Hyacinth slowly turns her face towards Sadie, who stretches out one arm with her palm up. There is a faint rustling sound around us that gets louder and louder until leaves begin to whip up from the ground, surrounding Sadie like a little tornado. The dried leaves twirl up to her palm, then dance in a little trail upward. When Sadie releases the magic, the leaves fall all around us, drifting back to the ground.
“Holy fucking shit!” Hyacinth cries. “What the fuck did I just see?”
“We can show you more, if you like,” Trina says. “That was a small demonstration.”
“I’m…” Hyacinth chokes out, shaking her head. Her eyes are wide, and I can hear her heart beating wildly.
Hmm, my senses feel a little sharper, but I don’t want to bank on it. It might just be wishful thinking.
“I know,” Trina says, hugging her. “It was a shock to me, too.”
“What’s going on?” Hyacinth looks up at Trina with tears in her eyes.
“The supernatural world is real,” Sadie says. “The three werewolf packs that live in this area are affected by a curse, and only finding their true loves can break it. I was the first, Trina was the second, and you might be the third.”
“Might be?” I snap. “She’s the only one the ritual named. Isn’t that right?”
“It was a faint positive,” Sadie argues. “And it only happened once.”
“Still, it was the only lead we had,” I shoot back. “And you weren’t going to let me pursue it, were you?”
“You overheard the meeting,” Sadie says in realization. “I should have realized you were there.”
“You were never going to tell me, were you?” I push. “What if it did come up as Hyacinth again? Would you have even let me try?”
“We would have come with you!” Sadie says, exasperated. “There are many better ways of doing this, Shane!”
“I had no choice,” I say through gritted teeth. “We couldn’t wait one more day. It was better than doing nothing.”
“You say that,” Sadie sighs. “But what if she really is the wrong girl?”
I want to protest again that we had no other leads, but for the first time, I really consider the possibility that Hyacinth isn’t the right one. I realize I truly have no idea what will happen to my pack in that instance.
The short answer is: we die. I do nothing, and we die. I go after her, and we die. Great choices.
“What if?” I say, my voice low. “A choice between dying and dying. I don’t see the difference.”
Sadie glares at me, and I know she’s about to let me have it, when Hyacinth pulls away from Trina and jumps in front of Sadie.
“Wait, what do you mean?” she asks. “I still have next to no idea what’s going on here, but if I’m the wrong person and my… ah, magic… can’t save the pack, what happens? Shouldn’t we break the bond right now so Shane can find the right girl?”
Sadie sighs, looking down at the loop of Dead Silk on Hyacinth’s wrist. “If we simply break the ritual and separate you from Shane, it will create a ripple effect through the pack. That’s just a simple fact of the binding ritual—it’s that strong that everywolf will feel the split. It’s not great for the sick people, and that’s just a best-case scenario.”
“What’s the worst case?” I ask, a hint of fear trickling into my voice.
“The worst case is that undoing this bond also destroys the other binding vows, our spells will be reversed, and every wolf in all three packs dies,” Sadie answers, her face grim.
“Fuck,” Trina gasps.
“Yeah,” I mutter. “Fuck.”
“So, wait,” Hyacinth says, holding up her hands. “I’m still not sure I believe all this, but just saying—what if I stay, but it doesn’t work, and I’m the wrong one?”
“We’ll know in a week or so,” Sadie says. “I’ll be able to feel it. If you are the wrong one, I’ll be able to use that energy to break the bond in the safest way possible. It won’t be without risk, but it will be far less risky than trying to do it right now.”
Hyacinth gulps and takes a step back towards Trina. Her friend immediately puts her arms around her.
“Shane,” Sadie says. “You acted rashly. Your pack may pay for it.”
