AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“The son recovered, and the bear believed he’d made the right choice, but years later that same Bokor ran into some financial difficulty, so he used the bear to steal and frame his enemies. Even when he was rich and powerful, it wasn’t enough. After years of misuse, forced to be the Bokor’s puppet, the bear broke their bond the only way possible: he killed the Bokor and drank his blood. He then returned to the bear clan and murdered his own son.”
Dannika put her hand over her mouth. “That’s awful.”
“It is. The point is that the bear’s fate was worse than if his son had died by reaper hands.”
“How do we ensure we don’t end up like that bear?” she asked.
Steele’s eyes flickered with black flames. His voice lowered, signifying his alpha was close. “Get the terms of your arrangement upfront. Do not agree unless you are sure what you have agreed to.”
She clutched the rail. “Or...”
“The Bokor will enslave your shadow spirit.”
Dannika frowned. “I don’t understand what that means. How?”
“A Bokor’s power resides in the spirit world. Both the demon and human world are connected to it. We have theorized that the portal uses this segue to connect our worlds. If a Bokor owns your shadow soul, he can control it for as long as he is alive, and if you kill him, you turn reaper.”
She frowned. “Wouldn’t the Bokor realize controlling a shadow shifter would end in his death?”
Steele nodded. “He knows.”
“Then why would he control us?”
Steele glanced out of the forest. “Some wouldn’t. But a Bokor is a man. A human. For some, that power corrupts.”
His voice had a wistful tone as if he were speaking from experience. A personal loss to the temptation of power.
She ran her fingers over the rail. “It’s like asking an alcoholic not to take another drink. Their power is addictive.”
Steele nodded.
“Is there any way to tell if a Bokor is corrupted by his power?”
“His power allows him to enter a world we cannot. The spirit world. A purgatory that intersects our world and theirs. We have no way to confirm he will uphold his end of a deal. Just don’t offer your demon soul.”
“I won’t.”
Steele frowned. “Is there any way I can dissuade you from this course of action?”
Black smoke swirled in her eyes. “No. I’m going.”
Raine put his hand on her back. Any risk, he would take it. For her. “I’m going with you.”
Her eyes met his with answering heat. Love welled in her eyes. The insecurity that he might have turned her away melted his heart. His brave warrior woman wasn’t as tough as she led the world to believe.
Colton met his father’s angry eyes. “I am going as well.”
Black mist swirled around Dannika, blending into the shadows created by the tree. Raine’s shadow enveloped her, cocooning her in his embrace before they entered the dark pathway.
CHAPTER22
Dannika’s human form ripped from the shadow pathway. She stumbled forward as Raine caught her. Her stomach rolled before she got herself under control.
“That wasn’t our best landing.”
Raine pointed at the occult shop. They stood in a shadow cast off by the building, near a dark corner beside a grungy brick wall.
“There’s a ward around the store and I didn’t see it until it was too late. Someone diverted us. I’m guessing we tripped some kind of alarm. The Bokor knows we are here.”
