Alpha Asher by Jane Doe (Alpha Asher & Lola)
Chapter 190
I laughed, belting out a string of giggles that probably made me look insane, but I didn’t really care.
Zeke glanced at Asher; his eyes wary. “Think she’s going feral too? Should we run?”
“I’m not going feral, you jerk.” I scoffed, swatting at him. “You understand how crazy that sounds, right? The power to change reality…that’s just not possible. If it was, why wouldn’t I have just snapped my damn fingers and made the Blood Witch disappear or turn into a toad?”
Asher spun the book around to face me, but it was Zeke that spoke.
“Probably because it’s not that simple. It says here that Conjuration is the hardest form of magic to master because of how easy it is to slip up. A single thought or desire that’s too strong can become reality, which is both a good and bad thing. This paragraph talks about how conjuring drains the witch’s energy differently and mentions the different types of power the witch pulls from when she’s conjuring. I’m sure we’ll learn more on the next page.”
He turned the page and paused, his curious expression morphing into a full-blown grimace. I had to hand it to him, Zeke could look downright scary when he wanted.
“There’s pages missing, quite a few from the looks of it.” Asher grunted, glowering at the book like he was commanding it to regrow them.
I pulled the book closer, looking down at the cluster of torn pages, the paper frayed and split where the person responsible had ripped them from the book. A weight settled in my stomach, as though it knew the missing information was something important, something that could help us.
“Couldn’t I just make them reappear?” I said.
Zeke shook his head, “I don’t think so. You don’t know what’s on the pages. There’s a chance that if you managed to make them reappear, they’d just be blank.”
I snarled under my breath, my frustration building. This was a new development, one I was still struggling to believe, but I could see why the witches were so hell-bent on getting to me before I found a way to master this new power.
Both Zeke and Asher turned their attention back to the book, while my own thoughts wandered.
It was beginning to make sense why the shadows now followed my every command. They wouldn’t have much of a choice if I were using conjuration to exact my will onto them.
Part of me began to feel guilty, but then I remembered the horrible things the shadows were capable of. That eased the feeling until it was nothing more than an insignificant throb in my chest.
The further my thoughts delved, the more I began to realize that this wasn’t the first time I’d used my magic. That was the odd feeling that washed through me, coating my insides in an electric current that made my body hum with power.
Oh, sh*t. The realization materialized from thin air, whacking me upside the head so hard I saw stars. That’s how Cordelia’s book ended up in my bag. Conjuration.
The most recent I’d felt that feeling was in the van, when I told Dina the Vampire’s had survived the warehouse fire. Unfortunately, that rush of power was followed by a wave of absolute exhaustion.
If what the book was saying were true, then there was a strong chance the Vampire’s, Deacon’s snarky @ssincluded, had survived Ember’s attack.
Still, I couldn’t go to Dina with the news until I was absolutely sure. I knew the panic a*s*sociated with not knowing if your mate were alive, and even though she and I were strangers, I couldn’t bare doing that to one of my own.
“There’s got to be a way to know for sure. We need to test it.” I exhaled, now more determined than ever to hand it to these witches.
Zeke turned with excitement burning in his eyes. He practically hummed with it, taking on an eager grin that helped ease my nerves. I could see the gears turning in his head, most likely flitting through ideas. I had no doubt he’d ask me to conjure him up a mate, or even some magical powers of his own.
He never got the chance to voice those ideas since Asher beat him to the punch.
“Tristan’s mark…” My mate grunted, his eyes darkening as they began to swirl with gold. “Remove it.”
Well, that made Maya perk her head up. She’d been quiet all morning, unashamed with how content having s*e*x with Asher made her feel.
I was a bit more understanding than my wolf when it came to Tristan’s mark on my neck, even though I wanted it gone as badly as she did. Maya had been all too willing to k*il*l Tristan to remove the mark, a fixation she’d finally given up when he pledged his loyalty to us.
My insides lit up with hope, and I could feel the potent emotion showing across my face. “You really think I can make his mark go away?”
