by Roxie Ray
Her voice dropped low and menacing. “Witches are cursed to be alone. Love and feelings skew our magic. We become irrational.” After she sucked in a shuddering breath, she continued in the creepy, staring way. Almost in a trance, but not quite. “It’s why I try not to stay with a clan too long, to avoid attachments. This clan I’ve been with the longest.”
She looked sad. “I’ve been doing things that go far beyond what a clan’s witch should do because you have become my family. I don’t have a family other than the Bluewater clan. You fools are my brothers, my sisters. I find myself unable to remain neutral when I see you making dumb decisions.”
She narrowed her gaze on me. “I’ve seen two futures for you. If you walk away from Bri, you’re going to regret it. Deeply. I won’t force your hand, but I can’t remain neutral. You’re making a huge mistake.”
Then, Sammy smiled and patted my hand. “The other future…” The sun shone brighter on her face as if the atmosphere knew the other image in her head was idyllic. “It’s so beautiful it makes me envious. But it’s up to you and your decisions on whether that future will happen or if you’ll be empty and in pain for the rest of your life.”
She blinked and her eyes instantly looked like they always had. I began to think I’d imagined her strange look. I didn’t imagine how exhausted she looked. “Are you okay?” I asked. After that show she’d put on, I was afraid to speak loudly.
“I’m sorry I tricked you. There is no magic cure to speed up the breaking of the bond. If you truly intend to push Briana away, just keep doing what you’re doing and brace yourself. It’ll happen on its own, but the pain will be about five times worse than what that potion did to you.”
That was a truly terrifying thought. Almost enough to really make me rethink things. But I wouldn’t take a mate and child just to avoid some pain. I wasn’t that kind of man. I was doing this because it was the right thing to do to avoid emotional turmoil for all of us.
Sammy stood and looked down at me. “I really hope you’ll consider what I’ve said before making a concrete decision.”
I looked away to gather my thoughts and figure out how to put my emotions into words. When I looked back, she was gone. “Okay, then.”
I stood and went upstairs to scarf down some food before going down to cover my bar shift.
After I closed up the bar, I was pretty damn exhausted, but I needed time to fly. I hopped in my truck and headed for clan lands. My head and my heart were locked in a deep battle. Sammy’s words rang in my head, and I couldn’t shake them. Was she right? Maybe I was being a fool to question fate.
My father had run out on my mother, said he was too much of a rolling stone. It had devastated me and my mother, and she’d never truly gotten over it. She’d fallen head over heels in love with him, but he’d never loved her. Or me, apparently. I could count on one hand the number of times I’d seen him after that.
And then just out of high school, I’d gotten one of the girls in the clan pregnant.
I’d been ecstatic. Thrilled! Until she had the baby, and during the surge of hormones after, while I was holding my son, happier than I could remember being in my entire life, she’d dissolved into tears and told me he might not be mine.
We’d done the paternity test and sure enough, he wasn’t. She and her family left town with my son, the boy I still thought of as mine deep down in my heart, and I hadn’t seen them since.
I vowed not to ever get attached to a child again. What business did I have being a father anyway? My dad hadn’t given me any sort of example to go off of. I’d just screw up that adorable little girl and break Bri’s heart.
I shifted as soon as I got onto clan lands and flew over the trees in the dark. All the questions and uncertainties tossed through my mind, from picturing Anthony and Skye and how much they were in love, to how I felt holding their little babies.
And how it felt seeing my son taken out of my arms to go into someone else’s.
I flew until I was exhausted, then drove home. I had a long week ahead of me, lots of work to do and more than likely I’d be in a lot of pain.
I didn’t look forward to it at all.
Damn, I needed to blow off some steam. I got the Friday night shift covered, so I didn’t have to go in tonight, but the mating bond had been doing some weird things. As the week had progressed, it grew itchy.
The pain didn’t leave. The itch added to it made for one uncomfortable week. I grabbed my phone and texted my buddy, Wayne. Shooting range?
