Chapter 18

Luka

I couldn’t pick my jaw up off the floor. Neither could Declan.

I was his mate? His mate-mate, not a bedmate? Was this a ruse to upset Declan, or was it real?

“Guards!” Caleb called. Two men came immediately. “Take this man into secure quarters under house arrest.”

“Yes, sir.” The guards obeyed, taking Declan out by the wrists.

It was a comfort to know that Caleb didn’t flinch at enforcing respectable behavior, but at the same time, it made me nervous about ever crossing him.

“Sit with me for a moment, Luka.” Caleb’s demeanor seemed different, more peaceful. I wasn’t sure if it was from telling me I was his mate or having Declan gone. Maybe both.

“Yes, alpha ki—...yes, Caleb.” Having seen him wield his authority all day, it felt strange to call him Caleb.

After almost a minute, I knew I would have to be the one to raise the topic. “I wanted to ask you. Is what you said true? Am I your…”

Caleb nodded. “Yes. I wouldn’t ever use those words lightly. Especially not with you.”

He lightly touched my hand. After the attack the previous night, I was afraid the pain might start again, but it was the same warmth from before.

“Caleb…”

“Yes, Luka?”

I looked at my hands, then at Caleb apologetically. “I can’t feel the mate bond.”

I expected him to be angry, maybe even kick me out like the others today. Instead, he took my hands into his, rubbing gently.

“When the bond breaks with him, you will feel our bond, sure as day.” Caleb brushed a lock of hair from my face.

I mulled it over, frowning. “If you knew I was your mate, why did you keep it from me?”

Caleb leaned back on the sofa. “I didn’t want you to have the pressure of being Luna of the pack. It’s a big responsibility, and I would never want to force that pressure on you. With your health, making you well is what matters.”

Caleb took me tightly in his arms, rubbing my back. “It’ll be okay, Luka. You’re here with me. We’ll find the witch, and we’ll solve this.”

I wasn’t so sure, but I was hopeful.

The rest of the day, we took it easy, with a relaxed dinner and a stroll outside. When I went to sleep in my own bed, I missed him.

“Tomorrow, we’ll figure this out.” Caleb said goodnight with a kiss on the forehead.

We woke up at dawn for the long day ahead. Caleb explained that the sooner we can meet with the witch, the sooner we could resolve this. Which also meant the sooner I could break free from my torturer.

Unfortunately, to be free from Declan, I had to spend a little more time with him. I hoped it would be short.

“I have to warn you,” Caleb had cautioned. “Declan is coming. He has to. But I’ll be there the whole time.”

“You promise?”

Caleb nodded. “Absolutely. I’ll protect you. And James, my beta, plus Warren, my driver, one of my fiercest bodyguards as you know. They’ll be there.”

I remembered Warren in action that first day. “I know. I’m just scared.”

“I know, Luka. I know.” Caleb squeezed my hand as we approached the garage. Declan and James were already in the back of the three-row SUV. I squeezed Caleb’s hand back and got in.

The ride to the forest was silent and tense. I sat in the second row with Caleb, as close as I possibly could. The mingling of the scents was confusing, like freshwater mixing with salt.

We were well on our way when the car shuddered with a scraping sound in the engine. Caleb got out with Warren, but after a while of fiddling with the engine, the back door opened.

“James, we need you.”

No, I pleaded with my eyes to Caleb. He held up a finger to tell me it would be quick.

But no amount of time alone with Declan ever was quick. “Don’t get any ideas about being the king’s mate, slave. You’re inferior and you always will be. When it comes time to choose a Luna, you think he’ll choose you, an orphan omega misfit who’s been rejected already? You’re fooling yourself. But you’re a fool, so.”

My mouth twisted in hatred. “Just shut up. This has nothing to do with you. Don’t you remember what Caleb told you? That it’s none of your business? Right before he put you in the dungeon.”

