Blood Binding

Contracted to a wolf pack, she makes a choice that frees her body and shakes the very stone around her. Bound magic is still dangerous. Atty is contracted to a wolf pack to fulfill a prophecy, and they have educated her to be a good mate to their upcoming king. The night before her wedding makes her throw fate to the winds, and the next day at the ceremony, she rejects all that she had been raised to expect and makes a run for it. Her exit from the pack did not leave her unscathed, so she drives as far as she can and pleads her case to the moon when forced to walk. She sits and draws patterns on the stone under her before feeling serenity flow through her and giving her the strength to continue her journey. Years pass as she goes from menial jobs to manager positions to opening her own café in a downtown highrise. When she meets the building owner, there is something familiar about him, and the familiar thing is her own magic in a huge grey body covered with carved glyphs. How he got her power is a mystery, but the look in his eyes says that they have met before. She hates to think it, but he’s right. The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author. Blood Binding Copyright © 2023 by Viola Grace ISBN: 978-1-990635-29-8 ©Cover art by Angela Waters All rights reserved. With the exception of review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the express permission of the publisher. Published by Viola Grace Look for me online at violagrace.com. Blood Binding An Obscure City Book Two By Viola Grace Chapter One Agony speared through her sternum, and Sara sat upright, whimpering, “What the hell was that?” She kept her hand pressed to her chest. She slowly massaged circles to relieve the pain that was internal as well as in her bones. A huge weight had just settled into her, and it had very little to do with the wedding dress hanging on the wall. Sara got up and tried pacing next to the ridiculous bed the werewolf king insisted was appropriate. Pillars, carvings, and frothing bedding always made her feel like she was being smothered. She looked for her phone to call Andrew, but then she saw the time. It was two in the morning. The pressure on her chest flexed again, and she grabbed her robe. If Andrew were awake, he would be good for a comforting hug. She could curl up against him, breathe him in, and get the comfort he always offered her. She pulled the robe on as her fingers twisted, and she cast the location charm. That was what would make her the next werewolf queen. It wasn’t because she could shapeshift; it was just the stupid ability to channel natural magic. The beeswax scent of the wood polish filled the hall. It was going to be a huge wedding. Everybody who was anybody was going to be there. Moving silently through the dark halls, she ran to Andrew’s study, her toes getting cold on the hardwood floor. The pain in her chest made her want to scream. Something was horribly, horribly wrong. She stopped outside the study and prepared to open the door when she heard something. Voices. Voices were coming through the door. A woman was moaning, and a man was laughing and groaning. The rhythmic thudding made Sara sick. She raised her hand and saw through the heavy door before she snapped her fingers to shut it. The sprint back to her room was done in numbness. Inside, where she thought she was safe, Sara tried to come to grips with the sight of her best friend and maid of honour sitting naked on the edge of the desk while Andrew railed her. She looked at the framed wedding invitation next to the bed and ran to the bathroom. she hadn’t eaten much at dinner, but what she had was gone. Brushing her teeth and washing her face took up ten minutes, but she was no closer to a solution. In seven hours, she was going to bind herself to a man who had insisted on her purity while betraying her in the most basic of ways. That was the pain. The magic was protesting. It wasn’t going to bind to that bastard, even if he needed her to become king. Walking into the bedroom, she sat on the chair at the desk and started making a plan. Seven years had been wasted. The king’s men had found her when her ease with magic had made her an easy target. She had been brought to the boarding school, made a ward of the king, and educated alongside Andrew in hopes that affection would grow. It did, and when they told her that she would be the new queen when she turned twenty-one, she was excited. Andrew was handsome, charming, and a two-faced, backstabbing asshole! That was it. She wasn’t going to marry him. She got her charm book and opened it. She held her hands above the pages and chanted, asking for an answer. The pages flicked and flashed, falling quiet on a mandala and a few words. She swayed at what that would mean, but then she knew it was what she needed to do. First thing she needed to do was pack for her honeymoon, and then, she needed to get some sleep. She was going to have a trying day. Hair, nails, makeup, and finally, dressing marked her morning. When the laughing bridesmaids teased her about wedding night nerves, she smiled and tried to summon a blush. They got their bouquets and headed down to the grand ballroom. Sara