Page 68 of Rejected By the Winter Wolf

Judging from her tone, that’s not a great thing.

At the time, though, I didn’t know where she was. “I⁠—”

“You allowed through the demon who attacked you. You pulled a demon through into our realm without even a witch’s circle to contain it⁠—”

“Kian killed it,” I interject.

“You trust the wolf,” Maeve spits. “And how many more demons slipped through while you were incapacitated?”

“I didn’t know,” I offer in a small voice. I hadn’t thought of it. I wasn’t unconscious. I remember every excruciating detail of the encounter, as much as I’d love to forget.

Maeve sighs. “The damage has been done. We need to call the coven to expel the rest of the demon blood from her.”

Cecelia guides me upstairs, into an empty bedroom. She motions for me to sit on the bed and hands me a white t-shirt. I slip it on, setting aside Kian’s sweatshirt.

“I have to ask you another question, Astra.” Her gaze sharpens. “And I want you to know, I ask you this as your mother’s close friend. I want to protect you.”

“Okay…”

“Has he said anything about mating?”

I rear back. “What?”

“Wolf shifters are not to be trusted. You know what they can do⁠—”

“I know what they do.” I stand, trembling with anger. “I know exactly the sort of power they have. You’re out of line asking that question of me, Cecelia. Friend of my mother or not. If you think I’d mate with a murderer–”

Her gaze shutters. “Fine.”

“I’m safe now, aren’t I?”

She hesitates, standing just out of reach.

I know I’m not. I know he’ll never stop looking for me now that he’s gotten a taste. Wolf shifters aren’t built to let things go—and as he’s an alpha, I’d bet Kian is even worse. But mating? She can’t be serious. She isn’t. She’s just thinking the worst.

I go to her, taking her hands. I still remember the warmth of her voice as she communicated with the spirits. She showed me so many magical, elusive things that week. While I don’t have that power innately, she gave me a path to talk to the dead if I needed it. She taught me like I was grown, even though I was anything but.

That friendship, the kinship, isn’t so easily forgotten.

“Please help me,” I plead. “I just need to find a way to save my mother.”

Her eyes fill with tears. “Of course I will, dear girl. We’re going to save both of you.”

Chapter 15

Astra

It doesn’t take long for the coven to arrive. Downstairs, they greet each other as family. Their chatter is loud and friendly until Maeve tells them why they’ve been summoned—then the noise drops. I feel their collective magic prick the air. It’s like they’re probing at mine, and I tighten my mental defenses.

I hold my magic close, shivering in just the thin t-shirt and pants. Sweat dots my brow, and pain radiates out from my back the longer I sit still. I keep my hands in my lap and my gaze on the window that points out toward the mountain range in the near distance. It takes concentration to not fidget, but I think I’d make my mother proud.

Finally, when the sun has moved behind the ridgeline, and the sky is painted in streaks of orange and pink, Cecelia comes to retrieve me.

She brings me downstairs in silence, her features tense. There are over a dozen women here. The formal dining room is covered in candles. Their flames flicker ominously around the room. On side tables and a hutch. Many of the witches hold a candle, as well.

Cecelia motions for me to remove my shirt and climb onto the empty table.

“Lie on your stomach,” she says to me. “And remove the amethyst, please. It won’t let us fully help you.”