Page 26 of The Witch and The Blood Oath

As he studied my unnaturally bright gaze, horror lined his face. When he looked at Freya, there was true concern shining in his eyes.

“Frey,” he whispered, “what have you done?”

Before she could answer, he turned to walk away.

“I-I can’t be here,” he said. “I can’t know about any of this—the Leaders—”

“The High Witch already knows,” Freya explained in a rush. “It’s why we’re here. She needs us to track the owner of this pendant and bring it to her. It’s our shot at redemption.”

Ryder laughed humorlessly. “You’ve got to know this is some elaborate punishment! A trap. None of the Leaders will allow—” Ryder glared at me in disgust. “Thatthingto live.”

“He’s not a thing,” Freya argued. “He’s still him. I just saved him. You didn’t even notice his transformation at first.”

“Well,” he argued, “I was a little taken off-guard by the amateur, woodsy porn you guys were rehearsing for when I got here.”

Freya stepped closer to him, out of my reach.

“You know me,” she whispered. “I’m-I’m not Josephine. I wouldn’t have tried to change a human. I changed ahunter,who is also the descendant of a witch. I brought to life the magic already in his blood, and I wouldn’t have done it if it meant hurting anybody.”

Ryder’s face could only be described as heartbroken.

“She’s going to hurtyou, Frey,” Ryder countered. “You’re the one who gets hurt in this.”

As Ryder voiced my greatest fear, I grimaced. He met my gaze over Freya’s shoulder and snarled.

“You should do us all a favor,” he growled, “and die. Like you should’ve the night of the Bloodmoon.”

“I tried,” I whispered.

“Not hard enough.”

“Ryder,” Freya interrupted. “That pendant led us to you for a reason. Whether you want to be or not, you’re involved in this.”

He studied our single clue again, and that dreamy look returned.

“Something about it calls to you,” Freya observed.

Ryder sighed. “It’s familiar, but I know I’ve never seen it before.”

He ran a hand down his face and looked away. He paced the small space between trees, occasionally pausing to glare atme. For once, I couldn’t bring myself to argue with him. He was right. I was the reason we were in this mess.

After a while, he said, “I’m not the one the High Witch is after. You know that, right?”

Slowly, Freya nodded. I did too, not that Ryder cared about my opinion of him.

“I have to help you find her—it,” he quickly corrected and nodded at the pendant. “Whoever that belongs to. I want to know why it’s attached to me or why the High Witch wants it. I don’t have a good feeling about any of this.”

“Neither do I,” Freya agreed.

“But you don’t have a choice,” Ryder said. He glanced at me then back to Freya. “Do you regret it?”

“No,” she answered evenly.

Her answer chafed my guilt, but I was selfish enough to feel relief too.

“Good,” he said with a sly smile. “Then you really wouldn’t be the girl I used to know.”

Chapter Eight

---