Page 63 of Novice Girlfriend

I wasn’t physically stronger than him. I couldn’t stop him without actually hurting him with my magic and I couldn’t do that.

Not even to save him.

Jason raised his hand again, and even if it wasn’t to kill Link, it would hurt. Bad. He would incapacitate him for whatever he was plotting now and I knew it wouldn’t be good.

Link wasn’t thinking clearly, obviously in a dark place and his rage making his decisions now. He was probably betting that he could get to Jason before he completely went down. Take a few hits but still close the fifteen feet?

I wasn’t sure, but I was pretty damn sure that Link was wrong.

So I did the only thing I could think of and used my power to follow the connection to Jason’s familiar that was on the property… And severed it.

Completely cut it. Not just put it in a bubble like I had for Conrad Hanson. I cut it.

“Jason, try to call your familiar,” I chuckled darkly, trying to sound calmer than I felt. Inside, I was a mess of everything that I would sort out later and probably freak out the gods were going to punish me.

Right then, I was saving my friend the only way I knew how.

Link’s head swung to look at me with too much all over his face. That honestly caught Jason’s attention maybe more than what I’d said.

Jason frowned and then looked at his hand like something didn’t work. And it didn’t because I’d just cut the cord to most of his magic in a way. He seemed to concentrate and then horror filled his face as he slowly looked up at me. “What did you do?”

“That’s for Eunice,” I whispered. “You took his life, the love and friendship he gave to others, and now I took your life. You can’t be the head of the family without a familiar.”

“You will die for killing my familiar!” he roared.

I whistled and his Great Dane dog familiar came racing from the direction of the main house. He ran right past Jason no matter what he said and came to me. I pet the huge familiar and smirked at Jason. “He’s fine. He’s just no longer yours.”

“That’s not possible,” he whispered.

“Bev,” Link breathed. “You didn’t.”

“You didn’t give me a choice,” I mumbled. “You wanted him punished and your death won’t help anything.” I met Link’s gaze. “What about all of us who suffer if we lose you?”

Regret filled his eyes past the coldness and rage. But then he turned when Jason came charging towards me saying he would kill me.

People started appearing all around us, Link immediately moving closer to me protectively.

I saw enough to know the cavalry had arrived basically, guessing they could now that I’d severed Jason’s bond with his familiar. The wards at the Berns estate were useless then.

Something to file away for later.

“Jason Berns set a trap to abduct me and Link saved me,” I blurted before anyone else could say anything else.

“You lying fucking whore,” Jason bellowed.

I met his gaze without fear. “Why else would I be here, Jason? You tried once already, remember?” I smirked when he flinched. “It’s documented with witnesses.”

He moved towards me again, but someone shot magic at his feet in warning.

“Touch her and it’s your last day alive, Berns,” Jean said easily.

I slowly looked at her and couldn’t get over my shock before finding Clare in the group. I angled my head, pretty much asking WTF?

She gave a half shrug. “You said to call whoever I wanted. I called everyone, Bev.”

I mean… Fair enough.

Glancing around at all of the council members and a bunch of council guards, Jean and some of her guards, Taylor and several of his people, Clare, and a few of Winter’s friends who had to have been at the house… Yeah, she definitely called everyone she could fast.