Chapter 28
MALIK
A skari’s abused body blurs before me as tears fall down my cheeks. I should have found a way sooner. I should have found a way to spare my beta all this pain. But we are here, now. And I’m so proud of him. I can’t wait to make him mine … if he still wants me.
My beast nudges me, and my brothers move with me as I take a single step forward and press my chest to Askari’s back. I purr against his skin, sending healing magic into him.
An audible snap echoes around the room, and Leonora actually flinches as Askari sighs, leans against me, and presses a hand to his chest.
The longer I’ve used the new power of the sun within me, the more I understand it and its possibilities. And now that my brothers’ and I have shared some of our god magic, all the Leos have a small piece of the divine—a small beam of sunlight—that gives them the power to stand up and say, No more.
Nigil, the cougar shifter who steadied Askari a moment ago turns and faces Leonora. “I want to be free. ”
Snap! His eyes go wide, and his hand goes to his chest. “Oh. Oh!” Some form of understanding passes through his expression, and he looks at Rian, Bodi, then me. Nigil rubs his chest. “I’m sorry, Malik. I didn’t know. We should have stood with you. I should have supported you.”
I don’t trust myself to speak around the emotion in my throat, so I just nod, relieved. I was worried that severing the bond between the Leos and Leonora would hurt them.
Another shifter from the other side of the room says, “I want to be free.”
Snap!
Leonora shouts, “Stop! You don’t know what you’re doing. You need me!” Her bottom lip trembles, and she releases the softest whimper. “Please.”
Bodi grins, his grip on my hand steady and warm. “No, we don’t.”
Voice after voice, some overlapping, call out, “I want to be free.”
Snap! Snap, snap, snap, snap!
Dozens, then scores, then more and more Leos free themselves.
As I look around, I see faces filled with relief, wonder, and gratitude.
But there are some that hold anger in their narrowed eyes, turning their rage on Leonora as they finally understand—now that they are free of her bond—how her ‘love’ wrapped them up so tightly, it strangled.
When all you’ve ever known is a cage, you don’t know to miss the sky.
As more Leos shout their desire to be free, a tiger shifter stalks towards Leonora, shoving people out of her way as she points a trembling hand at our goddess. “You! You forced this bond on me, on us! I was so young. You made me love you!”
Another Leo pushes her way between the tigress and Leonora, slapping her pointed finger away. “How dare you talk to our goddess like that? We are her clan! Her love is a gift!”
The tigress shouts back, “No! She gave us nothing. She forced this on me. I didn’t know any better, but now I do. That wasn’t love, it was control!”
The two females continue arguing, and sides are once again drawn as a few Leos stubbornly stand with Leonora while shifters all around them continue to claim their freedom, snapping their bonds, and joining the tigress’ side.
I nudge Askari, stepping around him. With my family at my back, their support bolstering me with warmth and love, I hold up my hands.
“Hey.” The shouting gets louder as emotions rise.
When a hunter on Leonora’s side shoves a Leo in the chest, I put my power behind my voice and bark.
The room falls silent, but emotions are still high as angry and frustrated gazes turn towards me as I say, “No one is forcing you to sever Leonora’s bond.
I just”—I look over my shoulder at my brothers before quickly turning back to the Leos—“ We just wanted the choice.”
Bodi says, “And we wanted you to have that choice as well.”
I glance back as Sadie comes up and wraps her arms around his waist, standing tall at his side as his claimed mate. Kat does the same to Rian, and he nuzzles her hair.
Bonds continue to snap all around the room, but several shifters continue to stand with Leonora.
I wish I could change their minds, but I think I understand.
For some—actually, probably for most—taking orders is easier than giving them.
Ceding control to someone else so you don’t have to make decisions, so you don’t have to face consequences … It’s a deceptively easy place to hide.
But then a leopard shifter turns and grabs another shifter by the shoulders with a huge smile on her face. “Claim me, mate. We’ve been denying and hiding our love for years. Please.”
I jerk, taking a step towards them on reflex, needing to stop this.
Not here. Not now. We’re not out of this yet.
I lift a hand. “Don’t—” Askari’s palm presses to my back, stalling my objection as the other female nods with tears in her eyes.
And right there, in the middle of the crowd, the two Leos embrace in a tight hug, pull back and share a quick kiss before they each raise their wrists.
