Page 98 of WitchCurse

The wolf at the door made a face, clear enough to know what that wolf thought of having bondmates that weren’t wolves, but the man stepped aside. I squared my shoulders and headed in, the layout familiar, but once I got to the cleared bunk space filled with chairs and all eyes on me, my courage faltered. I wanted to retreat into the wolf, but he could be cold and vicious, which might not look good before the tribunal.

Sebastian slid by me, hand on my arm, omega strength giving me a chance to breathe. He pressed a box into my hand, my tarot cards, and wandered away to find a chair beside his mate. There were gazes cast at him. Irritation that he was here? A fae fox who dared to bind himself to one of their most favored alphas? The horror. I hated that the wolves thought they were better than everyone else. I knew for a fact monsters came in all faces and types of creatures. And that was what I hoped to make them understand today. Even if it meant ripping open old wounds and dragging out my past for all to see.

The place at the center of the circle of this group, made my wolf rise and want to snarl at them all. No matter where I sat, my back would be to some. Vulnerable. But Kiran and Nick stayed behind me, watching.

I sank to the floor in the center, willing my heart to stop racing, and pulled the cards from the box to shuffle them. Fourth shuffle had my breath slowing. Sixth and my heart no longer felt like it was in my chest. Nick and Kiran flanked me, the three of us making a triangle to catch all sides. I felt less like prey in that moment, but instead guarded and protected. I pulled a card. Wheel of Fortune, a card of luck and tidings of good things to come. I just had to get past this meeting.

Two more shuffles and pulls, Wheel of Fortune each time. I nodded to myself and put the cards back in the box. Nick nudged my shoulder, letting me know he was there, and Kiran leaned back against me, his weight solid and comforting.

“I’m ready,” I said, my gaze finding Liam and then Oberon. “I only wish to say, that whatever you decide, I want no part in it.”

“You don’t want the wolf who hurt you, dead?” Oberon clarified.

“I don’t care,” I said. My wolf would love to hunt him, and we would fight over that as long as Isaac lived. But we had a home now, a safe place, and killing the man who hurt me would not fade the memory or even lessen the pain of it. “I have found my home. I understand your job is to ensure the safety of others. He may be a threat, but that is your decision to make, not mine. I will answer your questions, and then I will go home and never think of him again.” Sometimes it wasn’t about letting the past go as much as understanding we couldn’t change what had already happened, and had to move forward. I had the choice to dwell in the horror of my transition to werewolf, or let it go and find peace with my men. It was the latter I wanted.

“Understood,” Oberon said. “We will try to make this as quick as possible for you. I apologize that it will be painful. Let us begin.”