Page 98 of Wedded Witch
“What happened to you?” I ask, my voice tight, torn between relief and guilt. I hadn’t expected to see him again. Not like this. And why am I…worried?
“I tried to stop it.” His voice is a ragged whisper. “The storm…it wasn’t natural. It was meant for you. I—” He coughs, grimacing in pain, but his eyes don’t leave mine. “I tried to protect you.”
The guilt crashes over me like a wave. He fought for me? Despite everything, he was trying to keep me safe? Theconfusion gnaws at me, twisting inside as I try to reconcile the man I’m kneeling beside with the one I’d been running from for so long.
“Oland, don’t talk. We’ll get you help,” I say, brushing a strand of wet hair from his forehead, my fingers barely steady.
He shakes his head weakly. “No time. There’s something you need to know.” His voice is strained, his gaze sharp as it locks onto mine. “Swyn… we’re bound. Fated mates. You can’t break the curse without me.”
My world tilts. The words hang in the air, impossible and heavy. Fated mates? My heart pounds painfully in my chest, and I’m torn between disbelief and…something I can’t name. I look at the others—Ri, Kel, Sol—but they’re as silent as I am.
How is this even possible? Can I havefourfated mates? And if I do, why did Gramps not want me to marry Oland? None of this makes any sense.
“I don’t—” I stammer, but before I can speak, a shimmer of light appears between the trees. My breath catches in my throat as the figure materialises, spectral and glowing—a vision, but solid enough to feel real.
Elias.
His presence sends a ripple of energy through the clearing, and the air feels charged, alive. His deep voice echoes around us, cutting through the tension.
“It’s time, Swyn.”
I stare at him, my mind spinning. “Gramps… what?—”
He doesn’t let me finish. “The brothers are finally reunited. Earth, air, fire, and water… all are here. And you, as a master of Aether, will finally be complete.”
I blink, confusion swallowing me whole. Complete? Aether? “What are you talking about?” I ask, my voice a broken whisper. “Oland said I need him?—”
Elias doesn’t let me finish. “Your path to break the curse lies with the triplets, yes, but also with Oland.” His voice reverberates through the air, commanding and sure. “He, too, is part of this.”
The words knock the breath out of me, my thoughts scrambling. “I don’t understand—he’s—” I glance down at Oland, then up at the brothers. “How is that possible? I thought…”
“They are brothers, and each of them plays a role, bound to you by fate,” Elias continues, stepping forward. “You, as the master of Aether, will bring balance, but only when the four elements—earth, air, fire, and water—are united by your side. Oland, master of earth, is part of that balance.”
My pulse is deafening in my ears, the truth sinking in. Oland isn’t just here by coincidence, and I can’t just turn away from him. He’s not only tied to my past but to my future, just like the triplets are.
My head spins with the implications. Ineedhim to break the curse.
But that doesn’t erase the bond I’ve already started building with Kel, Sol, and Ri.
I glance at them now, their faces unreadable. The tension between us, already thick, now feels like it might break. Ri, especially, watches me with that intense gaze of his, the muscles in his jaw tight.
How am I supposed to balance all of this?
Oland shifts beside me, groaning in pain as he tries to sit up. “Swyn,” he murmurs, his voice weak but determined, “I’ll help you. I’ll do whatever it takes. But there’s no rush. We know how to break the curse now, so there’s no rush. We have time to fall in love.”
My heart aches. There’s no going back now. I look at him, at the brothers, and then back to Elias, who is watching me expectantly.
I can’t ignore what’s happening here. I can’t pretend this isn’t real.
Elias gives a final nod, as if satisfied. “You will have to make the choice, Swyn. But know this—your power will only be fully realised when all are bound to you, as one.” His form begins to shimmer, fading into the trees.
“The curse will break. Trust in that.”
The clearing falls silent again, and I’m left staring at Oland, his breathing ragged, his body broken. And yet, despite everything, I need him. Not just to survive—but to be whole.
But there’s no denying the bond I’ve already forged with Ri, Sol, and Kel. I sense it in every look, every touch, every heartbeat that passes between us. And now Oland? He complicates everything.
A voice inside me screams that I shouldn’t want this, shouldn’t be torn between them all. But how can I ignore the truth? We’re all connected in a way that goes beyond desire, beyond love. Beyond fate.