The Brothers and I - Book 1

Chapter 53

23 hours later...Budapest, Hungary

Aurora

The early morning chill crept quietly as dawn broke over the city, bathing its sky and the river below in a lovely orange. The still-sleeping city was peaceful, save for the few early risers that had already begun their day. I glanced over at the Danube as the car drove past, the gentle waves appearing serene and calm, unlike my mind that remained troubled by the events that transpired in Portland.

After centuries of chasing so-called promising leads, countless hours spent on mapping search areas and tracking spells that repeatedly let us down... we had finally struck gold.

Mia Sutherland... My find was unexpected as much as it was triumphant.

When rumours had first begun to circulate that a human had been blessed with a mate bond, our coven had taken a keen interest. Such a thing was unheard-of, as the last recorded human-shifter pairing died centuries ago and such a gift was never bestowed upon another human ever since. So why now? And why her?

Such questions had at first piqued my curiosity in the human but unlike the rest of my coven, I was cautious about feeling too optimistic given the number of failures that we had faced throughout the centuries.

But for once, the rumours had proven true.

My hands shook slightly as the enormity of this find began to sink in. Who would have thought that out of all the other members in our coven, spanning over centuries of tireless searching, that I would be the one to succeed. That I would be the one to fulfill the blood oath; one that our great ancestor swore upon hundreds of years ago and the pursuit of which had irrevocably changed the course of history for humans, witches and shifters alike.

Such a feat would...should be celebrated but the glorious sense of victory was now replaced with a feeling of unease. It did seem extremely odd that the person marked by the dark forces of fate as the vessel, was also the same person touched by the hand of the Moon Goddess.

Coincidence or design? Was there something more to this?

I almost scoffed out loud at the absurdity of that question. Everything about this was unchartered territory and the sheer magnitude of the consequences was a big unknown. And yet, here we all were, proceeding blindly with the hope that everything would turn out alright in the end.

Suppressing a tired sigh, I looked outside the window once again and watched as the number of buildings began to dwindle as we made our way out of the city. Thoughts churned away inside my mind, keeping me occupied as the hours passed and our destination finally came into view. Tugging the coat closer to my body, I took a deep breath just as the car pulled to a stop.

The chauffeur stepped out before making his way to my door and holding it open. Shaking off the last remnants of uncertainty, I adjusted the scarf around my neck and stepped out.

"Köszönöm" (thank you).

The chauffeur bowed his head in response before moving to retrieve my bags out of the trunk. Leaving him to it, I glanced at the massive house, taking it all in. The place was ancient, its structural integrity questionable with its peeling paint, broken walls and the invasive ivy that had gone unchecked. But nonetheless, it was still home. And after having spent an interminable amount of time on the road, hopping between continents, the sight of the decrepit building was a welcome one.

Making my way to the front door, I felt the slight tingle of the protection spell as I crossed it, the large door swinging open immediately to allow me through. I turned in the direction of the study, my pulse racing as I set a brisk pace towards it. The house remained deathly silent except for the echoing sound of my hurried footsteps which bounced off the walls in an oddly eerie way.