by Tasha Black
I don’t make him wait long.
As their blood saturates the ground beside the altar I turn, victorious, to face the others. I will take them all, annihilate their Order, and then my human will ensure their kind is forgotten.
But before I can pounce, a ghostly howl rises up from the trees beyond and the first hellhound fixes its yellow eyes on me.
One hellhound I can take, but more and more pairs of yellow eyes appear between the trees. There are too many. But at least I will have the chance to go down with a fight.
I scan the terrain, plotting out how I can separate them and face them alone.
My heart leaps when I spot a bear and a wolf emerging from the trees on the other side of the bridge.
My brothers.
Luke and Reed have come for me. Together, we can take anything the Order can dish out.
I roar with joy and fury as my brothers pound across the bridge to join me in the fray.
36
Kendall
I grinned widely at Bella as she yanked me out of the water.
“Something’s different about you,” she said.
“I’ll explain later,” I told her, not ready to share the uneasy truth that my magic was gone for good.
Honestly, I wasn’t ready to face it myself, and all the things it might mean. Things like the fact that I could no longer be a student at Primrose.
When we reached the bank, I saw that the men I had paused with my magic were moving again.
And there was nothing on the stone but an ocean of blood.
I experienced a moment of utter stillness as I waited for the pain to destroy me totally.
“Look,” Bella whispered.
I turned my eyes in the direction she was pointing, and my breath caught in my throat.
A wolf and a bear loped across the meadow to join a majestic panther. His eyes flashed emerald green, muscles contracting and then stretching as he sailed through the air, landing hard on velvet paws and letting out a victorious roar.
My mate.
Except that I couldn’t be his mate anymore. I had no more magic.
Sadness constricted my ribcage, even as I felt a warm sense of pride. I regretted nothing. I was glad Jared was back. He deserved to have all the magic in the world. I wanted him to be happy.
A blinding flash of light from the portal drew my attention and I realized it was fully open. I might not have been too late to save Jared, but I was too late to stop the return of the Raven King.
The members of the Order who were in front of the portal gazed up at it in awe.
Luke’s wolf grabbed one of them by the cloak and the man forced him away with a blast of magic.
“Oh,” Bella said.
That shouldn’t have been possible. Unless…
“The light coming off the portal is giving them magic,” I murmured.
“Come on,” Bella said resolutely.
We ran for the action. I wasn’t really sure what I was planning to do without magic, but I would help however I could.
And I had to get to Jared. Even without the pull of magic between us, I craved his touch and the comfort of knowing he was alive and back again.
I ran past Cori, who was calling down a magnificent bolt of lightning, sending the men scrambling for cover.
Glancing back, I saw that Bella was already all over a group of men in cloaks. Tiny saplings were wound around their legs, holding them fast as they tried to cast magic at her. It wasn’t enough to stop them, but it was going to suck for them when they tried to dodge Cori’s next lightning blast.
Hellhounds poured out of the woods in the direction of the wolf, bear and panther. Though the trio was making quick work of their cloaked adversaries, it was only a matter of time before the beasts descended on the guardians.
And I could feel the reverberation of hoofbeats on the ground.
Nightmares.
The fiery horses would stampede soon. The Order had called on every asset at their disposal.
Though my friends had leveled up their powers, we were fighting against a larger enemy than ever before, whose magic was being bolstered by the power beyond the veil.
How long could we hold them off?
There was another flash of light, and the scent of a rainstorm filled the air, though the sky was clear.
The Raven King stepped through the portal. Flowers burst into bloom in the grass at his feet and the air seemed to form a haze around him.
He lifted one hand and all magical activity stopped. The Order dropped their blades and cloaks. One of Cori’s lightning bolts froze midair.
The Raven King took no notice of any of it. He was beautiful and fearsome with long black hair that flowed as if he were underwater, and pale blue eyes that were unperturbed by the chaos before him.
“Who summoned me?” he demanded. The harmonics in his voice shimmered in the cold air.
Declan scrambled up off the ground and approached him, a slavish expression on his face.
“I did, my lord,” he panted. “We crave the blessing of your magic.”
“You want my power?” the Raven King asked.
Declan nodded slowly, as if realizing too late that this might be a trap.
“Then you shall have it,” the king said lightly.
We all watched, rapt, as Declan’s posture lifted and straightened under the gaze of the fae king.
Declan radiated power, glowing lightly, and then blasting light from his fingertips and the ends of his hair.
He smiled a horrible smile and light escaped from the gaps between his teeth. He clenched his fists and his biceps swelled, sending a pulse of energy out that flattened the grass around him.
His power was unspeakable. I had never seen anyone with so much magic flowing through them. It made even Cori look weak.
And still the Raven King’s eyes bore down on him, a disdainful expression on the king’s terrible, beautiful face.
“Enough,” Declan pleaded, sparks erupting from his mouth as he spoke. “Please.”
