Page 18

I bite back a silent scream of frustration as the tiny spark I swear I just saw on my fingertip dies before anyone else can see it. I glance around, but Marian is deep in conversation with Samantha and Merrick, one of the younger witches, who at least gives me a sympathetic smile.

I’ve been at this for two days now, with Marian trying to gradually unbind my powers rather than all at once.

Apparently, it’s never been done before, but if anyone can do it, Marian can.

But even I can see the strain it’s putting on her—the bags under her eyes and her usually luminescent skin have taken on a worrying gray hue.

She also looks smaller somehow, which is disconcerting.

Looking down at my hands, I notice the tremor is back.

Every time I push myself, the tremors follow.

I guess Marian isn’t the only one showing signs of struggle.

She seems to sense my thoughts and finally looks up, her face a perfect mask of serenity despite the frustration that is engulfing us all.

Waving the others off, she walks over to where I’m standing under the giant cedar, hoping that its substantial canopy will somehow guard the little sparks against being blown out by the breeze that flows around the meadow.

Ironically, we decided to travel along the coastline to this meadow because Marian was concerned about unleashing my powers around too many bystanders.

So far, the unleashing has elicited about five random sparks. Not exactly fearsome.

“This isn’t working,” I say, trying to keep my voice steady even though my emotions are all over the place. I glance over at Ryan and the rest of the betas who Tristen has stationed around the meadow to protect us, feeling like I’m wasting everyone’s time.

“That’s not entirely true,” Marian sighs. “Yesterday, there were no signs. Today there are…some.”

“Can we try to lift more of the binding magic now?” I ask, knowing that she’s worried about the repercussions, but there have been none so far. With Malik hunting me and the fear he knows about my pregnancy, I’m more than ready to have the means to defend myself and my unborn child.

Marian nods with understanding, “I know you’re frustrated, but I’m trying to keep you safe,” she tells me again.

“Besides, we tried an hour ago, and I could feel the resistance coming from within you. You know, it’s not a case of doing the incantation, click my fingers, and suddenly, you have all the power.

You need to welcome the power. At the moment, you’re pushing it away. ”

I scoff for a moment before remembering who I’m talking to, taking in her raised brows and the flash in her eyes.

I offer her a tentative smile as an apology.

“I’m not trying to push it away,” I say quietly, “I want this. Why would I push it away when this power could fight Malik or at least help us understand him better?”

Marian chuckles before sitting on one of the tree's enormous roots. “I’d say there were a few very obvious reasons,” she replies.

“This power took your mother. You’re pregnant, and all women are risk-averse when pregnant.

You have a stubborn shifter mate who has a problem with witches…

I think you’re about to dwarf his magic. You know it, and so does he.”

I sink down next to her, feeling like she’s just peeled back my soul and read my mind. “I don’t think…”

“Of course you don’t,” she interrupts me. “You’re not used to thinking of yourself as powerful. Now, you have to own up to the fact that you are a force to be reckoned with, and once we unleash that part of you, there is no going back. That scares you. Perhaps it should.”

I blow out the breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding as I consider her words.

Tristen has actually been surprisingly supportive, more so than I ever would have imagined.

When I see him, that is. Malik’s rogues are attacking the borders and even the ships coming from the mainland; thank goodness Tristen has an alliance with Nolan, the other pack alpha, so they can work together.

Everyone is on edge, with stories of Malik shapeshifting into a sea monster to attack the coast… is that even possible?

Tristen is out with multiple patrols day and night.

When he finally returns to the house, I’m already in bed, and he slips beneath the covers, pulling me close.

I let him take what he needs, and in return, he gives me everything I need.

Except for the words, I think deep down, I want to hear: that we are in this together.

That he won’t reject me or our child. That he’ll love and protect us.

Finding out I’m pregnant and learning more about my parents has made me think about my own childhood with a fresh perspective.

I think I understand better why Marian kept me close but not too close.

And why I felt the older witches viewed me with tentative compassion, but equally preferred to let the younger witches raise me.

They both grieved my mother and feared the magic they knew resided within me.

Even Samantha spoke to me about my mother yesterday and how they used to play in this very meadow when they were young—I never even realized they had been close, so concrete was the wall of silence, the elders all complicit in keeping the fact that my magic had been bound a secret.

Even Samantha hadn’t realized the link between my father’s magic and Malik’s, though. Everyone is reeling from that.

All magic is elemental, even Tristen’s family gift.

But Malik appears to be able to steal power from other magical beings, absorb them, and grow stronger…

that is unheard of. Part of me hopes I can’t do that.

I don’t want to be thought of like Malik.

Marian said that my mother was in awe of my father’s powers but very secretive about him.

She mentioned that he seemed to have the power of all the supernatural species and could almost pick and choose which to use.

I shudder, thinking about Malik with that kind of power.

“Emily,” Marian’s voice brings me back to the present. “We’re going to need to try again if you’re ready.”

I look over to where everyone is waiting for me.

It feels strange to be the center of attention in my own coven when I have spent my whole life living on the edge, trying to blend into the background and help everyone else with their magic.

And now they’re all looking at me like I’m some kind of project—an experiment. Something to be studied and gawked at.

We walk over to where they are all waiting, and I take a deep breath, closing my eyes as Marian begins the incantation.

The wind instantly picks up, whipping around me, and light begins to spill from my fingertips as I struggle against the invisible binding.

It’s beautiful and terrifying all at once.

I feel like I’m being pulled in a million directions as the power surges through me, threatening to overwhelm me.

Suddenly, there is a crack of thunder above us, and the entire meadow shakes.

I scream as pain sears through me, my muscles clenching so tightly that I can feel my bones groaning in protest. The ground beneath me rumbles, sending vibrations up through my body. I fall to my knees as I hear someone shouting my name frantically.

