Chapter 53: The Ritual Begins
Caleb POV
The shadow marks on my chest suddenly flared to life like burning brands, and I screamed as pain shot through every nerve in my body.
"Caleb!" Lily’s words seemed to come from far away, even though she was right beside me.
I tried to reach for her, but my arms wouldn’t obey me. The spirit poison that had been slowly killing me was changing, transforming into something else entirely. Instead of draining my life, it was now linking me to Morrigan in ways that made my skin crawl.
"Perfect," Morrigan said, and I could hear the satisfaction in her voice even through the pain. "The ritual anchor is complete."
"What ritual?" Lily demanded, but I already knew the answer. I could feel it happening inside me.
"He’s the bridge," I gasped, understanding rushing through me. "She’s using our mate bond to steal your power through me."
The shadow marks spread across my chest in intricate patterns, making symbols I recognized from the oldest pack histories. Ancient magic that should have been forgotten forever. Each symbol burned as it appeared, but the pain was nothing compared to what I felt through my link to Lily.
Her Triple Moon power was being pulled from her body through our mate bond, flowing into me, then being channeled to Morrigan. I was like a tube, and there was nothing I could do to stop it.
"Fight it!" Lily yelled, trying to break the magical chains that had suddenly appeared around her arms. "You have to fight it!"
I wanted to fight. Every instinct I had yelled at me to protect my mate, to break whatever spell was draining her life force. But the dark magic was stronger than my will. It wrapped around my thoughts like thick rope, making it hard to think clearly.