Page 33 of The Witch’s Spell (Season of the Witch #4)

Faolan

AURORA HAS NEVER BEEN THIS mad at me before. I’ve upset her in the past, have been on the sharp end of her words more than once, but this is different.

I’m wounded from my fight with Cathal, though not so badly as I was when I first stumbled into the woods behind the cottage and found Aurora gathering mushrooms. Wounds cover my neck and back, and they sting as she cleans them.

But unlike the times when she did this for me in the past, she doesn’t speak. Not a single word.

I’ve tried multiple times to apologize, to beg for her forgiveness. But she doesn’t so much as meet my eyes, acting like she can’t even hear the words coming from my mouth. Our bond is pulled taut, like it’s straining under the weight of her anger, of her disappointment in me.

But she can’t be more disappointed in me than I already am in myself.

Cathal and I have spent the better part of our lives antagonizing and bickering with each other.

Typically, I’d have better control of myself, would let his words roll off me like rain dripping from my fur.

Today, though, I was already on edge, ready to snap.

And what he said about Aurora dug under my skin like thorns, cutting me in places where I was already vulnerable.

And I hate him for it. I hate him for treating me this way. I hate him for what he said about Aurora. And most of all, I hate him for exiling me from the only family I ever knew, for throwing me out like I was nothing. I hate him for all the hurt he’s caused.

Aurora finishes cleaning my wounds, and without a word, she stands, gathers up her tools, and departs the kitchen, leaving me sitting there in the quiet alone. Her socked feet pad through the foyer and parlor, and the bedroom door clicks closed behind her, definitive even in its gentleness.

Fuck.

“Fuck!” I curl my fingers into a fist and just narrowly prevent myself from pounding it atop the table or putting it through the kitchen wall. “What the fuck have I done?”

There’s a flash of red in my periphery. I glance up and find Rowan’s face in the window of the kitchen door. When he sees I’m alone, he tips his head, gesturing for me to come outside.

And considering how pissed Aurora is with me, it’d probably be a good idea for me to give her a bit of space.

Standing, I reach for the tunic folded atop the kitchen table. Aurora brought it down for me, seeing as I ruined yet another one with my transformation. I wince as I pull it over my head, every wound stinging with my movement .

I pull on the pair of boots waiting on the mat beside the door, and then my hand finds the door handle, but I pause, hoping maybe Aurora has changed her mind and wants to talk to me, wants to hear the many apologies I have to say.

But no. The cottage is quiet. All I hear is the ticking of a clock and the quiet crackling of the fires in the kitchen and parlor hearths.

With a heavy sigh, I open the door and step outside. The air is cold, but my skin is still hot, and it feels comforting.

Alden and Thorne are seated at the tiny bistro table, the one Aurora likes to sit at when the weather is nice, and Rowan is now standing at the bottom of the stairs, leaning casually against the banister. All three of them stare at me after I close the door.

But my eyes go to Thorne. Though my memory is hazy due to the intense rage I was feeling, I’ll never forget the gust that tossed me ten feet through the snow or the vortex that kept me there once I was back on my feet. It was unlike anything I’ve ever seen.

“What the fuck was that?” I snap, thumping down the stairs and coming to stand over him.

He looks up at me from his seat at the bistro table, no fear in his eyes. And now I realize why I’ve never been able to intimidate him, why he’s never seemed nervous around me, even knowing what I am and what my beast is capable of.

I can’t decide if I respect that or if it just pisses me off more. Probably both.

“That,” he says, “was me saving your life, and probably your brother’s life. Granted, once Aurora is through with the both of you, I’m not sure there’ll be anything I can do to help you.”

For some reason, his words surprise me. I think he just told a joke. At my expense.

Alden clears his throat, probably trying to disguise a chuckle, and from the corner of my eye, I can see Rowan smirking.

“Is this a joke to you?” I growl, fingers clenching into fists at my sides.

Now Thorne’s eyes, which look lighter silver than usual, narrow at me. He grips his cane and pushes to his feet, and though he’s shorter than me, he gets right up in my face.

If I were still unaware of what he can do, I’d find it extremely stupid. But standing here, face-to-face with him, I’m left wondering which one of us is actually being the idiot right now.

And it’s probably me. As usual.

“A joke ? Did you not hear Aurora screaming, pleading for you to stop? She collapsed in Alden’s arms, for fuck’s sake. It seems you’re the one who’s not taking this seriously enough.”

