Chapter 3: The Witch’s Help

Maeve had not been able to think clearly ever since Hazel smeared it on her face that she had found her mate. She had been hoping they would both not find a mate by the ceremony.

Her father's incessant reminder was not helping either. It wasn't like she could go to the streets and pick herself any male! She couldn't do that.

Maeve had really placed all her eggs in one basket. She wished Hazel would not find a mate as well, and they would be even.

Hopefully, the elders would understand, and there wouldn't be a need for any of them to be sold —even if deep down she would have preferred Hazel to be the one to be sold.

But the fool had gone and gotten a mate, and now she was doomed.

What was she going to do?

How was she going to escape the ceremony?

She tossed and turned on her large purple bed as she thought of how she could escape her doom.

Their birthday was only a couple of days away. She had to find a solution as quickly as possible, but what could she do?

How could she find a mate in two days?

"Damn it!" She cussed as she sat up on her bed.

Why was Hazel the only one who got all the good luck in their lives? Why did their parents love Hazel more? Even at school, Hazel got the highest score, and no one even looked at Maeve.

Didn't she deserve some luck as well?

Now everyone would laugh at her again and again just like they had done when they were younger. Hazel would come back home with so many gifts, and she would always return with detention.

They would praise Hazel, but nobody was there for Maeve. They only laughed at her.

It wasn't her fault! Yet everyone blamed her.

Her mother thought she was a devil with the face of an angel!

Everyone thought she was the curse, and now this mate thing had proved that.

Her heart rose higher in her throat, and she struggled to breathe. Her heart was squeezing in pain, and sleep was a luxury she couldn't afford.

"I can't let them get what they want!" She whispered harshly to herself.

"I can't let Hazel win yet again!"

This was her time to get something Hazel didn't have. This was her moment, and she was going to take it.

But how?

She groaned in frustration as she pulled her blonde hair, trying to find a solution, but nothing happened. No brilliant idea came.

There was no way she could fake a mate so she could be spared...

"Wait!" She exclaimed as the perfect idea suddenly came to her mind.

"Shanaya!" She cried out as she jumped off her bed.

Shanaya was her closest friend, and she was a witch. She had a solution to every problem, and she hated Hazel too. Surely she would help her.

Everyone in the kingdom was wary of witches but not Maeve; she found them intriguing, and their evil mischief excited her.

She raised her window and discreetly slipped out of her room. The last thing she needed was for her parents to discover her missing from her bedroom just a few days before their mating ceremony.

She jumped down from the window and touched her pedicured fingers to the ground. Before the wind could change its direction, the popping sound of bones filled the air as she transformed into her wolf and ran out into the night.

There was only one destination in her mind... Shanaya's cave.

She ran as fast as she could and only stopped when she got to the mouth of the cave. She changed back into her human form and was about to go in when a strong force pushed her back to the entrance.

"Shanaya... Please let me in!" She pleaded as she struggled with the witch's trap.

The wind got even stronger, and visibility became more difficult as Maeve continued forcing her way.

Just as suddenly as the wind had started, it stopped, and a shadow appeared at the mouth of the cave.

Rather than feeling scared, Maeve felt excited.

"What brought you here so late, Maeve?" The sharp shaky voice of Shanaya, her friend, filled the air.

"I have a problem and only you can solve it!" Maeve called out again.

She got closer to the redhead witch and placed her hands together as if she was about to say a prayer.

Shanaya smiled, and her eyes sparkled with mischief as she already knew what Maeve wanted.

"Does this have anything to do with Hazel?" She asked with a knowing smirk.

"Yes, it has everything to do with her! I can't sit still and watch her be so happy," Maeve pleaded.

Shanaya's smile got even bigger as she let her cold finger caress Maeve's right cheek.

"We can make Asher yours... Do you want that?" Shanaya asked, and Maeve felt like a light of hope had sliced through the darkest cloud in her sky.

It wasn't even a surprise that Shanaya knew the name of Hazel's mate. It was a common thing for witches to know everything, and her friend was one of the best in the forest.

"Will it work?" Maeve questioned as her heart beat in excitement.

If Shanaya could turn Asher against Hazel, she would have the perfect ending she had always craved for.

"Do not insult my clan by asking that question, Maeve. Do you want it done or not?" She asked in a harsh tone.

"Yes, do it!" Maeve agreed, and Shanaya snapped her fingers, then she disappeared from the mouth of the cave.

Maeve trusted her more than anyone else in the world. She did not doubt that Shanaya was going to do what she had said.

Asher would be hers...

As Maeve returned home, a large smile sat on her face as she couldn't wait for the night to be over.

"Maeve, where did you go so late at night?" Hazel's voice filled the silence of the room as Maeve stepped in through the window.

She turned and sent a cold glare to her twin sister, and then she said. "Rather than waste your time stalking me, I'd worry about the ceremony, if I were you..." She trailed off.

It was a simple sentence that had nothing to do with what Hazel had actually asked her, but Hazel felt a cold chill seep into her spine at the words.

It was a threat, and it scared her —What has Maeve done now?