I didn’t reply to that, I knew Peter had lost many people he loved dearly over the years, much more than Sev had, at least according to Sev.
The Villov Pack came as promised, just around dinnertime. Dina and Joel had cooked a feast, which we now ate with our guests. The pack leader, Samantha, had brought five of her pack mates with her. All of them male. I had to believe it was for safety reasons,leaving the women with the children. They did tend to fight harder when they had children to protect.
“So, tell me, Severin,” Samantha started, her voice held a seductive tone as she continued. “You finally decided to settle down, or was it fate that forced your hand.”
I tried not to bristle at that. Yes, Sev hadn’t chosen me for himself, he was forced to either accept me, or forever be without his fated. There was still a choice, yes, but who would want to live their lives knowing they would forever be without their person?
“Fate,” Sev replied, his tone calm, neutral. “But I can assure you, I accepted our bond willingly.”
Samantha rolled her eyes at that. “Eternity alone will do that to someone.”
“Pardon?” Peter questioned. I, too, was unsure if it was a dig or a show of acceptance from her.
“I just mean, that after so many centuries alone, Severin would no doubt feel lonely. It’s no wonder he didn’t fight fate—”
“Shut up, Sam,” one of her pack mates, Liam, sneered. We eyed them curiously. I thought werewolves had to submit to their leaders, but here Liam was, telling her to shut up. We waited for her response,or retaliation, but she simply stared him down. There was hurt in her eyes, and even Liam had to look away from her.
“So,” Dina swooped in to steer the conversation away from the awkward tension. “What about the witch you mentioned?”
Samantha turned her focus to Dina. “Right, Eliana. She was too afraid to leave our compound. But she allowed me to tell you her story.” We all gave her our undivided attention. “Eliana was taken while out drinking with her friends. She remembers going outside to get some fresh air, feeling safe since the bouncer and people waiting in line were right next to the door. So when a woman approached her, asking for directions, she didn’t think twice and started helping her out. She turned around the corner to point in the right direction when she was kissed by the woman. Before she could act, the woman used a crystal on her. She said it pierced her skin, leaving her numb and unable to move.”
“Gods…” Dina murmured, her hand covering her mouth in shock.
Samantha nodded glumly. “She woke up in a dimly lit room, overhearing someone talk about her getting branded, something about the magical ink they needed to infuse. She had no idea where she was or what a branding even meant. A male witch came into the room she lay in, telling her that they’d saved her and wanted her to jointhe biggest coven there was. How she would be protected and that bad guys were after her. He wanted her to join willingly and to show they trusted her and that she had their protection, a tattoo would be branded on her skin.”
“Did she do it?” I asked, unable to wait for Samantha to finish.
Samantha shook her head. “She told them she would do it, but that she had to pee so badly she couldn’t think. The man led her to a bathroom where she escaped through a tiny window. Because of the late hour, she had to walk until she found a cab that was willing to give her a ride. She got home and packed a bag. then fled the city, seeking refuge in the Sistern Pack, one of our friends and allies. They didn’t have the means to protect her like we do, so we agreed to take her in. She didn’t trust witches after that, seeking out werewolves instead.”
“You think the Silver Lock Coven are searching for her?” I asked.
“One hundred percent,” she replied, giving me her full attention. “They know she can talk, and that’s fucking terrifying for them. Imagine if this got out to other covens? Or packs for that matter. We’ve already told all our trusted allies, and now you, too. This isn’t just affecting innocent witches, they’ve targeted other species, too.”
“How do you know that?”Dina questioned.
It was one of Samantha’s pack mates, a silver fox of a man called Cole who answered. “The witch isn’t the first we’ve taken in.” I blinked. “A lone wolf found our compound; he was thin and rambling about getting tested and that he’d fled his cage. We thought he was either on drugs or gone mad.”
“And?” Peter asked, leaning closer as if entranced by the story.
“And, he fell into a week-long slumber only to wake up and tell us of the nightmare he’d lived through and survived,” Cole continued. “He was forced to eat certain plants so they could write down the effect they had on him. He told us they all had the same tattoo. A glowing blue one on their wrists.”
“What the fuck are they planning?” I demanded, tired of this guessing game already.
Samantha shrugged. “We don’t know. We hoped that together we could unravel the puzzle and fight them back. They’re hurting supernatural species, taking people without their consent. This isn’t just concerning a small portion of us, at some point, I fear this will hurt us all.”
“What makes you say that?” Sev asked. He looked just as frustrated as I felt.
“Because, whatever they’re doing, it seems to have a purpose,” Samantha said confidently. And fuck it if she wasn’t right. “They did experiments on a werewolf, gleeful when whatever they did pained him. Then they blackmailed Felix into giving them money, and for what? To show they could? Or because they needed the funding? And that creates the question, did they blackmail others, too? Who else are they hurting right now for their own sick games?” It seemed Sev hadn’t held any information back, and Samantha had finally asked the questions we all sat with out loud.
She continued. “And then there’s Giro,” Peter growled at her for mentioning him like that, like he was a part of their sick games and not one of their victims. She ignored the vampire. “He was cursed by his own grandfather, to protect him? From what? And here he is, unable to tell us anything, because he’s brandednotto. Because he’ll likelydieif he does.”
Giro gasped, and it was enough to confirm her theory.
“They’re sick!” I snapped, unable to hold my anger in any longer. “You’re telling me Giro can lose his life for talking? That’s horrible!”
Giro was crying now, Peter consoling him while I continued to rage. It wasn’t fair. Astrea had lost precious years of her life because of their weird games, and now a person I saw as a friend and family washurt because of them. Giro would never be freed. A branded tattoo wasn’t something that could be removed, no matter what. He would forever live his life in fear, one wrong move and the tattoo would kill him.
“Is there a way to see if the branded witch does something they’re not supposed to do?” I asked the room, calmer now that I needed answers.