I want to be happy for them. I am. But my muscles are so tight, pain is starting to lance through my right shoulder blade. I need to stop this. I can’t.
With tenderness and love, the females lower their mouths to each other’s wrists and bite, golden magic swirling around them.
A growl interrupts the moment, and Leonora shoves Justice off her.
I cross the distance between the newly mated pair and myself in an instant, shifting as I move to use my large beast form as a shield.
Leonora tries to look past me as she points at the couple.
Her earlier tears glitter along her lashes, but her cheeks are red with rage, and spit flings from her lips as she says, “You dare?” One of the females whimpers, but then several witches and shifters gather behind me—including my brothers, their mates, and Askari—adding their protection, bravely standing up against Leonora.
Turning inward for just a moment, I whisper, “This is really happening, right? We’re not dreaming?”
My panther chuffs at me. “ Stars, I hope not.”
Gema reaches for Leonora, but she slaps her hand away as if the Gemini goddess were an errant child.
Leonora advances, her loyal Leos gathered behind her, as she dashes away her tears while screaming, “Disrespectful! Disobedient! Stupid fools! Has today taught you nothing? I am the goddess of the Leos! I am your god! I loved you! And now you’re acting like ungrateful, sniveling children, saying I loved you too much.
” She snarls, but her tears continue to fall.
“Well, fine! You will suffer, and then you will beg and maybe?—”
Leonora’s body goes stiff, her eyes wide, her back arched.
Like a mirage coming into focus, the gold-capped white ivory tooth appears from where it’s sticking out of Leonora’s back.
There’s no blood, but as I watch, the tooth starts glowing.
And then a small hand appears, familiar fingers wrapped around the weapon.
And then that hand grows a wrist, then an arm, then a sexy shoulder and a lovely pair of collarbones.
Amri. She leans in, whispering something over Leonora’s shoulder, but the goddess doesn’t react to whatever my fierce mate said; she just stands there, stiff and frozen in place.
Amri gives the Tooth of Sobek a little twist, and Leonora lifts onto her toes, her mouth opening in pain, but no sound comes out.
My mate lets go, leaving the tooth lodged in Leonora’s back, and strides towards me.
The crowd parts, eyes darting between her and Leonora, but I only have eyes for Amri …
well I’m also keeping an eye on the hunters and shifters gathered around Leonora, but no one has made a move, and I think everyone is trying to figure out what just happened.
As Amri continues to approach, my panther nudges my mind. “You want to shift back?”
I shake my head. “You stay. You’re faster than I am. We need to stay alert.”
My tail flicks, my beast pleased that he gets to be in charge of watching over our mate, which means I’m quick to lower into a crouch, a growl building low in my chest as the blur of Gema’s yellow light flashes, but she’s not moving towards us.
Gema appears at Leonora’s side where she has fallen to the floor.
Leonora, on hands and knees, heaves silently, her body convulsing with her soundless sobs.
My beast grins. “That looks painful.”
I nod, expression and tone hard. “Good.”
One of Leonora’s hunters leans over her and wraps his hand around the weapon, but when he tugs, it doesn’t budge and only causes Leonora to cry out. The hunter lets go, raising his hands, panic in his wide eyes. “I’m sorry, my goddess. I was only trying to?—”
Gema steadies Leonora, waving an absent hand at the terrified hunter, who is quick to bow and step back. Gema whispers something to Leonora who shakes her head, gasping as if she’s having trouble breathing.
Amri slides her fingers through my fur, easily pulling my attention away from them as she runs her hand down my side, settling near my flank.
I am in awe of her. She’s so strong and fierce and kind and determined.
Amri fought so hard for my clan, a clan that’s not even hers.
And I realize that while I rejected the bond to protect my heart, Amri stayed to save it.
So now, my heart is hers. I think it always has been.
I purr, and her fingers flex. She chuckles, but her scent changes slightly with her arousal, and my purr gets louder.
I know she’s riding high on adrenaline; I can smell that too, and I press my body against hers, ready to support her should she start to crash.
I recall how exhausted she was before, and I curl my tail up her back.
Askari shuffles his feet where he’s standing behind me at my shoulder. When I flick an ear in his direction, letting him know he has my attention, he angles his head, glancing at me as his voice slips into my head. “She’s really your mate? ”
“She is.”
“How long have you known?”