Page 31 of Luna Ascending

“That's a shame, Aaron son of Connell, alpha-heir of the Fenrir Watch, I quite fancy you...But...” she sighs “if it must be all business, I suggest you start by getting your beta out of a forced mating party.”

She nods to the booth Tavey is holed up in.

I spare her only the briefest of alarmed looks before diving towards the booth. Pulling the curtain back a pungent aroma hits me and quickly dissipates into the open bar. Tavey is slumped forward on the table and with her back to me, on the phone, is our informant. She sounds distressed.

“I don't know why it didn't work” she hisses into her phone “I did it exactly as you said... he's had the draught, he's wearing the amulet, and” her voice breaks “ I tried to mate-mark him, like you told me to... it... it didn't work!”

I freeze, trying to stay silent, I need to hear as much of this as possible.

“Please... please don't” she sobs “it's not my fault! You were the ones who didn't know he was already mated.”

The young she-wolf halts suddenly, sensing my presence. She turns slowly towards me muttering “I had no choice”.

In a flash she leaps across the table and slips past me with a screech heading out into the main bar. I give Tavey a quick shake and he groans. At least he's fucking alive.

I turn to go after the she-wolf, only to see her face to face with a bouncer crying her best tears. She jabs her finger in our direction, and the bouncer glowers at us. I've no doubt whatever fanciful tale she's just created is going to have him delay us significantly, perhaps via the back exit.

She runs out the bar and I give up the idea of following as the bouncer stomps over. I can talk us out of this, but not before that bitch has well and truly escaped. Glancing around for the vamp, I realise she's vanished.

∞∞∞

Five hours, and a long drive later, and Tavey eventually comes around. The sloppy sod remembers none of it. He looks surprised every-time someone takes five minutes to explain what happened, again. That amnesia better wear off quickly – especially before Liz comes looking for answers!

Now that we know what happened, it's pretty logical to conclude the Coven were feeding the she-wolf titbits of information that we could test out, drawing us to her as a reliable informant, while sustaining little actual damage themselves.

We let our guard down around her enough that they could put the second part of their fucking hideous plan into action.

If they'd succeeded in mating him with that bitch of a she-wolf, Tavey would have been under the Coven's thrall. A serious threat to a bonded-mate is enough to make most shifters do your bidding – he'd have been their pawn.

When I recall Tavey weaving across the bar floor with a second round of drinks I could fucking kick myself. I should have known something was off. The spell the Coven had given the she-wolf was so potent that, for a few minutes, he believed she was his mate. It was designed to force his wolf to accept the mating bond, and to make them mark each other – bonding them together as a pair, forever.

Thank fuck I spoke to Tavey last week - he admitted Liz was his fated-mate. He'd offered to give up his beta position, which was never fucking happening. I'm not loosing my beta just because Liz isn't a wolf-shifter; at least I can learn from my father's mistakes. Who the hell finds a fated-mate nowadays anyway?! It's something to bloody celebrate, not decry.

Thankfully the two of them couldn't keep their paws off each other after our chat. He and Liz got the dirty on and marked each other, well before the little she-wolf came along. His wolf, although tricked initially, simply couldn't accept another mate mark; the Coven's spell was no match for a fated-mate bond.

It was a very fucking close call. But hell, is Tavey going to have some explaining to do to Liz. I donotwant to be anywhere near them when she sees the she-wolf's bite on his neck. It'll fade, but I wouldn't bet on whether it, or Liz's anger, will go first.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Freya's POV

Being so blissfully painless I fell into a near coma-like sleep last night, waking energised and ready to explore more about myself. A quick casting session later and I'm virtually skipping out the door to meet Liz.

I'm in such a rush I nearly forget to put my jewellery back on. Slipping the engagement ring on my finger I let out a groan -what on earth would Marc have thought if he'd come home to the ring on the counter?!

Arriving at Liz's I'm nervous – it's not the first time I'm meeting Liz and Tavey as a couple, but I worry every bloody time. Maybe he still thinks badly of me for the whole fiasco with Aaron and Marc? Maybe he's just being affable for Liz' sake? For some reason it really matters what he thinks of me.

Tavey puts me at ease quickly and the relaxed banter we share flows naturally. We really do have one of those connections where it feels like we've known each other for ever. It's great watching Liz and him interact too- it's obvious they're an awesome match. They just 'fit'.

She's busy giving him shit for some girl who came onto him strongly and he has the good grace to look ashamed, while still being adamant he did nothing to encourage it. It's obvious Liz doesn't really think he did either – but she's still not fucking letting him off with it. I grin to myself, a little happy glow inside.

It's great he's here today; I can pick both their brains about 'otherworldly' things. Except, it's my world now. It's so confusing!

Tavey's a born teacher – he takes time to explain things that are probably second nature to someone born into this. He's way more patient than Liz, who has a tendency to skip over things and roll her eyes when I'm being slow. He also knows a lot more about witches than Liz, so it's super helpful.

The very fact that being a witch was genetic had somehow escaped me until now and I exchange a look with Liz. She knows enough about my family to know none of them really seem like likely suspects.

Between the three off us we dissect the possibilities – my alcoholic mother, and gambling addicted father – ruling them both out in turn. Neither my tarty sister or drug dabbling brother have ever said or done anything that makes me think they share this witching gene either.

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