100. Anna

100

Anna

I woke up alone. For a moment, I thought I was back in Maeve's grip, chained to the wall, listening to Finn's cries as they tormented him. Tears pricked my eyes until I heard a voice in the room.

"Anna."

The hoarse whisper calmed me, and I took a deep breath. I was not alone. Maeve was dead. I'd been certain that Jax had been in the room with me at one point, but he was gone now. Sitting up, I looked over at the other bed. Lunessa looked only marginally better than she did before as she smiled at me. "You did it."

When she started to cough, I rolled out of bed and made my way to her. Snuggling up next to her, I grabbed her water and held it up to her. "So did you. Lunessa, the amount of magic you displayed was insane. How are you?"

"Depleted," she admitted as she sipped her water. "And scared that I might not bounce back."

"How did you do it?"

She sipped the water more and leaned against me. Less than a year ago, she was the Maiden, a witch who'd saved my life once, earned my fierce loyalty and helped blossom a kernel of hope that I could have friends, that I could be loved.

Now, she was my cousin, and we leaned on each other like we'd done it our whole lives.

"A modified version of the spell they used on Irene. Maeve's ritual opened up the land, and I asked it to connect me to the other witches. I wasn't even sure it would work, but it gave me the chance to amplify my magic."

"I'll say. You transported a hundred wolves. That must have felt incredible."

"I think it's what a goddess might feel like," she admitted. "If I get my magic back, I will never do anything to jeopardize it again. But, even if I don't, it was worth it. It was worth it to see those bitches drop like flies."

I snorted softly.

"Anna, what did you do?"

Part of me thought I should wait and tell Jax first. It was his child whose life I'd forever changed, but this was Lunessa. She'd sacrificed for me. She was family. "I gift my witch magic to my child."

In shock, she bolted upright and immediately winced. "Okay, no rapid movements for a bit. You did what?"

"I've been haunted by ghosts, and honestly, I don't know where they came from. I don't know if they were triggered by my magic or my subconscious or if the spell Maeve was weaving had some kind of red-button trigger, but they all told me, in their own horrible ways, what I needed to know. Katherine had made a horrid choice with me, but she said it was her gift to her child. My father told me that I wasn't meant to be a witch, and honestly, I believed him. And Emerson, well Emerson apparently suspected that breeding me was the solution. He wasn't wrong. In that instant, before Maeve started to bleed me, I knew that the magic wasn't meant to be mine. It was always for my child, and I gave it to him."

"Him?"

"My wolf thinks it's a son." I cradled my belly and smiled. "And now I've made him a witch. All three housed inside of me but not all three a part of me. The ternary was gone, and Maeve's spell was over. It can never be cast again."

Something pulsed inside of me, and I realized that I wasn't paying any attention to my bonds. Jax was nearby. He must have felt me wake up. I jerked my head up to see him standing in the doorway.

He'd overheard.

Holding my breath, I stared at him, waiting for him to react. His eyes gave nothing away as he nodded to us. "I'm glad to see you're awake," he said in a clipped tone. "I'll have food brought up to you. And Irene, to look you over, Lunessa."

Then, he was gone again. Swallowing hard, I opened myself up to the mating bond.

Pain. So much pain. Tears pricked my eyes.

"It's going to be okay," Lunessa whispered. "Your love saved the mountain. It's not meant to die here."

So, I wasn't the only one who noticed Jax's odd behavior. "He's just going to get food. And Irene. By this afternoon, we'll both be on our feet and dancing circles around this joint."

The day passed. Food was brought to us, but Jax never returned. Irene and Janelle both came to assess Lunessa, but they didn't sense any magic within her. Irene told her not to give up. That she'd felt the same way.

By the evening, we were both on our feet and slowly walking the grounds with Irene and Janelle. Finn joined us, and I hated the haunted look in his eyes. "Alpha Finn," I teased softly.

"Anna." After a moment, he gave me a grin and embraced me. "I'm sorry I haven't been to see you, but Jax has been giving me updates. It's good to see both you and Lunessa up and walking around."

"We're on the mend. It'll take time. How are you?"

"Same. On the mend, but it will take time," he said tightly. "Ladies, do you mind if I steal Anna away?"

They shook their heads, and Finn and I slowly walked the grounds. We passed the ritual field behind Maeve's home, and my stomach clenched at the sight of it. The bodies were gone, but the blood still remained, staining the grass. "I asked Irene if there was something I could do with Lucy's blood. Something healing. She's working on a ritual for me," he said in a hollow voice.

