Chapter b534 /b

    My mind rushed through all the runes I could remember. bI /bcould only see a little of the run on Vince’s armb, /bbut it was distinct enough that I should be able to narrow it down. The rune on Vince’s looked to be circr at the very bottom, but there was a clef at the bottom that reminded me of a sickle.

    and

    A pit opened up in my stomach as my mind whirled. What could it be? I closed my eyes so bI /bcould focus on the shape I saw, match it to a rune. But I…couldn’t. I felt sweat bead on my forehead as a tremble started in my hands. My eyes kept jumping back. and forth as my mind raced through all the runes. Something felt boff/bb, /bso I snapped my eyes open and looked at Rowan. He was mid–conversation with Vince. I had lost the connection to my spell when my panic spiralled, so I couldn’t hear what they were saying any longer. I stepped forward, but something held me back

    “Calm yourself, little one.” A soft voice whispered into my ear. “Don’t speak. No one else can hear me. You are panicking because you are worried about your mate. I understand. But in rushing through your runes, you are bound to make mistakes. Rushing through your magic, or allowing your panic to make you forget about your magic could kill byou/b.” My grandmother ced her hand on my arm. “Settle yourself. Let your inner self slow. Take a few deep breaths.” She paused as I did. “Good. Now try again. Start at the beginning. Which rune has what you are looking for?”

    I looked towards her, but there was no one there. I snapped a sound bubble in ce so I could speak to her. b“/bI don’t know.”

    “bYes/bb, /byou do.” Her soft voice reached me past the panic, and my mind slowed down. “That’s it, my girl. Calm your thoughts. Sift through the options. What rune could it be?”

    The options shed through my mind. Strength made no sense, and it was missing the bottom curve. Poison might be closer to their intention, but there was no cross to be seen. The death rune made sense, and it had the sickle part, but again there was no rounded bottom. b“/bGrandma, I can’t find it.” I turned to Rowan, and I watched as he tried to pull his hand back from Vinceb, /bbut he held his hand in ce. “Why won’t he let Rowan’s hand go?”

    “Runes need time to snap into ce. He is trying to ensure his intent is burned into your mate’s skin. But that doesn’t matter. What matters is his actual intent. What is he trying to do?” Her voice was still soft, but there was a little urgency buried under her words.

    Instead of panicking, I took another deep breath as my mind continued to flip through the rest of the runes. Finally, when my stomach rolled, I felt something click into ce. Subdue. “The rune is subdue.”

    My grandmother’s voice was closer. “And why would Vince want to subdue Rowan?”

    “I don’t know.i” /iShe made a noise, and I knew she was looking at me as if I were being stupid.

    “Come now, girlie. Lycan’s are a different breedpared to a wolf. They are more resilient against poisons, like wolfsbane. But more susceptible to silver. They have made the first move by choosing silver. That means they know more than they should. Lycans never shared what worked against them.” She moved closer to me. “Silver will weaken a Lycan, depending on the amount. It can affect a lot of thingsb, /bmaybe even kill them if the amount isrge enough. But there is one thing it could never stop. Unlike wolvesb, /bLycans always retain their ability to do what? Think back to our book and what I had written on the page.”

    I shed back to the Lycan page. I remember the half–human, half–wolf form, and I focused on the words scribbled around the drawing. “His shifting.” My head snapped over to Rowan, and everything clicked into ce. “Vince poisoned him with silver to weaken him, and he is trying to use runes to stop his shifting so that when they attack him…he will be easier to kill.”

    “Exactly.” She sighed. “Now. How do you protect your mate while still sticking to the n?” She sounded like a proud parent when their kid finally solved the issue.

    “Remove the rune and break the bond, like I did with the others…

    “Or?”

    “Or what? That’s the only way I know how to break a rune.”

    “There bis /banother bway/b. It’s more dangerous. And it btakes /bmore power. The gamble of bit /ball is that you are gambling that you are the stronger witch.” I felt her hand squeeze my arm. “Tell meb, /bmy blove/b…are you the stronger witch?”