Page 54 of Beta Hybrid

‘You left me. When I was a baby.’

Sadness cuts my father’s face. ‘If you remained here, you would be cursed. To never age. This is no place for a child. I’m—we’re—so sorry. We are only allowed to leave the Hunt for special occasion, but here…’

My mother grasps my hand. ‘You weren’t meant to be here, my girl. You were meant to find your mate, to live out your life. We will always be looking out for you.’

I shake my head. ‘I don’t want to leave you again.’

Cai sets a hand on my back. ‘They’ll visit, right? As soon as we settle down, we can—how do we contact you?’

Andrea unclasps something from around her neck. My father smiles. ‘Your dad gave this to me on our wedding day. A lapis pendant. Grasp it and think of us, and the twin’—she points to its twin pendant on my father’s wrist, — will illuminate. We will come to you.’

They both crush me into a hug, and when they finally let go, Cai wraps his arms around me.

‘How do we get to Gaia from here?’

‘The Wild Hunt is one of the only ways to get to her favourite place,’ Aldrich says. ‘Yggdrasil. The oldest tree on earth. Divina needs to find it with her mind as my sister will have shielded it from view.’ He sets a hand on her shoulder.

Divina closes her eyes, then a pulse of air blasts out, rippling her black hair. ‘Got it.’

We reform our circle, this time without my mother. I stare at my parents as long as I can.

‘We will miss you.’ Andrea smiles. My father holds her close. The tears that spill down their cheeks sparkle like diamonds.

I smile and nod, unable to speak. I grip Cai’s hand—as well as Divina’s—and we start to move. The Dark Witch’s eyes are solid black, glazed over with concentration, connected to this old tree where the Origin of Witches is waiting.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Zenna

For the second time, my parents let me go, but this time I know more. I don’t have a chance to think much about it though, because we hurtle through the sky, clouds, and wind scraping over my face and through my hair. At least one of us was screaming, and Cai was cursing like I’ve never imagined down the bond.

We land with a thud on soft, green grass. The force of the impact knocks the breath out of my lungs, but I’m grateful nothing feels like it broke on impact. I try to inhale as I get to my hands and knees. ‘Are you okay?’ I rasp.

Cai’s eyes brighten, his wolf coming to the surface. ‘I am never doing that again.’ He gets shakily to his feet, hauling me up with him. ‘Your parents are coming to us for the holidays.’ He attempts a smile, but it doesn’t hold. He holds me tight, still cursing down the bond.

‘Everyone okay?’ Aldrich seems to be the only one who landed on his feet.

Reagan shifts, lets out a howl and starts running around.

For the first time, I look around. We’re on an open, grassy expanse which stretches as far as the eye can see—

‘Pup—’ Aldrich grabs Reagan by the scruff of the neck, causing the little wolf to turn on him, baring his teeth. ‘Hush. Look.’ He holds Reagan over the edge. Of the cliff he nearly ran off.

We all approach cautiously, our mouths dropping.

‘Mother likes it here,’ Divina says wistfully. ‘No intruders. No one else.’

Yggdrasil, the oldest tree on earth, is perched on the opposite side of the cliff, its roots dug deep into a mountain. Gazing up, branches pierce the clouds high above.

Don’t—I warn Cai not to look down, but it’s too late. He already gazed into the dizzying chasm whose bottom is too deep to see. He turns and empties his stomach onto the grass.

‘You could have warned us,’ I snap to Divina and Aldrich.

‘Forgive me,’ he says drily. ‘See that cliff?’ Aldrich points over the edge. ‘Don’t run off it.’

‘Give me the pup,’ Vale growls. Reagan is still thrashing in the Origin’s grasp.

Aldrich hands him over. Reagan calms in Vale’s grasp, but continues growling.

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