I pictured us growing old together with two children, twins—a little girl with dark hair and violet eyes, and a boy with blond hair and green eyes.
Then an image of Alaric with my other mates formed. The five of them, soul-bond brothers and mates. All of them family—a found family.
If one piece of my soul died, the remaining parts could not function. Without Alaric, my mates would succumb to their worst impulses.
Kai would fade, Maverick would become feral, Zane would turn into a psycho killer, and Rasmus would lose his humanity. I refused to let that be their fate.
The tethers in my chest connecting each of my soul-bonded mates burned. Alaric’s bond tether had snapped when he passed beyond the veil, but the shadow magic wove the broken strands back together, remaking the tether into something new—stronger. A bond that would never break again. Not until it was our fated time to pass on.
Kenji slumped in my arms as I yanked harder on his power.
“Hurry, I’m almost depleted.”Two of his cousins blinked into view, their eyes glowing. A bear roared, and a second later, the doors burst open as my other mates rushed in.
Brianna cast her dark magic at them, but my shadows smothered it.
“Raven…” Emerald eyes gazed up at me. “You brought me back.”
Tears streamed down my cheeks, but before I could reply, a gaping portal opened up in the corner and a tall, extremely handsome male wearing a black suit stepped out.
He beamed with pride when he spotted me on the floor with my newly resurrected soul-bonded mate in my arms.
“My darling daughter, at last we meet.”
“DAD?!”
50
Alaric
A few minutes earlier…
My arrogance had killed me, taken me from my soul-bonded mate before our time.
By the goddess, if I could go back, I’d make damned sure my witch understood exactly what she meant to me.
And I’d kill my fucking father while I was at it. Brianna too.
Darkness cloaked me as I staggered forward, listening for sounds of angels singing or anything, really, but there was nothing but deathly silence. Like literal death.
Was this heaven? Honestly, it was unimpressive. The books I’d read on the topic had mis-sold the idea of heaven as paradise. I’d seen more attractive dumpsters.
When I turned around, a small pinprick of light bloomed in the darkness. The harder I stared at it, the brighter it became. Instinctpushed me toward the light, a feeling in my chest that this was the right path. I stumbled forward through the heavy silence, my feet making no sound.
The light ahead grew stronger until I could make out thin, spiky trees. Everything seemed dead. A bit like me. Shadows billowed around me like sentient things. They swirled and danced, caressing my skin, whispering as if they knew me.
If I could feel and hear them, surely I wasn’t totally dead?
The shadows thickened, becoming ropes that tugged me toward the beacon of light ahead. An ache burned in my chest, reminding me of what I’d lost, but the shadows soothed my pain.
“Come back to me,” my witch whispered. At least that’s what I heard as the shadows purred in my ears. “Come home, I need you.”
I broke into a run, certain time was running out, and if I didn’t reach the light soon, I’d be stuck down here in purgatory forever. Alone. Trapped in the in-between.
Inky shadows wrapped around my limbs, pulling me faster. The energy surrounding me hummed, making my bones ache. I tumbled through a dazzling spiral of light so bright it hurt my eyes, jolting as I fell back into my body.
Sucking in a breath, I steeled myself for the pain. But the awful smothering sensation of Brianna’s dark magic had disappeared, leaving me weak but suffering no ill-effects.
It took everything I had to force my eyes open because I was terrified this was my version of hell, being forced to experience seeing my mate only to lose her all over again and again.
