Page 61 of Betrayed Alpha Mate

“Break the bond?” Sean echoes beside me, startling me as I gasp and turn to him. “What is going on? Emily? Delilah?” he asks, brows raised between the two of us.

My heart drops, and I hesitate to say anything, not wanting to tell him what I’ve been secretly plotting.

“Delilah…you promised,” I remind her, but Delilah sighs despondently as she turns to me.

“I’ve researched it, and there’s no way to break a fated mate bond, Em. It’s just not possible.”

I can feel Sean’s glare boring into me, and I can’t bring myself to look at him.

“I—I can’t go through with this. The magic, all of it.”

Delilah shakes her head slowly, reaching for my hand. “Don’t you see, Em? You’re the key. You and Sean share a bond that fuses with your magic, and it sets you apart from the rest of us. If we get this right, Sean can harness your powers as a wolf. He’s an alpha, and with your powers, you’ll bring down the dark lord in a heartbeat.”

A chill slithers down my spine.

“And if it doesn’t work, we’re all dead, Delilah.” I snatch my arm out of Delilah’s hand, refusing to believe there’s no way to break the bond. I storm into the house, wanting to be left alone, wanting to crawl away and never be seen by anyone. Especially not Sean.

But I hear him come inside behind me, to my dismay, and I’m forced to face him in the kitchen, where I was about to pour myself water.

“What just happened?” he asks, his voice demanding. “What was that about breaking the fated mate bond?”

“It was nothing,” I lie, lifting the glass to my lips, but it doesn’t reach my mouth when Sean snatches it out of my hand. Water spills across my feet, but I watch the droplets sliding between my toes instead of lifting my eyes to Sean’s face.

“It wasn’t n-nothing,” he says, voice cracking. “You want to break the mate bond between us? You don’t want me?”

I look up with a startled gasp, hearing the pain in his voice, and then finding it in his expression. His eyes are glossed over with tears, his bottom lip quivering with dread, and it breaks me, physical pain shooting through my chest.

I spin around because I can’t bear it. I can’t stand here and watch him break apart while I’m trying to save him, trying to spare him from an unfair demise if I fail to use my magic correctly.

“I never said that,” I squeal, and he remains behind me.

“You might as well have said that,” he whispers, and the anguish is still ripe in his voice, breaking my heart. “Is it because of last night? Do you want me to take down the bars? Send the guards home? I’ll do anything—”

“No!” I spin back to him, my heart lurching. “It has nothing to do with any of that.”

“Then what is it? Did I do something wrong?”

“No!” I snap. “You don’t understand!” I bellow at him, throwing my hands up in defeat as something inside me cracks open, splitting with the images of what I’ve been seeing in those nightmares and visions that have been haunting me. “I know we have to go through with this. We’ve been preparing for months, and now I’m here, the last witch in this prophecy to take down Merlin Grimes, and I—” My voice cracks, and I shake my head fervently and tear my gaze from his eyes. “I don’t know if I can do it. I don’t know if I can go through with it. I’m afraid.”

“Afraid of what, Em? I don’t understand.” Sean shakes his head as he takes a step toward me, but I put up a defensive hand to stop him, noting what a stark contrast this moment is to what it was like between us when we got entangled in a mating ceremony.

Back then, I wanted nothing to do with him because I’d been clinging to the past so tightly, and couldn’t accept him being anywhere near me. Now, I’m pulling away because I’m afraid of what happens when I go through with using my powers against the evil witches, against Grimes himself.

What if I fail? What if something goes wrong and Sean pays the price? I’m putting up walls to protect us both this time, and I can barely explain it to him. He hasn’t seen what I saw. He doesn’t understand what it’s like to watch the person you love dying in front of your eyes.

I turn my back to him, hugging my arms across my chest as if craving comfort that can only be found in his arms. But I’m too afraid to ask. Too afraid that I’ll turn to mush in his arms and forget that we’re both in danger here.

“You won’t understand, Sean,” I whisper, my voice hoarse and dry as I fight back a sob. “It’s too much pressure. For both of us. I feel like I’m responsible for your life, and I don’t want to be. If something happens to you—”

“Nothing will happen to me,” he cuts in, and I snap around on him with a fiery glare through the haze of my tears.

“You don’t know that!” I snap. “No one knows what happens, but I’ve seen it! I’ve had a vision of the future, Sean, and in it, you die!”

Sean remains calm and composed, as if that bit of information doesn’t bother him at all. “Emily…it’s not set in stone,” he says, shaking his head softly as he cautiously reaches out toward me. I flinch, only because I’m terrified of feeling his touch when it’s just a reminder of a bond that is tied to destruction.

“Delilah always says that visions aren’t set in stone,” he says, more gently this time. “What you’ve been seeing is just what the Harrower wants you to see. She’s playing on your worst fears, messing with you just so you back down.”

“But you and I both know that if I fail, you die!” I argue. “For whatever twisted plan we’re part of, my powers are linked to this bond. They’re linked to our lives. And I can’t afford to fail. You die if I do. I won’t be able to save you!”