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“We’re going to take Egan down.”
Adelaide stares at me for a second and then bursts out laughing. “You are going to kill the alpha werewolf of the Algiers pack? Sorry, I don’t mean to laugh in your face, but you realize how many wolves Egan has backing him up, don’t you?”
“I’m loving the vote of confidence,” Rune remarks, still rifling through the jars.
“We’ll lure him from Algiers into Tremé, so his forces will be limited.”
“Even if you lure Egan out and get close enough to deal the killing blow, you don’t know the lengths werewolves will go to avenge a fallen member of their pack.”
So I’ve been told.
“Which is why we don’t plan on killing him,” I say. “That’s why we need all this. I’m going to bind him and make sure he can’t cause any more harm.”
Adelaide’s eyes widen. “That’s quite the idea.”
“It’s a suicide mission, but we’re giving it a go, apparently,” Sebastian grumbles.
“Don’t mind him,” I stage whisper to Adelaide. “He’s cranky.”
“I’m waiting for the how-to tutorial for breaking a unity bond,” he says.
I’m not keen on being attached to him either, but I don’t know what I did to earn that level of ire.
“The unity bond,” Adelaide begins, her voice laden with the weight of ancient knowledge, “is a powerful phenomenon. It exists to maintain balance in the supernatural world, a delicate equilibrium between magic and darkness, life and death.”
“Do you really believe that?” I ask.
“It is Mother Gaia’s will. She is the one who gave us the unity bonds so the witches could bring peace to our city.”
“I don’t know where you’ve been holed up,” Rune grumbles, “but this city is far from peaceful with Egan tearing through the streets searching for his precious moonstone amulet and killing anyone in his path.”
“Okay, yeah, we can circle back to Egan later. Right now, I want to know how it’s possible for me to be bound to three vampires at once.” I don’t produce near enough blood to keep them all satiated. One vamp sucking me down like a juice box is enough for me, thanks.
“It is not for us to question why, but to embrace the gifts it bestows upon us by Mother Gaia.”
That is entirely unhelpful. I’m not sure I call being linked to three vampires a gift.
Sebastian speaks up, his voice tinged with frustration. “How do we unlink ourselves from the bond?”
Adelaide’s gaze hardens as she looks at him. “You don’t. There is nothing to be done but embrace the bond.”
No. That can’t be it. There has to be something we can do. I don’t want to be tied to Sebastian any more than he wants to be tied to me.
“Balance must be maintained. The unity bond may be a gift, but it is not without challenges.”
“What do you mean by challenges?” Rune asks. “Are there dangers we should know?”
Adelaide’s expression becomes somber. “It can be a source of great strength, but it also makes you vulnerable. The choices you make will ripple through each other’s lives, and the consequences can be far-reaching.”
As the weight of her words settles upon us, Finn catches her attention. “Do ye have any advice to give us on how to navigate this bond?”
“Trust each other,” she says, her eyes locking with mine. “In unity, there is strength. Embrace the bond, and together, you will find the path forward.”
I scrub a hand over my face. Adelaide has been much less helpful than I hoped. The creaking stairs signal the return of Adelaide’s apprentice, and I’m glad for the distraction from my spiraling thoughts.
“Did someone place an order for fresh-cut flowers?” A furry white ferret slithering along the hardwood precedes the witch’s entrance, and I rush to greet her.
“Elara!” Her arms are full of bundles of various flowers and herbs. I rush over and take a portion of her burden.
