by Mikayla Lane
It was a beautiful emerald green color, and the fabric was so soft she couldn’t help but rub it over her face.
“You’re my beautiful mate, and you’re carrying my son. You deserved some new things, and there will be no argument over this. It is my honor and my duty to provide for my family,” Chris said with a smile as he held up the cat nightgown that had been thrown to the floor the previous night. “Everything else was destroyed. This is the only exception.”
Quinn burst out laughing and threw herself into his arms.
“I love you,” she whispered, wondering if he’d say it back.
“I have loved you forever,” Chris whispered back. “I was just too blind to see it.”
Chris realized that she was completely naked, and he couldn’t help but walk her slowly back to the bed, gently pressing her back into the mattress.
“Your family is waiting out there!” Quinn said with a laugh as she half-heartedly pushed against him.
“Let them wait,” Chris growled.
*****
Dread sat beside the bed and stared down at his mate’s battered face. He’d suspected who she was when they had battled Satalis at his Washington D.C. mansion, but he’d had no way to save her. The mission had been to save Angel, and he convinced himself he’d been wrong about the tortured hybrid.
When he saw Fiona in Scotland, he was relieved he’d been right when he’d felt no bond or connection to her at all. Then he saw Moira at the monastery, and his heart shattered at his first glimpse of her.
“Brother,” Viper said softly as he came into the room with Lara. Fiona wasn’t far behind.
It was a special kind of hell for Dread to have to look at Fiona, the perfect image of his mate, what she was supposed to look like, then see what had been done to Moira. It tortured his mind to realize that if he’d saved Moira at the mansion that day, she wouldn’t be laying tightly bound to the bed in order to protect themselves from her uncontrolled violence and rage.
Dread looked back at Moira and gently touched her cool hand. He felt far too raw inside to look at the pity on their faces when they looked at him and his once-perfect mate, who’d been reduced to nothing more than a diseased animal. The rage, guilt, and pain he felt was too overwhelming to deal with if he had to look at anyone in the eyes.
“Can she be helped?” Dread asked simply as he ran the pad of his thumb in circles over the soft skin on the back of Moira’s hand.
“Dread . . .” Lara began as she stepped further into the room. “It’s not as simple or as easy as that.”
“Is there hope for her?” Dread growled, his anger threatening to spill over.
Fiona moved to the bed, ignoring the dark, heavy energy surrounding Dread and took her sister’s other hand in her own. Tears slipped silently down her cheeks as she looked at her physically and mentally broken sister.
“Sergei said that all of the physical damage can be repaired. She’ll be healed within a week . . . physically,” Fiona said quietly, her eyes never leaving her precious twin as she spoke.
The way Fiona said it and the fact that she left out Moira’s mental state and the possible reversal of the damage done to her beast and brain told Dread there was no hope.
Dread roared in pain and rage, mourning the loss of his mate and the future they might have had if only he’d come sooner and found Moira in time. He blindly lashed out, picking up his chair and throwing it across the room, shattering a viewing window on the other side of the bed.
Dread saw the blur coming from his side but had no time to react before he was thrown to the ground and pinned. He roared again and fought against the stronger man, screaming and growling his rage and pain until everyone in the room felt his anguish.
“Calm yourself, my friend. Hope is never lost,” Grai huffed out, using all of his strength to keep Dread from harming himself.
Dread looked at Grai with such pain in his eyes that Grai couldn’t help but feel deep sorrow for his friend.
“Listen to me, Dread. We don’t give up. Pull yourself together so we can find a way to help her,” Grai said softly, trying not to set Dread off again.
Grai knew if Dread began fighting again, he’d need some help keeping him controlled, and he warned Lara through the shengari’ to help him if needed.
“There is nothing we can do,” Dread growled weakly, covering his face with his hands as he wept.
Grai stood over Dread. He was grateful the anger was over, but he wouldn’t tolerate self-pity or defeat. He reached down and yanked Dread’s hand from his face and pulled him unwillingly to his feet before drawing him into a tight hug.
“Don’t you ever give up hope; there is always something to be done,” Grai whispered hoarsely as he called out to Blade through the shengari’.
Moments later, Blade walked into the room and moved to stand next to Fiona at Moira’s bedside. Dread had begun pull himself together, and he nodded his thanks to Grai as he stepped away and looked over at the sunglass-wearing hybrid standing near his mate.
“Blade,” Dread acknowledged before he looked back down at Moira.
He avoided looking at Fiona as much as possible. He just couldn’t stand to see what his beautiful mate should be like instead of the broken shell laying in the bed.
Blade looked up at Grai.
“I need to see inside before I can figure out our options,” Blade said.
“What are you talking about?” Dread demanded, looking around the room at the expectant faces. “Why are you in here?”
“I may be able to help her,” Blade said simply.
“Why the hell would I trust a man who never shows his eyes with my mate?” Dread growled at him from across the bed.
Blade sighed as if tired of hearing about his penchant for wearing shades indoors.
“My abilities are very unique, and when I’m in the presence of someone I can assist, or even if something is calling to my gifts, it reflects on me in a way it does not on others,” Blade said, removing his sunglasses.
