Page 24 of Witch Unexpected
“The warlocks that sent the slau are part of The Order of Croatoan,” Elijah said. “They’ve been around for centuries, and their main objective is to free the threat the Grimswood Coven has been keeping locked away for centuries.”
“So, they killed all the potentials? How does that help them?”
“The seal to the prison where the threat is held relies on the anchor witch.” His gaze flicked to mine. “You do remember what I told you, right?”
I should have paid more attention. “Refresh my memory.”
His eyes pinched with annoyance. “A long time ago, The Order of Croatoan had a weapon. A warlock so powerful he could cause death with a touch, war with a thought, and disease and famine with a breath.”
“Wait a bloody second, are you talking about the horsemen of the apocalypse?”
He sighed. “There are parallels, I suppose, but Croatoan was very much one man. They used him to take over territory, control nations, and wreak havoc in the pursuit of power. The Grimswood witches fought against The Order, but the power of miasma wasn’t enough to defeat them. They needed something more, and then a witch was born who could access the power of the cosmos. A witch born under the sign of Ophiuchus. This witch was the key. Through binding her to the alphas of the three dire wolf packs, the coven was able to create a seal to a prison where they were finally able to trick Croatoan into stepping.”
It was all going well until the binding crap. “Why did they have to bind her to anyone?”
“The power of the cosmos and a single witch’s access to miasma alone wasn’t enough, but if combined with the power of miasma the alphas created—”
“Wait a second. I thought only female Loup created miasma.”
His eyes smiled. “Dire wolves are an ancient breed of shifter. All other shifters descended from them, but the dire wolves are the first and only alpha males able to create miasma.”
Okay, I needed to get this straight. “So, the anchor witch plus the three alphas create a seal?”
“Yes.”
“And why did the wolves get involved in all this?”
“There were once seven packs. The Order wiped out four of them. The dire wolves were invested in stopping the threat just as much as the Grimswood Coven.”
“And the Grimswood Coven got involved because, for some reason, witches feel responsible for protecting humans, right?”
Bramble snorted. “You really have no clue, do ya?” She twisted in her seat and shook her head in disgust. “And you’re the anchor now?”
Annoyance flared in my chest. “Hey, I didn’t ask for this, okay? And just to be clear, I haven’t agreed to anchor to anyone.”
Bramble’s eyes grew wide. “What? You can’t…You can’t—”
I arched a brow. “Can’t what? Say no?”
“Bramble, please.” Elijah sounded weary. “Be quiet.”
Her jaw tensed, and I could see the defiance in her eyes. She wanted to say more, but she sat back and crossed her arms.
“Cora,” Elijah said. “Of course you have a choice. We can’t force you to take the oath. It has to be voluntary. It’s why I need you to understand how important you are. You want to know why witches protect humanity?”
“Er…yeah.”
“Because without humans, there would be no miasma for witches to draw from. Human existence spawns it. Their dreams, their vivid imaginations create powerful energy. Witches aren’t the only creatures who benefit from it. Most outliers do.”
“Except, shifters make their own, right?”
“So it seems.”
Fuck. Well, that made sense. Witches were protecting their own interests.
“We need you to prevent Croatoan getting free,” Elijah said. “The current anchor witch is weakening.”
Bramble made a strangled sound, and my gaze flicked to her. She was breathing heavily.
