Bound by Spells (Bound Series Book 2) by Stormy Smith

was saying. Finally, I just lay there with my eyes closed, letting the feel of our magic together become the only thing I knew. I could see my violet smoke, wispy and wafting, encircling his blue fire. They pushed into each other, becoming a color I couldn’t name but knew was just as special as what we had.
    I sighed as I both thanked and cursed my mind for giving me this gift. I worked hard to only show Micah the strong side of me. To take everything in stride. But I was terrified and had no idea what I was doing. I stayed in the fetal position, relishing in the feel of him around me for as long as my mind would allow. When I woke up, curled around a pillow, I could still smell citrus and woods. I swallowed down the tears I wouldn’t allow and forced myself to sit up. It was a new day and another day closer to when the Queen would come home. I had work to do.
     
     

Chapter 11

     
     
    The caves weren’t so bad. Or so I kept telling myself. They were dark and smelled like dirt and wet fur. They were small and cramped. But, they were a product of volcanic activity and helped hide the AniMages from the Queen and her Hunters, so it wasn’t like I could complain. Bethany, Charlie, and I had been kept together, as we were the only ones who didn’t really belong. Elias put us closer to the entrance, since Bethany didn’t have the benefit of nocturnal vision like the rest of us.
    I had given up trying to sleep hours ago, as my too-long legs jutted off the end of a twin mattress. Bethany was just across the small space they called our room and Charlie sat sentry between us, tall and stiff. His only movements were to turn his head left or right, looking at Bethany or me when we would jostle on our beds. I hadn’t forgotten the Hunter referring to him as a Sentinel, but it didn’t seem like something anyone else had guessed or understood, so for now, I was holding that question for another time.
    I was frustrated. We had come to find Elias. To get his help, to go find Cole and Amelia and get them out of wherever the hell the psycho Queen had taken them. Bethany had continued to educate me on the Queen and I still couldn’t wrap my mind around the stories. Or being one of the people the Queen hated. With my blue eyes and my shifting form, I was lumped in with them, and we were numero uno on her shit list. I had so many questions for Elias, yet he managed to answer none of them.
    We had walked for a while, following Elias down the trail until we came to another clearing. Campfires were set up and AniMages were stationed around them in small groups. Some were shifted, some human, but they looked at us like we were the ones to be feared. Wide eyes and hushed whispers followed Bethany, Charlie, and me around the area. All except Dillon. He was perfectly content to talk Bethany's ear off. He talked about how cool it was to be an owl and how much Elias trusted him to scout the area. He puffed up his little man chest and declared, “I only have to get a little bigger before I can fight. But don’t you worry, Miss Bethany, I can protect you.” She nodded graciously and we both fought to hold back our smiles as our eyes connected. B assured Little Man he was all she needed and you'd have thought she handed him the moon.
    I tried to take in as much of the scene as possible, without making it obvious I was scouting. I counted twenty-three AniMages, including Elias and Dillon, and noted Dillon as the only child I’d seen. Were the other kids hidden deeper in the caves behind us? The opening to the cave was no bigger than a doorway and surrounded by shrubbery. It was a pitch black hole and didn’t feel terribly inviting. Bethany stood close to me, her fingers gripping Charlie’s collar as she, too, scanned the crowd. She’d been here before and wasn’t overly thrilled to be back. It wasn’t until Elias gestured us to a small fire pit with food roasting on a spit that her stomach growled, breaking the strained silence. Elias