MAGIC BONDED
I’m captured by dragon shifters.
They say I’m their fated mate.
If they discover I’m magical, I’ll be put to death.
I reject them, but they don’t take no for an answer. It doesn’t matter how they soften my heart or make my body sing. The rule of The Six is absolute. If I don’t keep my secret, then Drisella will kill them. I can’t let that happen.
I have to get back to the wolf shifters who’ve protected me all my life. I’ve learned what The Six are planning to do and I must warn them.
Ancient Fae magic has awoken inside me. A little piece of the fabled Fae King’s grimoire demands to be let loose and I can’t control it.
The secret of my past is remembered. A decades long plan has started that the parents I never knew died for.
The Six are coming for us. My dragon mates are in danger. I must control the untameable magic locked inside me and take down the most powerful beings to ever have lived.
WHAT'S INSIDE:
🧑🏻❤️💋🧑Enemies to lovers
👾Forbidden love
👩🚀Woman in jeopardy
⭕Opposites attract
🐺 🐺 🐺Alpha shifters
Steamy scenes 🌶️ 🌶️ 🌶️
🍄Magic
💣Dystopian world
CHAPTER ONE
Vomit-inducing adrenaline pumped through my veins and my heart pounded against my sternum.
We have to make it to the mountain shack. We have to.
I clenched my fingers in Eike’s soft, fine fur and pushed my face into his ruff to avoid most of the twigs stinging my skin as we thundered through the forest. I clenched my legs around his enormous frame as we headed toward the mountains and the tiny, one-room shack nestled on a ledge where I would be safe.
The shack was extremely remote. Esoti’s guards would never make it this far into rugged Wolf Territory, and given the damp humidity that suggested it would snow soon, less likely they would survive the treacherous trip up into the mountains if they tried. Only a shifter had the strength and agility to make it in this weather.
As a wolf, Eike was at my eye-level when I stood. If I didn’t know him as a brother, he would be terrifying. He was strong; powerful enough to traverse the rugged terrain we bolted across.
I swallowed as my stomach fought to release the contents of my lunch. The pounding of massive shoulders beneath my mid-section didn’t help.
Time had lost meaning in that distended way when each second could be the last. Every moment that passed was as slow as a year and fast as a blink. We could have been running for hours, or days. It didn’t matter when a person was running for their life.
I whispered a healing spell, thankful when the urge to vomit eased, appreciating the magic I could call on to heal. I was eternally grateful that the wolves who had found me at midnight, stumbling around the forest years ago when I was a child without a memory, hadn’t killed me when it was apparent I had magic.
Magic was a death sentence for most.
Anyone who had a glimmer of magic within them was immediately put to death. Natural magic, that was. Those gifted with magic from one of The Six who ruled the wolves were revered, but thank the gods, I wasn’t one of them. From what little I had seen of Esoti’s castle and Drisella’s neighboring lands, their magic twisted the minds of humans. They became as evil and sadistic as any member of the ruling Six.
Alerick sent me here to protect me from Esoti, a member of The Six. They couldn’t leave Seraphine, and I’d be in danger if he discovered me.
They were in a delicate situation. She was their mate. A poor abused slave of Esoti’s who had suffered untold misery. One look at her fragile frame and her haunted, distrustful eyes had told me that without the need for magic. She was both magical and powerful.
Whatever was trapped inside her had been put there through death magic, the most powerful magic of all. Her parents had died for that singular purpose, and while I was stuck in the shack, I was determined to discover what type of magic had been placed deep inside her.
Eike leapt from boulder to boulder, using his powerful body to leap up a mountain most would need ropes and grappling hooks to begin to climb. I tensed my thighs and clung to his fur. My stomach jumped from my throat and slammed into the pit of my abdomen when he sprung upwards and landed with an unnatural grace on a rocky ledge, despite his massive form. We’d climbed so high, the air had turned frigid. My fingers werenumb. My back was freezing, despite my heavy cloak, but at least my front was toasty because of Eike’s body heat. Shifters ran hot. Thankfully, we were nearly at the hut. I only needed to hold on to him for a little while longer.
To take my mind off Eike’s thundering paws, I went through the spell I’d use to define what Serafine’s magic was. Each magic had an essence, and hers was ancient. Something about it called to me. I’d felt a connection with her the night Sedric had called for me to go to the Alpha’s office. As soon as I’d opened the door, there was just something there.
If my remembering spell hadn’t been interrupted by Esoti’s servant, I might have found out what the essence was. Esoti had sent his servant because he suspected something, and both Serafine and my brothers were in serious danger. The only way I could help them was to discover more about Serafine’s magic.
I slipped from Eike’s back as we landed on the ledge close to the shack. The flash of magic as he Changed sent tingling skitters across my skin and the scent of ozone made me sneeze.
Eike helped me to stand when I wobbled. After so many hours clinging to his back, it took me a while to find my feet. My thighs throbbed and I couldn’t feel my hands. A crisp breeze whipped around us. I shivered and drew my coat more firmly about myself.
