Beyond Beta's Rejection

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“What?” Tommy exclaimed. He shook his head. “I don’t think so.”

“It’s the truth,” Caroline said. “I saw it years ago.” She smiled at me. “That was the vision that I saw all those years ago.” Tommy’s eyes widened, and he looked between me and Caroline.

“Vision?” he asked, and I nodded.

“I heard Samual talking to Brighid about it,” I said and Drake looked up.

“Brighid?” he asked, and I nodded again.

“Samual didn’t like that his sweet Divine Warrior granddaughter would be the one to open the seal,” Caroline said. “And when he found out that my Colton would be one of the people responsible…” She trailed off and looked at Tommy pointedly.

“That was why he attacked the demon bloods?” Tommy asked and Caroline nodded.

“He wanted to kill Colton,” she said, “But our family defended him. They were already angry about Nathaniel being exiled.” I watched Colton as she spoke, but he showed no sign of upset. He seemed to be completely aware of the entire story.

“But then if Harper is this apparent master or whatever, then how did that jackass get into Elias?” Alex asked. “Why didn’t Elias’ demon renounce him?”

“I am guessing because War figured out who Harper was before the demon had a chance to renounce him,” Colton said with a shrug. “Once the Horseman gets a foothold into the vessel, it is only a matter of time before he would wear down, or burn out the original host.” I felt a lump in my stomach as he spoke.

“So you are saying that Elias is gone?” I asked. Colton shook his head.

“No, I don’t think so,” he said. “He’ll still be trapped inside. This is why War needs to complete the bond quickly so that the vessel doesn’t burn up.”

“Complete the bond?” Aaron asked. His face lit up, and he nudged Katie. She jumped off his knee, and he stood up and walked to the pile of the books on the table. Katie sat back in the seat and curled in on herself. I noticed she made a point not to look at Colton. I knew that Colton noticed it too.

“I remember reading something about the bond,” Aaron said. He looked at Drake. “Do you remember it seemed off to us because the bond already cracked the seal, so how would it break it?” Drake nodded as he spoke and joined him at the table.

“Elias,” I said and everyone looked at me. “Remember, he said that the Horseman had to complete his own mate bond. That is what will break the seals for good.” Colton nodded as I spoke.

“That is exactly it,” he said. I felt a cold feeling run through me and thoughts of s*x in the woods the other day came to mind. I turned to Colton.

“Does the bond work the same?” I asked, and he looked confused. “I mean is it the same way that a shifter mate bond is created?”

“Oh,” he said, “I believe so. But you must accept it willingly. He needs your complete submission.” Alex laughed.

“Yeah that isn’t gonna happen,” he said. But I felt cold inside.

“I think it almost did,” I said. Once again all eyes were on me. I wanted to squirm under their attention but I knew I couldn’t. “The other day, I was in the woods with Elias and we were intimate. He was about to bite me. I am now certain that it wasn’t Elias.” The idea that I had not only slept with the Horseman, but enjoyed it without knowing that it wasn’t my mate sickened me.

“I don’t think it would have been enough,” Colton said with a look of sympathy on his face.

“Yes, I think he is right,” Drake said from the table. He pointed to a piece of text and Aaron started reading through it. He nodded and looked up at me.

“It talks about an ascension,” he said. “The host must have full control, and a complete willing submission must be given from the subject before the rightful heir can take the throne.”

“Okay,” I said. I didn’t really feel any better, but it was something. “So War needs to get me to agree to the bond? Can we use that?”

“Absolutely we can,” Caroline said. She turned to Brianna. “My dear, you are so much more adept at this than me.” Brianna looked startled, and a little confused.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I have no idea.”

“Oh dear,” Caroline said with a chuckle. “Being a member of the Darkest Dawn coven makes you uniquely equipped.”

“Yes, but I left years ago,” Brianna said. But then I saw something light up on her face. “Wait,” she said, “Are you referring to the soul anchor?” Caroline nodded with a wide smile.

