in expressions. It held tears of released fears but it also showed absolute love for me. “We were so worried,” she started and then stopped to swallow down some of her tears. “When the ritual was over and we had all survived, I knew you had succeeded but we couldn’t find you. We tried everything but you… I mean&helli
Duncan POV:In Meredith’s greenhouse, we all felt the abrupt shift in the air. It seemed to be gone as suddenly as it had arrived. I looked over at Lamont with a questioning look. He looked stunned as well. I walked over to him and watched as he processed what was happening. “Is it gone?” I asked. “Yes. They succeeded,” he said quietly. But he didn’t look pleased. I arched my brow, feeling anger rise in me at his reaction. He looked up and then shook his head. “There is a shift in the air, but I can’t pinpoint what is wrong.” He sighed. “Call the witches.”I moved out of the greenhouse and looked outside. I could sense the destruction this thing had created, but it was farther off than the pack than I had realized. I dialed Argon and Meredith’s phone, but it just wouldn’t connect. I was sure that the magic eater had destroyed the power lines and it wouldn&rsquo
Selena POV:We were surrounded by the darkness.I was shaking with helplessness. I felt its ice-like fingers moving towards me and I frantically moved away from it. Looking over to my right, I saw that it was Meredith’s hand I was holding. She wore the same expression on her face that was flowing through me. On the opposite side of her, Argon was holding on her other hand. We had found ourselves in a small opening in the forest, trying to regroup, only to fall into its trap. The trees and bushes around us were alive with unnatural and pure gloom, foreshadowing what was about to befall us. “Everyone, get into position!” Argon shouted. The noise from the forest was loud enough that normal conversation was impossible to hear. As I looked at the others taking their position, for a brief moment Duncan’s face floated into my head. My own fear changed into warmth. His face—his person—everything, had become something
Selena POV:Duncan’s cellphone rang just as we acknowledged what was happening. He answered it quickly, practically yelling into the receiver over the noise being created by the wind and water outside. The humans were terrified. “Yes. I know. We think so too,” he said, his eyes boring into mine. There was chaotic fear and absolute certainty. The lights above us flickered a few times and then went dead. The emergency lights flashed on almost immediately as we emerged out to the main area. A waiter was crying to calm a crying girl afraid of storms when she noticed us. “I am sure the lights will be back on momentarily,” she said quickly, but I could see she was physically shaking. Duncan was trying trying to move us out the doors, but I stalled him to take a good look at the humans. Absolute fear. These people would be caught in between powers they didn’t know about. What would help them?
Selena POV:Following the success of the new ritual, practice continued daily for the next week. The tension I had thought was snuffed out returned in another form. Instead of flaring emotions, it was restlessness that gripped me. The unspoken question of when the magic eater would come hovered over everyone. There was no certainty about when the magic eater would arrive, but we were expected to carry on with our lives as if it were business as usual. It was starting to become too much to handle and we were feeling the drain outside of normal ritual work. I found myself nodding off a few times during wolf training. Duncan was exhausted too. Each time I practiced, the ritual chipped away at me, but Duncan bore the brunt of the emotions. His heart felt heavy as he couldn’t shoulder the load with me or offer anything that my stubborn pride would allow. On top of that, we were both frustrated that there never seemed to be a time when we were truly al
Selena POV:I walked out of the bathroom after my hot bath and found Duncan fully dressed and looking at the journal next to him. Lamont had handed him the book before we left with a request to bring it with us to tomorrow’s practice. He was dozing off and when I approached him, he started awake. “Sorry,” he mumbled, sitting up and rubbing a hand across his eyes.I laughed at how boyish he looked and perched on the edge of the bed next to him to rub his neck. “With you running around all day and emotionally supporting me, you are more tired than me. I am surprised you are still awake.”He smiled sleepily and leaned towards me to rest his chin on my shoulder. I reached my other hand and massaged the top of his head, enjoying the feel of his soft hair and the gentle waves of contentment radiating from him, relaxing me in return. “Nice,” he sighed, setting more against me, drifting back to sleep. I g
Selena POV:The home phone rang as I was cleaning the dishes. Knowing that it was most likely Duncan trying to contact me, I hastily wiped my wet hands on a dishtowel and managed to answer it by the fourth ring. “Hello?”“Selena, Lamont needs us to head over to the greenhouse to go over the new ritual. Should I come to pick you up now?” Duncan asked, getting straight to the point. “Sure, that’s fine,” I told him, feelings tingles of stress and strangely enough, eagerness when he said the word ‘ritual.’“Great. I will be home shortly,” he said before quickly disconnecting the call. Did that mean we could use this new ritual? I had transcribed the segment and felt unsure about it. But it was still worth a try. .The greenhouse was alive with activity when Duncan and I walked through the back door. My eyes landed on Argon, who was helping Lamont lift a large pot
Duncan POV:As soon as we were back from wolf training, I practically dove in to get the witch notes out. I placed the package on the table and carefully unwrapped it to find an old, beat-up, leather-bound book nestled within it. A frayed red ribbon was stuck between the pages and I gently opened it to the section marked. A crude ink drawing of a circle took up one side while scribbles of what looked like notes were on the other. The only thing that I could read with ease was the top note in larger scrip that said: “Negating dark energy.”“What did you find?” Selena asked quietly, taking a seat beside me and leaning over for a better look at the contents. I pushed the books towards her so that we could share, hoping she might be able to decipher some of the faded writing on the pages. We were both quiet for a few minutes as we studied the content. Selena broke the quiet with a sharp intake of breath and sat back. Her emotions had changed
Selena POV:“Duncan, I know that you have more experience in being the leader of the pack, but I am not dumb. And I am not without knowledge of being a witch. My instincts have helped me a lot and I haven’t been wrong when I listened to them. I trust your instincts as the alpha and want to approach Meredith for help. I know you thought it was the right thing to do, but please trust me,” I whispered. He stopped the movement of his hands and remained quiet for another second. His emotions revolved around us, but none of them were anger. “I know you are not dumb. You are a talented witch and alpha female. I just forget sometimes that you are capable of so much more. All I want to do is protect you…” he said sincerely and then spoke softer. “…because you are mine.”He pulled me along him so that we were lying chest to chest, my face above his. A wave of sweetness rolled inside me, seeping into my pores as that