“Amazing!” Allegra gushed. Her body felt utterly amazing, as though she’d stepped out of the most luxurious bath and into a sauna. She didn’t feel the cold, didn’t feel anything except contentment.
“Come away with me.” Caspian whispered the request in to her ear, his voice deep and delicious.
“I can’t.” Allegra glanced sadly down at the ground, the moment passing and the heat leaving her body.
“Why not?” Caspian looked hurt.
“Because I’m a witch.”
“So?”
“It means I can’t leave my coven. I’m supposed to be chosen to marry some warlock who lives in the village. I can’t leave,” Allegra stressed, aware that she was trying to convince herself as much as him.
“Why not?” Caspian challenged. “I know plenty of witches who left their covens.”
“How is that possible?” Allegra demanded, placing her hands upon her hips. “Witches who leave the coven are exiled.”
“From other witches, yeah, but not from everyone,” Caspian stated factually.
If what he was saying was true, then perhaps he knew Uma. Allegra was opening her mouth to ask if he’d ever met her sister when a piercing howl broke through the air around them.
“I need to go.” Caspian turned to her, his eyes suddenly wide and alert. “You really should run away with me,” he added, staring at her, his body tense and stoic.
“I—” Allegra wanted to say that she couldn’t but if other witches had fled the coven, why couldn’t she?
“You’ll think about it?” Caspian brightened as he sensed her wavering. He held her hands in his though his gaze kept nervously darting around the space behind her.
“I’ll think about it.” Allegra smiled shyly. Caspian planted a parting kiss upon her lips before darting off to the east. She watched the space where he had just been, savoring his scent, which still clung to the air.
Already she felt adrift in his absence, a part of her having gone with him. Placing a hand upon her chest, Allegra looked to the east. Her heart kept a fervent beat. Was Caspian her destiny?
***
“Apparently the choosing will be tomorrow night.” Iris could barely contain the news as she ran over to Allegra as she re-entered the village, her cheeks still flush from her encounter with Caspian.
“What?” Allegra shook her head in a daze. All she could think about was his skin pressed against hers, the sensation of his kiss lingering on her lips.
“The choosing, they’ve brought it forward. It will be tomorrow night. Can you believe it? One sleep until we discover who we are destined to be with!” Iris was almost giddy with excitement.
“Tomorrow?” The word pulled Allegra in to the present moment, her liaison in the woods evaporating from her thoughts.
“Yes, isn’t it exciting?” Iris gushed, twirling round. “I keep wondering who I am destined to be with,” she added as she coyly glanced around the square at some of the younger lingering males.
Allegra shook her head. She already knew who she was destined to be with. She had felt it. She was destined to be with Caspian. She was certain of it. If the elders chose anyone else for her, it would be a lie.
“I can’t go through with the choosing,” Allegra hissed anxiously at her friend, lowering her voice.
“Not this again.” Iris rolled her eyes. “I know you think it’s an archaic tradition but we all have to go through it.” She assessed Allegra with disproval and then noticed that her red curls were wilder than usual.
“You’re a mess!” Iris exclaimed. “What were you doing out in the woods? You’ll need to straighten yourself up before one of the elders spots you!”
Allegra quickly ran a hand through her hair, though it did little to tame her curls, which were knotted wildly around her and full of twigs and leaves. She’d been so lost to Caspian that she’d not cared about her appearance.
Iris started to skip toward the central hall where the younger witches congregated on an evening. Allegra quickly caught up with her and grabbed her arm, pulling her back.
“I really can’t go through with the choosing,” she repeated, with more urgency this time.
“Allegra,” Iris sighed, turning to face her friend. “This is a part of who we are. You need to embrace your witch heritage and stop fighting it.”
“But the choosing will be pointless for me!” Allegra implored.
“Why?” Iris looked bewildered by her friend’s fervent outburst.
“Because I’ve already found the man I’m destined to be with.”
As Iris processed the words, her skin paled so that she became almost translucent. “You’ve been with a man?” she asked, the words whispered.
“Yes,” Allegra admitted, “and he’s the one, Iris, I just know it.”
Iris’ elfin features contorted with concern as she pulled Allegra away from the village square toward the relative seclusion of the trees that surrounded their home. Away from prying eyes and ears, she gave Allegra her full attention.
“How have you met a man?” she asked contritely. “You know we’re forbidden to date.”
“It just sort of happened,” Allegra explained, her gaze flickering toward the woods, where Caspian had held her in his arms and made her a woman.
“In the woods!” Iris exclaimed, following Allegra’s dreamy gaze. “Only mystical creatures lurk in those woods!”
“No, he’s a man, from the human village.”
“Then he’s wandered an awfully long way from home,” Iris said dubiously.
“He’s the one, Iris, I just know it. That’s why I can’t go through the choosing ritual.”
Iris listened, all the while frowning and nodding her head. When Allegra finished speaking, she glanced nervously at the village beyond, which emitted an orange glow into the dark night, fueled by the burning lamps scattered around the main square.
“We have to go through the choosing,” she whispered fretfully. “You know this.”
“But don’t you see, I can’t.”