The king’s expression didn’t change.
Declan’s face turned desperate. He clawed at his throat.
But the light flaring out of him only intensified. He let his head fall back and howled in agony.
Smoke poured from his mouth and his eyes went wide for a moment, before he exploded in a volcano of fire and ash.
It was a terrible way to go. Almost bad enough to make me feel bad for him.
Almost.
All around me, the clearing was silent.
“You called me back here because you wanted to taste my power,” the king said dispassionately. “But your delicate mortal forms cannot hold up against the merest drop. Let me show you.”
He lifted his hands to force his power into every being in the meadow.
As the searing power ripped into me, I turned to Jared, drinking in the sight of him one last time. How I would have loved to stroke that velvet pelt and see happiness in his emerald eyes at being whole once more.
But we would be ashes before that could happen.
“Wait.”
Anya’s voice was clear as a bell in the frozen meadow as she stepped forward to confront the Raven King.
Her hair flowed out behind her, and though she was small and slender, her bearing seemed suddenly regal. I wondered if the pale birds on her shoulders lent her courage she would not have possessed on her own.
The Raven King locked eyes with Anya, and for an instant I swore something passed between them.
His expression softened.
The burning sensation stopped.
And then, without a word, he vanished into thin air as the stone archway crumbled in on itself.
37
Kendall
As my friends shouted for joy and embraced each other, I sought out the panther.
He stood on a rocky outcropping at the edge of the trees, observing the scene below him as if he were not a part of it.
While Luke and Reed had immediately
shifted into human form to embrace their mates, Jared remained alone.
As I watched, he lifted his face to the night sky, closing those hypnotic green eyes to drink in his freedom.
It occurred to me that I should be afraid of the dark creature above me. Power radiated from his sleek form and bulging muscles.
But I only felt drawn to him, as strongly as before.
When I was directly beneath the rock, he gazed down at me. Those jade eyes were so intense, but I didn’t blink.
In a movement so graceful I couldn’t tell where it began and where it ended, he leapt to the grass beside me.
His sheer size was dizzying. His head was at my chest level and his tail stretched out behind him so that the tip of it was back at the rock.
He blinked once, slow and lazy, and I blinked back on reflex.
Then that dark, velvet head butted playfully into my chest with a force strong enough that it almost knocked me over.
A laugh escaped me, and I instinctively placed one hand on the top of his head.
The fur was softer and thicker than I’d imagined, and he was incredibly warm.
He held perfectly still as I ran my hand down his neck to stroke the huge blades of his enormous shoulders.
A deep rumble startled me and then I realized it was coming from the cat. He liked my attentions.
I continued to stroke him, coming back to scratch lightly under his chin.
Like a wave on an ocean, he rolled effortlessly from standing onto his back to showing me his belly.
I knelt to stroke it and scratch his chest.
He reached out and tapped my arm with a dinner plate-sized paw, so gently.
“You’re so beautiful,” I told him.
He rolled back onto his feet in another incredibly fluid movement, and circled me, rubbing his massive cheek against my head and my back.
He broke contact for an instant and when I looked up, Jared stood before me in human form again.
I gaped at him, and he offered me his hand.
“That was amazing,” I told him, taking it and letting him help me up.
“It feels like home,” he said softly. “Thank you for that. And for saving my life.”
I shrugged.
“I know the others think they found good mates,” he said with a half-smile. “But I know I found the best one.”
Pain rent my chest and I almost couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t be his mate anymore. I had no magic. How was I supposed to tell him that?
“Kendall,” he said. “What’s wrong?”
“I need to go home,” I told him. “Now.”
“I’ll tell the others,” he said. “Wait here.”
I felt a sense of heavy relief that he would handle it. I didn’t think I could face talking to any of them.
I leaned against the cool face of the rock, wondering how I was going to have this conversation with him.
Jared had suffered so much already. I didn’t want him to feel any guilt. I was glad he had his panther back.
“Ready?” he asked, loping up to me, his eyes shining with happiness.
I nodded.
He offered me his hand and I took it. The heat of it reminded me of the panther and I smiled.
“I know why I’m eager to get home,” he said quietly. “Is it the same reason you wanted to leave right away?”
I bit my lip, trying to figure out how to say it.
“I’ll take that as a no,” he said. “Does it freak you out to see me like that? Were you frightened?”
“Not at all,” I told him. “You’re beautiful as a panther. And as a person.”
I cut myself off, feeling embarrassed.
He smiled, puffing out his chest a little.
“But there’s something,” I said uncertainly. “Something going on with me.”
He stopped and moved in front of me, cupping my cheek in his hand.
I drank in one last look at his handsome face and those deep, beautiful green eyes.
It was now or never, there was no point delaying the inevitable.
“My magic is gone,” I told him.
“You just need rest,” he said. “You exerted yourself today.”
