Shadow Kissed (Magic Side: Wolf Bound Book 4)

Jaxson

A couple of hours later, we pulled up in front of a redbrick building as the sun was just beginning to lighten the sky. Savy said it served as Laurel’s workshop, which was a piece of information I wouldn’t soon forget.

“Are you really sure about this?” Sam asked from the back seat. She’d showed up this morning to check on Savy. After her initial shock had worn off at the proposed plan, she’d insisted on coming along. I assumed she was almost more worried about what I’d do when Laurel bound Savy’s wolf. I still had no idea, myself.

As we’d driven over, Savannah had slipped into silence like a heavy fog, lost in thought. I could sense her emotions warring against each other—determination, fear, shame, sorrow—each trying to gain the upper hand. As if stirred from a dream, she nodded. “Yes. You two can wait outside, if you want.”

“Not a chance,” I growled as I climbed out of the truck.

“Same,” Sam said.

Laurel stepped out of a red door behind a narrow set of stairs that fronted the building. Crossing her arms, she met my gaze. Her hair was pulled back, and she wore a long, flowered dress. Despite the morning sun, dark shadows from behind cut across her form, betraying the hard and ruthless soul lurking beneath.

Savy stepped around the truck, and Sam and I fell in step beside her as the three of us walked across the parking lot.

I scented Laurel’s irritation. She hadn’t been expecting Sam and me to be there.

At the top of the steps, she pulled Savannah into her arms. “This is the right call.”

My wolf surged in my chest, and I growled low. “For you or for her?”

“Jax,” Savannah snapped at me.

I flexed my fists in irritation. I wasn’t going to mince words. There was a chance, albeit small, that Savannah would change her mind, and I was going to make sure Laurel didn’t convince her to do something she’d regret.

“Come inside.” Laurel gestured for us to enter, but as soon as Savannah passed, Laurel stepped in front of me. “This is her choice, Jaxson.”

My jaw tensed. “It wasn’t before.”

Guilt flashed in Laurel’s eyes, and she lifted her chin. “It is now. As it should have been from the start.”

She turned and followed Savannah inside. Sam shook her head as we showed ourselves in.

A dimly lit hall led to a library with antique furniture and oriental rugs. The dusty scent of the leatherbound books lining the shelves left the threat of a cough lingering in my throat. The packed shelves were a testament to the depth of Laurel’s arcane knowledge. As much as I didn’t trust her, I knew her capability all too well. If anyone could find another way, it would be her.

“Are you sure there’s nothing else you can do to keep the Dark God from taking over Savannah?” I asked Laurel as she searched through a drawer in a large oak desk.

She frowned. “Unfortunately, I’ve found no other way. I’ve searched my spell books, but there’s nothing powerful enough to block his magic. Maybe if he hadn’t already managed to establish a presence over her…but he’s a god, and his power is, frankly, incalculable.”

A determined fury rippled through my veins. Whether he was a god or not, Savannah Caine was my mate, and I’d do anything and everything to protect her.

Savannah placed her hand on my arm. “It’s okay. This is going to work.”

I could tell she didn’t fully believe it, but even so, her touch calmed the beast inside me.

Sam locked eyes with Laurel. “Is it reversible?”

“Yes,” she answered, then met my gaze with an accusatory stare. “And with Jaxson’s pull on her, I don’t know how long the binding spell with last. Your mate bond is probably what broke the spell in the first place—and that could be a problem for us now.”

Had it been our bond or the Dark Wolf God?

Something flashed across Savy’s face, and I could tell she was wondering the same thing.

“Where’s Casey?” Savannah asked, her hand tightening around my arm.

As if she’d summoned the devil, her cousin stalked into the study. His brows shot up as he looked between Sam and me and his mother. “Seriously? They’re going to be here?”

“I was going to ask the same thing about you,” Sam muttered.

Laurel didn’t look up from the book she was flipping through. “They’re here, and I don’t think there’s any point in arguing about it. But for now, Savannah and I need the room to prepare. So all of you, out. Including you, Casey.”

“I’m not leaving,” I growled.

Laurel snapped her head around. “I’m not going to bewitch her in your absence, alpha. She needs to learn the spell, and that will take concentration. You’re a distraction.”

“I need to learn a spell? I thought you were going to cast it,” Savannah whispered.

“I did that once before when you were too young. But this must be your decision, all the way down. I’m not going to make it for you again.”

Savannah traced her fingers over the pile of papers on Laurel’s desk. “But what if I mess it up?”

I tensed, but Laurel laughed. “You won’t. You are bright and capable, and I’m an excellent teacher. Casey and I will cast it with you, but you will need to take the lead.”

Savannah’s mouth opened, but Laurel swept away from her, opened the library door, and gestured with her hand. “The rest of you, out. Casey, make sure they don’t touch anything too deadly.”