Page 70 of Magic Hunted
“That’s another lie. You’re deceiving the panthers now. Swapping one lie for another,” Jarom said.
Weariness crushed my shoulders and I was suddenly so, so tired. “That’s not a lie. I swear to you.”
“How do you explain Changing into a wolf? How do you explain forcing the Change as though we were mates?” Eike said. Savvas’ muscles jumped and Dias took a step forward.
There had always been a seed of doubt about who I was in Alerick and Eike’s minds. Titan’s magic has only gone so far. I’d been afraid every second they’d discover the truth. I’d worked on Jarom the most. Making him believe something that wasn’t true, until he’d fought with his bond brothers to bond to me.
My fingers subconsciously went to the studs, brushing their familiar, hateful smooth ridges. “Titan spelled me to Change. One touch from any of you triggered it. My Change was out of my control. If it makes you feel any better, it was excruciating. Unnatural.” My body wasn’t meant to shift into a wolf. The magic had forced every broken bone, every snapped tendon, but Titan’s spell had been too powerful. Tremors of it echoed in the back of my mind.
“And now you’re a panther. Is it the same trick?” Alerick said.
Ashir peered down at me over his shoulder, his eyes glowing with his panther. “There is no trick. She’s a panther and our mate. There’s no doubt.”
I hadn’t told them what I’d done to the wolves. This was a complete surprise to them, and yet they didn’t hesitate to back me up. I was lucky. So, so lucky. I gripped Ashir’s hand, linking our fingers.
“How can you be so sure? She’s a master of lies and deception,” Jarom said.
Dias’ growl thrummed across the clearing, making Alerick’s muscles swell as he fought his Change. “We’ve come in peace, but that won’t stop me ripping out your throat if you don’t listen to what Haera has to say.” His voice was low and tight. He didn’t bother covering the threat he was more than ready to serve.
I put my palm on his biceps to calm him. “It’s okay, Dias. I deserve it.”
“There isn’t a person on this planet who hasn’t had to do something they don’t want to because of The Six. Jarom should understand that. Esoti is no different than Titan,” Dias said. “Or are you too weak to admit that, alpha?”
“That’s enough!” Alerick’s voice boomed. He clenched his jaw and his dark gaze pierced me. “How can we believe you?”
My breath rushed out. He didn’t say ‘attack’ or ‘get the hells out of my territory’. He was listening. I grabbed onto that thread of hope.
“We know through our bond. There can be no lies between mates,” Ashir said. Ourpartialbond I would rectify as soon as humanly possible.
“You’re bonded?” Alerick said. His gaze ran across the four of us, at our linked hands and the protective shield of their bodies around mine.
Titan’s magic had only been enough to confuse them. I’d Changed into a wolf, but the most important part of the bond was missing. It had only made the wolves doubt themselves. I’d deceived them in the possible worst way. I'd lain awake at night for months, not able to sleep because of the guilt, thinking I should have found a way to tell them the truth. That some way I could have made it less terrible.
“Soul-lights don’t lie,” Savvas said.
“You…feel her soul-light?” Jarom’s arms dropped from where they’d been tightly crossed over his chest. That was the one thing missing when I tricked the wolves. I didn’t feel their soul-lights, nor they mine. There was no magic strong enough to fake the bond, and I’d never known until now. Probably neither did Titan, because the bond wasn’t made from magic.
“She’s our center. The heart of our bond. There’s no lie,” Ashir said. I felt his contentment, his intense satisfaction, thrum through our bond.
“I tried to make amends for what I did, by giving you information I’d discovered about The Six, about their need to Conclave every year,” I said.
“Impossible. Our spies brought us that information,” Jarom said. His eyes bored into me, hard and disbelieving.
“And who do you think gave the information to them? I was Titan’s spy, after all,” I said.
“Many wolves died to bring us that information,” Eike said. He slowly descended the steps to stand next to Alerick on the grass.
A stone expanded in my chest. “I know they did. I saved those I could. The ones who came back to you were the few I managed to free. I gave them whatever information I had, knowing they’d pass it to you,” I said.
“Yousaved them?” Jarom said. I understood his shock. His disbelief. They wouldn’t have known who passed them the information because I’d been careful to hide my identity.
“They never knew it was me. I protected my identity.” Even when they’d begged for my name.
I blinked back the pressure under my eyes, and the rush of memories that assaulted me. Broken bodies. People begging. The look of surprised hope when they thought all was lost and I helped them instead of inflicting more pain. I’d taken them out of the stronghold the same way I’d helped Zahra.
That little room just above the sewers wasn’t only my safe place. It was where I’d dug a hole through the wall to access the tunnels beneath the stronghold. “It was the best I could do.”
Savvas kissed my temple, no doubt feeling my thread of heaviness. “We knew the conditions Titan made us live under. Haera survived Titan and still saved lives. We’re on the same side.”
