Page 50 of Savage Sacrifice
We wave awkwardly, no words needed, when someone clears their throat, cutting through the moment.
Following the sound, my gaze catches on my friend. “Someone better start explaining,” Ben grunts, pointing over his shoulder for us to all head inside, where Bianca hovers at the door.
“I swear I killed that bitch,” Blaze mutters under his breath, and Wylder snickers.
He’s right, some explaining needs to happen, and it shouldn’t happen out here.
I nod and walk toward him, confusion knitting his brows together, but I squeeze his arm and cut across the street, sidestepping Bianca at the door to head inside. My back stiffens as the living room approaches, but when I step inside, my parents aren’t there—just Belladora.
She offers me an apologetic smile, waving her hand in the area where my parents were seated not long ago. “They left. I think they know you need some space.”
I nod, unsure what I’m supposed to say as everyone filters into the room.
The door clicks shut behind Lincoln, who moves to the center of the space, arms folded over his chest as he stares off with Belladora.
“What do we do now?”
Her eyebrows rise as she lifts her hands. “Why are you asking me?”
“Because you caused this damn curse,” he barks in response before sighing. “Besides, you waited here for us to get back. You either have something to offer or something to gain.”
Belladora’s lips purse, but she nods nonetheless. “Both.”
Her admission surprises me, but I don’t know what to say. Instead, I watch as she slowly spins on the spot, taking us all in, and I try to see this moment through her eyes.
The original witch.
The creator of our pain.
No one takes a seat, everyone remains on their feet, waiting with bated breath. Ben and Bianca wait by the door, Minnie and Bryony huddle together beside them, while Blaze and Tatum flank me on my right, and Asher and Wylder hover at my left.
Lincoln remains in a standoff in the middle with the woman in question, who eventually sighs, pinching the bridge of her nose before waving a hand toward Ben and Bianca.
“I can’t undo their memories. Not if they don’t have bonds like you all do,” she states, and my heart wrenches as frustration clouds Ben’s eyes. “I can help with them, though. Then I need to leave.”
“You’re not going anywhere,” Lincoln grunts, and she whirls on him with heat in her eyes.
“I have a job to do, and even though I’m quite certain you’re on the brink of finally bringing an end to this madness, they need to forget before I leave,” she snaps, and Lincoln’s hands coil at his side.
“And if we succeed?” I interject, gaining her attention.
She cocks a brow at me. “Then… I don’t know. No one has ever been here like this before.”
I nod in understanding, turning my attention to Ben. Moving toward him, I feel the tension rise between us, but as much as I hate it, it’s for the best. I wrap my arms around his middle, a move he doesn’t reciprocate immediately, and even when he does, his stance doesn’t soften.
“Don’t do this, Polaris,” he breathes, and I peer up at him as I take a step back.
“I’m not going to fail.” It’s a promise, one I’m determined to keep.
“I don’t understand what there is to fail,” he grunts, and I offer him a tight smile.
“I know, and I hate that so much, but you’re my friend for life, Ben, and the first person I’m coming to find when it’s all said and done. I know that doesn’t make sense, but I swear it,” I insist, and his brows gather, but despite the uncertainty, he nods.
“I trust you.”
I sag with relief as Bianca’s voice cuts through the air.
“I don’t.”
