Chapter 16

MISTY

We left my mom in charge of the pack, and I knew she was up for the job even though she complained like hell. She hugged me multiple times, and I felt bad leaving her, but if I were to save anyone, I had to do this.

I got the feeling that the king liked playing games, so instead of serving dinner, he’d served up the dungeon. It was clear that he liked abusing his power.

I desperately hoped my dad was alive. I felt infinitely sorry for Olivia. Expecting a she-wolf to stay with him because he took a fancy to her was outrageous.

I didn’t know how old he was, but he’d obviously not been granted a mate, and maybe there was a reason for that. Still, if he had pups with any of the she-wolves, they would grow up to be the next king, and I wanted to prevent that in any way, shape, or form possible.

I felt completely out of my depth and had no idea how I was supposed to help Lloyd, but for the first time in my life, I had direction.

Tanner said attacking the palace was suicide, so breaking the curse was the only way I could save my father and all the other alphas and betas and their pups.

The packs must be in complete disarray, and I wondered whether King Axel did that on purpose to send a message and ensure no one would challenge his reign ever again.

Tanner drove us to Monolith in his sleek Mercedes but bypassed the palace. I was impressed that he hadn’t marked Chelsea yet, but they did seem made for each other. I didn’t feel that way where Lloyd was concerned.

~“Don’t be silly. You find him gorgeous,”~ Cammy stated.

~“Sure, but we come from different eras.”~

~“I think that’s a plus point. You won’t have to Google anything; you can ask him.”~

“Tanner? King Axel doesn’t have a mate, right?”

“He did, but she rejected him because he couldn’t keep his dick in his pants, and then he killed her.”

“And to think I wanted to meet him…,” Chelsea said in disgust.

I had never taken an interest in the monarchy, but it sounded like he was a pig and the worst type of ruler. “Does he have pups?”

“Ha, no. It doesn’t matter how many she-wolves he sleeps with; none have borne pups. When I first saw Lloyd, I was struck by his size and thought to myself that he was the type of leader I would follow.

“He was assigned to me, and I tried to cultivate a friendship, but it was difficult. I think he knew he could trust me, and that’s why he called me.”

Lloyd was bigger than any of the males I had met. He had lightning reflexes and could make himself invisible, or was that part of the curse?

Chelsea turned around. “So, I’ve been thinking…”

“Ugh, Chels, that’s dangerous,” I quipped.

“Haha. Seriously, all the times you’ve touched things and they’ve broken, that might have been your witchy powers.”

“Yeah, that’s what Lloyd thought. He said they were unharnessed, and ~I~ told ~you~ that, Chels.”

“What type of things did you break?” Tanner asked.

“All types of things, but strangely enough, I only broke the showers at Knox. No, wait, the window too.” I didn’t mention Lloyd’s car.

“How the hell can you break showers?” Tanner asked.

“I touched a lever, and the thing came off in my hand.” I shrugged, meeting his gaze in the mirror. “Result—flooded the changerooms.”

“Okay, don’t touch anything in my car.”

Chelsea smacked his thigh, and he reached out to cup her face lovingly. I hoped with all my heart that my mom could feel my dad’s touch again, and maybe, if I were very lucky, I could feel my mate’s touch too.

“I’ve never told you this, but I used to go for a run every night and wedge myself between the two halves of the Monolith,” I confided.

“Everyone knew,” Chelsea snickered. “They all thought you were bonkers.”

“What? Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Right back at ya,” she retorted.

O-kay.

“But you didn’t know that I had a recurring nightmare, did you?”

“I know you had nightmares. You woke me during every sleepover, moaning and thrashing.”

“Well fuck. You never asked me about it.”

“You never spoke about it. Tell me now. What gave you nightmares?”

“It’s always the same one. I see a head rolling off the Monolith and landing at my feet. It has a grotesque smile and…” I stopped. The head had green eyes like Lloyd—Alpha Dōnal, which meant Lloyd had alpha blood.

~“I told you,”~ Cammy stated.

“And?” Chelsea prompted.

“Nothing.” Maybe it was a clue?

Chelsea directed Tanner even though his GPS was on the screen. We turned down a familiar road, and I felt like I was coming home.

I’d missed this place and knew every inch of every road. Hell, even every house. I’d been happy here. We’d all been happy here.

Nothing could ever go back to how it was before, and I certainly hadn’t envisaged my life being turned upside down in a couple of weeks. I buzzed down the window and breathed in the hot air.

“You’re letting all the cool air out,” Chelsea bitched.

“Fine,” I buzzed the window up, but it didn’t budge. “Shit,” I said under my breath.

“Oh no. Tell me you didn’t break it?”

Tanner tried the master control, but the window remained where it was.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to break it,” I apologized.

Chelsea sent me a look and rolled her eyes. “You know you just broke ~my~ car!”

“Relax, I’ll fix it,” Tanner said, and I leaned back and closed my eyes, letting the hot air caress my face and enjoying the moment.

The guards stopped us as we approached the pack house but let us through after Chelsea introduced Tanner. Of course, they knew me. He parked in front of Chelsea’s house, and I wondered if our old house was vacant.

“Right, what do you want to do first?” Chelsea asked. “Shower? Change? Pee? Eat, or head for the Monolith?”

“If you don’t mind, I’m going straight to the Monolith. Is our house still vacant?”

“Yeah, I was thinking Tanner and I could stay there,” she said, a blush suffusing her cheeks.

“Well, I’m staying there, but there’s enough space, I guess…,” I trailed off. “Just give me an hour, okay? Meet me at my old house.”

“Okay, but take your phone with you.” It was my dad’s phone, and every time I used it—tears threatened.

Shouldering my backpack, I felt the draw from the Monolith and cut through the training grounds. Everything was quiet here—something I liked, unlike Knox, where it was always busy.

I felt sorry for Uncle Zack and wondered whether my dad and Beta Anthony knew he intended to kill the king, which didn’t bode well for their survival.

I reached the Monolith and stretched my hand out to caress the boulder, circling it twice. I stopped. Why did I always circle it twice and always clockwise? I fished out the grimoire and took a deep breath. ~Here goes nothing.~

I wedged myself between the halves, opened the grimoire, and waited. And waited. I traced the pentagram on the boulder and then the one on the book, but nothing happened. The pages were just as blank as before.

“Come on, a little help,” I yelled, but the pages remained blank. I expected to feel something, power seeping into my veins or a voice in my head. I stayed there until dusk but eventually admitted defeat.

Frustrated, I walked back to my old house.

~“Any ideas?”~ I asked Cammy.

~“Not really. I don’t think I have any powers. I was only born when you turned sixteen, so whatever happened before is part of you and not me.”~

~“You are a part of me…”~

~“Maybe the power is locked up somehow.”~

~“Have you ever felt any?”~

~“No, but I know when my namesake is at work.”~

~“What do you mean?”~

~“You know…when things break.”~

~“No, I don’t. Explain.”~

~“There was a little spark of electricity when you buzzed down the window. It feels like electricity.”~

~“Why have you never said anything before?”~

~“Because I felt guilty every time something broke.”~

~“Fuck, Cammy. Do you know before it happens?”~

~“No.”~

I walked back in a daze. Had I blamed Cammy just because of her name? I had never felt this spark, but maybe it was so deep-seated I had to find the core or source to release it. Why was nothing easy?