He was a personal chef and almost always busy, but I knew Anthony would say no, so I didn’t bother asking him. He liked being home with his mate and babies. Not that I blamed him. If I were free to be in his position, I’d probably feel the same way.
Divorcees and single women, especially older women and widows, loved calling Wayne to cater for them. I didn’t have high hopes that he’d be able to go, but he replied pretty quickly that he’d had a cancellation and would meet me there.
Nice. Shooting targets was a lot more fun than most people realized. Cathartic. I took another long, hot shower. The heat was all that helped my aching muscles. The tea Sammy gave me helped for a few hours after I took it, but once it wore off, I was back to the pain.
Right before I walked out the door, I gulped down a scalding hot cup of the tea and put extra herbs in it. I had my guns and ammo in my backpack, but the range was almost out of town, so I drove over there.
As I waited for the tea to work, I reminded myself it would only be a few days for the bond to be completely broken, and then I’d be fine. Regrets, I could live with. It wasn’t much longer to endure this torment.
Wayne and I shot the shit for a minute, then went inside and got down to business. “I bet a hundred bucks I’ll have a better score,” Wayne said.
I snorted. “I’m a better shot and you know it.”
“Yeah, but you’re not acting right.” He looked me over. “You look like shit.”
“Shut up and shoot,” I growled.
Focusing on my target, I went into the zone and burned through my ammo. Wayne had been right about one thing; my aim wasn’t as good as it usually was. I still hit my target respectably, but nothing like I usually would.
I set my gun down to adjust my earplugs when my chest began to compress, like someone was shoving against it as hard as they could. It felt like it was about to cave in. I cursed the universe in my mind and tried to breathe through it. It would be over soon. Bri hated me. I felt it, so soon I’d be nothing to her. The bond would be broken. I just had to endure a few more days.
But then, her laughter filled the room. My heart pounded harder, exacerbating the crushing pain in my chest.
I tried to ignore it, but that lasted about five seconds. I couldn’t stop myself from looking for her. I followed the sound and the pull down a few stalls to find a man teaching her how to shoot.
Her laughter turned to focus. She took a deep breath and unloaded her clip into her target. She was clearly nervous, not used to handling a gun, but she did pretty well. Hit the target center mass every time. I couldn’t help but feel proud of her and for her.
I tried to hide my smile when she turned and spoke to the man. “That’s good, isn’t it, Dad?”
He was her father. I’d been a little worried. With the man being white and Bri black, I couldn’t be sure this wasn’t a date, even with the age difference. “You’re a natural, baby girl,” her father said.
Words slipped out of my mouth and even as I said them, I wished I’d kept quiet. “Your stance was off a little. With some adjusting, you’ll do even better.”
Fuck. Why had I said that? The joy melted off of her face in an instant when she glanced over her Dad’s shoulder at me.
My chest hurt worse than it had to date. I pressed my hand against the wall and tried not to pass out. I didn’t know what it was, but in that moment, I regretted every decision I’d ever made regarding Bri. I’d been doing everything wrong. Every rude word and attempt to
push her away piled in on me.
Flashes of Bri and me happily sitting in front of a fire sipping wine ran through my mind, followed by Christmas celebrations with Hayden and a faceless child. Crowding in behind that was hiking with Bri, eating with Bri, everything, for the rest of my life, with Briana and Hayden.
I felt nothing but complete joy and love, and a feeling of being whole.
Then it faded and another future flashed through my mind. Countless women. Lonely nights, lonely flights, lonely holidays. Emptiness and cold.
When I blinked again, I’d gone down on one knee. I was devastated by the second possible future. How could I survive that? It was so barren.
Gasping, I tried to stagger back to my feet. Wayne’s voice rang hollow in my ears. “Jace? Jace!” His footsteps pounded around me like an earthquake.
“What’s going on?” Bri asked. Her voice was shrill and tinny, not at all like she usually sounded.