“Damn . . .” Viper whispered.
It was hard not to stare at the glowing amber beast swirls in Blade’s green eyes before he put his sunglasses back on his face.
“It can be unsettling, even to our own kind, to see my eyes begin glowing. I find I instill less fear when I keep them covered. It is not meant as an insult,” Blade explained.
Dread felt like a complete ass for going off on the guy like that.
“I’m sorry,” he muttered.
“I need to touch her head. May I?” Blade asked.
Dread nodded, not seeing how it could hurt. Or help. But he watched Blade carefully as the odd hybrid placed his hands over both sides of Moira’s head.
Moments later, Blade’s hands began to tremble and sweat popped out on his brow right before his eyes glowed so brightly they looked eerie behind the dark shades. Finally, he jerked his hands away from Moira and moved a couple of steps away from the bed, panting as if he’d been running.
Viper threw him a small towel, and Blade used it to wipe his face. This time when he took off his sunglasses to use the towel, his eyes were back to their normal green with non-glowing amber swirls.
“I can erase some of her memories of Satalis; others I can dim the pain associated with them,” Blade admitted when he got his breath back.
Dread couldn’t help the hope that rose swiftly in him at Blade’s words.
“What do you mean? You can fix her?” he asked.
Blade shook his head sadly, unwilling to give Dread false hope.
“I can help her fight the worst of what was done to her mind by dulling it, or erasing some of it, but she has to find the will to help me. She has to fight,” Blade explained.
“Of course she’ll help! She’s a fighter,” Dread proclaimed excitedly, until he saw Fiona’s downcast expression.
“She was a fighter,” Fiona whispered.
“She still is!” Dread argued, looking to Blade for confirmation.
“The woman she
was—before Satalis—is gone. Even I cannot find her or bring her back, but part of who she was remains, and you must be the one to call to her and give her a reason to fight with me,” Blade told the stunned Dread.
Dread considered Blade’s words and weighed what their options were against what he thought would be best for Moira.
“Would she be able to think and reason? Would she feel happiness and joy?” Dread asked, knowing the answers would help him make up his mind.
“Her mind is fragmented. It’s not a simple anomalous beast. I can help her reassemble the pieces, remove the worst of Satalis, and dull the remaining memories to ensure they cannot cripple her mind. But there are no guarantees, only a chance at hope,” Blade explained, unwilling to lie to them about what they were facing.
“How soon can you start?” Dread asked.
“It’s more complicated than that, and I need you to understand how this will work,” Blade said, trying to ensure everyone was listening.
Dread nodded as everyone stared at Blade, waiting for him to continue.
“Her beast has to die before I can do anything,” Blade admitted and paused, waiting for the eruption he knew would occur.
Lara moved to Fiona who covered her face with her hands and began crying quietly. Dread just stared at Blade, trying to force his mind to comprehend what he said.
“She’ll lose her longevity,” he whispered.
“We can keep humans alive for a good century longer than they do without our help,” Grai countered.
“Another hundred years when I will live a millennia longer?” Dread asked incredulously, knowing they wouldn’t think it acceptable if it was their mate.
“Dread . . .” Drago whispered, his heart breaking for his brother.
“No! What the fuck is wrong with you? This isn’t acceptable! None of this is right!” Dread roared before he barreled past everyone and out of the room.
“I’m sorry,” Blade said. “I can’t get anywhere with her mind while the beast is fighting me. As it is, the process I would have to use can take me years, otherwise I do risk destroying her ability to function properly.”
“So it may not work at all?” Fiona whispered.
Blade turned to the distraught woman, sympathy oozing from his energy.
“I can guarantee nothing with damage as severe as this. Between what Satalis and the beast have done to her, the pain and torture she endured created its own kind of damage that needs to be dealt with. She will need an unwavering support system since her mind will have to be brought back to a state before she ever met Satalis,” Blade explained.
Although Dread had left the room, Blade knew his brothers were explaining things to him through the shengari’, and he paused so they could have time to relay it.
“She’ll lose all her memories? Of me?” Fiona would take whatever could be saved of her beloved twin, but she wanted to be prepared for what to expect.
“No,” Blade said with a shake of his head. “I should be able to keep everything before Satalis. Everything after Satalis will have to be removed, altered, or dulled in order for me to help her function again after the beast is dead.”
“There is no hope at all for her beast?” Fiona already knew the answer, but she had to hear it from someone else before she could ever make a decision.
Blade shook his head, feeling truly sorry for Dread and Fiona. He couldn’t imagine the decision they faced.
“Even now, the beast is listening and plotting to destroy her mind completely if we attempt anything. You do not have much time to decide before the beast makes it for you,” Blade assured her, hoping they wouldn’t wait too long and make it impossible for him to help.
Dread came back in the room, only slightly calmer than he’d been when he left it. He walked back to the bed and ran his hand down Moira’s tightly restrained arm to her hand. He caressed it gently and looked across the bed at Fiona and her tear stained face.
“What is your decision?” he asked, his voice hoarse from emotion.
