A Twisted Fate : The Dream Trilogy - Book 2 Read online

  A Twisted Fate

  The Dream Trilogy - Book 2

  Samantha Barrett

  Samantha Barrett

  Copyright © 2021 Samantha Barrett

  All rights reserved

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Cover design by: Kuro Ishi

  Editing by Kiezha Ferrell at Librum Artis

  Proofreading by Willie Field at Damara Grammar

  Dedication

  For my husband.

  To my knight in shining armor, you are my everything.

  I love you today, tomorrow and forever.

  Thank you for being you and loving me completely.

  “Forever with you would never be long enough.”

  Chapter 1

  Ryan

  “You have to do the spell; the boys will know what spell to procure. Trust in yourself, you can do this.”

  “How can you be so sure?”

  “Because you are stronger than you know. He will need to play his part—you must do this spell.”

  I drifted out of my daydream and sighed. Yeah, I wasn’t just dreaming while sleeping now.

  I sit in my room, gazing out the window, not really seeing anything. The doubts of what I am supposed to do are creeping in. Kai’s gone. He’s actually fucking gone.

  I feel the tears starting to build again. Taking a steadying breath, I push my emotions back down. I can’t give into my grief when there is a chance the tears will be wasted. I’ve spent the past three days in this room, planning and plotting.

  Losing Kai was a hard pill to swallow; I didn’t even get the chance to really get to know him. I shake myself out of my thoughts. I need to get my head back in the game and stick to the plan if I want vengeance for Kai.

  I take my first shower in who knows how long and slip on the clothes Aurora brought me. They fit like a glove, but even if they didn’t, beggars can’t be choosers. I quickly brush my hair and teeth and, taking a deep breath, I brave leaving my room.

  I try to make my way to the mess hall, where I assume everyone will be. I haven’t seen Dom, Jax, or Nico since I awoke after losing Kai. I’m anxious to see them.

  Guilt has me stumbling. I lied; I’m not anxious to see them, I’m anxious to see him. When I found out that Kai was real, I knew there was a slim chance Nico was too. Kai may be dead, and here I am being a worthless piece of shit, pining after his best friend. Now that I know the truth, I shouldn’t feel guilt for my feelings toward Nico, but I do.

  I refuse to let my mind wonder anymore. I need to find the guys and make a plan. After turning down many different hallways and then retracing my steps because I went the wrong way, I finally got to the mess hall. I can hear muffled sounds coming from inside the hall. I know people are going to stare, but before I can talk myself out of it, I push the doors open and enter.

  As soon as I walk in, all conversation stops. I can feel so many pairs of eyes on me. I hold my head high and make my way to the food station. It takes all of ten seconds before both my cousins are beside me.

  “Squirt, you don’t have to be here.” I count to three in my head and then address Alex.

  “I know, but sitting in that room and feeling sorry for myself isn’t going to help anyone, is it?” I don’t mean to sound bitchy, but I need to keep up my act that I’m grieving. I need to make sure to keep my answers vague in front of Jackson or he will know I’m lying.

  “If you need to be angry, then do that. But don’t let any of these assholes see you hurting. We’re here with you every step of the way, cousin.” Chase’s words helped ease some of the tension in my body. I kept my head held high, grabbed my food, and followed the boys back to their table.

  I feel it the instant his eyes lock on me; I feel a sizzle zapping down my spine. I avoid eye contact and take the seat between Alex and Chase. No one speaks for a long moment. I push the food around my plate, not having much of an appetite due to someone’s gaze burning holes in me.

  “It’s good to see you, Ryan.” I don’t need to look up to know its Aurora that spoke. Again, I count to three in my head before lifting my eyes to hers. The look on her face is nearly my undoing— so much pity shines within them. “We’re all here for you.”

  How am I supposed to reply to that? I know Jax and Dom are waiting for me to acknowledge their presence, but in order for me to do that, I would have to see him. And as if sensing my inner struggle, he speaks.

  “I know you are hurting.” God, the sound of his voice is making me feel things. Things I don’t want to feel right now.

  “We need to speak with you, privately.” I don’t voice a reply or lift my head. I simply nod. After a minute or so, conversation around the table continues, and I zone out, lost in my own thoughts.

  “Ryan, did you hear me?” I turn toward Chase, staring into his sky-blue eyes. I shake my head.

  “I just said, if you are done eating, we should go to Jackson’s office and talk.” I nod and stand, following the group to Jackson’s office. Once we enter the room, I move to the couch and sit down on the far end, so I don’t have to be seated between anyone. I don’t make eye contact or speak to the others as they all find their own seats. Someone clears their throat; I look up and quickly scan the room. Jax, Dom, and Aurora share a couch. Chase is beside me and Alex beside him. He sits in the lone chair in the middle, and I don’t make eye contact. I pretend he isn’t even there. It’s easier if I pretend my feelings for him don’t exist. My heart has no place in this war, plus I can’t trust him. He has no idea I know about his lies and secrets. It’s crazy that after everything he has done, I still want him to hold me. I want him to tell me we’ll be okay and we can make this work. I quickly shake my thoughts away, and ask the pertinent question.

