Page 91 of WitchBorn

I crept forward, my beast raging, the wolf and I finding a rare moment of commonality as we both knew what lay beyond that glow and the pain. Love. Family. Hope.

Please.I begged, needing him like I needed air.

Waiting for you. Remember who the final boss is.

Me. It had always been me. Torn into three parts of one soul, all battling for one mundane life force.

Stronger together.Wesley reminded me.

Even if that means embracing the monster?

We can all be monsters sometimes.

The wolf and I crept into the light though it blistered our flesh. I understood as the wolf did. We sank our souls together, resealing the tear. It ached from the scar left behind, but having him wrapped around me added to our strength. The beast fought us, refusing to slide into the last gaping hole between the wolf and me.

The wolf shared a thousand memories of his years alone with the dark, and I gave him the time as a mortal, not all bright, but filled with bits of love and friendship. The beast seemed to hesitate inside, observing perhaps, learning. The wolf and I settled into each other, the force of our will expanding tenfold as we crawled toward the light, hoping for a chance to bask in Wesley’s brightness.

Mate. The wolf said.Wesley.I agreed.We’re coming.

Sixty-Two

WESLEY

My heart beat slowly, the potion yanking me into the shadows multiple times until I wasn’t certain I could climb out again. But Finn’s desperation settled into my soul, our bond fragile and stretching into the darkness as I blinked open my eyes to a shimmering barrier dome surrounding me. Light illuminated the space overhead, blazing bright, but gentle and warm.

I reached up and my hand hit the barrier, snapping and fizzling with magic to keep me in. Outside the barrier the darkness pooled in an oppressive swirling ooze, wavering shadows dancing inches from the end of the ray of light, as though waiting for it to fade and the magic shield to break. The world beyond the light, nothing but a void of inky darkness, as if nothing remained of the Autumn realm but where I lay protected by some delicate energy.

Finn?

Our tie surged for a half second, his mind grasping for mine, then he’d vanish in a wave of madness for a few seconds, images flashing through our bond of all his terrible memories. I turned onto my side, unable to sit up in the small space, and stared inthe direction I thought he might be, though the overwhelming blackness curled in on every side.

Honey?Could he hear me at all?

Wesley…

His voice was weak and distant, pain lacing the words, and I caught a thousand underlying whispers that sounded like him, only not.Worthless. Unworthy. Useless. Monster.

Was that the darkness? Was Finn already gone—lost and twisted by his monster until there was nothing of his delicate heart that remained?

It’s okay, honey.I thought, hoping he heard me. Time curled around me, and I half dozed until I caught a glimpse of something moving in the dark, creeping its way toward the light. Was it Finn?

The thing was massive, a beast draped in darkness, its form twisting and warping as it struggled to maintain its shape. My stomach knotted as I recognized the dragon-like beast that Finn had become, dripping with ooze, shifting into something gaunt and bat-like, then back to the wolf. The more it touched the light, the more it howled. But I couldn’t look away. This was still Finn—somewhere inside that monstrous form was the man I loved.

I closed my eyes and when I opened them again, some time had passed and the beast had vanished into the swirling shadows again.Finn?

Our bond stretched thin and near the point of snapping. The beast drained my strength despite the strong barrier around me. I glared up into the light like it was some link to beyond, angry that the fates hadn’t chosen a stronger mate for Finn.

Love, don’t go.I begged, staring at the fading movement of darkness.

The beast reappeared; glowing eyes fixed on me. It recoiled from the light as though the brightness was too much to bear. Finn’s broken thoughts left me with a handful of words, self-deprecation, and sadness. He blamed himself for not being strong enough and letting the dark rule. But there was so much brightness inside him, hidden in layers of protective magic as though he feared letting any of it free would cause him more pain.

It’s only as dark as you let it be. I told him, trying to give him glimpses of happy moments in his past. His mortal life had been filled with them, and the entire reason the wolf had split them. The wolf knew to save them both, he’d have to give them something to cling to.

I tried to stir memories of his moms and his friends, what little I knew of them so far, but our link faltered.

Please, help me.His whisper nearly lost in the rage of the beast.

If I couldn’t share bright memories, I’d have to become one.I’m right here, waiting for you.