I didn’t respond, waiting for him to realize.
He frowned.
“You aren’t…?” he trailed off as if not wanting to offend me with his word choice. “Your price. Why aren’t you paying your price right now?”
“My magic is gone,” I said again. “There’s no price left to pay.”
“What do you mean gone?”
“I had a choice to make, Jared,” I said, looking him straight in the eye so he could make no mistake. “And I have no regrets. If I had to do it again, I’d do it just the same way.”
“What are you talking about, Kendall?” he asked.
But I could see the realization in his eyes.
“Your heart stopped beating on that slab,” I said. “Is there anything you wouldn’t have done if it had been me down there?”
He shook his head slowly.
“I did what I had to do,” I said simply. “And you’re alive. And you have your panther back.”
“But your magic is really gone,” he said softly. “Kendall, I’m so sorry.”
“I’m not,” I told him lightly. “But it does change things.”
“I understand,” he said, his face falling.
“I’ll have to go somewhere else for school,” I said.
That wasn’t really the most important thing I was saying. But it seemed like an easier way to let him know I understood we couldn’t be together anymore.
“Where did you have in mind?” he asked quietly.
I shrugged. “I’ve never really thought about what my life would look like without magic in it. It might take me some time to figure it out.”
“We’ll go wherever you decide,” he said firmly.
We?
So, he hadn’t put it together yet.
“Jared, there can’t be a we anymore,” I told him.
“Will you never forgive me?” he whispered.
“Forgive you?” I echoed.
“For making you give up your magic,” he said. “I understand. Just the sight of me will make you sad for a long time.”
I stared at him, completely thrown.
“If there is a way to take this magic from me and give it back to you, I’ll do it,” he told me. “And if there isn’t, I will spend my life making it up to you in any way I can. But I cannot live without you, Kendall. Please don’t make me try.”
“Jared,” I murmured.
“Please,” he whispered. “You stood by me when my panther was gone. And even found a way to bring it back. I’ll stand by you while we find a way to bring your magic back.”
“And if we don’t?”
“Then I don’t care,” he said.
“I don’t want to live without you, Jared,” I told him. “But… I can’t give you shifter babies anymore. I don’t have any magic.”
“I don’t care about shifter babies,” he growled. “I care about you.”
My heart soared at his words, but I didn’t want him making sacrifices.
“You won’t always feel that way,” I told him carefully.
“I will,” he told me firmly.
“What about the Brotherhood of the Guardians?” I asked.
“If not for you, they would have lost me entirely,” he said. “They already have a panther because of your magic. You’ve done your part.”
A tiny ray of hope warmed my chest.
“You might change your mind one day,” I said quietly. “We can’t have a true mate bond. Anything could happen.”
“I’m running the same risk,” he reminded me. “Every mortal does. But I believe in your love. Do you believe in mine?”
Tears prickled my eyes and I nodded, unable to speak.
He pressed his lips to my forehead.
“I’m feeling anxious to get you home,” he murmured. “But it’s quite a wal
k. Any chance you would be interested in riding a big cat?”
“Seriously?” I asked him, my tears giving way to my curiosity.
“Of course,” he said. “The luxurious travel is one of the best parts of being a shifter.”
I laughed and nodded.
He nodded back, but by the end of the nod I was face to face with the panther once more.
I stroked his lovely fur and he lowered himself enough that I could climb aboard.
When he moved to stand, I was worried about how he could carry my weight. But it was like sitting astride a wall of solid muscle.
I leaned down, wrapping my arms around his neck, and he leapt into the night, moving like liquid lightning as I laughed and clung to him.
It was impossible to dwell on anything negative as we hurtled joyfully though the forest together.
38
Jared
The cool night air felt incredible, and the warmth of Kendall’s thighs wrapped around me had my imagination in overdrive.
The light of the full moon above us lit the trees enough that I brought us home in no time.
Well, I brought us to Luke’s home, at least. He and Bella were staying at the dorm tonight, so Kendall and I would have a private place. My own cabin was probably under a foot of dust from disuse. I would have a job in front of me bringing it back from the dead. It was a good thing I liked a project.
When we arrived at the door, I paused, giving Kendall a moment to dismount. I hoped she was okay. I had been enjoying the feel of letting it all out in my run. I was used to it. But she didn’t ride a panther every day.
She slid to her feet and wrapped her arms around my neck, pressing a kiss to my furry cheek.
On a whim, I shifted with her mouth still on me.
“Oh,” she said in surprise.
“Hey,” I said softly.
“Isn’t this Luke’s house?” she asked.
“They wanted us to have it for the night,” I told her. “I’ll fix up my own place tomorrow.”
“That was really nice of them,” I said.
“Well, you can thank them in person in the morning,” he said. “I hope you don’t mind, I invited them all to have brunch with us. We got lucky in that battle, but we’re going to have to figure out what to do about the Raven King.”
