Page 65 of Only You, No One Else

Mark shook his head. “But I don’t remember.”

“Did you call for Caster when you encountered Zeke?” Edie asked.

Mark sifted through memories that were now accessible and turned to Caster. “Not until after the Underworld engulfed me.”

“That’s why he couldn’t come.” Edie’s tone was sympathetic. “You’re the only one who can journey into the Underworld without its consent. Even demons can’t do that.” She smiled at him, and Mark accepted the comfort she offered.

“But you need to control that impulse to keep it from happening by accident again,” Amara said.

Riley nodded. “Ethel must have gathered a lot of power.” He glanced at Caster. “She could have killed us.”

Mark frowned at Caster, who seemed to have misrepresented the threat, and then caught Riley’s deep blue gaze. “Thank you for saving him, again.”

“That wasn’t me!”

“What?” Caster moved to Mark’s side and placed a hand on his back. He seemed primed for an attack, and Mark’s heart skipped a beat.

But Riley didn’t seem concerned. “I tried to tell you guys, but then the whole thing with Bastian happened. I summoned the power to fight, not run.” He shook his head, as if even he couldn’t believe it. “But then there was an outside force that pushed all of us out of there. Its essence disappeared as soon as we teleported here.”

“That teleportation spell did seem stronger than necessary,” Riley’s mother said, conjuring the memory of the force of the spell.

“Shouldn’t we find out who did that?” Cy asked. “I for one don’t like secretive magic.”

“I am on it. We should know soon,” Riley said, the confidence in his tone undeniable. He looked at Mark. “Right now, we have more pressing matters.” He nodded at Amara.

“The only way to make sure that Alpha can never control your mind again is to sever that connection.” Mark was ready to voice his agreement, but she silenced him with a raised hand. “That means no other Alpha will have that control over your wolf.”

He glanced at Dean, expecting to find murderous resistance, but only got a casual shrug. “It has to be your call.” His brother smiled. “From what they’ve told me, you handled him really well. You never needed me.” Then he tipped his chin in Caster’s direction. “Besides, he’s your Alpha now.”

Mark’s cheeks heated; subdued laughter echoed through the room, but even in the mocking smile he could see from both his brother and Caster’s brother, the truth was undeniable. If Dean gave him any command that was in contradiction with Caster’s desire, he would choose Caster every time.

Still, Mark needed to be sure. He caught his brother’s blue gaze. “Are you sure?”

Dean’s brilliant smile was a relief. “Will I miss you? Yeah. But it's your call, and I have a lot to deal with anyway. Wouldn’t be so bad to hand over some responsibility.”

He waited a breath, watching his brother’s face for any doubt, but he wouldn’t find any. Dean always meant what he said, or he wouldn’t say it. He said it was the only way to earn the respect of others. Only when he was sure of his older brother’s unwavering support did he give Amara his consent. He wanted to sever that connection with Zeke more than he wanted anything. It stood in the way of his forever with Caster, and that would not do.

I know. And your mind is wide open again. Caster’s hand pushed against the small of his back. We will revisit that disobedience when all of this is over.

He only just held on to his gasp, but he took a breath and rebuilt the crumbling walls. His wolf pranced around, displaying its joy at their impending freedom in the only way it could.

“Are you ready?” Amara asked, and he glanced at Riley.

“Her power is sufficient,” he said. “We need to conserve our resources for the coming fight.”

Mark looked at the witch he was unfamiliar with, but who Riley seemed to trust. She didn’t startle his wolf, which was a plus, but it was the support from everyone in the room, his family, that gave him the courage to accept her.

“What will you do?” He couldn’t resist seeking a little reassurance.

She smiled, her demeanor much like that of a grandmother. “It is a simple spell designed to erase his energy from your mind and close the part of your psyche that allows an Alpha to enter.” Then she glanced at Riley. “Then if you permit me, we can follow that energy to find his location.”

“But surely, Ethel will have cloaked him too?” Caster asked.

Amara nodded. “Perhaps. But the magic I use is different from hers. It may give us a slight edge. If not a precise location, then within a few miles.”

She held out her hands, and Mark took a fortifying breath before taking them. The first chant was a testament to just how different her magic was from Edie’s. The words were foreign, her language perhaps, but one Mark had never heard before. But it was the potency of her power that surprised him; it pulled on his body in a different way as if it split his essence into equal halves. The foreign feeling settled into his belly, a shiver spreading through his body before it died into a calm hum, so warm and comforting he thought he’d fallen asleep.

The space in his mind he shared with his wolf opened like a road his thoughts could follow. He caught his wolf’s amber gaze for a second before a flood of its communication in the form of healing hormones flooded his body.