Reclaiming Her Heart

Chapter 64 - The Storm

Jadea

I don't know why, but something in me snapped.

All I could see was red.

All I could taste was anger.

I lunged at Agamemnon, bound and determined to get past him at all costs.

I needed to get to the ley lines. And no one was going to stand in my way.

The damn demon didn't flinch. Rather, he seemed to anticipate this response. Right when I crashed into him, there was a spurt of energy and I went sailing backwards, back into the meadow. He'd teleported us in the blink of an eye back into the heart of the territory. I crash-landed, skidding several yards back, my white fur stained with mud.

Regaining my feet, my snarl filled the air, teeth bared. From the woods behind him, Agamemnon's pack answered his silent call. All of their hackles raised, teeth bared in warning, while Agamemnon stood tall in his human form, staring calmly at me. "Stand down Jadea," he commanded, lightning striking behind him as thunder crashed overhead.

Rallying around me, I felt my pack answering Agamemnon's.

"Let's show them how this game is played," Garret grumbled in my mind. Needing a fight. All of us were so wound up, it was unhealthy.

"Baby girl, stand down," Adam warned as he and Caden appeared on the porch.

I was beyond reason and my pack was feeding off my energy.

Agamemnon's heavy sigh rolled across the space between us. "You're still disconnected from her, your wolf?"

"Yes," I snarled my response.

"And you're hoping the ley lines will help?"

Nodding my head, I prayed he would understand and allow me to go. I'd been told my entire life the ley lines were a place I could go for sanctuary. To connect deeply with my primitive wolf. I prayed it was a place I could go to simple reconnect with her. Even if it didn't last. I craved her. Needed her. With every passing day, I felt her slipping further out of reach. I was afraid if I waited much longer, I would never recover her.

Agamemnon's gaze turned curious, as if he were listening to my thoughts. But, he couldn't. Could he? "You do not need the ley lines," he murmured gently. "It is you. You are holding yourself back."

My snarl was a warning. How could he say I was holding myself back? I was doing everything I could to reconnect with her!

"Your wolf, the last time you connected with her, stated you needed to repair all your previous bonds."

"Of which I have done," I snapped.

Shaking his head, he continued. "You haven't repaired the bond within yourself."

"Well the only way I can mend that bond is by going to the ley lines." It was the only way I knew. Lucien always took me there—

"There's power all around you. You do not need the proximity of the ley lines to connect with yourself and heal."

I was becoming impatient. I started pacing, mind calculating how to get what I so desperately needed.

"Besides, you are not bound to the earth's powers alone because you are descended from the Moon God's wolf lover."

This made me pause. I hadn't ever thought of it like that before.

"You pull power from the moon as well as the earth." He continued.

"You wouldn't understand—"

"Oh, I understand. Better than you would believe," he muttered, those eyes of his going distant as if remembering a time long ago. "You see, the hell-hound shifters were created after the primitive wolves. To bring balance. We are made from the earth's molten center, wolf's bane and ash. We, too, have a unique connection with the earth and can utilize the earth's powers."

Interesting. I hadn't ever heard of this before.

"And, as luck would have it, I have faced such challenges when a shifter has lost connection with their inner hound. And yes, there are devastating consequences if the bond is not repaired. The shifter, over time, will lose the ability to shift. The mind is also not kind to the break and will slowly deteriorate until driven to insanity."

"Is there a way to fix the bond?" I asked hopefully.

"Yes." There was hesitation in his voice.

"But?" I pressed.

"It's going to take a lot from you."

Well, that wasn't helpful. "Why didn't you say anything before?"

"Because you weren't ready. Come. Shift," he ordered, striding toward the porch.

I wanted to ask what made me ready now? Especially when I was so broken, so empty inside. So filled with anger and hate. So filled with self-loathing.

Yet, at the same time, there was nothing to lose by allowing Agamemnon to help.

Grumbling, I shifted. Agamemnon picked up my sword and tossed it to me. The moment my fingers closed over the hilt, he continued, "If you want to reconnect with her, then you must first trust yourself."

"It sounds like you have learned this lesson from experience." I mused.

"I am centuries old, my dear," he cooed, a mischievous glint shining from his gaze. "I've learned a thing or two in my lifetime."

Fair enough. "Alright. I'll bite."

I didn't want to get my hopes up, afraid this would end in another heartbreak.

Nodding, he pulled out his long, wicked flamberge-style sword. It was long with the trademark wavy edges. While I heard of such swords, I hadn't ever seen one. I couldn't say I wasn't nervous about facing off with the hell-hound shifter.

"I've learned that fighting is the fastest and easiest way to remake that bond. Ready yourself," he warned.

I did, raising my sword and steadying my resolve.

Right as he lunged for me, I was in motion. We converged, blades clashing. The straight edge of my blade catching on the uneven edges of his, making my hands hurt from the impact. Not only that, I was at a severe disadvantage in my mortal form. I was smaller, weaker. He clearly had the upper hand.

After dodging and weaving around his attacks a couple of times, I noticed some patterns and was able to counterattack, landing a few good strikes. We came up short when our swords tangled at the hilts, going nearly nose to nose as he bore down on me. Those bronze eyes drilling into mine. "Why don't you trust yourself?" he snarled.

The question took me off guard. Shoving him away, I landed a solid kick to his stomach, sending him stumbling back several feet. Unfortunately, he was right on top of me again. I knew he wouldn't relent until I answered. "Because, I didn't trust myself before," I ground out through gritted teeth, my mind instantly going back to the last night of our tour. "I'm finding it hard to trust myself now."

"Good," he praised, pulling away momentarily before coming at me with a flurry of attacks, forcing my focus back on the immediate fight. "She's there, inside you. She is a part of you and is not as far out of reach as you believe. Instead of coaxing her out, and forcing her to react—as you have been doing—you are going to trust her."

"But I already trust her," I snarled aloud. In my world, she had always been the only one I could ever trust.

"Not like you once did, child," he responded sadly.

I felt the first crack within my chest. His use of the word child rubbing me the wrong way. "Don't call me a child!" I roared, my powers surging forth. Powers I didn't realize I had. And yet, my body just knew.

Agamemnon easily countered them, his gaze curiously studying me.

Ugh! Why did he have to make it look so easy!?

"Feel the sword in your hands," he redirected quickly, while we started to circle one another. "Feel its weight."

Closing my eyes, I listened. I allowed myself to blindly trust in him. Knowing if anyone was going to be able to help me re-connect with her, it was him.