Chapter 11 - Freya #2
“And you’re the pack alpha who’s kept her safe all this time,” he replied, lips curving up. “I owe you a debt I can never repay.”
But as his eyes scanned down from Gage’s eyes to his lips, and then the rest of him, Zak snorted.
Glancing between the two of them, he said in a flirty voice, “I’m sure Gage will help you think of a few ways to repay him.”
Gage’s lips parted, but it seemed Zak or maybe Tor had rendered him speechless. The Bonded link flared with a sharp, startled spike of desire from Gage before he ruthlessly slammed the doors shut and hid behind his alpha mask. Tor’s eyes flickered with knowing amusement — we’d all felt it.
But Tor remained patient, his feathers unruffled. He seemed to sense what the rest of us already knew — Gage needed time.
So, Tor turned to Zak next, his gaze darting down to my fresh mark on Zak’s neck and then back up to his face. The spark of interest that lit Zak’s eyes made me grin with satisfaction. My mates were recognizing each other as I’d expected.
“Zak, the one who helped Freya master her magic and bring me into the fold.”
“The witch side of her magic, anyway,” Zak admitted with a self-deprecating smile.
“She didn’t seem to have any trouble with her Odinswolf magic yesterday,” Tor smiled as he reached out a hand.
When Zak took it, Tor pulled him straight into his chest.
“It’s good to finally meet you outside of dreams,” Zak murmured, melting into the taller man’s embrace.
Tor kissed his temple, but his eyes met mine.
“Is this okay?” my fellow Odinswolf silently asked me.
“Not up to me to decide,” I pointed out. “You’ll have to figure it out with each of them.”
Tor grinned, his eyes lighting up with the challenge.
“You feel it, too,” Tor said out loud, looking down at Zak.
“I do,” Zak said, and just like in the dream, he asked Tor, “May I?”
Tor tilted his head down and claimed Zak’s lips. Watching those two melt into each other made something dark and hungry curl low in my belly. I closed my eyes, savoring the rightness of this moment.
When I opened them, my gaze locked with Rowan’s golden-ringed eyes, his hunger for me not disguised at all through our mate bond.
When Zak pulled back from Tor, his lips curled up in amusement. “You should probably meet the others, too.”
Our pack dynamic had changed so much when Zak had joined us, and now it would again, as fate had decreed the moment those stars shone down on us all.
It was only natural. Witches, like me and Zak, and Odinswolves, like me and Tor, took multiple mates. But I hadn’t grown up in either of those cultures and, maybe it was hypocritical of me, but I wasn’t comfortable with the idea of them looking for partners outside our existing bonds.
It made me far happier that we would all… share.
Heath approached Tor next, that familiar half-smile playing at his lips as he cut between the two of them.
Tor’s eyebrow raised as Heath circled him with undisguised interest.
“Damn, you’re even taller than me,” he remarked with a low whistle, having to tilt his head slightly to meet Tor’s eyes.
Through it all, Rowan kept stealing glances at Tor. In between meeting each of my other mates, Tor did the same, seeming equally fascinated by Rowan, though he was more subtle about his observation. The air between them crackled with the kind of tension I recognized all too well.
They had met on the battlefield, and I couldn’t wait to see them meet in the bedroom. But there would be time for that later.
“Heath,” I said, attempting a stern tone but unable to keep the affection from my voice. “Stop circling him like he’s prey.”
“Not prey,” Heath corrected, his caramel eyes gleaming with mischief. “Just making sure our newest packmate measures up.” He gave Tor a fistbump. “Welcome. Thanks for rescuing Rowan so we didn’t have to.”
Tor’s laugh was warm and genuine. “I’ve been watching from afar long enough. It’s good to finally meet you all.”
Rowan gave a playful growl as Heath went over to give him a heartfelt hug.
Unlike Heath’s circling or Gage’s careful assessment, Flint simply stepped forward and clasped Tor’s forearm in a more traditional wolf greeting.
“Welcome to the circle,” Flint said simply, his brown eyes warm with genuine welcome. “We’ve been waiting for you.”
The simple sincerity of his words brought unexpected tears to my eyes.
Through our bond, I felt Tor’s surprise and deep gratitude at being accepted so readily…
along with the immediate recognition as two potential mates acknowledged their compatibility.
Neither of their expressions registered surprise when their wolves took an instant liking to each other.
“Thank you,” Tor replied, his voice thickening with emotion. “It’s been… a long journey.”
“Sometimes the hardest journeys lead to the most important destinations,” Flint said. “And you’re exactly where you need to be now.”