Wayne got in my face. “Do you need Sammy or Doc?”
I knew what this was. This was Sammy. She was showing me what she’d seen.
It was breaking my heart and tearing the bond.
The biggest problem was that now that I’d seen what the future could be, how wonderful it could be, I didn’t want to lose it.
Judging by the pain wracking my body, I was too late. I’d lost her forever.
7
Bri
“What the hell? Jace?” I stepped forward, worried about how sick he looked.
Dad rushed over and helped Jace’s friend get him to his feet. I must’ve been having some sort of empath moment because my chest ached and pounded as I watched Jace’s face contort in pain.
I never liked seeing anyone hurt, but Jace was acting like his chest was about to explode. Just watching was torture. Fear coursed through me. Was he going to die right here in front of us?
They got him off the floor. His breathing was labored and shallow. “Does he have asthma?” I asked the guy with him.
He shrugged and shook his head. “I don’t think so.”
I got up in Jace’s face as they helped him outside. “Jace, do you have asthma? Do you have your inhaler?”
He glanced at me and shook his head once.
I let them go around me and tried to think of what else it could’ve been. “What about heart problems? Do you know if his parents had heart attacks young?”
His buddy glanced at me. “No, they didn’t.”
“Could it be some trapped gas? Try banging on his chest.”
Through his labored breathing, Jace chuckled.
“Are you laughing?” I asked. “I’m sorry if I’m in mom mode, but you seem to be dying as we walk down this hallway.” He kept laughing. “Jace, if you keep on, it’ll make the breathing worse.”
“It’s getting better,” he whispered.
“I don’t believe you for a second.” We got outside and his friend pointed to a truck. “That’s his. Help me get him in.”
I opened the passenger door and Dad and Jace’s friend got Jace inside.
“I’ll go pack up his stuff,” Dad said. “Back in a jiffy.”
His friend ran around the truck and got in the front. “Don’t worry,” he said. “I’ll make sure he gets the help he needs.”
“I’ll follow you to the hospital,” I offered. They might’ve needed help, and I wasn’t due anywhere.
Jace shook his head, leaned back on the back window of his truck, and his friend gave me a closed-off look. “It’s okay, we can handle it.”
Something was wrong here. I’d seen him look close to death twice and seen him gripping at his chest several other times. “I’m just as concerned as I would be with any person,” I said.
Jace’s friend leaned over Jace. “I’m Wayne. I know what’s wrong, I’m going to take Jace to his family doctor. He knows how to treat him.”
I wanted to argue, but Dad was jogging out with Jace’s backpack, and me talking to them would only hold them up.
Jace lifted his head long enough to wink at me. “Thanks for caring,” he whispered.
I glared at him. “Don’t die. Or I’ll start to believe you all really are some sort of cult, and you’re sacrificing your heart to your old-world gods or some shit.”
Wayne and Jace stared at me in shock for the longest time before they both burst out laughing. Jace leaned forward until his head rested on his knees as he laughed.
“Stop laughing before you make it worse!”
“Then stop making me laugh.”
His words made me feel warm, but maybe that was because he’d been so rude and cold toward me until now.
“I’m really already feeling better.” Jace rubbed at his chest as Wayne turned the truck engine over.
Wayne leaned over Jace again. “If you give me your number, I’ll keep you updated on his progress.”
I nodded and reached into my purse for a scrap of paper, but looked up sharply when I could’ve sworn I’d heard a growl come from the truck.
Wayne stared at Jace, and Jace stared at me. Then, Wayne’s face changed, and he looked surprised. “No way,” he whispered, then he laughed.
Jace held his phone out the window. “Put your number in my phone?”
I took it and sighed. “I’m only doing this because I want to know if you die. I’ll bring a casserole to your funeral.”
My father snorted behind me. I turned to look at him, my fingers pausing on the screen of Jace’s phone.
Dad shrugged. “I raised you right.”
