Page 91 of Unclaimed Bonds

Cassie huffs. “We’ll see about that!” She stomps away and turns back to look at Liam. He doesn’t follow.

“Take it. You need the reminder,” the old woman says to Liam, handing him the cards.

Elaine intertwines her fingers with mine. “Your turn, baby,” she sings.

I remove my hand from hers and move toward the table, taking Liam’s place. I smile at the woman, flashing her my dimples, and she blushes.

“You’re a horrible flirt,” she claims.

At least I know it still works. I wink, and she shakes her head.

“You know, that charm will not work on everyone. Sometimes, you need to work a little harder to gain a certain someone’s attention,” she says with her own wink.

I chuckle. “I hear you, old woman, loud and clear.” She smiles, showing her brown and yellow teeth, and fans the cards in front of me. I pull one, but another falls from the deck onto the table. She rests her hand over it, sliding it toward her, but she doesn’t place it back into the deck. Gesturing to the card in my hand, I flip it over. The King of Pentacles.

“Ah. You will be a great king when it becomes your turn. But we already knew that. Didn’t we? That’s not what you want to know. Is it?” She smiles widely, and her eyes shine, like she knows a secret. She retrieves the card that fell and turns it over. The Queen of Wands reversed. She tsks. “You let the influences of others drive you to make a very wrong and hurtful decision.”

The blood drains from my face. How could she possibly know that? Am I too late?

“But fear not. There is hope. You cannot rely on charm and that pretty face. You must dig deep and work hard to makethings right. It will not happen overnight. Be mindful of those around you. The influences can cause more damage than you know.”

She flips another card. The World. She smiles.

“Big changes are coming—some bad, some good. If you handle them well, it can all be yours. Just remember one important thing. It will look nothing like how you think it will. Once you accept that, she can be yours, too.”

I frown. I don’t understand that last part. She doesn’t explain, hands me the cards, and repeats the same message she told Liam.

Elaine pushes me to the side. “Who is she?” she asks, crossing her arms.

The woman laughs and shuffles the deck. One tumbles out, face up. The High Priestess. “Someone very important.” She looks at all of us before replacing it back in the stack.

“It’s my turn,” Elaine whines. I’m not sure why I stay to listen, but my feet seem rooted in place. I wait for Elaine’s cards to show.

Elaine looks smug, knowing she’s now the center of attention. She thrives on it. Elaine has a cute face and tan-colored hair. Like Cassie, she dresses in the latest fashion, but she doesn’t have Cassie’s curves.

Underneath the carefully applied makeup and clothing, she is the ugliest girl I have ever met. Elaine is shallow, petty, and manipulative, but everyone knows it. Unlike the girl who used me, who hid and lied, Elaine wears her true colors.

Elaine growls, “What the fuck is this?!” She holds the Devil card. Snickers circle around the girls. Wills, her own brother, coughs and covers his smile. “This is not funny, Wills,” she screeches.

The old woman smirks. “I don’t have to explain this card to you. It’s obvious you know what it means. But the divine isgiving you a chance… to choose a different path. Jealousy is your one true enemy.”

“And where the fuck did you get that from? One of your tacky quotes in those ugly, handmade cards in your store?!”

“Elaine,” I warn.

She turns on me with eyes brimming with tears, “This isn’t fair. I want another card!”

The woman obliges by shuffling the deck. She pauses before fanning them out. “You may not want the other card. Greed doesn’t make you a better person.”

Elaine snarls, “I want the other card.”

“I will give you another card only if you allow me to say what you need to hear.” She raises an eyebrow in anticipation of Elaine’s answer.

“Fine,” she snaps.

The woman leans forward and fans the cards before her. Elaine pulls a card, and as it did for me, another falls from the deck. The woman palms it.

When Elaine flips her pulled card, she finds Death. She begins panting, and her face turns red.