Page 52 of Only You, No One Else

Amara nodded, her expression calm but her demeanor heightened as if she expected a threat. “Would you be willing to revisit your time there?”

“No!” Dean’s emphatic denial, the growl of his wolf that he didn’t seem to want to control, was impossible to counter. “That’s not happening.”

“He would not be going back there, just to the memory of that event,” Amelia said, standing to join the circle of support forming around Mark.

“Yes,” Mark said, staring his brother down. Trying to resist Dean’s influence was a chore, but this was necessary. “I need to know. We need to know.” He squeezed the Queen’s hand once and released his hold, moving closer to Dean. “You said you’d be here for whatever I need. This is what I need.” His brother started to shake his head, his overwhelming Alpha presence crowding out Mark’s thoughts, but he was determined. “We can’t win if we don’t know how powerful she is.”

He waited for Dean’s acquiescence, the small nod sufficient. Certain of his brother’s support, he turned to the one witch in the room with enough power to show him what he needed to see. It was time to find out what Zeke and Ethel were up to.

Amara nodded her understanding, and Mark reached for Caster, allowing his wolf’s heightened senses to find and hold on to their connection. His name formed in his mind, but that inner voice, the peace of the moment, was broken by a shattering, bone-chilling vibration that seemed to rise from the ground, through his body to settle in his belly.

The house shook in its confines, the sound deafening. He only just held on to his balance, his hands reaching for both the Queen and Amelia as they crashed into him. They fell over the coffee table, his body taking the brunt of the fall as it broke against his back. The pain lingered, the scent of his own blood filling his lungs. But he sighed when his wolf reached for him, providing him with the relief he would need to keep fighting.

Dean had somehow stayed on his feet, but Edie and Adella were also on the floor. Confusion was momentary. They all took stock of any damage they may have suffered as everyone found their feet and balance. Whatever it was, had lasted only a few seconds.

The door blew open, and relaxing relief drew a sigh from the depths of his soul at the sight of Caster. The calm he often brought with him soothed the fear in Mark only for a moment. He was in front of Caster without any conscious thought of his movement. He was bleeding. The scent of his blood was unmistakable, as was the almost imperceptible wince as soon as Mark touched his arm.

“What happened to you?” Every other fear, the witch, Zeke, and everything in between disappeared into the uncontainable panic that he would lose Caster.

Caster took a breath, his inhale a little labored. “Are you OK?”

Mark nodded, but when he opened his mouth to question Caster’s obvious injury, Caster shook his head. I’m fine, baby. I promise.

“What the fuck was that?” Dean interrupted Mark’s latest attempt to take stock of Caster’s injuries.

“A powerful teleportation spell,” Amara said.

Caster nodded. “Yes.”

CHAPTER 33

Caster only had a moment to take a breath before his need to protect Mark had overwhelmed even the ache in his bones. The irresistible power of the protection spell pulled him towards Mark, and though he was certain there was no threat in his father’s house, he couldn’t resist his need to comfort Mark.

He had experienced the overwhelming force of Riley’s power before, but never like this. He thanked his friend for bringing them back to the relative safety of his father’s house. But as he tried to conceal his pain from Mark, the memory of the toxic power Riley had just saved them from brought unwanted fear into his heart.

He squeezed Mark’s forearm, trying to reiterate his assurance that he was not harmed, and nodded at the Prime Alpha over his shoulder.

“Where were you?” His mother asked.

Caster opened his mouth to answer, but the rigid tension in Mark’s body caught his attention. It took a moment for him to realize what Mark was reacting to, having forgotten about Bastian.

He cursed when Mark tore his arm away from his grip with a snarl and stomped towards the door, his determined strides lengthening away from Caster’s influence. He caught the Prime Alpha’s confused look and nodded at him, begging him to understand his need to hold Mark back.

Mark had reached his goal by the time they caught up with him, his anger exploding into a wave of movement as soon as he saw Bastian. His young cousin, in his stupidity, did not shy away from the moment, meeting Mark’s momentum with his own explosive combination of hubris borne of the invincibility he imagined himself to possess.

Damien reacted, pulling Bastian away from Mark, holding him in place just as Caster and Dean reached for Mark. It took all his strength to keep Mark from pouncing at a smiling Bastian. The growls of his wolf tore from his chest with such intensity, the whole house was alerted to the battle brewing within its walls.

A cacophony of shouts rang out, and Caster drew Mark’s body flush against his, wincing with the new pain the struggle brought to his already aching muscles. “Stop!”

Mark struggled, his resistance, his thirst for vengeance apparent in the way he fought with every breath.

Baby, please. Do it for me. Caster was not above begging, but he regretted the request as soon as Mark’s struggle dissipated into a sigh so defeated in its energy, the change was palpable to everyone but Bastian, who was still smiling.

“Damien, get him out of here.” Until he’d spoken, Caster hadn’t noticed Marcus. There was no arguing with his pronouncement, but as Damien led Bastian out of the room, Caster couldn’t help the rip in his heart. He’d once again chosen his cousin over Mark. There was good reason for it, one he hoped his soulmate would understand, but it was still despicable.

Hope of that understanding dwindled when Mark tore away from his hold and strode out of the room. Caster wanted to follow him, beg for his forgiveness, but he wasn’t sure anything he could say would make any of this better.

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