Page 8 of Mates in Memory

“Or he thinks he’ll never be ready,” Silas said. “That he doesn’t deserve another chance.”

I wasn’t sure if I was ready to give him another chance either. So waiting was just fine with me. Silas took my hand and entwined our fingers.

“Ouch! Your hand poked me!” he laughed and turned it over to look at it.

“Do I have a hangnail?” I asked wondering if the past had broken something in me.

“No, your palm,” Silas said, running his finger over it.

There it was in the center of my hand. It was the same little dome of skin I’d seen all those eons ago. That was a seed. For a horrifying moment, I wondered if going back had undone my bound with Uri—Raziel. I had to think of him as Raziel now. If our paths ever did cross, I needed to let him be Raziel. Barry was right. Uriel was dead.

While my mind reeled, Silas picked up my other hand and looked at it too. Glancing down, it had the same dome. What the heck? Had just learning about the seeds given me the power to make more?

“Did you get hurt in your memories?” Kodiak asked, his voice filling with concern.

“No, um…” I wasn’t sure what to say. I didn’t give them a lot of details about my bonding ceremony with Uriel – Raziel- out of kindness to all three of my mates. “Can I ask you two a question? It might be rude.”

“Sweetheart, if he can play nice, he can stay with us all,” Kodiak said as if I meant to ask if they’d leave me if I pursued Raziel.

“Not that -- well, thanks. I… If you could be my true-mates too would you want to?” I asked, staring at my hands.

“Yes,” they both said without skipping a beat.

I wondered if I should explain more to them, but instead I ripped into one palm with a long elven canine then the other.

“Creon!” Silas gasped, trying to pull my hand away from me.

“This will do it! These will do it!” I said, ripping into the other palm to free the other seed. Both were large sunflower seeds. “This is where it’s all stored. At least for me.”

“Do we eat them?” Silas blinked at me, questioning the method more than the theory.

“No,” I shook my head and pressed one palm onto the shoulder that wasn’t already claimed by Kodiak. The seed sank into his skin with no resistance. That meant he really did want to be my true-mate too. If he hadn’t it wouldn’t have penetrated down into him. Nothing much happened but it was inside of him now.

I turned to see Kodiak had already taken off his shirt. Even after all these years, the sight of Kodiak without his shirt on brought up the dirtiest thoughts in my head. He leaned in close and I pressed my other palm against his warm, naked skin. He had light body hair across his traps. Most bears did even if it was too light to see. His body skin inhaled the seed. The three of us sat frozen, waiting for something to happen. Nothing changed except for the seeds were now inside them.

I hoped Xenos would forgive us but we romped on the living room floor of his little extra house. No claiming glands rose on their skin but we romped anyway because we’d been apart too long. Maybe we didn’t need the claiming vows because we’d been together long enough. Maybe the seeds would take a lifetime to germinate into claiming glands. I didn’t know but I knew that whether the magic recognized them or not, Silas and Kodiak were my mates just as much as Raziel, if not more in this lifetime.

Chapter 5

Kodiak

Raven Hollow Wolf Pack Territory

We’d been back home for two weeks and it was as if Raziel realized we knew something about him. He usually made an appearance at an Alpha Talk meeting at least once every fortnight. He hadn’t shown his cocky ass in almost a month now. Maybe he’d settled down with a chosen mate or something. Maybe he knew what we knew and he didn’t want to talk about it. If he did show up, I didn’t plan to mention anything. I’d watch him extra carefully now because for better or worse he was likely destined to be part of our lives.

It was almost dinner time and I was wrapping up some paperwork for Alpha Talk when my office door opened. It was Creon. His scent was raw and sweet like honey in the wild. I stood up because everything inside me did the same as if I had never smelled him before. He’d been ours since before the war ended. For a second, I thought he was in heat. Then my shoulder stung. I patted it absentmindedly. Maybe a sweat bee got me. No. It was the shoulder where Creon had pressed his seed into me. The shoulder that was opposite of the one where Silas laid his claiming bite. Was it possible? Was this actually possible. We were already linked. Had been linked since the war when a gland popped up on Creon’s shoulder. Barry said it was Uriel’s way of giving his blessing. Was this…?

“Knock, knock. The baby’s with Zoey and them,” he said. “Silas is meeting us—”

He stopped and we stared at each other. The realization lit up in his eyes as the true-mate response hit him too.

“I thought---” I started.

“I think this is different. I think before…” he said but stopped. “Remember all the reading we did. Those blessings are just for a lifetime. It’s like a dead mate’s way of choosing someone to make you happy for a lifetime. I think this—Kodiak, I think this is the forever sort. I think I pulled off a feat witches and scientists alike have been trying to do for years. I think I went further than a chosen mate or a second-chance mate blessing. I think… I think we have to call Silas!” he said and sank down into the chair across from mine. “I’ve bound us together forever. I might be—We might’ve been the first ones to ever do a binding ritual like this on this side of the door of life and death.”

His brain was buzzing and magic danced through his eyes as I reached out for Silas over our mating link. We made the quick decision to skip the restaurant and head to our favorite spot in the forest. He’d pick up something to eat on the way, and we’d celebrate in our own quiet little way.

My shoulder throbbed and I rubbed it again. This time there were two tender spots. I pulled off my shirt and Creon smiled. I smirked despite my confusion. What else was I going to do when my mate looked at me like that? I felt around my shoulder and Creon joined me on my side of the desk.