“Are you okay, Anise?” Eike asked. He held my elbow as though I was going to fall on my rear end at any second. I certainly felt as though I would.
The muscles in my legs tensed and I drew in a deep breath. “I’m good. Thank you, Eike.”
He wasn’t any less scary than Alerick or Jarom when it came down to it, but he had a softer side that would be good for Serafine. I was ecstatic that my adoptive brothers had found their mate. There was a part inside me that yearned to find mine, but I knew I never would. I wasn’t a shifter and therefore I would never have a mate. I was only a human with some magical ability.
“Come. I’ll help you set up inside,” Eike said.
I peered at the shack. Frost covered the roof, and icicles were forming along the eaves. The windows were black. It appeared neglected on the outside, but I knew inside would be the way I’d left it. I had nothing to fear. If I needed anything, packed supplies were available in a storage cave nearby.
“You don’t have to, Eike. Everything will be as I left it. I won’t hold you up. Get back to Serafine,” I said. Alerick and Jarom would need Eike. I would be safe here and was used to being alone.
A solid breeze slammed into me, making my nose run. I squeezed his arm. He was so warm. I resisted taking him up on his offer and curling into his arms. “I have my wand. I’ll be fine. You need to go back. There’s no telling what Esoti is up to.”
My wand was beautiful and as long as my arm. It looked like a delicate twig, hundreds of vines snaking into a handle that gave the impression it had been made from bark. Delicate leaves and small round berries decorated the vines, as did hundreds of furry, animal faces. Some were cute and soft, while others might take residence in my nightmares if I let them. The scariest of them all were the dragons that clutched vines with their massive sharp claws and spewed fire. It was the only thing, apart from my clothing, I had on me when Alerick’s father found me as a child in the middle of the forest that night.
Indecision warred on his face. “Only if you’re sure?”
“I’ll stay out here until you go,” I warned, knowing he’d do anything for my comfort, even leaving me at the top of a mountain in a wooden shack in the dead of night.
Eike sighed when my teeth began to chatter. He kissed my cheek and gathered me in a warm hug. I barely registered his nudity. Living with shifters all my life, nudity was normal. Too many clothes were ruined with quick or careless shifts otherwise. “Take care, Anise. I’ll be back as soon as it’s safe to come and get you.”
I didn’t mind staying here. The shack was filled with books and my magical equipment. I’d often come here to practice my magic. It was far enough away that nobody would sense it, and there were mountains between here and Dragon Territory. I wasn’t scared of the wolf or panther shifters, but I stayed well clear of the dragons.
None of the shifter territories had much to do with each other. It was just the way The Six designed it. We were fractured so that each shifter group didn’t fight and harm humans, so they said, but I saw it for what it was. A way to rule through division.
Not that I was in a rush to meet any of the dragons.
I’d hidden when the Alpha dragon had come to Wolf Territory that one time. Ivory skin, hair as dark as midnight, and eyes that missed nothing. Damon. One glance at him and a knot had formed in my chest, as though if I didn’t keep it tucked inside of me, I’d explode into a million pieces.
The dragon Alpha and his Seconds had spoken to Alerick about missing wolves along the borders. The dragons were tight-lipped about the whole thing, but I knew there was more going on. I’d felt it in my bones, especially when Damon scoured everything he could see, as though looking for something precious. I’d only been able to breathe again when they’d left, taking their Alpha energy with them.
I smiled at Eike and nodded. “Be safe.”
He Changed and disappeared into the night almost too fast to track. I knew he was eager to get back to his mate. I shivered and cast a quick lighting spell as I walked to the shack so I didn’t fall over the many stones scattered on the ledge.
It was cold inside but it didn’t take long to call forth flames in the hearth, nor to fill a pot with water and swing it over the flames. I lit several lanterns and inspected the cabin. It was pretty much the same as when I’d left it. Some dust had settled on the table, chair and shelving, and the air was musty, but it wasn’t too bad. I set about straightening the sparse furniture, briefly went outside to flick the dust off the top layer of bedding, and scampered back inside.
All of this cleaning helped keep my mind off what might be happening in the village. Alerick, Jarom and Eike were the strongest Alpha and Seconds to have been born in generations. They could handle whatever was thrown at them.
I could do my part and work out exactly what magic was locked in Serafine. The only way to break death magic was to use something just as powerful, and that was bond magic or magic from the ancients. Since ancient magic had disappeared from this world, I couldn’t use that.
If the spell wasn’t broken by the time the bearer reached the end of their natural days, whatever was so important that someone died to put the ancient magic inside them would be lost forever. The only downside with using death magic was that the bearer could not pass before their natural time was up. They would reanimate no matter how many times their body was forced into an unnatural death, as had been done to Serafine. It was a wonder she functioned at all.