Flint and Gage joined Heath beside Rowan, and each of my alphas embraced him in turn, their relief at the safe return of their packmate evident.
When Gage pulled Rowan into a rough hug, the pack alpha’s protective instincts finally settled.
“Mission accomplished,” he said simply, but I sensed how uncomfortable those words made Rowan.
He’d truly believed he could spirit my sister out of Denraider’s far-reaching territory, alone.
But the rest of us had always considered it a recon mission.
When Rowan and I could have a moment alone, I would make sure he knew I didn’t blame him for leaving Valkyrie behind.
We knew more about her whereabouts and her circumstances than ever before thanks to him.
When I let my vision blur and brought forward my Odinswolf sight, I could see the tendrils of bonds forming between my mates.
The Bonded link clearly connected Tor to all of us, but he lacked the mate bonds and the pack bond that connected the rest of us, except Rowan.
I couldn’t wait to see what happened when we were all properly connected.
For the first time since the starlight had marked us all those months ago, we were together — all six of my mates, all six parts of my heart.
The wild, lonely girl who’d once been thrown out of Ironwood with nothing now stood at the center of a circle of alphas, a beta witch bound to my coven, and another Odinswolf — all of them mine, all of them choosing me just as fiercely as I chose them.
The bonds between us hummed with the kind of harmony written in the stars.
A calmness overcame me, the sense of knowing that we would eventually complete all our bonds, both mate and pack bonds. That time would come — it had already been decided.
But underneath the joy of reunion in the Bonded link, I caught threads of awkwardness between Rowan and Zak and between Rowan and Gage that made my chest tighten with concern.
As the other alphas welcomed Rowan back into the fold, the sound of another vehicle approaching made us all turn.
“Gabriel, his brothers, and Jasmine agreed to give us a moment,” Rowan explained as the truck rolled to a stop next to the SUV. Both vehicles bore the same Snow Moon plates on the front.
From the passenger window, Jasmine’s voice called out a cheerful greeting as she and her three mates climbed out of their truck. Heat rushed to my cheeks as I realized they’d been intentionally hanging back to give us a moment together.
“Hi, Jasmine!” I called as Jasmine approached, her pale blue eyes sparkled with relief and exhaustion in equal measure.
My wolf breathed her in, instantly recognizing the entwined scents of her three mates — Gabriel, Garreth, and Grayson — all surrounding her and marking her as their own. It put my wolf at ease to know she was no threat to my claim on Tor.
“Hugs?” she asked as she approached.
“You made it!” I said, embracing her warmly. “Thanks for keeping Tor safe.”
I turned in her arms to greet Gabriel, Garreth, and Grayson. The three brothers looked travel-worn and battle-tested.
“Are you okay?” I asked. “Any injuries?”
“We healed in wolf form,” Grayson reassured me.
“You left your pack behind to help Tor and Rowan,” I said. “If there’s anything we can do…”
“Things have gotten bad up north, Freya,” Jasmine said, her voice lowered for privacy.
“How bad?” Gage asked, his alpha instincts immediately focusing on potential threats.
Gabriel answered, his voice carrying the weight of leadership and loss. “Snow Moon’s leadership has turned against those who don’t follow their narrow traditions. They’re forcing female wolves into unequal mate bonds and banning multiple mates entirely.”
“They tried to make me choose between my mates,” Jasmine said quietly. Gabriel and Garreth instantly crowded closer to her, as if to reassure her they weren’t going anywhere.
The casual cruelty of it made my wolf snarl with rage. These wolves had done nothing wrong except love each other in ways that didn’t fit traditional pack structures. Just like us.
“You’re safe now,” I said firmly. “All of you.”
Tor nodded, though his eyes held shadows of old pain. “Snow Moon has been heading down this path for years. My mother and I left for similar reasons.”
I reached over with my other hand and took Tor’s. His large hand enveloped my own, making me feel silly for trying to comfort this powerful man. He smiled down at me, the warmth in his eyes pushing back the shadows.
“We spoke with Torsten and Rowan before coming,” Gabriel said, his gaze flicking to Gage. “Our hope was to prove ourselves as good packmates to him so that you would see fit to take us in along with your newest mate.”
Garreth nodded eagerly. “We want to stand with you, fight with you.”
Grayson added, “Whatever comes next.”
“You’ve renounced Snow Moon?” Gage asked.
Gabriel nodded. “Pack law is slowly being dismantled in Canada. Snow Moon may eventually be disbanded, but before that, I predict at least part of the pack will revolt. Regardless, it’s no longer our home.”