Chapter 120

Sariah’s POV
This was certainly something Leon and myself didn’t see happening. I know I am very protective of Cody. I was only able to have one child and I don’t want anything to happen to him. My baby boy has grown right before my eyes. Although Alexis wasn’t my first choice in a mate for him; Hecate and Bastet have a different plan and they are genuinely happy.
Moving over to Alexis to get to know her; “I’m sorry” she whispers, looking down at her feet.
“Why?” I question, shock plastered on my face.
“I’m not what you expected for Cody. Mum would think the same. She believes we should only mate with ‘our own kind’” she tells me. I go to point out her mother was with Michael, but she stops me and places her hand on my arm. “Mum and Dad weren’t really together. Neither really like each other. I wouldn’t be surprised if Mum was raped by Michael too and I think they stayed civil because Callum saw a bigger plan for the two of them. I don’t even know why Jossy is with her. Mum hates he has a wolf and not a cat and she screams at him because of it.”
“I don’t have a problem with you being a cat shifter, Alexis. I will admit you were not my first choice in a mate for Cody. Saying that, it has nothing to do with who you are. It has everything to do with who your parents are” I tell her, putting my arm around her. “One thing I have come to know, you can’t judge a person on who their parents are. If I were to do that, I wouldn’t know Danny. James was a narcistic asshole; every bit as bad as Michael. And Craig, Chelsea’s dad; is a real piece of work. We can always find fault in people if we look for fault. You didn’t ask to have Penelope and Michael as your parents. From what Phyllis, Belinda and Sally have told me, you are a good person and that is enough for me.”
“Thank you” Alexis whispers and I give her a smile.
“Come, you are family now” I tell her and grab her hand, walking over to Claudia, Chelsea and Amelia.
“Alexis; Isabella told me you love to bake” Claudia calls out to her. “Yes. It was a good way to forge…” she whispers, trailing off her last sentence.
Giving Alexis a big smile, Claudia continues; “It is a good way to forget, isn’t it? I really love baking cookies” she tells her as Alexis’ eyes go wide. “I love to bake cookies. Peanut Butter, chocolate chip is my favourite” she answers with excitement.
“You will have to make us a batch” Amelia says, joining into the conversation.
“I would love to” Alexis tells the trio and I beam a smile to my soon to be daughter-in-law.
“What are the boys up to?” Chelsea asks, as we look out into the courtyard to see them having a discussion of their own. “Beats me” I answer, as we all start to laugh.
Once we got here, Rick was being ushered down from the tree tops. Simon was soaking wet and Eli had paint splattered all over him. Danny let out a yelp, running back from the training grounds, covered in sawdust. Claudia, Denise and I took heaps of photos.
Henry couldn’t control his laughter, only to fall into a pit near the hospital; which sent Claudia into fits of hysterical laughter. She complained she couldn’t keep her phone straight as she videoed her father trying to scamper his way out of the pit.
“Now the safety measures are all taken down, we were thinking of heading to Grandma Nelly’s place” Danny states, coming up to where we were. “Do you want to join us?”
“Sounds exciting” I answer him as our little group head to the eastern border. “Where’s Leon and Cody?”
“They are already there. As Wolfsbane doesn’t affect witches and warlocks like shifters; they offered to remove the plants for us” Danny replies, putting his arm around Claudia. “We need to be alert. We may have removed the safeguards, but there is still the potential threat out there.”
“Don’t we know it” Joanna says, rolling her eyes as her and Todd join us. Todd hasn’t left her side since we came to the territory. Claudia was telling me and Henry; she is starting to feel suffocated by his constant hovering. We all understand why he is being overprotective; at the same time, we understand she needs room to breathe without him being near her constantly.
We reach the little bungalow house on the outskirts of the Western territory. Cody and Leon have removed all the wolfbane plants as Simon and Henry come out of the front doors. “We need to do a full patrol of the borders. Cody is coming with us to put up some safeguards. Todd; we want you and Danny to tag along” Henry says, coming over to us and winking at Joanna.
Todd lets out a snarl “It’s not up for debate. You and Danny are the alphas of the two packs and you both need to be there to help protect our lands. Cody said he was going through the old scrolls to find a spell to protect both territories for when we go back” Henry includes, ensuring Todd doesn’t back out.
Closing his mouth tight and glaring towards Henry, Todd nods.
I look over at Cody; a sense of pride crossing my face. He is becoming a strong warlock. Stronger than my father and stronger than me. I couldn’t be prouder of what he is achieving. Yes; I baby him to my own detriment. “Mum; I may need Dad’s and your help with putting the safeguards up around the area” he calls out.
“What exactly are you wanting to do?” I ask, moving my position to where him and Leon were.
“I was going through some of Grandpa’s scrolls; there are illusion, deflection and hiding spells among them. I was wondering about combining a few together” “Combining spells can be dangerous, son” Leon says, cutting off Cody’s statement.
“Dangerous, as opposed to sitting around and waiting for someone to come on the territory to kill us? If this works, we can put the same spell around the castle grounds” Cody snaps back at his father.
“Watch how you speak to your father” I fume at him. “What spells are you wanting to combine?”
“I was looking at a hidden spell to hide the two territories in plain sight. We won’t need it if we can combine a deflection spell to deflect anyone who may come near the territories and an illusion spell to portray the territories as something else entirely, for those who come near the packs” Cody explains and I contemplate it for a moment.
‘It can be done; providing we can safely combine the spells’ I say to myself. “What sort of deflection spell are you looking at?” I ask with a smile.
“This one” he says, pulling a scroll out of his pocket to show his father and myself. “Going around in Circles spell.”
“Oh” I laugh, taking the parchment out of his hands. I remember when Dad first made the spell. People who wander close to the territory borders, will be find themselves back to where they began. In an essence; they will be going around and around in circles and never reach their intended destination.
“I will make sure to put the right citation in the spell to allow those with Cedar River Marks; not be affected” Cody includes, smirking at both of us.
“Cody has already explained the spell will not be 100% full proof” Simon states coming over to us.
“Especially if another witch or warlock counteract the spell. And they only have a small duration of time for them to work” Cody adds as Danny and Todd come over to us. “This is why I also want to combine it with an illusion spell. Make it a bit harder for anyone to counteract the spell once it is place.”
“I was going to say, if you have this spell; why do you need an illusion spell too. Makes more sense to combine the two” I inform him, giving another smile, still in thought. “Instead of combining the two spells together; place them on separately. Do two different illusion spells. Place the deflection spell in between. Those who want to counteract the spell will need work out how the spells were put on the territories to begin with.”
“I suggest that’s what we do” Danny adds as Cody, him, Henry, Simon and Todd head to where the rest of patrol team are standing. “Thanks Mum” Cody calls back, smiling.
“How did we get such a strong warlock?” I ask Leon.
Placing an arm around my waist and giving me a kiss on my forehead; “I don’t know. I am very proud of what he has achieved” Leon answers, watching as the group disappear from site.