“I think we should try whatever it takes to bring her back. Any part of her,” Fiona whispered as the tears fell. “But you’re her mate, and I won’t do anything unless you agree with it.”
“I cannot claim her like this when she has no will and therefore have no right to make a decision on her behalf,” Dread said between gritted teeth as he thought of the animal responsible for that.
“In her stead, I will accept your claim of her and give you all rights regarding her well-being,” Fiona offered, knowing it was the right thing to do.
Dread heard how the beast was preparing to destroy Moira’s mind, and he spoke to Grai over the shengari’, hoping to prevent Moira’s beast from doing anything to harm her before they could kill it.
It only took seconds for Mikal to appear at the end of the bed, and he was speaking the ritual words of expulsion before anyone realized it.
“Castani retarninian sobleki bosarn captavi, sonotangi eventi!”
Moira screamed and tried to lunge from the bed, but the deed was done and the beast already lifeless in her brain. Within weeks, it would decay and be absorbed by Moira’s body, leaving only a scar on her brain where it had once lived.
Moira turned her head to look at Dread and recognition seemed to flare in her eyes, giving him hope that there was a chance for them.
“You should have killed me,” Moira choked out as her gaze turned hateful. “I’ll never forgive you! Never!”
Moira began to fight against the multitude of heavy restraints keeping her from harming herself or anyone else, but her now-human body didn’t have the strength to do much, and it left her more angry and exhausted.
“I hate you and I never want to see you again,” Moira whispered as she turned away from Dread and sobbed.
Fiona, Viper, and Drago tried to tell him Moira hadn’t meant it, that it was just the pain and shock talking.
Dread ignored them, shutting them out of his head as he gently stroked her hand one more time and flinched when she pulled away as best she could in the restraints. Unable to look at her one more time, Dread turned and strode from the room, his energy emanating a dangerous vibration in his wake.
Grai nodded at Blade.
“Get started as soon as you can,” he said before he and Lara followed the fle’ te’ Trugh brothers out of the medlab.
Epilogue
Dranovian/Tezarian Washington D.C. Compound
Everyone disembarked the transport with heavy sighs and smiles, all glad to finally be back at their home base. Chris kept his arm around Quinn’s waist as he led her into the main building with the others.
Almost everyone was heading to their rooms to put their gear and belongings away, except Shane, Reign, Siggy, and Cade, who ran down hallways opposite of the living quarters.
Chris stopped at the new family suite between Angel and Dree’s and grinned down at Quinn.
“Are you ready?” he teased.
Quinn snorted and opened the door. She’d just stepped inside, stunned by how homey and comfortable the place looked when she and Chris heard a commotion down one of the hallways. They looked at one another for a moment before Chris and his other siblings began following the screaming to the source.
“Oh my God! Oh my God!” Shane screamed in horror.
Chris, Liam, Deacon, and Drago ran down the hallway to see what had Shane so terrified. Deacon shoved Shane into the entertainment room, and he stopped several feet inside with his mouth hanging open in shock.
“Oh, fuck me,” Deacon whispered.
Everyone piled into the room, each of the males gasping in horror at what had happened to their wondrous and previously awesome man cave.
Dree, Angel, and Quinn finally made it into the room and they couldn’t stop the smiles that broke out on their faces.
“Oh Dad,” Angel whispered as the tears flooded her eyes.
Drago pulled her close to his side and tried to comfort his ridiculously hormonal mate. Liam and Chris looked down at th
eir own mates, slightly horror struck as they realized their mates were crying as well.
“This is a joke right?” Shane asked as he chuckled nervously and approached the pink, spiraled castle playhouse taking up the left side of their man cave.
The pink castle playhouse led to a set of large, clear pink plastic play tubes that wound through the pinball machines, basketball games and electronic toys that once took up the main areas of their entertainment area.
In the middle of the room, the clear pink tubes turned into clear red tubes that led to a pirate ship playhouse on the other side of the room. The red tubes traveled over the large TV area before winding around the kitchen to the ship. Where their bar used to be now stood a huge, multi-colored ball pit.
Every neon sign, lewd calendar or poster, and all the alcohol was now gone from the room. Instead, the walls were now covered in the same bright yellow paint that Quinn had once used in her apartment.
I’m going to kill Dad, Chris thought as he cringed at the color on the walls.
He didn’t mind the kid stuff at all. He thought what Grai had done for their children was wonderful, but he drew the damn line at that gods-awful color.
Quinn hugged him and sniffed as she looked up at him with watery eyes.
“This is definitely home,” Quinn whispered as she looked around the room with a brilliant smile on her face.
Chris closed his eyes and sighed, knowing there was no way in hell he’d change the damn color now. Not when it made Quinn so happy. He gave her a squeeze and nodded his head.
“You’re home, baby,” he whispered back as he leaned down to kiss her cheek.
“What the fuck is this?” Shane finally exploded as he walked further into the room with his arms thrown out wide.
Suddenly, there was a shriek from the doorway, and everyone turned to see Charlie run into the room. Her mouth was open wide, and her eyes were shining and huge as she looked around the room. She stood near Shane and stared in wonder, her small hand reaching up to clutch Shane’s.