My teeth clench, making my jaw muscles twitch.

Aurora was screaming for me? Pleading? I didn’t hear her, didn’t even feel her through our mate bond. It must’ve been my anger and my need to sink my fangs into Cathal’s skin, to taste his blood on my tongue. It made me deaf to her cries.

Fuck.

I was gearing up to argue with Thorne, to make an even bigger ass of myself, but suddenly, all my energy drains away, and next thing I know, I’m slumping down onto the porch stairs, letting my head and shoulders hang heavy .

Even though it almost physically pains me to say, I force out, “Thank you. If you hadn’t stopped us, I don’t know...”

I don’t know what would’ve happened. I don’t know if we would’ve stopped.

Once again, I let my anger toward Cathal drive me to madness, let him shake me from my foundation. I have to stop giving him so much fucking power over me.

With a light sigh, Thorne sinks back into the chair at the bistro table. “You’re welcome.”

I scrub a hand down my face before meeting his eyes again. “But really, what was that? What are you?”

Thorne seems to consider for a moment, like he’s still not sure if he wants to be completely honest or not.

Then his face changes. It gets sharper, slimmer. Everything about him takes on a subtle shimmer. And his ears get pointy.

Pointy.

“You’re a fucking elf?” I say.

One of Thorne’s snowy brows arches in the corner. “No. I’m a fairy.”

A beat of silence passes.

And then Rowan and Alden burst out laughing at me.

“Shut up,” I snap. But that just makes them laugh harder.

And it makes Thorne laugh too. But with his face like that now, his smile is sharper, to the point where the wolf in me almost wants to consider him a fellow predator, another beast that haunts the woods.

And maybe my wolf is right. My instincts told me something was off about him the moment he stepped into the cottage.

I know very little about fairies, except for the fact that some of them are pesky and annoying, and some of them are downright dangerous.

And I’m pretty sure he’s the latter. He did throw me and my brother ten feet with the flick of a wrist. I wonder what damage he could inflict if he actually tried.

Once the others have stopped laughing, Rowan asks Thorne, “Why didn’t you tell us?”

And Alden interjects, “Does Aurora know?”

“Of course she knows,” I scoff as I lean back, wincing again at the wounds etched into my skin. “Aurora knows everything.”

It’s true. You can’t slip a single thing by her. It’ll probably drive her kid crazy. I almost smirk at the thought.

Alden and Rowan nod their agreement.

“Humans,” Thorne starts, already revealing how other he is, “react to my kind in various ways. I wasn’t sure how you three would respond, and I didn’t wish to make things any more difficult around here.

I felt I was doing the right thing.” He lifts one shoulder in a shrug.

“But I’m not so sure I’ve done much good since I’ve been here.

” Grasping a lock of white hair, which looks shinier now that he’s revealed his true self to us, he continues, “I’m the reason the fog is here.

We, Aurora and I, discovered that when I crossed into this realm, I brought the magic of Fairyland with me.

It’s too powerful, and it caused the portal to malfunction.

Now we’re all stuck here—humans and fairies alike. ”

I want to be pissed at him, and if he’d told me that this morning, I probably would’ve been. But with each moment I’m sitting here, with the cold air chasing the heat from my skin and the adrenaline leaving my veins, I’m losing more of my energy, and it takes a lot of energy for me to be so angry.

“And why didn’t Aurora tell us?” Rowan asks, pushing upright from where he’s been leaning against the porch banister.

Thorne’s mouth flicks into a ghost of a smile. “She was trying to respect my wishes, for which I am very grateful. Though I apologize if it has caused any trouble between you.”

Alden, Rowan, and I exchange glances. Aurora has felt distant lately, distracted. Often when I wake, she’s gone from the cottage, Thorne having vanished with her.

At least now I know why they’ve been spending so much time together. But if she knows what he really is, she’s likely seen his face.

I’m not into men, not one little bit, but even I know he’s beautiful. I wonder if Aurora does too. Probably.

Dammit.

“So, you two have been trying to solve the problem on your own?” Rowan asks, gesturing toward the woods, where we all know the fog still lingers.

Thorne nods once. “We thought we figured it out, but...” He sighs again and shakes his head. “It didn’t work. And we’re not sure what to do next.”

“Is there anything we can do to help?” Alden asks.

He looks funny seated at such a small table. I almost tell him just that, but I think I’m losing the energy to even poke fun at him. Which means I need a nap. Soon.