Iris feared the woods, as most witches did. It was either an incredibly brave or incredibly mad man who would risk wandering amongst mystical creatures so far from the safety of his own village.
“If you refuse to partake in the choosing, the elders will banish you,” Iris warned her friend.
“I know.” Allegra nodded solemnly.
“You cannot want that fate for yourself,” Iris reached out and held Allegra’s hands. “Please, Allegra, listen to me. You’re my best friend. I don’t want to see you cast out into the darkness.”
“But he says I can run away with him, live in his village,” Allegra explained, her eyes bright with the possibility of it all.
“No witch can exist among mortals, you know that,” Iris said warningly.
Allegra ignored the comment. She was destined to be with Caspian, her heart knew so. It didn’t matter what anyone else said.
“Just go through the choosing ritual tomorrow,” Iris urged. “You never know, you might be pleasantly surprised by the elder’s selection.”
“No, I’ve found my other,” Allegra insisted.
“Please, try and see sense, for me,” Iris implored. “You cannot put your future in the hands of some strange man you met in the woods. Do you have any idea how crazy it all sounds? You belong here, Allegra, amongst witches.”
“Do I?” Allegra asked, her eyes sparkling with emotion. She gestured to her mane of red hair. Aesthetically, she didn’t appear to belong within the coven.
“What matters isn’t how you look, it’s what’s in your heart,” Iris told her sincerely.
“He says he knows other witches, witches who left their covens and live alongside men.”
“There are no witches who live alongside men,” Iris said gravely. “Do not entrust your heart to this stranger, Allegra. I fear he is not what he seems. Go through the choosing, embrace who you are, I beg you.”
Allegra listened but knew she couldn’t do as Iris desired.
She felt like a caged bird who had flown free and now desperately wanted to return to the open air. Caspian was her destiny, he had to be. She couldn’t go through with the choosing ritual, no matter how dire the consequences for her objection.
TO BE CONTINUED IN BOOK TWO: By the Light of the Moon - Volume 2
***
By the Light of the Moon
***
Synopsis
Allegra learns that her new love, Caspian, is more than just a man—he is a werewolf. Witches of her coven and werewolves are sworn enemies. Now, if she decides to be with the man she loves, she risks not just defying her community but casting herself out from the witches indefinitely.
Wolves and witches are not supposed to mix. It is written in the stars that a union of their kinds would be tainted by danger and despair. Does Allegra believe the prophecy or does she follow her own heart?
***
Caspian’s heart was still racing when he returned home. Members of his village were already pacing around, eagerly awaiting his return.
“Where have you been?” Caspian’s Uncle Theo demanded.
“Out in the woods,” Caspian explained, still slightly breathless. His Uncle Theo paced toward him and inhaled deeply.
“You’ve been with a woman,” he stated accusingly.
Caspian dismissed the accusation with a flick of his hand. “I’ve been hunting,” he told the older man. “And I’m back now, ready for the run.”
The sky above them was graying. Soon it would succumb to the dense darkness of night, and the only light would come from the silver moon.
“You know how important our runs are,” Theo told his young nephew sternly.
Caspian nodded. “Of course, that’s why I hurried back.”
“Then let’s go prepare.”
Theo led a dozen men, young and old, away from the boundaries of the village and into a clearing within the forest. There, they stood in a circle and craned their necks to observe the moon, which had now appeared above them, brilliant and bright.
“Brothers, we meet again to pay homage to our keeper, our moon,” Theo addressed them all in a deep booming voice that carried off in to the night. “Let us run free as nature intended and embrace our heritage.”
Theo then began to howl at the moon, a long, mournful sound. Other voices joined, including Caspian’s, making the sound rise in pitch and intensity. As they each howled, they began to change.
Caspian had never enjoyed the ritual of the change. Being young, his body was not fully accustomed to it, so it often left him sore. First, all of his bones would break as he cried out, almost blinded by the pain. As his legs snapped, he dropped to the ground, as did the men around him as they were overcome by their own transformation.
Caspian screamed as his fingers extended in length and stretched into long, sharp talons. His feet did the same. Coarse, dark hair began to sprout along his body, which was now in an almost unrecognizable shape. After several minutes, even his face started to twist and realign itself so that Caspian no longer even looked like a man. In his place was a snarling beast; a wolf.
Once all members of the pack had transformed, they bounded off into the woods together, wild and free. Caspian relished these moments; they almost made the pain of turning bearable. Running in wolf form, he felt so alive. He sprinted after his pack, turning up the earth as he went, savoring the intoxicating scents that hung heavily in the night air.
The pack ran all over the forest, stopping only to either hunt or howl at the moon. They hunted pheasant, deer and even boars. Hunting as a pack meant that no animal was too great to take down.
Just before dawn broke on the horizon, the men returned to their village and the women anxiously waiting on them. Whilst the women turned to wolves too, they lacked the desire to hunt and feed on wild animals. Instead, they’d lie by the fire like domesticated dogs, waiting to return to human form.
So when the men returned, the women had already stoked a great fire in the center of town. The wolves, exhausted, would lay down beside it. When they awoke, they would be men once more, naked and shivering, grateful for the fire that burned before them.
