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“Where are the rest of the mothers?” Ayla asked. “I thought they would all be here for noon tea.”
At that, their faces paled except for Tabit’s, who was already the color of bone. “Are you really that dense?” she hissed flatly.
“Tabit, contain yourself,” Zara snapped instantly.
“Why should I? We’re the last ones left, and there would've been more of us if the poisonous little princess you brought into our home had been gracious enough to run off a little sooner.”
I couldn’t help it when a growl escaped my throat, and my defenses were on high alert.No onetalked to my mate like that. Like Ayla was of…inconvenience,to be sneered at.
“Oh, look, now you’ve upset our guests,” Zara said, tut-tutting like both Tabit and I were unruly children. “You keep up that attitude, and there won’t be any magic swap at all.”
If it'd been any other situation, it would've been pretty amusing when every witch’s head swiveled the moment Zara uttered those words.
“A magic swap?” Willa murmured. “You would be willing to open yourself up to us again?”
That last part was directed at Ayla, naturally, who nodded her head. “In exchange for you hearing us out, yes.”
“Wonderful! Perhaps on the morrow, after we’ve had time to feast and rest?” That was from one of the younger witches, who was busy intertwining her fingers between Ayla’s.
“Actually, we’re in quite the hurry. We can stay and rest for a single night, but we really must leave as the sun rises. One can never be too safe, after all.”
“Certainly not with you around,” Tabit cut in yet again. I knew that Ayla wasn’t blood related to any of the witches, but I did have an inkling of where she’d inherited her sharp tongue.
“Well, in that case, we should all venture inside into the moon house, shouldn’t we?” Zara said, taking charge again. “There isn’t a moment to lose.”
The group assembled, falling into a loose cluster that led us out of the garden and toward a building that was more crystal and glass than actual construction materials. It was beautiful, sparkling where the sun streamed down through the canopy… but also foreboding.
They opened the door, the insides too dark to see much of anything, and naturally our group went to follow them in. But before we could, the witch named Ryu stepped into our path.
“You may wait out here,” she said, gesturing to the front porch where there were several comfortable looking rocking chairs.
I didn’t want to sit down. I wanted to stay close to my mate in unfamiliar territory.
“With all due respect—”
“I’ll save you the breath. You and your friends will stay right here. This is a private matter.”
I now bared my teeth, because no way was I going to let my mate go off into a room of potentially hostile witches all on her own. I didn’t want to fight, but I would if I had to. No one was going to hurt Ayla on my watch. Not ever again.
But Ryu’s response surprised me. As if she could read my thoughts, her face softened, the corners of her eyes crinkling. “I know your kind can be intense about those you consider in your ‘pack’.” I didn’t know how she made quotations around the word with just her voice, but somehow, she did. “However, it would behoove you to remember our dear Ayla spent nearly eight years with us and did just fine, so you can lower your hackles and wait like a polite guest.”
I looked to the others, who were clearly waiting for my input. I hated to go along with these ridiculous rules, but eventually I nodded, and we all stood down.
Naturally, that wasn’t enough for the witch, because she kept right on going as the last of her sisters filed through the door. “Besides, when it comes to our darling Ayla, our coven is the one who really has the most to be worried about, isn’t it? Thanks to that fun little problem of hers.”
Before I could clarify if she meant the curse, and if she was really blaming Ayla of all people for that, she shut the door, disappearing inside. I strained my ears to listen. My natural shifter senses should’ve been able to make out conversation through the wooden walls, no problem, but all I heard was a faint buzzing.
Wards. It had to be wards. Considering how paranoid the witches were, I'd hoped that since they had so few visitors, maybe they were laxer about protocol. No such luck.
“What’s the plan now, Cap?” Tristian said, edging up alongside me and whispering so quietly that I almost didn’t hear it, even with my aforementioned enhanced senses.
“Right now, we wait, but the moment we get that relic, we get the fuck out of here.”
“Heard.”
I began to pace in front of the house, not in the right mood to sit there and rock like a peaceful granny. Not with the agitationof being separated from my mate and also having confirmation that Ayla’s curse was indeed hundred percent real and seriously endangered the witches that'd raised her.
There was a lot going on, so I'd feel much better when Ayla and I were safe in Fort Canid.
