This is her territory now. Her home. Her clan's land to protect.
We reach a clearing where the ley lines pulse strongest, and she stops, turning to face me. Gratitude swells in my chest—her emotion as present as my own—followed by overwhelming love and certainty that this, all of this, was worth every moment of pain and fear.
She presses her head against my shoulder, and I lean into her touch. The mate bond flares bright between us, visible even in daylight—golden threads connecting bear to bear, heart to heart. Our breathing syncs, our heartbeats falling into the same rhythm. Two bears, two souls, one bond.
We stay like that for a long moment, just existing together in this form. Then the mist rises again, and we shift back to human.
I've stashed clothes in a hollow tree—an old habit from my research days, when I spent weeks in the forest studying wildlife. I toss Maren a flannel shirt and jeans that are too big for her but will work until we get back to the cabin.
"That was—" She struggles for words. "I've never felt anything like that."
"Your bear is strong." I pull on my own clothes. "Connected to the ley lines in a way most turned shifters aren't. The ceremony, the amplification—it made you more than just a shifter. It made you part of Redwood Rise itself."
She looks down at her hands, flexing her fingers. "I felt the ley lines when I was running. Like they were singing."
"They recognize you now. You're bound to this land the same way I am. The same way my whole clan is." I step closer, cupping her face. "You're one of us, Maren. Completely. Forever."
Tears shimmer in her eyes. "I chose right."
"Yeah." I kiss her softly. "You did."
The cabin is quiet when we return, but through the trees I can see movement at the main house. My family, gathering. Waiting to see if the ceremony worked, if Maren survived, if I'm still here or if the shadow realm finally claimed me.
"They'll want to see you," I say. "See us both. Confirm we're okay."
Maren straightens her shoulders. "Then let's go show them."
We walk hand in hand through the forest path that connects my cabin to the family compound. The morning is bright andclear, birds calling from the canopy overhead. Everything feels more vivid now, more real. The mate bond has anchored me so thoroughly to this reality that the shadow realm seems like a distant nightmare.
The main house comes into view—the sprawling log structure where we all grew up, where Sunday dinners still happen, where the clan gathers for important decisions. I can see them on the porch: Calder, Eli, Beau, Sawyer. All four of my brothers, waiting. They're trying to look casual, but the tension in their shoulders gives them away. Six months of grief and fear don't disappear overnight.
Cilla is there too, with Quinn, and Anabeth. The mates, standing beside their bonded partners. Cilla's hand is wrapped tight around Calder's arm. Quinn stands close to Eli, her body angled protectively toward him despite him being twice her size. Anabeth's fingers are laced through Beau's, her healer's eyes already assessing us from a distance.
Calder sees us first. His whole body goes still for a heartbeat, then something breaks across his face—raw emotion he usually keeps locked down. "Jonah."
"I'm here." My voice is steady, strong. None of the weakness that's plagued me since I returned. "I'm staying."
Beau moves first, crossing the distance in three long strides and pulling me into a bone-crushing hug. He's shaking, and it surprises me—Beau's usually the joker, the one who deflects with humor. But he's shaking as he holds me. "You stubborn bastard. You actually did it."
"Had help." I look at Maren, who's watching the reunion with tears in her eyes. "She saved me."
Calder's next, gripping the back of my neck in the way our father used to. His eyes gleam as he studies my face. "No more flickering?"
"None. I'm whole."
"Good." His voice roughens. "Because we're not doing that again. Losing you once was enough."
Eli and Beau reach us together, the middle brothers flanking me. Eli's the quiet one, but his emotion bleeds through in the way he squeezes my shoulder hard enough to bruise. Beau's grin is shaky around the edges. "Mom would've killed us if we lost you for real."
"Mom would've dragged me back from the shadow realm herself," I say, and it pulls weak laughs from them. Our mother died five years ago, but her fierce protectiveness over her sons is legendary.
Sawyer hangs back slightly, his sheriff's eyes cataloging everything. Reading the changes in me, the strength in Maren, the golden glow of the mate bond. Finally he steps forward and pulls me into a quick, hard hug. "Welcome back, little brother."
"Wasn't gone," I say, but we both know that's not quite true. I was here physically, but the shadow realm had been pulling me back piece by piece.
Cilla steps forward, taking Maren's hands. "Welcome to the family. Officially." Her green eyes are warm, understanding. She was turned too, bonded to Calder through blood and magic. She knows what Maren just went through.
The other women surround her, offering congratulations and welcomes. Anabeth hugs her tight, checking her over with subtle efficiency even as she embraces. Quinn squeezes her shoulder, whispering something that makes Maren laugh through her tears. They're pulling her into the fold, claiming her as one of them. As a Hayes. As clan.