  “So, what do you all want to talk about? Please don’t treat me like I am made of glass.” I’m quite proud of myself; my voice is strong and steady.

  “We need to make a plan to move forward with unlocking your powers” There it is, the reason why everyone is so tense. Did they think I would back out?

  “I agree, when should we start?” Jax looked shocked. I agreed with him so easily. They were all giving me strange looks now, almost as if they expected me to have a tantrum and let a world die. I would never do something like that; I gave my word and I will not go back on that promise.

  “Ahhhh… Okay, I thought that we were going to have to convince you, Squirt. I guess the next question is what do we do now?” Oh, Alex, if only you knew the full story.

  “Before all this happens, we need to make sure that you are ready for what comes next, love.” I wish they would all stop beating around the bush.

  “Just say it, Dom.” I made sure to keep my face blank of all emotion. I couldn’t afford for them to see beyond the mask I was wearing.

  “Okay, Love, are you ready to take your sister down?” Dom asks, never breaking eye contact. Looking into his violet eyes was almost hypnotizing.

  “Yes, I will do whatever needs to be done to ensure the safety of the fae realm. My sister will pay for what she has done.” I meant every single word; I waited for the sting to come, knowing that I had just vowed to destroy my sister, but I felt nothing. I was numb. Stevie made her choice, and I have made mine.

  “Tonight, we will need to
head toward the northern border. It’s far enough away from the pack and humans.” Jackson’s concern for his pack and the humans in the area was touching but unnecessary. My powers wouldn’t be unlocked tonight—not that he would tell the group why that is. I needed to keep up my act by playing along like I didn’t know the truth.

  “What happens if you can’t control the blast, Dom?” I asked, and judging by the looks on the others faces, they were all wondering the same thing.

  “I will try my best. I have never had to contain something like this before.” I appreciated his honesty. “If we are far enough away from the pack and humans we should be fine.” Dom then turned to him and asked, “You would have more of an idea than any of us, brother—what do you think?”

  “I think what Jax has planned is the best option. I don’t know exactly what the blast radius will be.” His voice was like music, a beautiful tune that you didn’t want to stop. “I think we should start tonight.” Before he could continue to torment me with his song, Aurora started to shake and her eyes went white. Dom and Jax quickly jumped from their seats, followed by Alex and Chase. Alex went to reach for her but Jax slapped his hand away.

  “You cannot touch her! If you do, it could cause her harm.”

  After what felt like hours but was only minutes, Aurora finally stopped shaking, and her eyes returned to their normal pale blue color. No one spoke. We were giving her time to sort her thoughts and gather herself. Jax made his way over to his desk and grabbed the bottle of water that was sitting there; he returned and handed it to Aurora, who thanked him and took two big sips.

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you all. I think you should all sit down. I didn’t see anything good, I’m afraid” Aurora gave me a strange look. I was starting to panic now—what if she saw and knew the whole truth? I couldn’t risk them finding out now, not yet. I just hoped that she only saw what he wasn’t telling the group.

  The four guys take their seats, all eyes turn to Aurora, waiting. Shaking her head and taking a few calming breaths, she spoke, looking me dead in the eyes. Oh God, please.

  “Ryan, you can’t unlock your powers. I had a vision, obviously. If you attempt to unlock your powers, you will die, and—” Nico cuts her off before she can finish.

  “That can’t be! I put the lock on her powers”

  “Yes, but what you don’t know is Ryan’s father changed the key to unlocking her gifts. Ralph only needed your help to lock her fae power down. He couldn’t risk you wanting to claim the greatest weapon.”

  “Okay, so Ryan’s father changed this key… What happens now? How does she unlock her powers?” Oh, Alex, you are going to be so pissed.

  “She will need to merge with her intended.”

  “What the hell does that mean, Rora?” Rora? Since fucking, when did Chase give her a nickname? I didn’t realize they were besties now. Aurora turns her gaze back to me.

  “Remember I told you that you would need to marry?” I give her a stiff nod. “You need to marry so your power can merge through you both and not kill you. I know this isn’t what you want to hear but…” I cut in, not wanting to sit here and hear her continue to beat around the fucking bush. Steeling my spine, I turn to face Nico and look directly into his eyes for the first time.

  “So, when should we get hitched, future husband?”

  Chapter 2

  Nico

  What the hell!

  How did she know? She’s looking at me with so much anger and mistrust. Did Aurora betray me? Everyone is staring at me, and Jackson looks like he is two seconds away from wringing my neck.

  “Well? Are you going to answer me or sit there like a fish out of water?” I gulp, I know Jax heard. I think that’s the only reason why the hateful look he is aiming at me is starting to fade from his face.

  “I…I…how?” I sound like a blubbering idiot, but she has me stumped. She is loving every minute of this, judging by the smirk on her beautiful face.

  “Oh, you mean how did I know you and Aurora are both lying assholes? That’s easy, I have a secret power for sniffing out bullshit!” There is so much venom lacing each of her words. Aurora has a hand clamped across her mouth in shock. So she didn’t rat me out after all…who did, then?

