Page 32 of Cursed Bonds: An Alpha's Destiny

Behind me, the doorbell tinkled as another customer entered the store, and I slipped out. The walk back to my car was somehow even more surreal than the time I’d spent in the store. It was all I could do not to tear into the books as soon as I got into the car. I talked myself into waiting until I was safely back in my cabin.

That promise proved harder to keep the longer I drove. Multiple times, I thought about pulling into a gas station and digging the books out, but I managed to stay strong until I was back home. At that point, it was game on. I’d barely made it through the door before I tore the bag open. The necklace at my neck tugged and pulled at me, almost like it had increased in weight the closer I got to the cabin. Strange.

Now that I was inside, I could hear a faint hum emanating from the crystal. So faint that when I stopped to focus on it, there was nearly nothing there.

The first book in the bag had bright gold lettering on a leather binding: De Maleficarum Historia. An internet translation told me the title was A History of Witches.

“Fitting,” I said to myself, setting it aside.

The next was a slender tome bound with thin wood panels and a simple intertwined Celtic knot carved into the front. A line of letters had been painted on the top in a delicate looping script, but they seemed to be random incomprehensible words. Combinations of letters that I couldn’t understand. It took a little bit of looking until I understood that they were Gaelic in origin. Roughly translated, the book’s title was The Lord and the Lady.

The final book was much less impressive and mysterious. A simple modern paperback titled Shamanism, Wicca, Pagans, and the True Laws of Magic.

With all three books splayed out in front of me, I was suddenly struck with an incomprehensible sense of indecision. Where did I start? Which did I open first? What if I didn’t understand anything in these books?

There was no one I could think of to talk to about my problems other than Harley. She answered the phone after a few rings.

“Hey, what’s up?”

“I have a problem,” I said. “Several, actually.”

“Oh, God, you’re pregnant.”

“Stop being an asshole. No, I’m not pregnant.”

“Spill it then. Tell me the whole deal.”

I did. It took nearly an hour, but I laid out everything. Jace, Eren, Nana’s secrets, witches—all of it. When I finished, I was panting like I’d run a marathon. God, Harley was gonna think I’d completely lost my mind. Heart racing, I waited for her to tell me she was calling a van full of guys who’d put me in a straitjacket.

“It kinda makes sense,” she finally said.

“Wait, what makes sense?” I asked, aghast.

“All of it. The stuff this Tinsley person said, and the story Jace told you. By the way, is he hot? He sounds hot.”

A headache was forming behind my eyes. I rubbed my forehead with my free hand. “Yeah, he’s attractive,” I admitted wearily. “But that’s beside the point. You really believe all this witch stuff? I’ve never known you to fall for anything like this. You don’t believe in ghosts or aliens, so why do you believe this?”

“I’ve known you and your grandmother for a long time. There were always some weird things I never mentioned, but hearing this makes them a little less confusing. How young your grandmother looked, for one. She always looked more like an older mom than a grandmother when we were growing up. Once when I was over at your place visiting, I asked her what her secret was. She said ‘magic.’ She said it with a total straight face, like she was telling me the weather outside, and part of me believed it. When the cancer really took hold was when she truly started aging.

“I never said anything because of how distraught you were about her being sick. I don’t know if you ever noticed it, but there was always this weird energy in your house, too. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but every time your grandmother was around, I felt it.”

All I could do was listen as my best friend told me she was totally fine with me being a witch. Any hesitation or doubt I had was fading away like mist under the noon sun. The crystal at my neck tingled with power as though it wanted to emphasize my newfound belief.

“What the hell do I do, Harley?”

“I think you should read those books the witch chick gave you. I doubt it matters what order or she would have specified, right?”

“True.”

“Read them, and then go talk to this Jace guy again. I think he has to be the guy your grandmother was referring to in that letter. Unless you’ve had any other tall, dark, and handsome men hanging around your cabin.”

“I haven’t,” I admitted. “But, ugh, he’s such an ass most of the time.”

“You aren’t always a saint yourself, sweetie.”

“Hey!”

“Love you, bye.”

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