Page 111 of Cursed Bonds: An Alpha's Destiny

“I don’t want people getting hurt or dying because of me.”

Jace covered my hand with his. “This came to a head because of you, but it’s not your fault. This thing has been brewing for years. It’s about Eren’s disrespect for his pack, the hierarchy, and our rules and laws. He pushes everything to the limit for his gain. Everyone knew it, but we always looked the other way because it was always Eren being Eren. Deep down, most of us hoped he’d grow up one day and sort himself out. All this?” He waved his other hand around. “It shows that he never will and that he’s a danger to not only us, but his own pack. He has to be dealt with before he goes even further.”

“I don’t even want to think about what he might try next,” Waylan said. “The fake fire and kidnapping you is the most blatantly unlawful shit I’ve ever heard of an alpha doing, honestly. It would have been less of a slap in the face if he’d amassed his whole pack for a full frontal assault.”

All this fighting and squabbling. If it went down the way Jace and Waylan said, it would get ugly. And then I’d be sitting here, doing nothing, like some Helen of Troy. If I wanted to help, I’d need to figure out how.

I was an eclectic witch. Tinsley told me that meant I could master any single type of magic I wanted and use others. That being said, I still didn’t…

A new idea sprang to mind. There were dozens of shifters who could fight. They didn’t need another warrior, even if she was a witch. What they needed was someone who could actually make a difference to the innocent people who might be hurt by all this.

“Why are you smiling?” Jace asked.

Snapped out of my reverie, I jerked my head up, my smile widening. “I think I finally know what kind of witch I want to be.”

Chapter 4

Jace

The next morning, Waylan dropped by as I was making breakfast. “Morning,” he said.

“Shhh.” I put my finger to my lips and pointed at the ceiling. “Kirsten’s still asleep.”

He held up his hands in surrender. “Sorry.”

I went back to mixing the pancake batter.

Waylan glanced across the counter and shook his head. “What the hell is that?” he asked. He pointed to the large glass pitcher-like object filled with dark brown liquid. I felt the heat rise to my cheeks, but didn’t answer.

“Are you making fucking cold brew?” Waylan asked. “What’s next? Are you gonna go to the mall and hang out with your friends to talk about homework and boys?”

“Would you shut up?” I hissed. “Get the bacon out of the fridge.”

Kirsten came down not long after. She ate, then headed back upstairs to shower and change before we headed to the airport to pick up her friend, Harley. Her flight was due to land at noon. Waylan and I sat on the porch, waiting for her to come back down. He drank his disgusting instant coffee, and I sipped at my own. He could make fun of me all he liked, but I knew how to make damn good coffee.

Waylan drummed his fingers on his knee. “At what point are you gonna tell Kirsten the truth?”

“What truth? What do you mean?”

He rolled his eyes. “Don’t play dumb with me. You know what I mean.”

I was pretty sure that I did, but I didn’t feel like admitting it. “Actually, I don’t know what you mean.”

“How long until Kirsten catches on to the fact that she’s not living with you just for her safety? You know we could have guys sitting in her driveway twenty-four-seven. That, along with her ward, would be more than enough to keep Eren and his goons away.”

All I could do was shrug. He wasn’t wrong. If I really wanted to, I could have made her cabin just as safe as my house. If I did that, though, I wouldn’t have her close. With her here, we might repair our relationship quicker. Was I being a hundred percent honest with her? No. But in my book, it was more like a white lie than actual deception.

“Things ended badly the other day,” I finally said. “The last thing I want is to try and force her to reconsider her relationship with me until we’re on good terms again. What better way to get on good terms than to live under the same roof?”

“I’m not judging,” Waylan said.

“Sounds a lot like you are,” I snapped.

“No, no, I was only asking if you were going to own up.”

“I have to make things right,” I said, still skirting the subject. “I want her to know she can trust me. And regardless of how safe I could make her cabin, you and I both know I wouldn’t sleep well knowing she’s all by herself there every night.”

“Fair point,” Waylan said.

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