I settled into the wooden chair and made myself comfortable. This might take a while, but I had all night. I gathered whatever magic ran in bubbles along the edges of the walls and corners of the shack to help power the spell I needed to cast, and dug down into my personal well of magic.
I focused the magic to summon a scrying ball. Before me, an opaque ball of light formed in the air and hovered. I murmured a seeker’s spell, weaving in the essence of ancient magic I’d sensed in Serafine. The ball turned, glowing softly, but remained hollow. It needed more power.
I sent more of the natural magic that flowed through me into the ball. The light flared and disappeared. The ball remained opaque. I shuffled in my seat and licked my lips. More then.
I closed my eyes and sank inside myself, diving deeper than I’d ever needed to go before. Sweat beaded my forehead. The temperature in the shack heated up as magic rose off my body and thickened the air. I dropped into the magical well, sinking into myself.
A golden light sparkled in the deepest part of me. Tingles erupted through me. This magic was not mine. It had a different feel to it. Pure. And wise. It was both of those things, but there was something else about it I couldn’t quite define. I reached for the golden glimmering ball and as my fingertips brushed through its light, power raced through me.
Potent energy flickered around me, through me, punching out of my body before I could stop it.
This magic was old.
Ancient.
I’d never sensed it in me before. Concealed and buried so well I hadn’t known of its existence. Why was it here? How could it be? This was… monumental.
I gathered my hands about the trembling ball, power thrumming through me. It vibrated, heating as though in anticipation of finally being set free, but it remained stuck no matter how I tried to wiggle it.
Another type of energy whispered through me. Seductive magic, calling to me from another deeper part of myself. Gods, if any of The Six sensed this magic in me, it would mean my end. I had to stop trying to set the ancient magic free. I knew better than to do this. It was completely reckless.
I flew upwards through layers of consciousness, leaving the ancient magic behind. My eyes snapped open as a scene unfolded in the scrying ball hovering in front of me. A massive black dragon unfolded its wings, flying over the snow-capped peaks. Its serpentine head swiveled as its onyx eyes searched the rugged landscape below.
Its black scales blended into the night sky, so camouflaged that only the moonlight shining on its form allowed me to glimpse it. It glided under the cover of clouds, dashing so fast across the mountain peaks they were a blur. It hovered for a moment, before diving toward a small ledge on the side of a mountain. Toward a tiny wooden shack.
My shack!
The heavy thump of wings beat the air and wind burst beneath the door as the dragon in my scrying ball flew overhead.
Dear gods, it knows I’m here.
I bolted to the door and stumbled outside, clutching my wand, too flimsy a protection against a dragon but all that I had. The beast descended straight toward me, appearing from the inky darkness of the night sky.
The storage cave. I have to get there.
He would never find me if I got there fast enough.
I bolted, drawing the magic and cloaking myself with an invisibility spell as I ran.
Wind buffeted me as the beast landed. The ledge trembled and debris scattered as its claws gouged the rock. It lowered its gigantic head, locking its slitted yellow eyes on me.
But...how can it see me? I’m invisible!
I didn’t stop to wonder. I turned heel and bolted in the opposite direction, my mind pounding as heavily as my heart. My skirts twisted about my legs, nearly tripping me up in my uncoordinated haste to run away. The smell of ozone seared my nose as the dragon Changed. I glanced behind my shoulder to see a naked man stalking me.
Gods above. It was Damon. Dragon Alpha!
He focused his dark gaze on me with unwavering intensity. His nostrils flared and his chest heaved when he inhaled and his eyes took on a dark shimmer that froze my blood. His legs pumped as he charged toward me, moving faster than was humanly possible.
He shouldn’t be able to see me. But he did. He had! I wasn’t going to stop and ask him how he could see me or why he was after me. It hardly mattered when he aimed that dark look at me, eyes glowing in the inky shadows.
I stumbled, my feet as useless as lead blocks. His arm banded about me and panic was the last thing to sheer through my mind before my body was slammed with a bolt of magic. Ozone burst in the air as Damon Changed to his dragon form. I fell from his arms to the ground. The world slowed in a sickening lurch and I stared into Damon’s dark, unearthly dragon eyes above me. I crab crawled backwards, heedless of the stones tearing my palms.
He was going to slaughter me, eat me, tear me apart limb from limb. He was going to...
His slitted pupils dilated and his eyes widened. He tipped his head back and roared, his long fangs glinting in the moonlight. The sound vibrated through me, shaking my muscles, bones and soul. Rocks tumbled loose and shattered down the mountain, pounding onto the ledge.
My heart stuttered and my mind went blank. I clambered to my feet. Lurching backwards into nothing. I tumbled over the edge, the wand I still somehow clutched in my hand falling from my grip as I toppled.
Damon’s black dragon descended on me, reaching for me with deadly claws. They scraped my ribs and his talons crushed me as he tightened his grip about my waist. My neck snapped back and my skull cracked against his unforgiving scales. Pain exploded through my head. White light blinded me and then… nothing.