Page 17 of Their Witch Bride

Tears prick my eyes, and I try to blink them away. All the other witches have left the stage, leaving me alone with my mother. My mother who is waving and smiling at the crowd, like she’s just done something fantastic.

I grab her sleeve and pull.

She gives me a dirty look as she glances back at me.

“Please,” I say. “I need to talk to you.”

I can’t read her face, but I hear her sigh as she walks me down the steps of the stage and pulls me into a shadowy corner. “What is it?”

“Mom, I can’t do this.” The words leave my mouth before I even think about what I’m saying.

She stares at me, her dark eyes merciless. “So, I can go to war with those miserable fucking beasts time and time again to keep you safely at home, but you can’t do this one fucking thing for me? Is that what I’m hearing?”

My heartbeat is pounding in my ears. “I appreciate everything you’ve done for me–”

“Do you? I’ve bled on the battlefield. I’ve had teeth and claws tear through flesh and muscle. I’ve seen my best friends die, your coven members, and I’ve done it all without a word of complaint.”

This isn’t going the way I want it to. “I understand, but I can’t marry a shifter.”

Her nostrils flare. “What else do you think you’re good for? Honestly, Tara, ask yourself that question. I gave you everything in life. Even after your father passed, I made sure you had the best tutors, best meals, nicest clothes, and finest jewelry, and you thanked me for all of that by becoming less than mediocre.”

I understand. I do. My mom had so many plans and dreams, and I ruined them for her. I was never the daughter she wanted me to be. I get it. But what she’s asking, it’s too much. Isn’t it? I shouldn’t have to give up my whole life because I’m a disappointment.

“Mom, the shifters are cruel and dangerous. You said so yourself. If you marry me to one of them, I’ll be brought back to their lands. And what happens if war breaks out between our people again with me surrounded by them?”

She sneers. “Me. Me. Me. That’s all you ever think about. What about your people?”

I clasp my hands together. My heart seems to know this is all wrong, but everything she says makes it clear that she’s right and I’m wrong. “I would do almost anything for my people, but not this.”

“It doesn’t matter what you say you will or won’t do, because you’re doing this.”

“Mom–”

Her lips pull into a thin line. “Don’t make me out to be the villain in this. I made a deal with the shifters that will save the lives of countless witches. You, a princess, can offer nothing to your people except this. What I am is a hero, and while you might be a bad witch, I will not allow you to be a bad princess to your people.”

She’s right. But then I think about all the stories I’ve heard about shifters. About their sharp teeth and claws. About their blood red eyes and their thirst for death. No, I can’t do this. I need to find a way to undo this. Something else to bargain with to make peace with the shifters.

I take a deep breath. “If you’ve ever loved me, please find a way out of this for me.”

She reaches forward, and I’m hopeful for a half second before she pinches my arm roughly, biting into the flesh and not letting go. “How many times do I have to tell you, love is not given, it’s earned, and you’ve never earned mine. You’re useless. Useless other than your ability to marry our enemies and end this war. So, that’s what you’re going to do. And you’re going to do it without complaint.”

Releasing my arm, she turns away, but then looks back over her shoulder. “You have one minute to compose yourself, and then you’re going to be back on the stage, whether or not I have to drag you.”

I rub the spot she’d pinched, already feeling the bruise forming, along with the last one. But the pain is good. It gives me clarity. Even if I refuse to marry the shifter, I’ll have to do it. There’s no other path for me now. My people won’t let me stay. They won’t even let me leave the stage until I’ve done what I have to, so my only choice is to do this with my head held high or to be seen as a coward by my people.

My life. My home. All the people I’ve ever known. I’m losing them all. And chances are once I leave, my days will be filled with suffering until my brutal death.

Okay, so that’s how it is now. This is my life.

As I walk back to the stage, my heart hurts as I think of how I’d pointlessly pleaded with my mom. Love is not given, it’s earned, and you’ve never earned mine. Maybe I’ll earn it now.

“Congratulations, Princess Tara!” someone from the crowd calls out.

I look at her, my face blank, and nod. This isn’t a prize I’ve won. I’ve just been sentenced to life with shifters. There are no congratulations to be had. This event should hold the air of a funeral, not a wedding. I don’t even know who I’m marrying.

“Your husbands got a real catch!” another woman shouts, and everyone laughs.

My body stiffens. “Am I marrying one man?” I whisper to my mom.

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