“He’ll abandon you, you know. Sooner or later, you’ll be out on your ass. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

When Caleb, James, and Warren got back in, there was a chill. Declan pretended everything was just perfectly fine, but Caleb could tell from my dejected face that it wasn’t. He held me, which helped. But no matter what, Declan’s words always wounded me to the core and made me feel small.

We drove deeper into the woods than I’d ever been, finally pulling into a long dirt driveway fringed with knotted, ancient pine trees. Warren turned. “We’re almost there.”

As we drove down the bumpy path, we saw signs of the witch’s presence. Dolls hanging from trees, herbs flowering along the paths, hutches with animals, circular altars, and observatories.

It felt like another world.

A woman came out as soon as we arrived at the cottage, which looked like it was made of gingerbread. She didn’t look anything like the stereotype of a witch I had pictured.

She had long, pale blonde hair and brilliant green eyes, and a small silver cat followed her out. Her smile comforted me.

“You must be Luka,” she said as we poured out of the car.

“Yes…and you must be the…”

“Witch?” She winked. “I like to think of myself as a healer. A channeler and medium, too. But ‘witch’ suits me fine. My name is Hecate. And you, you must be Caleb. It’s an honor to work with you. I’ve heard great things.”

Caleb shook her hand. “Thank you for seeing us so quickly.”

Hecate looked Declan up and down disdainfully. “I’ve heard about you, too. So, let me take a look at you both and see the issue. Come inside, everyone. It’s larger than it looks.”

She wasn’t kidding. The house felt three times as big as it looked outside. I wondered if the magic was responsible. Maybe she was able to project an image of a smaller house to discourage attention.

She took us to a healing room with crystals hanging on huge windows, which looked onto a lake. Even with Declan so nearby, her presence along with Caleb’s made me feel serene. Her cat rubbed up against my leg.

“Don’t mind Hestia.” Hecate nodded in the direction of the cat. “She’s a bit of a flirt.”

She took stock of me and Declan physically—with clothes on, thank the gods—together at first, and then with each of us in different rooms.

Once we were done, she brought us all back together in a sitting room.

“I believe I’ve found the source of the problem,” Hecate said authoritatively. “Luka, I can’t detect a wolf in you. The wolf forms the bond, so the wolf breaks the bond. Only once it’s awakened can it be severed.”

“She has no wolf?” Caleb leaned forward, hands on his knees.

“I do,” I interjected. “Or, at least, I did.”

Hecate was nodding, implicitly understanding. But Caleb needed more.

I glared at Declan. “It’s because of him. I was badly injured. You saw me when you took me in, Caleb.”

“Yes, you were almost on your death bed.”

I swallowed back my grief. “My wolf was seriously injured, Hecate, just after she discovered he was my m…you know. And she’s been diminished since then. Dormant. Asleep. Missing.”

“Yes, that’s right, Luka,” Hecate confirmed. “Luka, your wolf is incredibly powerful, which means she requires a strong body to sustain her. In your state, you’re far too weak and malnourished.”

Every so often, she’d look at Declan bitterly, as if she divined everything he’d done. She probably did. I only wish her magic were powerful enough to heal me and wake up Nela, if she was alive.

“Do you know when her wolf will wake up?” Caleb asked.

I felt ashamed of my deficiency. “And it’s certain my wolf will wake up?”

Hecate pursed her lips. “Reawakening is closely associated with the second chance mate bond, although that’s correlation, not causation, obviously. It’s an art, not a science, and not understood very well.”

Declan snickered. “Good luck with that. Your wolf’s never coming back. You’ll never be rid of me.”

Caleb stood up. “James, Warren. Remove him now.” He looked murderously at a gloating Declan. “This is for your own good, boy, so I don’t rip out your throat!”

They swiftly escorted him out by the wrists, and he squirmed, trying to escape their grasp. That made them clutch more violently. Hecate and I shared a grin.

Caleb sat down next to me, stone-faced. “Luka, no matter what, I will always be with you. Together, we will awaken your wolf.”