26. Randi
Chapter 26
Randi
B rooks’s words ring in my head like the gong of a watchtower, loud and unending.
The fang. My dreams. At least some of it’s real.
Around me, questions dart back and forth, but my brain gets tripped up on the image of the serpent slicing the king’s throat.
“It was the serpent,” I say. Even to me, my voice sounds hollow.
Silence follows. Fennik’s arm tightens around my waist.
My eyes find Vandera. She gives me a sad smile, and I know that without having said anything, she’s figured it out. I look away and take a sip of my drink, letting the burn chase away some of the rawness I’m feeling.
Brooks clears his throat. “The news is spotty. We know the Council has fallen, and the territory alphas remaining are battling for control.”
Fennik’s deep voice vibrates against my side. “That buys us time.”
Alden, Vandera’s stoic mate, speaks up. “Some of the new guards tried to rise against us two nights ago. Vandi dealt with them, and we tossed them out. We escorted anyone wanting to leave to the territory border before lockdown. Those remaining, humans and wolves alike, have pledged loyalty to the territory. The wards are holding strong, and we’ve reinforced perimeter patrols. Even if they come, they won’t get in.”
Fennik rattles off a list of orders about sustainability for lockdown, and the three men fall into conversation, debating what to do if refugees show up.
I brace myself, turning back to Vandera. “The serpent is one of my mates.”
She grimaces and curls two fingers, pretending to strike. “The mark on your shoulder is very angry.”
“No shit.” I laugh at her horrified expression. “When we fought in the forest, the rune appeared, and he bit me?—”
Vandera cuts in, her face outraged. “Are you fucking pissed? Because I’m pissed for you. Biting without asking is gross.”
I think about that night in the forest, and everything about it feels complicated. There’s rage—enough to burn down the world—and relief, knowing a third has come, mixed with regret for the situation I’ve put my mates in. Maybe most of all, there’s embarrassment. I was turned on by the hunt and the serpent’s possessiveness, and that pisses me off even more. I don’t say that though.
“It just feels so spiteful of the universe, you know? I mean, I’m pissed he bit me—really fucking pissed—but I’m not surprised. That’s how it’s worked for mates in the past. Bonding instincts take over. It’s powerful. That I could forgive, probably. But a serpent. Really? After he captured me for my magic? It’s not even original.”
Vandera makes a booing sound. “I hate him.”
I look at my sweet friend’s furrowed brow and frowning lips, and the question just falls out: “What does that mean for the Moon Circle?”
“I want to say who cares and tell you he can fuck right off.” She bites her bottom lip, looking thoughtful. “But magically speaking, it’s not that easy. He had a rune?” I nod, and she takes that in. “Have you marked all three?”
“Fennik and Gunnar have taken the claw.” I think back to what happened in the forest. “Technically, I clawed the serpent when I tried to escape. I don’t know if it counts. My dragon was more than half asleep and I wasn’t doing much better.”
The men around us have fallen silent as they listen.
Vandera hums. “Magically speaking, it’s more likely to be successful. If he has a rune and your other mates give you their marks before the end of the full moon, the power of the Thunder should work to solidify all three bonds.”
Beneath me, Fennik tenses. “And if she doesn’t want to mate the serpent?”
Vandera answers him but looks at me, her expression grave. “You know more than I do about this. What do you think?”
I knew the answer when I asked her. I just didn’t like it. “All awaken. Or none do, and at least three are needed for a bond. That’s why I was so hesitant with Fennik before.”
“And if you reject the bond?” Fennik shifts beneath me.
I turn to face him, unable to mask the devastation.“Rejected bonds are rare and as likely to kill me as him.”
His mouth opens in protest, but a cry of pain from my nest interrupts whatever he is about to say.
I shoot off his lap, wrapping the blanket around me and turning to the others. “I appreciate your loyalty and what you have done to protect our territory. I adore you all. We can deal with how to move forward later. Right now, my mate needs me.”
I hold my hand out to Fennik, and his big hand swallows mine.
Gunnar’s furry ear is soothing as I worry it back and forth between my fingers. His tail swishes, the tip tickling my leg. He has yet to wake up or return to his human form, but at least he’s settled.
The longer Fennik and I purred after we returned to the lair last night, the more his scent mellowed. The blunt, acidic stench of pain from yesterday has been replaced by thick sage tinged with citrus and pine. My lair has the air of tea brewing and a warm blanket on a cold day. I know instinctively that it’s the aroma of healing.
Gunnar is covered in scars, something rare for shifters with enhanced healing, and I wonder if he’s ever had a chance to rest. Has anyone ever looked after him since his sister died? He was a pup when he lost everything and had to go it alone.
My dragon is at the surface, her desire to care for him, to give him a home, pounding in my chest. The need is surprising because it’s not new. It matches how I feel, only now my dragon feels it too.
It’s shocking how quickly Gunnar’s nuzzled his way into my heart. We don’t have a bond yet, but there is a link that wasn’t there before our trip to the Council. Maybe the claw on his back connects us, or maybe it’s just Gunnar. He risked everything for me with such blind faith. I’m in awe of his ability to trust after what he’s survived.
Fennik’s footsteps in the hallway alert me that he’s returned. My nose gets one whiff of breakfast, and my stomach demands with a loud growl to be fed.
“Stay there. I’ll bring it to you.” Fennik chuckles when I make grabby hands as he sets the tray on the coffee table by the fireplace.