“My conscience would bother me if I thought you were lying somewhere dying.”
“Thank you,” Jace said when I handed the phone back to him. “I’ll call you later.”
They pulled out of the parking lot. Dad and I watched them drive away, then I sighed and looked at my father. “Should we go get our things?”
He patted his shoulder and I realized he had the backpack full of our guns and ammunition in it. “I grabbed it while I was in there. Ready to go home?”
Dad didn’t speak again until we were in the car and backing out. He casually looked at me. “So.” He drew out the vowels in the word. “You know him?”
Curiosity dripped from his voice.
“Sort of. Not like you’re implying. He just happened to have been around when Damon confronted me—”
“Both times?” Dad’s voice was way too full of some sort of smug know-it-all vibe.
“Yes, both times,” I said quickly. “He helped me, and I appreciated it, but then he was kind of a jerk to me. There’s nothing between us.”
“Well, remind me to thank him.”
I grunted. “Thank him for being a jerk.”
Dad laughed, but thankfully, he let it go. It didn’t keep my mind from wandering repeatedly back to Jace and what the hell was wrong with him.
We were still staying with my parents, which meant my parenting requirements were pretty light. Mom had Hayden in the kitchen helping with dinner, and she’d cleaned everything that needed to be cleaned. I decided to check in with Skye.
“Hey,” she said brightly when she answered. “How are you?”
“I’m good. I wanted to see how the babies are doing?”
She gushed about their smiles and how they’d begun to laugh. Star was moving around more than Sean, and they’d been betting on who would reach which milestone first.
When she seemed to run out of steam, I broached the subject of Jace. “Isn’t Anthony good friends with Jace?” I asked.
She cleared her throat before answering. “He is.” Her voice was guarded.
“Why do you seem hesitant to talk about him?” I asked.
“No reason. I just wasn’t aware you knew Jace.” She chuckled. “You don’t know many people from Anthony’s cult, after all.”
“Yes, we’ve run into each other a few times recently, but both times Damon has confronted me, he’s been there.” I realized I hadn’t talked to her in a good week. “You know about that, right?”
She sighed
. “Yes, but Kaylee had to tell me about the incident at the pizza place.”
“I’m sorry.” I sighed. “Things have been so topsy-turvy. Just when I think Damon has moved on, he shows up again. I actually started working with my dad at the gun range. I’m going to take my conceal carry test this week after work.”
“Oh, fun,” she said. “Well, not the part about Damon, but the part about learning to shoot. I love to target shoot.”
“Well, I’m doing it for a serious reason, but yeah, it is a lot more fun than I anticipated it being. But while I was there today, Jace turned up, and something happened to him. It seemed like he was dying or something.”
“Hang on.” She must’ve put her hand over the phone or something. I heard rustling, then Skye yelling, muffled through my earpiece. “Anthony! Have you talked to Jace?”
I couldn’t hear her boyfriend’s response, but she came back on the line a few seconds later. “He’s fine. Saw a doctor. Apparently, it’s anxiety.”
I gasped. “That makes perfect sense. Anxiety can mimic a heart attack and other things. It’s good that he knows what it is now.”
“Yeah, he’s fine now.” She still sounded so strange. Maybe I shouldn’t have joked so much about the whole cult thing.
“Skye,” I whispered. “Do you need help? Are you safe? If you need to be saved from the cult, cough three times.”
Her laughter seemed genuine enough. “I’m fine. There’s no cult. No blood sacrifices. I wish I could tell you the backstory with Jace and his anxiety but it’s not my story to tell. I won’t betray that confidence.”
I didn’t like the sound of that, but I wouldn’t put my friend in an awkward position on who to be loyal to, so I let it go.
Another week passed, and I never heard a word. I’d put my number in Jace’s phone but didn’t get his. The only way I was going to learn anything was by asking Skye, which I didn’t want to do after she’d acted weird. She might think I was totally into him.
