Page 66 of The Alpha's Forced Pregnant Mate

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We found the portal spell a week later in an unmarked, faded, leather-bound book.

It was late afternoon on a Sunday, and I had been taking a break from studying to read a novel in the living room. My eyes were burning from staring at the small, weird print all day, so I'd thought a few chapters of a murder mystery would do me good without being too distracting.

Saul had been at it since dawn, sitting at the table with a pile of books next to him. He was the type of guy who just plowed through whatever task was put in front of him, never stopping or complaining.

In a way, I envied him. If I tried to keep up with him, I would've burnt out long ago.

The sun was beginning to set when I joined him once more and picked the tome at random. I'd quickly discovered that Saul had offered to read through everything because Faye's collection was much more eclectic and rare than his own. He was taking advantage of the opportunity, but I didn't mind.

It was on page 85 that I found the portal spell, and simply seeing the title made my blood run cold. "Oh my God. Saul. I think this is the spell I heard the demons talking about."

The witch looked up, peering at me over the rim of his glasses. "You sure?"

"I don't know, but it sounds familiar."

He got up, leaving the book open on the table as he walked around to stand next to me. His gaze moved across the page, lips moving silently as he read along.

I leaned back in my chair, watching him. Saul finally finished reading the page. "Okay, this is definitely what the demons want."

"How can you tell?"

"Because it's one of the only spells that open a portal between worlds. All the others just go between dimensions within the same world. It's rare and complicated to do, which makes me think this isn't their first rodeo."

"What does it do?"

He looked over at me, his dark eyes serious. "It creates a portal to the underworld."

A chill went through me, and I swallowed hard. The underworld. Demons weren't just hellspawn. They came from another plane of existence, and all the evidence pointed toward it being a literal hell. If they opened a portal to that place…

"I'll call Faye and Hector to see if they can come take a look at this."

"Good plan. I'm going to go home and contemplate the end of the world."

I watched the witch leave, trying to subdue the sense of dread coming over me. There was no point in dwelling. With my chest tight, I picked up the phone and called Faye.

***

Three days later, Julian and I were leaving Danny's house, where Faye, Sienna, and Hector were staying for the night. We'd been going over the spell tome for hours and decided to pick it back up again in the morning.

It was nice having the family around, especially Sienna. She was such a bright and beautiful little girl that it made me all the more excited to have my baby with me in just a few short months. We still didn't know the gender—stubborn thing wouldn't ever turn the right way for the ultrasound—but I couldn't care less.

Julian was quiet as we drove home, but that wasn't unusual. He wasn't much of a talker, which I appreciated. The pregnancy had made me more tired than normal, and while I loved talking to him, I just didn't have the energy most nights.

I'd been doing some thinking lately, and tonight seemed like a good time to bring it up. "Jules? Can I talk to you about something?"

"Of course." He looked over at me briefly before turning his attention back on the road.

"So…I've been thinking about what I want to do when the baby is born."

"You're going to go back to hunting, aren't you?" he asked. His tone was casual, but I could sense a hint of disapproval underneath the words.

I shifted in my seat, suddenly uncomfortable. This conversation could go one of two ways. Either Julian would be happy to have me back out there with him, or he would try and make me stay home like every other mate of a wolf. "I think so."

"I don't think that's a good idea."

I sighed heavily, trying not to get annoyed with him already. "Why? Because I'm a woman?"

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