AllFreeNovel
Share Us
3
Star’s home was even larger than I realized. I tried the living spaces and peeked into open doors leading to more bedrooms. I found the kitchen and another dining space I hadn’t seen at first. Near the back of the house, there was a greenhouse, full of flowers and herbs. The place was stunning and spacious. It was hard to imagine anyone willing to walk away from living here. But along with the home came isolation and solitude.
My feelings about Star were mixed. She was willing to perform dark magic for a price. I’d been warned about witches and their abilities my whole life, but Star was the first I’d met. She’d been kicked out of her coven, much the same way that I’d been ostracized from my pack. We had a lot in common. Both of us were willing to walk the line between right and wrong to get what we wanted.
The house was empty and quiet. I wondered if everyone else was already asleep. I wandered a few more minutes, about to give up, when I spotted the stairs that led to the dungeon like basement.
A shiver ran down my spine as I peered down the ominous steps. I didn’t like the thought of going down there, but if Star was there, it could provide more privacy than other parts of the house. I didn’t want an audience for what I was going to ask.
You don’t cross a witch. Everyone knew that. Though, the example I’d grown up with had been my own grandfather. While the true history was different, and his curse might not have been the result of his direct actions, it was still a warning. Witches could do things with magic that shifters had no power over.
I balled my hands into fists and took a deep breath, steeling myself for the descent. My fear of witches and their magic was less than my fear of being bonded to Tyler for eternity.
The bond was getting stronger, and I needed to stop the connection. I had reached the point of desperation. Anything to break the bond would be worth the risks.
The only light in the basement came from the orange lamps softly buzzing over the rows of herbs. I wondered what made these plants so special that they were grown down here when there was a greenhouse attached to the house upstairs. I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.
“Star? Are you down here?” I took a few cautious steps and scanned the space for any signs of another person.
Movement caught my eye and I turned to see Star hunched in front of a table. She pushed a pair of goggles on top of her head and spun around on her stool to face me. “I thought you were going to bed.”
“I wanted to ask you a question,” I said.
She pulled the goggles off her head and set them on the table before meeting my gaze. Her expression was impatient. “Yes?”
“I want to know how to break the bond,” I said.
“You and your mate have to do it together,” she said.
I shook my head. “No. Not the conventional way. He’s proven he won’t cooperate. There has to be another option.”
“Besides his death?” She lifted a brow. “I’m pretty sure if you asked for his head on a platter, you’d have volunteers to take up the task.”
“I won’t risk my friends’ lives,” I said. “How would you break it?”
She smirked. “You’re asking for magic.”
Her words hung in the air between us, my lack of response speaking volumes.
“Mating bonds are handed out by fate,” she said. “They can’t be broken with normal magic.”
“You’re not a normal witch,” I countered.
“You should go back to your room,” Star suggested. “You don’t want to follow this rabbit hole.”
“I do,” I insisted. “I can feel the bond getting stronger. I can still resist for now, but how much longer will I be able to? What happens if he gets me alone and I can’t fight it? Will I give in? And then what happens if we do complete the bond? Will I be trapped with him forever? Unable to live my own life?”
My breathing quickened and my chest tightened. The thought of losing my freedom, of having to give up everything I’d worked so hard for, was excruciating.
“Deep breaths,” Star said. “I see why this means so much to you.”
“I can’t go back there and live my life with him. You don’t know what he did to me. You don’t know how awful it is to desire him after everything. It’s wrong. The moon goddess made a mistake,” I said.
“Is this about Alec?” Star asked. “I see the way you look at him.”
I swallowed hard. Alec and I were something, weren’t we? Maybe friends, maybe something more. I had no idea, and I certainly couldn’t wrap my head around it until I was free of my bond to Tyler. “No, this is for me.”
Star hummed. “If you go down this path, I can’t guarantee what the results will be. I don’t think it’s worth it.”
