Page 100 of Oracles Always Win

Whichmade me wonder…Whatif my father had been lucid when he attacked me?Whatif he intentionally tried to hurt me soIwould kill him?Whatif he’d decided he’d had enough and chose to commit suicide by making me take his life for him?

He’dtalked about death and darkness so much after we ran away from my childhood home in the dead of night.Hewent into so much detail about what happened when a demon lost control.Butwhat if everything he told me about that night had been a lie too?

Ididn’t know what to believe.

And, ifIwas in control today, had the other demon in the pack lands been in control too?

NowIwas questioning everythingI’dbelieved to be true, all those truths that made me whoIwas and dictated howIlived my life.

Regardless, although the other demon might not have lost control, he was still a danger to me and mine.Ineeded to be as strong as possible to protect what was mine.Thebest way to do that was to tether toWillowLake.

“Whereto?”Adrianshouted from the front of the motorhome.

“Goto the inn,”Isaid.Ididn’t bother shouting.Asa werewolf,Adrianwould hear me well enough.

Ihadn’t investigated much ofWillowLakeyet, butIknew the inn sat on a nexus of ley lines.Itcalled to me, the way it must have called to the werewolves who’d first claimed this spot for their pack house.

Jakeslept in my arms the entire ride back to the inn.Hispale face was marred by deep, dark bruises under his eyes.Hischeeks were sunken.Hislips were chapped.Channelingso much magic all at once had exhausted him.Iprayed to theEternalMagicthat the damage was not permanent.

Iwould never forgive myself if it was.

Assoon as the motorhome was parked,IgatheredJakein my arms again and carried him outside.Forthe first time,Iopened myself fully to the special power ofWillowLakeand let my magic flow.Mytrue demon form erupted over me.Severalstartled gasps greeted the arrival of my shifted form.

“Whatthe fuck?”Jeremymuttered. “Ithought we were done with all that.”

“It’sfine…Ithink,”Adriananswered.

“Itis,”Iagreed.Thedifference was so obvious now.Iknew my team.Iknew their names and who they were to me.Mythoughts didn’t devolve into bloodlust.Iwas a demon, butIwas already beginning to sense what it would mean to be the guardian of this place.

WillowLakewas mine, just asJakewas.

Iheld my mate in my arms like a bride—Iwas sure he’d hate to be seen like this, particularly since he was unconscious and defenceless, butIcouldn’t leave him behind in the motorhome.Theneed to protect him was overwhelming andIdoubted it would ever change.

Witheach stepItook over this land, my magic sang louder.Itwas everything.Itwas home.Andjoy.Andlove.Andwelcome.

WhenIfound the spot where my magic rejoiced the loudest and the strongest,Idropped to my knees.IplacedJakegently on the ground beside me.Hiseyes fluttered open.Thistime he managed a weak smile.

“Itwill be okay,”Iassured him. “Restnow and all will be well.”

“Itrust you,” he whispered. “Ilove you.Iknew you’d come back to me.”Hereached for my hand and squeezed it softly before letting his own hand drop.

Ibrushed a kiss to his lips and felt the warmth of his love wash over me and fill me.Heloved me.Inever expected to feel so blessed.

OnceIwas sureJakewas comfortable,Iset my hands upon the grass.Mysharp black claws dug into the dirt.Everyspot where my body connected with the earth poured magic out from me.Itslipped down like water flowing over pebbles.Itseeped through the topsoil and the clay and the underwater spring and the bedrock, down and down.Ipushed my magic to its limits, thenIgave it more.

Ihad to.

Irealized now why no one had ever been able to explain or describe this or how to do it.Iwas driven by instinct and guided by theEternalMagicherself.ThedistanceIreached wasn’t something to be measured in millimeters or inches or miles or kilometers.Iwas dipping into the endless well of the world’s magic to find the one thread that made this place what it was.

Oncemy magic latched onto the beautiful shimmering thread that flourished through the heart ofWillowLake,Icoaxed it gently forward, inviting it to see me and judge if it would accept me as its worthy guardian.Themagic playfully tickled at my fingers before licking up my arms, and onward until it had wrapped itself around me like a warm, familiar hug.Itwas strange to think of this type of magic as sentient and knowing, butIdidn’t doubt it for a moment.Iknew it as well asIknew my own magic.

Thiswas pure love.Purejoy.

WillowLakehad deemed me worthy.

Themagic enveloping me sparkled and shimmered and glowed before tightening its hold on me.Everynerve and pore in my body tingled at once as the foreign essence invaded me and disappeared inside.

Igasped and clutched at the soil as this new power permeated my blood, my flesh, and my bones, until it found the place where my own magic lived, deep inside my core.Ifought to accept the intrusion when every part of me wanted to shove it out.Thispain was necessary.Itwas welcome.Ishuddered and gasped as my magic was shredded and remade.