There was nothing for me to say to that, so I remained silent. I didn't know where we were going, but Finn seemed to have a direction in mind. He stopped suddenly, and I gasped.

"I don't remember it," I said softly, "and yet it looks exactly like I pictured it might."

A small home stood in front of me. Log walls with a thatched roof. Simple and beautiful. Magic surrounded the area. Even if I couldn't feel it, I could see it. It was the start of winter and yet beautiful roses climbed up the side of the home, and the evergreens were trimmed and vibrant.

"I've been told that Maeve preserved it with magic immediately after your parents ran. She would come here often to meditate or to ask witches to use the auras here to see her future." His lip curled in disgust before he shook his head. "It's your childhood home and probably one of the only places you might have a happy memory. I thought you might want to see if you could conjure up a memory or spend some time here."

Immediately, I stepped inside the circle and felt the magic drain away. "I don't have magic anymore, but even if I did, none of this is for me. It was for a deranged woman to hold on to a memory of when she thought she was in control. She's dead now, and I don't need this place to know that I had a happy family once. And I don't need to bring any of that up. I have enough happiness in my immediate past."

Finn stared at the home as the flowers started to wither and the wood started to break down. Its age was catching up to it. "I could burn it to the ground," he said darkly.

"I think you should. I love that you wanted to give me a choice, but this place doesn't mean anything to me, and it's a symbol of Indigo Peak's troubled past. Burn it and make way for the future. You're going to be an amazing alpha, and if you'll let me, I'll come visit often to check in on you. I'm going to miss you and Amelia."

"You're more than welcome, Anna. I'll demand your visits, seeing as how I'm alpha and all." He laughed nervously. "Jax and the others believe in me, but I'm glad that you do as well."

"That should be all the proof you need to know that you belong here. You can heal what your mother nearly killed. Besides, the way things are looking, I might need a place to stay."

A growl sounded in the woods, and we both turned as Jax stepped out. Had he been following us or just tracking us?

Finn grinned at me. "I don't think you're going to need a place to live Anna." He walked toward Jax and stopped to say something, but it was low under his breath, and I couldn't hear.

He walked away and Jax stalked toward me. At the ferocity in his eyes, I held my breath. Violence simmered in his eyes, but when he caught hold of my chin, his touch was so gentle as he tilted my face up to his. "Is this where you want to be? With your friend who helped save you near the home where you were able to be a child?"

"Jax…"

"I know I have done wrong by you, Anna. I am just another in a long line of people who have disappointed you, but I love you with every beat of my heart. My wolf may have chosen you, may have thrust you in my path, but I cannot imagine a life without you." Slowly, he released my chin and lowered himself to his knees. My breath caught in my throat. What the hell was he doing? "I will make more mistakes, Anna. I've never in my life thought I could love or need someone as much as I need you, and every cell in my body needs to protect you, but I will never shut you out again. I swear it."

"Jax…"

"If this is where you want to make your home, Jenson will make an excellent alpha. Black Diamond will be just fine with him in charge, and you and I can fix up this rotten place and make it happy again. If you want to be a rogue, we'll build a house in the middle of nowhere and raise our children to be wild with love. If you want to leave the mountain all together, I will crawl to the king and beg that he let us into his community. Whatever you want, whatever you need, Anna, to be happy again. To trust again. For you and for our baby."

When he touched my belly, I burst into tears. "Shut up, you idiot. You came for me. Despite the danger, you came for me, and you bled for me. You've done everything for me. I asked Finn if I could stay because I made a choice for our child, and I feared that when you looked at me, you saw my mother."

"Our witch wolf son?" Lifting my shirt, he kissed my abdomen. "He will live, and that is what I care about. You will live, and that is what I care about. You could birth a kitten, and I'd be thrilled."

"Really?" I couldn't help but grin. "You wouldn't have any questions?"

"Anna, you're killing me here. Are you coming home with me, or must I stalk you for the rest of my life until you give me another chance?"

Looking down at him, I felt my stomach flutter happily. "You are my heart and my soul. Evalina had it right when she first saw us together. We belong together, Jax. We'll fight and we'll piss each other off, but we'll love even more fiercely. Black Diamond is my home, and you are my alpha and my mate."

Rising, he picked me up and swung me around, and I sighed into his embrace. At long last, we were at peace, and everything was as it should be.