Jony wasn't like that, he never behaved like that. This was not the male who had been my friend for so many years, but who had kissed me forcibly and kept getting dangerously close.
— Stay away,— I murmured to him, giving him a chance to back out before he got hurt.
— You know, I was even happy when Alex died, he was always a stone in my way and you are finally free now to live a new love with me.
My heart slammed into my chest so hard I almost lost my breath. How dare he insult Alex's memory like that, knowing how deeply his death hurt me?
— You do not know what you say.
Jony took another step forward and I took two back.
— Jony, no.
He ran his tongue over his lips, something sickly gleaming in the wolf's eyes.
— You'll be mine, Zoe, whether you like it or not.
I closed my hands slowly, a tightness rising in my throat. I didn't want to hurt Jony, he'd been my friend for years, but I wasn't going to allow him to go through with that preposterous plan. Jony had crossed the line and needed to be stopped, for better or for worse.
Before I could even act, again that icy sensation made me gasp.
— You are a dead man.
My body shuddered violently as I recognized that voice that had dominated my thoughts for the last few days. I gasped when I found him behind Jony, and from the deathly expression on the wizard's face, something very bad was going to happen that night.
— What are you doing here?— I asked the wizard, trying to hide my nervousness at his presence.
The man approached Jony and with just one fervent look, the wolf dropped to his knees, eyes wide with terror.
— You will pay with your life for this.
The color was starting to drain from Jony's face, he didn't know if it was fear or despair, maybe both. While a part of me was saying that I should help the wolf and save him, the other part was screaming that Jony should die for what he planned to do.
— Who are you?— my friend managed to ask in a whisper.
— Your worst nightmare.
Jony shuddered, taking his hand to his neck and that's when I realized that the wizard was suffocating him.
— Stop it!— I yelled, finally reacting.
He turned his head towards me, darkness covering his face, hatred and cold fury bathing his eyes.
— That bastard kissed you by force, he planned to do worse, and you want to save him?— He spat the words out aggressively. — You're mine, sweet Zoe, and I'm going to kill the bastard for touching you.
I clenched my teeth tightly.
— You have no claim on me, now release Jony and let me take care of him.
The wizard's features didn't change.
— You know who I am, sweet Zoe, you know you're meant for me.
Reality hit me smooth as a brick in the face.
It was him. The sorcerer was my companion, my predestined by the Moon. I dreamed so many times of finding my soul partner, I dreamed of love and passion, and I was presented with a cruel and merciless black witch.
— And I will kill anyone who poses a threat.
My blood turned cold when I heard Jony's groan of pain. I watched in slow motion the reddish stain covering her entire blouse in the chest area, and it was a matter of seconds before her heart was ripped out of her rib cage and simply flew into the witcher's hands. Jony's body weakened, he dropped to his knees and collapsed at my feet.
A scream of terror escaped my lips and the library lamps exploded, the shelves were pushed back and the pages of books flew towards me. I paralyzed for a few seconds, watching Jony's lifeless body stretched out on the floor.
— No, no,— I whispered, stunned, still not believing what had just happened.
Tears burned in my eyes, a mixture of sadness, hate and grief. Despite everything Jony had done or thought of doing to me, he was still my friend and he didn't deserve to die like that, especially at the hands of my own mate.
— Don't waste your tears on a bastard who had nasty thoughts about you, Zoe, he wasn't worthy of you.
Anger replaced the pain of loss, and I didn't think straight as I raised my hands and the wizard's body flew away, hitting one of the bookshelves hard and falling to the floor. I bent my body, trying to recover my breath and lucidity after witnessing Jony's death, everything was still so confusing.
A throbbing pain shot through my head, I gritted my teeth, bringing my hands to my temples. That was the witcher's doing, of course he wouldn't let my attack pass without retaliation. I pressed my lips together, refusing to make a sound for the pain I felt.
— Do you think you're stronger than me?— I warned you to be careful with me.
He came into my field of vision, right in front of me.
— Go to hell.— I spat blood at his feet.
The witcher cupped my face and I felt the pressure in my head ease. He analyzed my face and locked his eyes with mine for a few seconds.
— I am the king of hell, sweet Zoe, and I have the demons at my command.
ZOE LABONAIR
Jony's death scene was still replaying in my mind.
Jony was someone important to me, my friend for years, a faithful companion who was always by my side, but who began to harbor dangerous feelings for me, which led him to lose his reason and act wrong, kissing me forcibly and trying to take me for himself. He was a disgrace to me, but he didn't deserve death. If Dad had known what Jony had done, he probably wouldn't have given the wolf such an honorable burial.