“Soul anchor?” I asked and Brianna nodded.

“Yes,” she said. “When my people did the sacrifices of the potential Divine Warriors, they used a method to push the souls of the witch into the Neverplain. Remember how they all were there.” I saw a sadness cross her face as she spoke.

When Brianna and I transitioned her to a Divine Warrior, we had entered the Neverplain. Alongside her Angel side were the souls of the girls who had been sacrificed before and after her. They were angry because the only way they could get back to their bodies was through her. I knew she felt guilty that the girls had died and she could have brought them back. It had been quite scary as a few of the souls had tried to keep Brianna from her Angel. Alex obviously saw she was upset and reached out to squeeze her hand. Brianna smiled at him, but then looked back up at me.

“If we can get War into the Neverplain, then we can force his soul or whatever from Elias’ body. That should give Elias the ability to take control again,” Brianna said with excitement.

“And how would we force him to give up his vessel?” Aaron asked.

“He would need to be pushed back to Hell,” Colton said. He looked at his mother and she nodded with a smile. “It would need another who is strong enough to do it.” I narrowed my eyes at him and he smiled.

“Who is stronger than a Horseman?” Alex asked and Drake met my eyes.

“A Divine Warrior is,” he said. “We have the almost pure essence of Rachel.” He sighed. “I could-” But I cut him off.

“No,” I said. “It has to be me.”

“Why?” Aaron asked sharply.

“Because he needs to do so willingly,” Colton said. I looked at him and nodded.

“I have to accept the bond,” I said.

“Absolutely not,” Tommy said, and I smiled at him. “Don’t give me that look,” he snapped. “You can not accept the bond. It would shatter the seals. We already established that.”

“Not in the Neverplain,” Brianna said. She looked up at me. “If you were in the Neverplain, then the bond would be between you and the Horseman, not you and Elias. You could coax him out of the vessel and willingly go to Hell.”

“She is not going to Hell,” Tommy shouted. I went over to him and pulled him into a hug. He pulled away and looked me in the eye. “You can’t,” he said. “You can’t give in to him.”

“I won’t be,” I said. “I will be taking the throne.” I watched Tommy’s eyes widen. “I have to accept that I am this master first, then I can overthrow him.” I turned to face Colton.

“That’s it, isn’t it?” I confirmed, and he nodded.

“If you accept your claim on the ones who wish to swear loyalty, then yes, there is a good chance that you will be strong enough to take the throne,” he said.

“But that still doesn’t stop the seals from breaking,” Drake said.

“The ruler of the throne can control the seals,” Caroline said, and I smiled at her. I remembered our conversation from last night. “If Harper was to take the throne, she would be able to open and close the seals as she pleases.”

“I don’t like it,” Aaron said.

“No, me neither,” Katie spoke up. She looked up at me from her seat with tears in her eyes. “You’re my best friend, I don’t want to lose you.” I realised Tommy was being quiet suddenly and looked over at him. His eyes were glazed like he was in a mind link conversation. He looked conflicted. I guess that Louise needed him too.

“Hey,” I said to him and his eyes cleared. “If you need to go to Louise, then it’s okay, she needs you more right now.” He furrowed his eyebrows at me for a second before he glanced to the side.

“Oh, no,” he said. “It’s fine, she will be okay for a little while longer.” He forced a smile on his face that I didn’t like. I followed his eyeline and saw something in Carolines eyes before she looked away.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Drake asked. “I don’t like it one bit, but I know you too well to know how stubborn you are.” I grinned at him. He really did know me well.

“I am certain,” I said. “I need Elias safe, and it’s not like I will be gone forever.”

“Unless you fail,” Aaron said. I screwed my face at him and he chucked. “Yes, I know that failure isn’t in your mind. But we have to accept the risks here Harper. If you aren’t strong enough, he will have control over you and the seals.”

“So how do we make her strong enough?” Alex asked. I looked at Colton and he nodded.

“I have to accept my new subjects,” I said.