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My blood boils in my veins, rage overtaking me. I let loose a roar of outrage, the sound echoing off the vaulted ceiling of the auditorium as I watch my mate disappear from sight. My chest tightens uncomfortably and I turn back towards my brothers. We need to do something, anything. Our mate can’t just leave like that. Yet, the sight I’m met with when I turn shakes me to my core.
My eyes land on Adrian first, sprawled out on the floor, crawling towards the place Olivia just stood. Using the last of his remaining energy to pull his body. My eyes are drawn to his face where a cold sweat beads along his brow, his skin having lost its usual sun-kissed pallor.
Maximus lets loose a roar of pain, crashing to his knees. The sight almost brings me to my own. Never have I seen so much raw emotion coming from my brother. The stoic fucker hides everything away, pushing it down. His cheeks are bright as rage burns through him, his fists tremble at his sides. The floor begins to shake subtly, as his power builds. He sucks in long hissing breaths through his teeth, and the quaking and quivering of the ground slowly subsides.
Kyros stands completely still, shell shocked. His face is ghostly pale. He shakes his head, eyes still stuck on the spot she just left, as though attempting to disperse the illusion from his eyes. I see the moment his hope comes to a burning crash, realizing it hadn’t been a dream. He swallows thickly, his lips forming words yet no sound leaves his lips.
“What in the fuck just happened?” I demand, snapping them from their own silent terror. One of them must have some sort of idea why this is happening. “Why did our mate just flee from us like we’re the fucking bad guys?”
“She’s scared,” Adrian rasps, pulling himself up on one of the chairs. I move to help him, sitting him upright. The idiot used so much power opening that portal, he would be out for at least a week.
“Scared of mates?” I ask incredulously. The idea is absolutely preposterous. “It’s a great honor to have a mate, let alone four.”
“You need to remember, she thought she was a mortal only a month ago. The concept of forever, and predetermined partner or four, is completely foreign to her,” Kyros explains, scrubbing a hand over his face, his eyes moving back to where Olivia just disappeared on reflex.
“Then why did you tell her?” Maximus growls, rising back to his feet. He clenches his fists, towering over Kyros.
“You’re the one who shouted the word ‘mate.’” Kyros tosses back, his voice rising.
I blink in surprise. Kyros is the most levelheaded among us, he very rarely ever gets angry, but when he does—
I would enjoy watching the two of them fight it out if there weren’t more important things to think about.
“Besides, she deserves to know,” Kyros breathes out on a frustrated sigh, composing himself once more.
“The better question is why was she acting so strange before?” Adrian interrupts, breaking the tension between the others. His voice still sounds weak, I purse my lips, taking in the deep dark bags under his eyes, before I register what he said.
“What do you mean?” My brows furrow in confusion. She hadn’t acted any different to me, besides the bloodlust in her gaze when facing off against those shadow demons. I’m getting half hard just thinking about the rage and fury on her face, the delight she took in every arc of her sword.
“It was different before we left. Did something happen while we were gone?” Adrian asks the other two. I grit my teeth, moving to observe them.
“We had a misunderstanding. I thought it was all cleared up, but she was distant all week. I figured it was just the stress of the exams and the ceremony,” Kyros explains, shuffling on his feet. I walk towards him. About to knock him into the next century for whatever he did to make our mate leave.
“It’s my fault,” Maximus grumbles, pulling my attention from destroying Kyros. He sighs, a mix of sadness and exhaustion.
“She came out of class, all happy and glowing after talking to you,” he says pointedly to Kyros. “I could smell the sex on her the night of the second demon attack,” he growls at Adrian, tightening his fists.
“I got jealous.” The words come out in a reluctant rumble.
“What did you do?” I growl, stalking towards him. My eyes lock on to the bastard. I see a gleam of challenge in his eyes, now this—this is the distraction, the battle I need. Someone to channel the building anger on, releasing it through my fists.
“I told her she was stuck with me since none of you wanted to watch after her,” he admits, crossing his arms over his chest, staring back at me defiantly. I hear the shouts from Adrian and Kyros as I draw nearer. Their anger with our brother, rivaling my own.
“Let me get this straight,” I start, my voice eerily calm. “You told her that you got stuck watching her since no one else wanted to. Meanwhile, in reality, you actually went behind our backs and got me and Adrian wrapped up in council business that morning so that you would be the only one available to watch her? Then you threatened to tell her everything if we didn’t let you continue being the one to keep her safe?”
I grind my jaw, working off some of the tension. I feel my skin paling despite the heat of the anger burning through me. The fact that he would not only cast us in that light, but lie to our mate while keeping her all to himself enrages me as much as it shocks me to my core. The fact that this man, whom I call a brother, would do that to us—to her.
I see the acceptance in his gaze a moment before my hit lands. An uppercut straight to his jaw. He flies back through the aisle, sliding across the floor from the force of the impact. I grit my teeth, starting after him again, ready to beat the asshole into the ground. My heart pounds, the rage and adrenaline ratcheting up its pace.
“That was your free hit. You won’t get another one,” he growls, jumping back to his feet. I start after him again, not caring if he fights back. He should know better than that, I live for the call of battle. I grin back at him, the fight is much more enticing than a one-sided beat down.
“Mateo,” Kyros calls, breaking my focus. I whirl back to him, my glare now fixed on him, unable to call off the battle lust. I stalk towards him, changing my trajectory, the call to war rushing through my veins.
“Mateo,” His voice is more insistent now, edged with anger. I shake the battle lust clogging my mind, blinking him back into focus. I glance back at Maximus with a reluctant sigh, Kyros earning him a momentary reprieve.
“We need to find her,” he declares, snapping my focus back to him and the matter at hand.
“She most likely went to her friend Nelle’s dorm in the mortal realm,” Adrian groans, attempting to stand, using the chair to support his weight.
“You’re not going anywhere, brother.” I cut off his protests, clapping a hand on his shoulder and pushing him back into the chair. The movement takes no effort. He collapses back down, much to his chagrin.
“You can’t even stand. I’ll go.” The other two start to protest before I interrupt them. “Kyros, you need to save your energy to heal Adrian. You might be able to speed up his recovery,” I explain. Kyros blinks in confusion before nodding reluctantly and moving over to Adrian. Finally noticing how much his face has paled, his arms shaking as he attempts to stand again. Kyros places a comforting hand on his shoulder, letting his power sink into Adrian’s skin.
“And you—” I turn to face Maximus, and I grit my teeth, barely restraining myself from knocking him across the room. “Are not going to get the opportunity to plant lies in our mate’s head again.”
With that I set into motion, collecting the details from Adrian on where this Nelle lives before dissipating to the mortal realm. I appear in a closet of some sort, knocking over a broom and mop in my haste to exit the cramped room. Exiting into a nearly empty hallway. I look at my phone, recalling the directions Adrian texted me.
Oh, little mate, you are sorely mistaken if you think you can run from me—from us. You’re ours, and this mate bond is a battle I refuse to lose.
