AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I was checking to see if I was immune to all fire now, or just Celeste’s. I only managed to get her out of her state by touching her. Her fire didn’t burn me. In fact, it seemed to like me. It was jumping on my skin like it wanted to play,” I explained the best I could, even though I was sure what I said sounded completely insane.
“That kind of makes sense. If Celeste is immune, since you’re fully mated, you should be, too,” Danny replied, seemingly understanding my insanity. “Kind of badass.”
Celeste was still sleeping when we pulled up to the pack house. Hints of pink and orange spread across the sky as the sun began to rise. Gillian told me he let the pack know that we found Celeste. They were all waiting outside the pack house, anxiously waiting to see their luna before beginning their day. I was moved by their love for my mate. She was already loved by so many people in the short time she’d been with us.
‘The luna is sleeping. You will have to be quiet. She is fine, and I thank you for your concern,’I mind-linked them as I gathered Celeste in my arms while I got her out of the car.
I saw every face light up when they saw her snuggled in my arms as we passed them, and they bared their necks to show their love for their luna.
‘Damn, that’s something you don’t see every day. Bowing at a luna who isn’t even awake,’Gillian mind-linked me, Danny and Maya.
‘The pack loves her.’I was proud of my people and my mate.
‘We should have woken her up to see this. She should know we love her as much as she loves us,’Danny said.
‘I took a video.’Maya giggled.
‘You are so smart, baby,’Danny said huskily.
‘Aaaand that’s my cue to go to bed. Good night Markus. I’m glad we got our luna back,’Gillian said through an obnoxious yawn.
‘Good night, brother. And thank you.’
‘Maya, can you please let the cook know we won’t be needing breakfast but to leave some snacks outside the door? I’m fairly certain Celeste will be hungry when she wakes up, but I don’t think she’ll wake up before lunchtime. I could feel her drain. She will sleep for a long time. I know I will.’
‘Will do. Good night, Alpha,’she said while she let Danny carry her up the stairs. None of my friends had slept much while Celeste was gone.
I carried Celeste to the elevator and pushed the button for our floor. I sighed as we started moving up. I stared down at her so comfortably in my arms and felt all my emotions of the last two days come crawling out of the box I put them in while I looked for her. By the time I made it into the bedroom, tears were flowing down my face, and I laid her down gently in the bed. I removed my shorts, put on some boxers and crawled in after her, pulling her to my chest. I cried silently while I held her. I had never been in love before or so scared that I lost her. A small, pessimistic part of me showed me a life where I wouldn’t hold her in my arms again while I looked for her, and it was not a life worth living. If I ever lost her…
We can’t lose mate. We will not survive her loss, Atlas whined in my head.
You did not lose us. Celeste needed to heal her heart. Not from you, but from the life she’s led. She knows you didn’t betray us, but she doubts her own worth. Celeste has suffered so much that it is hard for her to see how special she truly is. She thinks the things that were denied to her define her and that you would be better with someone who wasn’t so damaged. You have done so much to heal her heart and mind already. She will be whole because of the love you show us. We met Selene. There’s a storm coming, and we need to be united if we hope to survive. Alpha Geoff was just the messenger. There is something more powerful and dangerous that hunts us. We are special. Not just us, but you and Atlas. Our bond goes deeper than most. We need to trust and believe in our bond. That is why Celeste had to take this journey. She never meant to leave you for so long, Kara’s voice entered my mind, soothing our soul and raising so many questions I knew we would get no answer to, but the moon goddess did not make mistakes. We were made for them, and they, us. We trusted the bond our goddess, Selene, selected for us and the love we felt for our mates.
We won’t let you down,Atlas pushed forward to reply to Kara together.
I know you won’t. We were made for each other. We are strong. Kara and Celeste’s love flowed brightly into us, and for the first time in two days, I was able to fall asleep while inhaling the wonderful scent of our mate.
Chapter twenty
Celeste
Kara…Kara,areyouthere?I sobbed as I walked through a mist. It was glowing an eerie orange. I could hear distant sounds, screams, and clanking from far away, but the mist was so thick that all I could see was about a foot in front of me. There was no beginning or end to the fog, and I didn’t have a clue how I got here. I had walked for over an hour already, and all I saw was mist. I didn’t even know if I was walking in a straight line or circling the same area. There were no markers for direction or any sign of anything but mist in this place. Was I dead? Is that why I couldn’t feel Kara with me anymore?
I felt something soft pressing against my back as I let out another whimper and looked back to come face-to-face with Kara. Her beautiful wolf form in front of me brought up a lot of questions, but for the moment, I was just happy that I wasn’t alone in this place. I turned around and wrapped my arms around her neck, burying my face in her fur and sobbing with relief.
Kara, where are we? Are we dead?I asked her. I must be dead if she is really standing in front of me.
We’re in the nether. We needed to heal, Celeste. You are here to heal,she spoke into my mind.
But I’m not injured,I argued. I didn’t understand what was happening.
Not physically. You have gone through horrific events that would break a normal wolf. But we are not normal. We are special. We cannot afford to doubt. The actions of that she-wolf shattered you. Broke your faith in the bond and yourself. It made you doubt that you were worthy of being at Markus’ side. You need to heal because if you continue questioning your connection to your mate, neither of you will survive the battles ahead.
What battles?I asked while I stroked her soft fur. She was such a beautiful wolf.
I will let the goddess tell you. We must make it to her first. You will see things that will hurt you and things that will not make sense now. I’ll be with you the entire way. You don’t have to go through anything alone ever again. Are you ready?
Ready for what? I don’t understand,I was still scared and confused over what was happening. I wanted to go back home with Markus.
