Page 50 of Make Me

Mylo looked among all three of them with a grim look on his face. “Let’s go then. We don’t have any time to waste.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

BETHANY

Luckily for them, Mylo knew of a hidden portal near the border to the Elven Forest that would take them to the other side of the witches' territory by the Fae lands. The trees were dull and lifeless, indicating the portal had been dormant for a long time. Zack frowned as he looked at it.

“I’m not sure I’m going to be able to activate this.” He bit his bottom lip, and Bethany forced herself to stay focused. Ever since she’d marked them, a low level of arousal seemed to simmer in the bonds. “It’s going to take more magic than usual if it’s been dormant for so long.”

“Just try,” Cody urged. “Or we’ll have to travel around the Elven Forest and backtrack through the shifter territory, and I would rather not do that.”

The route would be longer but also Bethany would be willing to bet that Cody wanted to put off their confrontation with their parents until after they made sure Claire was safe.

Zack nodded and widened his stance as he called up his magic. She could feel it down their bond as he gathered his magic. It was a weird sensation but not unlike how Bethany felt when she started her shift. Zack’s hands glowed brightly as his magic built. It was more magic than she had ever seen him gather before, but he didn’t show any signs of physical strain. When the ball of magic was the size of a large watermelon, he pushed it into the portal. The portal drank up the magic greedily, glowing brightly before settling to a shimmer. It was active.

“You did it.” Bethany smiled at him, squeezing his arm.

Zack frowned at his hands. “I did. It wasn’t hard, either.”

“Our bonds,” Mylo said. “They strengthen our abilities.”

Did that mean her lioness would be stronger?

“We can play with it later,” Cody said impatiently. “Let’s get going.”

Zack grabbed Bethany’s hand as they walked through the portal. The warmth of his hand in hers was a comforting weight as they pushed through the magic of the portal. Cody and Mylo exited close on their heels, and they stared out at the grassy plains that separated them from the Fae lands.

“We’re going to have to run,” Cody said, his eyes darting sideways to Zack.

“You can use your magic,” Mylo told Zack. “Your wind magic can help you run faster. The rest of us can shift.”

“How do I do that?” Zack asked.

Mylo quickly showed him how to use the wind to propel his stride, and Zack caught on quickly. Bethany dropped her pack on the ground and called up her lioness to shift. The transition happened seamlessly, and Bethany dropped to the ground on all four paws. She shook out her fur. Now that she had shifted, she felt what Mylo had been talking about. Her lioness did feel stronger, like she could go forever without getting tired.

Cody’s wolf nudged her shoulder, and she turned and ran her head along his neck. He nuzzled where his mark was, and she pulled back and flashed a bit of fang at him.

“None of that or they would get distracted.”

“Fine, but after we’re done saving the Realm again.” She heard Cody’s voice in her head, and she jumped with surprise. She must have sent her thoughts to him accidentally. She had forgotten that when they cemented the bond, they formed a mental connection as well.

“Told you we were stronger together.” Mylo rubbed up against her in his panther form.

“Yeah, yeah, you all can gloat later,” Bethany said. “Now, we need to get to Claire.”

Zack helped secure their packs to their animal forms, and they took off running towards the Fae lands. An hour into their run, Bethany lifted her head as her ears perked up. Faint sounds of a battle filtered through the air. They were close!

They crested the next hill and skidded to a stop. Zack barely caught himself from plowing into the back of a witch fighting a Fae warrior. The witch turned, ready to throw a spell at Zack. Cody leaped and ripped the witch’s throat out.

Zack held out his hands to the Fae warrior when he dropped into a fighting stance. “Easy, we’re friends of Claire’s. What’s going on?”

The Fae warrior relaxed slightly as recognition dawned in his eyes. “They came out of nowhere. Most are the escaped prisoners, but some of them are different. We’ve sent out the signal for help, but…”

A familiar rumble of the earth had Bethany’s head jerking around. It looked like Holly and her mates had arrived.

“Holly’s here,” she sent to Zack.

“Looks like reinforcements have arrived.” Zack pointed to Holly and her mates, who were at the center of the fighting. “And we’re here to help. We’ll push in from this direction and pin them in. You grab a few others and flank them on that side.”

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