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I t was true? I hadn’t betrayed Caden? All the fucking misery I had been in all these years—separated from Caden, separated from Logan—was because of Rachel. Numbness sat like ice in my chest. She’d seen my childish crush as an opportunity for exploitation, had used banned magic to manipulate me.

What the actual fuck?

When she’d disappeared all those years ago, I’d been so fucking lost and confused.

She’d destroyed my relationship with Caden, and when her magic had worn off, I was left with a million questions and no answers.

After experiencing how easy it had been for her to control my physical body, I was under no illusions she couldn’t have done the same with my mind.

The whole thing made me feel sick.

Caden was a mess of anger and regret in the bond. He dragged me into his arms, squeezing until I couldn’t breathe. “I’m sorry.”

It was only two words, but I felt the weight of them, the healing they brought, how much work they did to solidify the bridge we had been building.

I knew Rachel’s damage had still lingered in the back of his mind, burdened his struggle to trust me, but now he knew as well as I did I’d never meant to hurt him.

For the first time in decades, it felt like I really had him back. No matter how much we’d been trying since all this chaos began, Rachel had stayed a glass wall between us, fueling his worries about Logan and me, and his place in our lives, but now that glass was shattered.

His regret and affection burned hot as lava, pouring into me, melting away the icy numbness that held me hostage until I was hugging him back just as fiercely.

“I’m sorry,” he said again. “I love you. I want to put all of this behind us, but I understand if you’re not ready.”

“Fuck that.” A sound came out of me; a mix of a laugh and a sob. “I waited years to get to be your brother again. I’m not waiting anymore.”

The bond glowed brightly, as if it knew the connection had been revitalized.

Logan hugged both of us, her arms keeping us pressed together, the rest of our pack tangling around us.

Caden wasn’t the only family I had gained recently.

It was wild to think I had a whole pack now.

We hadn’t known each other for very long, but with all we’d been through it felt like a lifetime.

“As much as we appreciate sentimentality,” Violet announced, “We really should get this wrapped up. We have to monitor very carefully for this to be done safely.”

By the time we all pulled apart, my cheeks were wet, and I swiped the moisture away with the back of my hand.

“Logan, do you consent to accept Maeve’s magic?” Jisoo asked.

“It’s pure magic, right? It won’t impact my personality or anything? Will I have a different kind of magic?”

“Pure magic, yes.” Jisoo nodded. “The core has no impact on the type of person we are. You may have access to additional forms of magic you didn’t before, but so far as we are aware, your magic will follow the same pathways it always has.

This sort of thing isn’t common, but I have studied previous cases and that’s what happened with them. ”

Logan turned to Anya and Cecily, her nerves broadcasting through the bond like a foghorn. “You think it’s safe?”

“I don’t think it’s dangerous ,” Anya evaded.

“Answer the question,” I said firmly. “Logan deserves fully informed consent with this.”

Anya nodded softly. “I wouldn’t have suggested it if I thought it would harm you. You and your pack have been through enough.”

“The entire Council would be involved in the transfer,” Cecily assured us. “There are risks, but at this point if Maeve tries anything it’ll be a death sentence for her.”

I had never wanted Rachel to die, but if she tried to hurt Logan, not even the lost part of myself that had once loved her would mourn her departure from this world.

The Council arranged everyone, nudging our pack to the outskirts while they circled Logan and Rachel. I reached for Logan in the bond, offering her comfort as best I could. It wasn’t the same as being able to wrap her in my arms, but certainly better than nothing.

The sheer amount of magic in the room set all my little hairs on end as the Council set up the layers of barriers for safety.

“You don’t have to,” Logan whispered to Rachel.

Rachel sighed again, her shoulders slumping.

“It won’t do me any good to keep it. I might not have remorse for my actions, but I understand the practicality of this.

Our line has been without magic for too long, and reversing that was my goal from the start.

I would be working against my own plan if I hoarded magic just to have it bound.

You redeemed the O’Clerys and you deserve to explore the world denied to you, regardless of my personal feelings. ”

Logan opened her mouth to respond, but Rachel continued instead.

“It wasn’t just Fiona’s mess you cleaned up.

I’ve been avoiding the disaster I created for a long time.

So, thank you. I knew I couldn’t fix it, but also that I probably couldn’t run from it forever.

You were always the one meant to do this, and I should’ve listened from the start. Make our family proud.”

Salt hit the air, tears sliding down Logan’s face. My omega nodded.

“Um, before we do the transfer,” I piped up, “Rachel slash Maeve is still bonded to Caden. Would she be able to access her magic through the bond?”

“We can sever it,” said Jisoo. “It will be painful, but it will also be quick. Let’s begin the transfer.”

I felt every moment of it. We all did. Rachel’s surrender of her core to Logan was like the crack of a can of soda that had been shaken up.

It fizzed and overflowed into the bond, gushing to fill up all Logan had lost. The Council kept a tight hold, releasing one containment pin at a time.

Rachel had a fuckload of magic, built and honed over decades of training.

Logan had been all raw power, the swing of an axe compared to the practiced cut of a scalpel.

Logan was jittery, her body overwhelmed by the rush, and it spilled into each of us, but with no cores of our own it did nothing but dissipate.

Rachel wilted as the last of her magic slid into Logan.

“And now the bond,” Violet said. “I’d suggest you all lie down.”

With barely two seconds of warning, we all got to the floor before a strike of lightning blasted through the bond.

My teeth burned, my cells on fire as the Council viciously ripped apart the bond Rachel had tricked Caden into.

Every tendril tangled around his soul snapped, feeling like a hammer against my bones with each one.

I screamed until my throat was raw and I had no more breath, in too much searing agony for basic bodily functions.

And all at once it disappeared.

My muscles gave out, leaving me a limp mass on the floor, panting and disoriented.

The lingering sensation of Rachel in the distance was gone.

I didn’t even have the strength to look toward her as darkness swam over my vision and dragged me under.