Caspian heard the crackling of the fire as his eyes slowly slid open. Stretching out, he groaned as his limbs ached. The transformation always made them throb for days. But it was worth it.
A pile of clothes had been lovingly placed close by, which he quickly put on. He sat watching the fire as the members of his pack awoke and adjusted to their human form. Caspian liked how the fire warmed his face. He almost envied the female members of the pack who seemed to have more control in their feral state. He could happily spend an evening relaxing by the fire but hunting was fun, too. He loved the chase; there was something exhilarating about chasing down prey.
“Did you have fun, lad?” His Uncle Theo came and sat down beside him, offering him a fresh cup of tea that Caspian gratefully accepted. Being a wolf was thirsty work, and he could still taste the acrid sensation of raw meat within his mouth.
“Yeah.” Caspian nodded before greedily swilling down some of his tea. Raw meat only tasted good to wolves, not humans.
“I was worried you wouldn’t show,” his uncle admitted. “You’ve seemed distant lately.”
Caspian shifted uncomfortably. He always felt nervous when under the scrutiny of his elders.
“So are you going to tell me who the woman is?” his uncle asked, watching his nephew intently.
Caspian shook his head. “There is no woman.”
“Come now, lad, don’t think me a fool. You can trust me.”
Caspian’s Uncle Theo had been like a father to him ever since Caspian’s own dad was killed ten years ago by hunters. There were those who feared werewolves and mercilessly hunted them down when they were in their wolf form.
“I…” Caspian wasn’t sure what to say. Werewolves dated differently than humans. When a wolf mated, it was for life. As such, they were supposed to be extremely selective about who they chose. And Caspian had been.
He’d spotted Allegra in the woods several months ago and had been silently watching her ever since. He loved how in tune with nature she was, how kind spirited she seemed and how fire red her hair was. She seemed different than the other witches he’d seen, and he was instantly drawn to her. Every day, he traveled to the part of the woods near her coven to watch her partake in small spells, savoring every second he got to see her.
But then his feelings for her started to overwhelm him, and he knew she was his mate, his destiny and that he had to at least speak to her. After that first kiss, there was no doubt in his mind that he belonged with Allegra. As happy as he was, the news wouldn’t be welcomed among his pack. Young males were encouraged to mate with females of the pack to keep the blood line pure. Allegra was a witch. Their union would be regarded as tainted by many.
“She’s not from the pack, is she?” Theo asked, his voice low. He sensed his nephew’s apprehension in opening up to him.
Caspian shook his head, and his uncle sighed wearily.
“Are you bound?” he asked. Wolves were only bound to a mate once they had consummated their love; it was seen as the ultimate act of love and a declaration of lifelong intent.
Caspian gave a single nod.
“So you were certain then? That this woman is your one true mate?” Theo kept his voice low, not wanting other members of the pack to overhear their conversation. News of a mating beyond their own kind would not be welcomed amongst them.
“Without a doubt,” Caspian clarified. Even talking about Allegra made butterflies dance in his stomach. He wanted to return to wolf form and run free and bound around in the wilderness, lost to the happiness desperate to burst out from within him.
“So who is she?” Theo pressed. “Wolf or not, she will need to be introduced to the pack, you know that.”
Wolves were extremely social within their pack and would never cast a member out, even if they dishonored their kin. Family was important. Once a member of the pack
, you were a member for life.
“Her name is Allegra,” Caspian divulged.
Theo nodded. The name sounded human enough.
“And you met her by the human village?”
Caspian shook his head. “She’s not human,” he explained as the color drained from his uncle’s face.
“Then what is she?” Theo whispered, drawing closer to his nephew, his expression grave.
“She’s a witch,” Caspian stated.
“Within a coven?”
“Yes.”
Theo fell silent as he took in the revelation. “This is not good, you know that?” he eventually said, hissing the words at Caspian.
“I know, but I couldn’t help it. I was…drawn to her. She’s my destiny, Uncle Theo, I know it.”
Theo sighed wearily and looked down at the ground as if searching for some hidden answer. Wolves and witches were not supposed to mix. Wolves were a cursed race, and witches learned to bend magic to their will. Combining those two elements was dangerous. There was a prophecy that stated that a union between a witch and a wolf could result in a hybrid; a wolf who could yield magic, and they would be the most powerful mystical creature in the forest. To prevent that happening, the wolf and witch elders made a pact hundreds of years ago that their two kinds would never come together to mate.
Several times over the years, this pact had been broken. Whilst the wolves were tolerant of their own who had committed the folly, the witches were not. They killed the wayward witch, leaving a forlorn wolf who could never mate again and was resigned to a life of heartbroken solitude. Such acts of cruelty had pitted the wolves against the witches and rather than living side by side, the two kinds were now sworn enemies.
“You know the history we have with the witches,” Theo said stoically.
“Yes.” Caspian nodded. “That’s why I asked her to run away with me, so that she will be safe. I plan to collect her tonight.”
Wolf Tainted Union: The Complete Collection - 6-Book Bundle (Books 1-6) - A Paranormal Werewolf Shifter Romance Page 3