I look up, tears in my eyes, to see Tristen pushing witches out of the way. His expression is one of raw panic as he reaches me. I don’t even know when he arrived or how much time has passed, but his touch is cool on my skin and grounds me.

"I'm here," he whispers against my ear. “Breathe."

It takes a moment, but I do as he says, focusing on him and the calming effect of his presence. The darkness around us begins to lift, almost as if the sun dares to reappear behind the turbulent clouds above.

“T-the baby,” I sob against his shoulder. “Is my baby okay?”

The pain was so terrifying, my only thought is for my baby as Marian and the healer rush over.

The healer has to coax Tristen into letting go of me for just a moment to hold her hands over my stomach, as I’ve seen her do so many times for mothers.

She’s checking to see if my baby is alive.

Seconds feel like an eternity until she nods, smiling.

“The little one is fine,” she soothes. “Sometimes our pain is not their pain. Especially true with this one; I can already sense the shifter strength.”

I look at Tristen and don’t miss the smile that crosses his face at the mention of his baby having shifter strength. “That’s my boy,” he grins, pulling me close again. “Or girl, obviously.”

Marian clears her throat, looking between us. “I think it’s time we get you back to the house. That is quite enough for today,” she says, looking over at the uprooted trees and the cracks in the earth that I didn’t even notice before.

I nod, feeling like my bones have been turned into jelly, as Tristen scoops me up into his arms like I weigh nothing at all. I’m used to him being strong, but today, it feels different. More protective.

We get into his truck in silence, both of us trying to catch our breath.

I lean against the cold window as he starts the engine.

“I’m glad I arrived when I did,” he says quietly.

“I’ve never seen anything like that. It was like a funnel of light sucking in all the daylight.

The sky was black. Your scream…do you think the magic is unbound? ”

I shrug, concentrating on my body and trying to figure out if I feel any different. “Lighter,” I whisper. “I do feel something, but I can’t explain it.”

I rest my hand on my stomach, overwhelmed.

Looking at Tristen’s disheveled hair and concerned-filled face, I’d say he feels exactly the same.

All I want is to get home and shut the whole world out for a moment so I can think.

Maybe I will figure out if the unbinding really has worked this time without everyone’s eyes on me.

We pull out of the meadow and onto the old coastal road in silence, both lost in thought. I look out to sea as it appears on my left over the sand dunes. Suddenly, I notice shapes moving fast along the shoreline, and my heart drops.

“Tristen?” I say, grabbing his arm. “Look.”

A group of rogues appears further along the road, soaking wet as they’ve clearly emerged from the sea.

Did they swim in from a boat or around the coastline to avoid the runes?

My heart hammers in my chest as more appear scattered along the dunes.

Some have shifted, but their wolves appear much larger than usual, with eyes glowing so green that I can see them from here.

Tristen stops the truck and jumps out, yelling something at Ryan before reappearing at the door. “Stay in here, lock the door, and if you can, break through and drive straight back to town; I’ll clear a path.”

I shake my head; the thought of simply driving away and leaving him to deal with these monsters is completely unthinkable. “I’m not leaving you.”

“Goddamit, Emily,” he glares, “you’re vulnerable. These are shifters.”

“They look like a lot more than just shifters to me,” I say, the horror clear in my voice as I look out and see more of the glowing eyes approaching. Ryan and some of the betas have already shifted, but their wolves look noticeably smaller in comparison.

I nod as Tristen shuts the door without another word, but I have absolutely no intention of just leaving Tristen or my coven.

I notice Marian rounding the trucks. Whatever weakness or tiredness I noted earlier is gone, replaced by her usual imposing appearance.

Her white hair flows around her as her feet hover above the ground.

When she looks in my direction, the silver in her eyes is more blinding than ever.

Marian wastes no time firing on the rogues.

Her silver magic showers them with fire along the dunes, causing some to retreat in agony while others break through, attacking Tristen’s defensive line.

I immediately see Ryan go down and scream from the truck, grateful when I see him dragged back by some of the betas, one of whom isn’t so lucky as I see a rogue tear into his flesh and fling him into the dunes.

I gasp as his blood begins to soak the white sand, and he doesn’t get back up.

I can’t just sit here. I ball my fists, the fear and anger threatening to overwhelm me as I see two of the massive rogues advancing on Tristen.

Looking down at my hands, I see they’ve started to glow and feel as though they’re burning.

I jump from the truck and run toward the sand dunes without thinking.

The rogues notice me and howl, their combined voices sending chills down my spine. I raise my arms, trying to summon the power I know now lurks within my grasp, but struggling against the fear that grips me.

Suddenly, Marian is beside me. She grabs my hand and squeezes tightly. “Now,” she whispers. “Now, Emily.”

And just like that, the dam breaks. The power I’ve been pushing down for so long erupts from me in a wave, washing over everything in its path.

The ocean begins to rise up before us, and I direct it at will, a wall of water surging toward the rogues.

Some are big enough to hold their ground, while others try to flee back into the sea.

But it’s not fast enough as they’re drowned under the sheer force of the water.

Tristen looks over at me, turning back into a man.

His eyes become filled with wild power, and he extends his hand outward toward the wall of water.

The wind picks up around us, whipping my hair into my face as he pushes against the water, pulling it back out to sea with incredible force.

The rogues who had tried to stand their ground are swept far out to sea.

Some battle against the current, but it’s useless, and they slip beneath the waves.

My heart hammers in my chest as I become aware of Marian cackling beside me, as she waves to the disappearing rogues in celebration.

I glance over at Tristen, who stands in absolute shock, staring at me.

Looking down at my hands, which now look completely normal, I feel an unfamiliar sensation wash over me.

Power.