He brings me a plate and a cup of coffee. Both seem equally important.I take a scalding sip and chase it with a chunk of muffin, followed by a heaping scoop of berries. The food is life affirming, and I moan in gratitude.
“You’re sounding like our pup,” Fennik teases, bringing his plate to the bed.
“I can’t help it. I’m starving.”
He tilts his head toward the fireplace. “I brought up breakfast tacos and a couple of sandwiches. Henry said he can send more.”
After all that’s happened, food has been the furthest thing from my mind. But this morning, I woke up ravenous.“You had me at breakfast tacos.”
I take another bite to finish the muffin and listen as he updates me on security and news from the other territories. I should probably care more about the chaos in the North Pass. What happens to shifters matters, but right now, my mates and my territory are my priorities.
We finish all the food, and I return to petting my pup. The reality of our visit to the Council sits heavy in my chest, the bond between the serpent and me a dull, throbbing ache that seems to be worsening with time.
Fennik cleans up and joins me, checking over Gunnar. “He’s healing much faster today. I don’t think it will be long before he wakes.”
I hum idly, lying back and looking at the ceiling, feeling adrift. When I close my eyes, I see the riverbank from my dream. It causes a whole-body shiver that is matched only by the tug in my heart trying to yank me back to the serpent. My hand rubs my chest, trying to work out the sting.
Fennik shifts on the bed, his solid weight hovering over me. He studies me for a moment, then leans in, rubbing against my cheek to scent mark me. The bristles of his three-day beard tickle. He licks the seam of my lips, and I open for him. I get lost in the sweeping of his tongue against mine. For the moment, there is only him and his dizzying kisses.
In one smooth move, he cages me in his arms and flips us so that I’m resting on his chest. I wiggle around until I’m comfortable, nuzzling into his warmth. His purr starts, a deep sound that drums home into my bones, and his hand rubs up and down my back.
“Tell me.” He follows his command with a sharp pop to my ass. “Don’t let it fester.”
I squirm at the heat of his palm, but the worry tumbles out of my mouth without further thought. “I don’t even know his name, but there’s an ache in my chest that won’t go away. How can I ever trust the serpent after what happened?”
Fennik thinks about that for a moment. “What happened with the serpents? You’ve told me before in bits and pieces, but let me hear it all.”
I squeeze my eyes shut and blow out a long breath. It takes me a minute to gather my thoughts. This time, I start with Erik and our early-morning flight, telling him about the boy I thought would be my mate. I explain about my village, my grandmother Ava, and how I would sneak out to avoid her lessons. The story morphs into another about my sister’s horde and how happy she was for those three months when they were together. When I get to the part in the story about Erik realizing we were betrayed, Fennik sits up and pulls me to straddle his lap, hugging me tightly.
He holds my face between his big hands, his expression so tender that I close my eyes.
“No, baby girl, eyes on me.”
I swallow around the lump in my throat. When I meet his eyes, they’re filled with compassion and understanding. The two emotions rip me right open.
“I meant what I said. I’ll always keep you safe. If you don’t want to mate the serpent, we’ll find another way.”
His blind faith is staggering, and I relish it. That doesn’t change the fact that I’m torn, my heart pulling in two directions.
“He and his people worked with the king to try to capture me. But he saved me. And us. He let me go. He killed the king.” I crawl over him and grab the fang I stashed on the dresser, holding it out for him. “I woke up with this in my hand. I think it’s the king’s. It’s been spelled, embedded with memories or lies. I can’t be sure. But what I saw made it seem like he has been trying to protect me.”
Fennik takes that in stride, the understanding never wavering in his gaze. “However you feel, it’s okay. He’s your fated mate. The pull between you is strong. But just because he’s got the mark doesn’t mean you have to trust or give yourself to him.”
I give a quick jerk of my head, trying to believe that, but I don’t know what to do with my warring desires. “My sister’s mate Jor had a bond mark. Was it real, or did he fake it with his magic? How can I know anything is real with a mate who spins illusions?”
He plants a kiss on my forehead, and I cling to his neck, resting my head on his shoulder.“It’s hard to know what’s true. Two things can be true, and they can be equally at war. You have to decide which truth will be yours.”
I sit with that for a while, trying to sort through the complicated web of emotions and past hurts. One thing I’m sure of is that I can always count on this man to have my back. He’s my landing spot, somewhere solid to come back to. “I know one truth.”
“What’s that?”
“I love you, and I want a bond with you.” I rub my fingers through his stubble, scratching his jaw, and his purr stutters.
“I’ve loved you most of my life. But even without a bond, you’re mine.” He rubs his nose against mine and kisses me so hard that my questions go quiet.
Gunnar’s croaky voice startles me from our kiss. “Can my truth be that I need, like, a dozen sandwiches? ‘Cause I’m obsessed with you both, but I’m famished.”
I scramble off Fennik’s lap, tears of relief escaping as I launch myself at Gunnar. “Thank you for protecting us, you brave, wonderful, trusting man.”
“Omph. Easy there, little dove, he’s recovering,” Fennik chides.
Gunnar doesn’t seem to mind that I’ve plastered myself onto him. He’s still shifted, and his furry body, warm and solid underneath me, lessens that throbbing ache in my chest.
I smother his snout in kisses. “Don’t ever scare me like that again, or I’ll flog your ass.”
His long tongue licks a wet stripe across my cheek, and his tail flicks between my legs. I laugh, not even bothering to try to stop him.
I’m torn about what to do with my newest mate and all the danger surrounding us, but the two men in this room? They’re mine—no matter what happens.