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“I shall cling to that belief and try not to worry.” He opened the truck, ushered me inside, then ran around to the driver side. “What’s the likelihood of our unwanted vampires sensing what we’re doing at the wellspring and using the opportunity to attack us?”
“There’s always that chance, but I think the reality is pretty low. It’s more likely they’ll use the opportunity of our absence to create havoc elsewhere.”
“I hope you’re right.”
So did I. Because I’d put the assertion out there now, and that was always pretty damn dangerous.
The weather finally broke near dusk, just as we were heading for the wellspring. Aiden, Ashworth, Eli, and I were in Aiden’s truck, with Belle and Monty following in our SUV. The rain pelted against the windshield so hard it sounded like ice rather than water, and I very definitely didnotlook forward to going out in it. I’d grabbed my waterproof gear, just in case, but despite the storm, it remained unbearably sticky, and the waterproofs didn’t really breathe. I’d be a puddle of sweat before the evening was out, of that I was sure.
We didn’t enter the compound via the main entrance but rather a side road that was closer to the wellspring and barely wider than a goat track. Aiden’s truck chugged up the long, steep incline and, once we reached the top, he turned off the road, then switched off the engine and the headlights.
Ghostly figures emerged from the nearby trees. The pack—or at least some of it—had indeed come to watch the show. I really,reallyhoped they left disappointed, because I did not want to go through that whole amorphous thing again.
Even if I suspected being amorphous might be the least of my problems going into the wellspring.
I pulled on my waterproofs and then climbed out of the truck.
The gray-haired gentleman—whose name was Larkin, and who’d been a close friend of his father, Aiden had informed me—stepped forward and gave me a friendly enough nod. “Is there anything we need to be wary of? Will the magic—or whatever it is you need to do—present a threat to any of us?”
If they’re worried about a threat then they shouldn’t be here, Belle said, mental tone cross.
You can’t blame them for being curious, given werewolves can’t see magic and very few of them have any working knowledge of spells or indeed witches.Besides, if we want them to get over their natural prejudices, then we need to get over our reluctance to share.
She snorted.It’s not like we don’t share. Besides, we’ve been in the reservation for a year now; if they were so damn curious, they could have just popped into the café and asked.
You forget who has been running the show up until now.
She harrumphed, but didn’t argue the point.
I smiled and tugged the coat’s drawstrings tighter to prevent the wind blowing off my hood. “We don’t actually know what will happen when I step into the wellspring. That’s why I requested permission to bring Belle, Monty, Ashworth, and Eli into the compound—if something does go wrong, they’ll be able to either magically nullify it or throw a protection spell over everyone to keep you safe.
“But if I say run,” Aiden added, “then don’t think, just go.”
A murmur ran through the forest; we had a bigger crowd than was initially obvious.
Aiden glanced at me. “You ready?”
“No, but there’s no avoiding it.”
Not if we wanted to save the pack.
He lightly touched my arm, though I wasn’t sure if he was reassuring me or himself, then turned and led us through the trees—though in truth, the caress of the wellspring’s power was strong enough that I didn’t really need a guide. I could have found it with my eyes closed.
Dusk was closing in fast, and the shadows haunting the trees deepened into darkness. Monty and Eli created a couple of light orbs that bobbed along above our heads, their muted glow lighting the path while not affecting our night sight.
The closer we got to the wellspring, the stronger its heartbeat became, until all I could feel was the pulse of its energy. It was bright, fierce, and powerful, a force as ageless and as endless as the earth under our feet.
That force wanted me.
Wanted to embrace me.
Trepidation skittered across my skin, but I did my best to ignore it. There was nothing else I could do, because I had no real choice. We knew well enough what would happen to the compound if I refused to do this, but there was also the growing question of what would happen to our child if I didn’t. The book hadn’t said there would be any consequences other than destruction, but I couldn’t escape the notion that perhaps that destruction would extend to the new life growing within me.
We finally reached the hill’s crest and began to descend. Magic pulsed through the air, a signal to those who were sensitive to its presence that a number of protective spells were active up ahead. But it was overrun—at least for me—by the earth’s power. It crawled across my skin, stinging and biting, filled with the anger I’d sensed earlier. Had I not come here this evening, it might have lashed out again.
Eli hadn’t been able to find anything in the book to explain why the wild magic would destroy the very people it needed to protect it, nor had there been anything further to explain the bathing and what we might expect. We reallyweregoing into this blind.
I flexed my fingers, and once again tried to calm the surge of fear and worry. Naturally, it didn’t help, but my inner wild magic nevertheless responded, creating a gentle net of energy around my body that lessened the impact of the wild. Which was a really interesting response, given my inner wild magic ultimately came from the same source, and had only truly emerged on connection withthiswellspring.
