Page 41 of Blood Freed

14

Chapter 14

Mia

The morning sun filtersthrough the crystal-laden branches, each gem humming with an unsettling resonance. I press my fingers against my temples, trying to ease the throbbing headache.

“Mia.” Gran’s voice cuts through my thoughts. I don’t turn around. If she looks into my face, she’ll know what I’ve done.

“Just getting some fresh air,” I mumble, but my voice sounds weak even to my own ears.

“Your aura is black as pitch, darling.” Gran moves closer, her cream-colored shawl trailing behind her. “The crystals are practically screaming with dark energy.”

“Oh?” I say. “I hadn’t noticed anything.”

Gran puts her hand on my shoulder. Her sharp intake of breath tells me immediately that she’s seen through me.

“Oh, Mia… What have you done?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Gran,” I lie. Of course I know. And I’m sure it’s oozing from me.

“Mia Blackwood.” Her voice is sharp, her fine, ageless features haughty. “Do you think I don’t know dark magic when I see it?”

I grip the garden bench in front of me, the rough wood digging into my palms. “I had to reach him, Gran. He’s blocking me out completely.”

“But…blood magic?” Her voice drops to a whisper. The crystal nearest to us lets out a high-pitched whine, as if emphasizing her point.

“Does it matter?” I mutter.

Gran circles around to face me. Her eyes are dark as jade as she takes in my appearance. “You’re as pale as death itself. Your hands are trembling.” She reaches out, touching my cheek. “And you’re ice cold. Of course it matters!”

A surge of defensive anger rises in my chest. “What choice did I have? He’s refusing to let me in, refusing to fight for himself. They’re going to execute him for crimes he didn’t commit!”

“Blood magic is dark magic. And dark magic is forbidden for a reason, Mia.” Gran’s voice carries centuries of wisdom and warning. “It corrupts everything it touches. Look what it did to Heath.”

The crystals pulse with darker energy at the mention of his name, and I flinch.

Gran’s cool hand presses against my forehead, and I can’t help but lean into her touch. The pounding in my head intensifies.

“You’re burning up,” she mutters, concern etching deeper lines around her eyes. Her fingers brush my hair back from my neck, and she freezes. “Mia…”

“What?” The word comes out hoarse. My hand flies to my neck where Gran is staring, and I feel two distinct puncture marks. “That’s…that’s impossible.”

“Let me see.” Gran tilts my head, examining the bite marks more closely. My mind spins, trying to make sense of it. The dream had felt real – so viscerally real – but it was just a dream.

Wasn’t it?

“I don’t understand,” I say, my voice shaking. “It was just blood magic to reach him in my dreams. He…he did bite me, but it wasn’t real. It couldn’t have been real.”

Gran’s expression shifts from concern to something deeper – recognition, maybe? “Blood bonds transcend physical boundaries, especially when dark magic is involved. The same thing happened to your sister.”

“Rowan?” I blink in surprise. “What do you mean?”

“She and Darick would meet in dreams, and the marks would manifest in the physical world.” Gran’s fingers trace the punctures on my neck. “The bond doesn’t recognize the difference between dream and reality, especially when magic is involved. It’s one of the reasons blood magic is so dangerous – it blurs the lines between what should and shouldn’t be possible.”

Gran’s fingers trace the marks on my neck, her touch gentle but her expression troubled. “There’s something you need to understand about our family, Mia. About the Blackwoods.”

“What about us?” The crystals pulse with a darker energy, matching my unease.

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