“I don’t see why not, but the only concern is how much energy you’ll expend doing it. I mean, you need the practice, but we don’t know the full risks without the rest of the pages.” Zeke shrugged.
Believe me, I heard his warning, but my mind was already set. If this was real and I could actually conjure things into existence, this would change everything.
“Alright, lets do this.” I said eagerly.
I pushed away from the table and stood from the chair, taking one last gulp of coffee before continuing. There was a split second of silence before I realized I had no clue how to call on my magic. Every time I managed to use it was by pure coincidence.
“So, have any idea’s on how I should go about this?”
Asher and Zeke exchanged glances; their expressions identical even if the two Alpha’s looked nothing alike.
“Well, what was going through your head the other times you used it?” Zeke asked.
I shrugged, “I’m not exactly sure. All I can remember is that I really wanted something, whether it was an object or for something to happen, then I got this feeling in my gut and bam.”
“Perhaps you should focus on his mark and try to harness the same desire you felt when you called on it in the past.” Asher suggested, and for a moment I was distracted by the huskiness of his voice.
He must’ve noticed a change in my expression, or maybe he felt the echo of my emotions down the bond, but not a moment later Asher’s voice filled the depths of my head.
‘Lola, you need to clear your head of all those filthy thoughts. Believe me, we’ll cover them during our conversation later.’
Maya was a bit peeved at his rejection, which is why I indulged her battiness and sent a short clip down the bond between Asher and I. It was nothing too special, just what I’d been feeling when he flipped me over and thrusted himself deep inside of me, along with the o*rgasm he quickly brought on, which was easily one of the best I’ve ever had in my life.
When he stiffened in his seat, going so still that the metal chair creaked as it scooted across the floor, I had to let out a small snicker.
Asher glowered at me, his nostrils flaring while Zeke grinned like a cheeky cat. His anger lit a fire deep in my belly, one I had to smother and save for later considering the feat I was about to attempt.
Zeke whistled under his breath, “Man, I hope my mate is this much fun. Maybe once you get this conjuration thing mastered you can give me a little magical push at finding her, yeah?”
“Unruly Alpha’s don’t get timid little she-wolves as mates. So, I hope you’re ready for the chaos once you do meet her.” I teased, “I’d be more than happy to help, but let’s see if I can get this mark off of me first.”
Standing before two Alpha’s who watched me with equal fervor, I squared my shoulders and closed my eyes. There was no rush, I told myself. I inhaled slowly, feeling the air swirl in my lungs as the oxygen worked to clear my head.
The breath that left my lips was slow and relaxed, calming the slew of thoughts and worries in my head. Everything quieted, even Maya’s presence drifted to the background.
I let my awareness drift down my body, starting at the top of my head. There was a tugging sensation as I reached my neck, a pull to one of the men in the room that let me know I was focusing on the bond between Asher and I. Moving slowly, I shifted my attention to the other side of my neck, where a new sensation took place.
This one wasn’t as intense. Instead of an unbreakable chain tethering me to my mate, this was more like a silver chord, something one-sided and not yet set in stone.
If I had chosen to mark Tristan in return, then this bond between us would be unbreakable, another indestructible chain between myself and another person. There was just one problem with that.
I never wanted this bond. I never wanted the mark that Tristan had put on my body.
He’d done it during a time when he was loyal to my father, and more than anything, I understood the reasoning behind him marking me. It was a strategic move, one meant to protect his life from my father and give him power. I’d forgiven him, but forgiveness and understanding hadn’t eaten away at my decision in the slightest.
I wanted his mark gone.
I wanted us both free.
I was engulfed by the swirling of magic in my stomach, crackling along my skin like a current of electricity. It was followed by a pull so strong it felt like I was being s*cked through a straw.
The feeling encompassed my entire body, making it impossible to tell if I’d affected Tristan’s mark in any way. When the darkness behind my eyes became too much, I opened them.
The moment I registered light and color, splotches of darkness erupted in my vision, smearing like splatters of ink.
I had a second to register the stunned looks on Asher and Zeke’s faces before the harrowing weight of exhaustion smashed into me, making me feel weightless as it sent me tumbling headfirst into absolute darkness.