When I closed my eyes, I could still feel the death hanging in the air, the smell of Jony's blood, I could almost feel the liquid on my hands. But the worst part was remembering the warlock's power, the dark force that enveloped my body and made fear scream inside me. He possessed a dark magic that I've only seen once in my life, in Kisa.
Fear settled in my chest. Would he be an ally of Kisa and another enemy who would try to destroy us at any cost?
I would be lying if I said I didn't shed a single tear over Jony's death, not for the wolf who kissed me against my will, but for the friend who stayed by my side all my life. Even three days after his death, I still had nightmares about what happened.
A knock on my bedroom door snapped me out of my reverie, I recognized Megan's scent, she was still trying to get the truth at all costs, she didn't believe me when I said we were attacked by vampires and Jony fought to save me, dying a hero for me. save the daughter of the Supreme.
— Zoe?
— I want to be alone, Megan,— I replied hoarsely, my throat tight.
My sister kept knocking on the door until she got tired, that's when I heard a bang and the door hit the floor, I jumped out of bed in fright.
— What the hell does that mean?
— That door was getting in my way — he muttered and entered the room, picking up the door that was on the floor and trying to put it in place, but the latches and bolts were broken.
— You're crazy,— I mumbled as I hugged my pillow again.
— How long are you going to go on moaning, Zoe?
— Why don't you go away and leave me alone?
Megan stopped in front of the bed and crossed her arms, with the look on her face that would start another interrogation.
— It was the wizard who killed Jony, wasn't it?— I just can't understand why.
I tried to look away, but Megan came back into view, waiting for an answer. She was so tired from the sleepless night that I didn't have the courage to lie looking into my sister's eyes and the silence was the answer she expected.
— Holy shit, Zoe, this is way over the line!
— I know, just...
I wasn't able to continue talking. My twin sat beside me, and she held my hand, offering me support.
— Why did he kill Jony?
I pressed my lips together, swallowing hard.
— The afternoon we went to the library, Jony confessed that he had feelings for me. He said he had loved me for years but Alex was a drag that only got in his way and he was glad he was gone. Jony kissed me forcibly and told me that I would be his at any cost.
Megan was silent, jaw clenched.
— If the warlock hadn't killed Jony, I would have.
I buried my hands in my face, whimpering and wanting to escape that event.
— I know Jony made a mistake, but I saw him get killed in front of me, Meg. The wizard ripped his heart out without the slightest effort, I've never seen that much power besides Kisa. I should have protected him and I failed.
A haze of indignation came over my sister's face.
— It wasn't your fault that Jony was an asshole and the warlock was a bastard.
My lips trembled as I whispered:
— The warlock is my mate.
Megan cursed softly, laying down on the bed next to me and hugging me tightly, she didn't have to say anything, she just stayed by my side for almost an hour, in silence. My sister was destined for a murderer and I for a merciless monster. How would I be able to handle this?
— Our family and friends were so lucky to find their mates, but it looks like the Moon decided to play with both of us.
— I'd say the Moon screwed up badly,— Megan commented.
I sighed softly, rubbing the moonstone on my neck. My heart still ached from the grief of losing a friend, but the anger eased the feeling and pain, made it easier to deal with everything that happened. Jony would be etched in my memory as a good friend who met an unhappy fate at the hands of a cruel wizard.
— You've been overworked for days, Zoe.
— AND?
— Come with me.
Megan got up from the bed and grabbed my hand, trying to pull me off the mattress. I groaned in disgust, the idea of getting out of bed not very appealing. After much prodding, I allowed her to pull me out of bed and pull me out of the room, towards the front door. We found our parents in the living room.
— Girls?— my mom called us. — Everything is fine?
— Zoe and I are going to do some training,— Megan replied. — I advise you to stay away from the arena.
— Don't destroy the arena like last time, it was difficult to rebuild again. Dad said and Megan nodded. — Zoe, dear?
— I'm fine, Daddy.— My voice was so low, I didn't have the courage to look him in the eye. My father was the person who trusted me the most in the world and lying to him was killing me, I was betraying the trust he had in me.
— We need to go— Megan noticed I was on the verge of tears again and pulled me back toward the back of the house, toward the magical arena Mom had created for us to train. It was protected by a magical barrier, preventing the outside of the arena from being affected by our magic.
— Why did you bring me here?
— You need to get everything you're feeling out there.
I rested my hands on my hips, sleepy.
— I'm not going to fight you, Megan.