  “What secret power? And what the fuck is going on here, Squirt?” Her cousin is clearly pissed that he was in the dark about the little bomb she just dropped. She pulls her hateful stare from me to face Alex.

  “I can’t tell you, Alex. All you need to know is when Aurora dropped the bomb about me needing to marry, she meant I had to marry him.” Alex spins his stare from Ryan to Aurora, an unmistakable look of hurt on his face. Ah, the young warlock has a crush.

  “Why would you hide this from us? You have had so many chances to come clean. I think you need to start telling everyone the fucking truth!” Alex is pissed. Aurora is shaking; she hates having to lie. She looks my way, waiting for me to give her confirmation that she could tell the others the truth. It was time they all knew. I give Aurora a small nod.

  “Okay, let’s start from the beginning then. I wasn’t lying when I told you that in order for your powers to become unstoppable that you needed to marry. What I didn’t know at the time was that your father added a failsafe to be sure no one could do this without your consent.” I didn’t like where she was going with this. “You cannot be forced to marry; you must choose to marry. You must also want to unlock your powers”

  If there was more to her explanation, we wouldn’t know, because as soon as she said the last part, everyone was shouting and talking over each other. It was fucking madness. All at once the conversations stopped, and everyone turned to Ryan. She was glowing, staring my way, pointing an accusing finger.

  “You bastard! You planned this, didn’t you? You knew the whole fucking time that I would need to choose you. That’s why you never fought Kai; you always knew I had to choose you in the fucking end.” Before I could even respond I was blasted from the chair and sent sailing through the air. I hit the back wall with a thud and dropped to the ground. Fuck, that hurt like a bitch. Groaning, I used the wall as support to get me to my feet. My legs were shaky and protesting. That blast she sent had a punch packed within it; she intended to hurt me.

  Once on my feet, I pushed away from the wall and turned to face the others. All of them have a look of shock on their faces, except Jackson. He looks smug. Ryan is still glaring daggers my way.

  “If you really thought that, you wouldn’t be this angry. I never fought my brother because I thought you might be better off with him than with me. I swear to you, love, I didn’t know your father altered the key. As far as I knew, all I had to do was remove the bonds I had on your power. I knew you had to marry, but I didn’t find out you had to marry me until recently.” I was praying she could hear the truth in my words; I would never lie to her about this. Did I want her to choose me? Of course, but not like this, where she didn’t have a choice.

  “Nico is telling the truth. The vision I had showed me what your father had done, afterward.” How the hell did Aurora keep getting visions and messages from Ralph Knox? Also, why the hell was she not telling anyone? Something more was going on with this seer, and I am going to find out what it is.

  “What exactly did my father do? Don’t fucking lie to me, Aurora.” Aurora flinched at Ryan’s tone, and I don’t think she was the only one.

  “He added a spell to Nico’s. If Nico lifts his bonds, your fae power will surge through you and burn you on the way out. No blast radius, just your death. I have no idea how Ralph knew you would meet a seer, especially one who can see the past and the future.”

  Jackson butted in before Aurora could finish.

  “She cannot marry him, she is my mate!”

  I was about to answer, but Ryan beat me to it. She made her way over to Jax and knelt down in front of him. Placing both her hands on top of his, she looked directly into his eyes.

  “Jax, I am not your mate.” Jackson sucked in a big gulp of air. �
�You were tricked into thinking that I was. I’m sorry, but I am not your mate.” No one spoke for a long while, tension-filled moment. How the hell did she know that? Dom looked from me to Ryan, then to Jax and Aurora. I saw the moment when Dom figured it out; he knew what we did. Dom glared at me.

  “You have pulled some shit in the past, brother, but this takes the fucking cake. Why? Why would you do this to him?”

  “Because it served his endgame! He knew what he was doing. Didn’t you, Nico? You like to fuck with people’s lives, lie to them, then tell them you love them.” I couldn’t look Ryan in the eyes; her words hurt more than she would ever know. “Answer the fucking question, Nico. Why did you do this to him?” I didn’t get a chance to answer, Aurora answered instead.

  “Because I asked Nico to cast the spell.”

  “What fucking spell?” Jax was pissed, and it was all my fault. I never meant to hurt him; it wasn’t supposed to go this far.

  “To conceal who your true mate is. I asked him to find a way to deceive you and throw you off the scent of your mate.” Jax snapped his head in Aurora’s direction, the tension was rolling off him in waves.

  “Why?” That one word sent dread sliding down my spine.

  “Because I was trying to stop the future from happening.”

  “What the fuck does that mean, Aurora?”

  “It means I am your mate, Jackson. I don’t want to be, though; that’s why I asked Nico to help me. He never meant for you to think Ryan was your mate, your attraction to her led you to think she was your mate, I think.” Jackson fell back into the couch, like someone had slapped him. Ryan clutched his hands tighter, offering her silent support to her friend.

  “You don’t want to be my mate? So you decided to trick me, hurt me, and lie to me. Why not just come clean and tell me the truth, Aurora? Why go behind my back and ask that piece of shit—who is supposed to be my brother—for help?” Aurora looked to me for assistance. I knew that it was time for the whole truth to come out. Clearing my throat, I addressed the whole room.