We walk back to the foyer, and Cassie dashes into my arms. I hold her tightly against my chest, feeling her little heart beating against mine.
I didn’t know it at the time, but I isolated her without family, just like all my ancestors did to their daughters. I’m married to the man who got me pregnant, and I don’t know if this is the worst possible thing that could happen, or maybe the best?
“Hi,” Rhys says, lightly putting an arm around my waist. “You okay to finish early?”
“Yeah,” I answer. “The old books will still be there tomorrow. I’m supposed to be filing, but I’ve ended up reading a lot of town history.”
“Oh,” Rhys says. “You won’t find much about the wolves in there, I’m afraid. If you want to know more about us, you’d have to ask the elders.”
“That’s okay,” I reply, as we walk out the door. “It’s official records I’m after.”
Luckily, Rhys lets the subject drop as we walk up to the ice cream parlor. I desperately want to ask Rhys for his help—the pack would definitely have records on witches—but I don’t want to make him suspicious.
I have to do something soon. Almost all my energy is being used trying to hold my powers in. I don’t know what would happen if I let go.
When we sit down at the ice cream parlor, Cassie orders a deluxe sundae in all flavors, and I decide to have the same. For just a few moments, as the three of us laugh together, I feel like a normal family—but when I lean on the table and let my guard down just a little, the stack of napkins in the center of the table flutter up in a small whirlwind, curling upwards before falling spectacularly onto the floor.
“That was weird,” Rhys says with a frown. “Must be a rogue breeze.”
“Yeah, probably,” the waitress says, hurrying over to pick them up. “Don’t stress. These things happen.”
My fears rise, and even though I try to follow the conversation and smile for Cassie, I’m starting to feel horribleabout keeping a secret from Rhys. Watching him laugh and talk with her, and remembering how gently he held me the night before, I really feel like I could trust him.
He trusts me, and I’m hiding something massive from him… something that could devastate the entire pack.
Guilt churns my guts, and I have to look away from him again. Luckily, the sundaes arrive, so I have a good excuse to focus my eyes elsewhere, even though I’m not really hungry anymore.
I’ve gotten to know Rhys. He loves his people, and he wants to protect them. I don’t know why they’re scared of witches, but maybe my powers have something to do with them being sick.
Cassie’s laughter breaks through my thoughts, and I look up to see her lit up in sunlight streaming through the window. She’s looking up at Rhys with love, and he’s making silly faces and voices to entertain her. The way she’s surrounded by light reminds me of the memories of my mother—and suddenly I realize I can feel the same magic in Cassie.
Fear blooms in me like nothing I’ve ever felt before.
Would Cassie’s status in the pack protect her? I just don’t know.
Anxiety keeps rising in me, but when I see Cassie reach out for Rhys, the light around her seems to wrap around him as well. When he pulls her into his lap and strokes her hair, I sense a balancing of energy, like something universal has clicked into place.
Wait! What if my magic could be used to help the pack? Maybe it doesn’t harm, but heals…
I know I could be grasping at straws, but something about the idea feels right.
It’s too much like what I want to believe, so I have to be cautious, but it really would solve all our problems if my witch powers could help the pack. And it would guarantee Cassie’s safety… and mine.
Chapter 17 - Rhys
My daily routine with Cassie and Sadie nourishes my heart. I’d be living in paradise if the plight of my pack wasn’t eating away at my soul.
As I wake in the semi-darkness, I can hear my phone buzzing on the nightstand. I’ve been ignoring it for days because I know what I’m going to see when I open it, and I’d rather not know.
The damn thing keeps buzzing like a mosquito in my ear. Finally, it bugs me enough that I get up and swipe the screen to open it.
The first messages I see are from Owen and Shane, checking on me because I haven’t spoken to them in a few days. After that is line after line of messages from the council, mostly from Faye.
Holding in a groan, I tap open her thread and see that over the last week, she’s gotten more and more insistent. It seems the other council members hassled me in equal measure until it became clear I wasn’t going to answer, then they unloaded all their frustration onto Faye.
I’m sorry, I type back.I’ve been distracted, but I promise I will meet with the council soon to discuss these issues.
I feel bad about my generic response, but I can’t think of anything else to say, so I just drag myself out of bed and get ready for the day. I can hear Sadie downstairs making breakfast for Cassie, but the comfort of the domestic scene can’t reach me through the anxiety rising in my gut.
