Wolves' Bane (The Order of the Wolf, #3)(14)

The door to Kelly’s room was closed, so he knocked lightly, unsure if it was a good time to stop by or not.

“Come in, Caleb,” Andrew’s cheery voice bellowed from within.

Cal opened the door and stepped in. Every time he visited, he hoped he would see something different—like Kelly sitting up in bed, smiling and welcoming him, full of life as she’d once been. But instead, and to be expected, really, she lay as she always did. On her back, eyes closed, body hooked up to all kinds of machines. The whosh-whosh sound of the oxygen apparatus and the beeping of the heart monitor were the only things that hinted that she was still alive.

Andrew’s special ability was deviation—prophesy to a limited degree. His powers were weak and unreliable, never able to portent things beyond what would be served for breakfast the next day. When he bonded with Kelly, she immediately adopted his powers, which was normal. What was not normal was the degree. Although it was commonly believed the female of the bonded pair would ultimately embrace and use the male’s power in a stronger capacity, the Order had not expected how strong Kelly’s would be. Upon gaining Andrew’s magic, Kelly had immediately fallen into a coma, unable to move, eat or even breathe on her own and had been like that ever since, going on six months and counting.

Cal ran his hand along the back of his neck, tension riding his shoulders. He wasn’t worried about Morgan becoming overwhelmed or consumed by his powers, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask the Oracle anyway. Morgan wasn’t only his destined mate—she was also a beacon of hope for the Hunters.

Andrew stood from his chair to embrace Cal, patting him roughly on the back before he pulled away. “Nice to see you home safely, Cal.”

He nodded. “Yeah, it’s been a long couple of days.”

Andrew chuckled as he returned to his chair. “Kelly gave me a play-by-play on your struggles with Morgan. She’s a feisty one, eh?”

Cal shook his head, not at all surprised that Kelly had seen everything that had happened. “I’m not looking forward to training her.”

Andrew chuckled again. “Oh, I think you are.”

Cal rolled his eyes, hardly able to hide his smirk. “Okay, there are certain parts of the training that I’m looking forward to.” He moved around the bed and took a seat next to Kelly. “No change?”

Andrew shook his head, his smile fading. “No, she’s locked in there still. The scholars seem to think there might be information in the texts that could release her from this coma.”

Cal nodded as he shifted his gaze from Kelly to Andrew. “That sounds like a wise path. We should have thought of it sooner.”

Andrew motioned toward Kelly’s head. “So, the reason why she called you…”

“Nothing bad I hope?”

“No, no.” Andrew’s smile returned briefly before his face settled into business mode. “Kelly has been having visions of you and Morgan. She foresees some kind of roadblock or barrier, but it’s unclear what exactly is going on. She wants you to bond with Morgan today—now. Like get yourself back to your room and do it.”

“Morgan needs some sleep.” The words made sense, but his body revved up at the suggestion. Not that it would take much where Morgan was concerned, but he was pumped and very willing to follow through with Kelly’s wishes.

Andrew waved his hand in dismissal. “There will be plenty of time for rest later. For now, Kelly is quite anxious to have the two of you bonded. Morgan is linked to Lazarus.”

Cal nodded. “So it’s true then? Morgan is Lazarus’s bride?”

Andrew frowned as he turned his gaze toward Kelly. “His bride? Shit, we didn’t see that. Makes sense though.”

He grew pensive as he communicated with Kelly, his hand trailing up and down her forearm, his brow furrowed, lips pressed tightly together, his stare vacant.

Minutes passed before Andrew returned his gaze to Cal. “She knew that something was going on with Lazarus. In her vision, he was adamant about locating the girl himself. She just didn’t get the whole story about Morgan being his bride, but it makes sense. Lazarus wants her.”

Cal frowned. “So she’s his destined mate?”

Andrew shrugged. “That I don’t know. The texts talk about a powerful Huntress coming who will turn the tide in our favor. Morgan could be that one if she is linked to Lazarus. If she is able to kill him…the lunar eclipse is only three weeks away, timing is right. It’s making more sense now—Kelly’s insistence on you two bonding, Lazarus’s quest for her in the first place. Means a battle is coming. We could have the advantage this time.”

Cal shook his head. “There hasn’t been a lot of success with that, historically speaking.”

“I know.” Andrew sighed. “It hasn’t ended well in the past.”

Cal snorted. “That’s an understatement.” His stomach clenched. A huge f*cking understatement. History had proven that battles between the Huntress and Lazarus had never turned out well, especially when the Huntress was linked to him as his bride. There had only been three, one of whom was Cal’s own mother. The irony that he’d been chosen as Hunter for Lazarus’s bride was not lost on him, when his own mother had faced off with him almost thirty years before and had not lived to tell about it.

“We could forgo this battle, hide Morgan until the next lunar eclipse, when she’s better trained, more equipped to face off with Lazarus.” Even as he said it, Cal knew this was a no-go. The lunar eclipse only happened once every thirty years. Although the timing sucked, if Morgan was Lazarus’s bride, he’d come for her, do whatever it took to have her in his clutches.