by Leia Stone
“Hello, granddaughter of mine,” Gramps said, standing before me, looking healthier than he ever had before.
I had to say it. I didn’t have a lot of time, and I had to make sure he knew before the Keeper sent me back. I raised my chin and met his gaze. “I never got to tell you … how much … I love you.” I choked on a sob, and my eyes burned with fresh tears. “Thank you—for everything. All the things I know and probably a million more I don’t. I’m so, so happy you sent that letter early. That you cared enough to come into my life.”
He smiled and opened his arms with a wink. I ran into them, crashing into his soul form, and for one long moment, I just allowed myself to be here, in this beautiful place with the people I loved. Death wasn’t the end, and that was great, but I’d miss seeing him and Reyna every day.
The Keeper’s voice suddenly called over my shoulder: “I need to send you back now, or it will be too late.”
Too late? Yeah, I didn’t want to get trapped here, so I nodded, wiping at my face. Gramps gave me one more hug and then leaned closer and whispered into my ear.
“Julian’s body is fresh,” he said. “If you’re quick, you can heal him and transfer Honor’s soul and wolf into it.”
Then he pulled back and winked.
My jaw dropped. What the what did he just say?
But before I could ask any questions, the Keeper snapped his fingers, and then I was flying into the air, through a portal he’d created to the mortal realm, my head spinning.
My feet slammed onto solid ground, and I glanced around the clearing, taking stock of my surroundings. Kaja and her sisters wept silently over Reyna’s shredded body. They’d closed her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. There was a small measure of relief that I hadn’t been the one to cause her death by pulling her over the cliff with me. I needed to thank Rage and Carson for that small miracle … but first…
There!
Julian’s body lay slumped to the side, at the base of a tree, his ankle bent at an odd angle but otherwise intact except for the knife in his abdomen.
Was Gramps for real? That I should put Honor’s soul and wolf into Julian? And how to heal the wound that’d killed him before I put the soul in—was that even possible?
My mind raced with what to do first, and I was frozen in thought when a blur of motion caught my attention a heartbeat before Rage slammed into me.
“Nai!” Rage pulled me close and pressed his lips to my temple, burying his face in my hair. “Woman, you disappeared through a portal into the Realm of the Dead! Don’t ever do that again.”
“Yeah.” I nuzzled his neck, taking in his scent, the way his pulse in his neck beat against my lips. “I promise.”
I looked over his shoulder at the bodies. Several lines of beheaded blood mages lay on the ground, and I closed my eyes and asked, “Are they all dead?”
“Yes, we got them all and either beheaded them, or you had them sucked into that portal. We did it, Nai.” Rage cupped my chin but pulled back to look me in the eyes. “We won.”
Relief flooded me and I sagged into him. And then Honor in his wolf form, Justice, and Noble rushed toward us. Kaja looked up from her silent weeping, her eyes filled with unshed tears, and I looked at my mate. “I’ll be right back. Will you … get Honor and meet me at Julian’s body?”
He raised one eyebrow.
‘Trust me,’ I said and then ran to Kaja. My bestie and her sisters, Fiona, Rue, and Nell, all stood clustered together, clinging to one another as they wept over Reyna’s body. I fell to my knees, bowing my head over Reyna’s shriveled form. Somehow, she’d taken all of the blood mage queen’s wrath. Like what had happened to Honor at the midyear games, she was the last to pledge—and she’d taken the final result.
“Kaja, Nell, Rue, Fiona … I’m so sorry,” I croaked. “I just saw Reyna, in the Realm of the Dead … I promise, she said to leave her there … I swear … I tried to convince her to come back, but—” Tears burned my eyes, and I wished there was some way to make this right.
Fiona slipped her hand into mine and squeezed, pulling me in for a hug. “She was a die-hard protector. She’d wanted to be a shield since she was five. This would’ve meant everything to her. To die protecting… ”
Kaja nodded, joining us in our hug. “She was so upset she couldn’t save your grandfather. She would’ve thought this made it right.”
It didn’t feel right. No one should have to die so another could live, but I’d respect her choice. I didn’t want to take her honor. “She was the best,” I said earnestly.
We hugged for another moment, and then I looked at the girls. “If you’ll excuse me … I think there’s a way to make one thing right tonight.”
I looked back at Rage, who stood over Julian’s body with Honor, Justice, and Noble around him.
“Come on,” I said to the Harvest girls.
Honor was getting put back together. It wouldn’t cancel out all of the death, but it would make his sacrifice all those months ago easier … if he could have a chance at a full life once again.
Chapter Twenty
“Wait, so Honor’s wolf and soul”—Fiona pointed to Honor and then swung her hand to point at Julian’s corpse—“are going in him?”
I gulped, staring at the former high master of water. “That’s what Gramps said.”
Kaja frowned and shook her head. “But Julian was such a douche … and Honor is so … amazing.” She blushed and then stammered, “Are we going to have to look at douchy Julian’s body and then have to remember that it’s Honor?”
Fiona smacked her sister’s arm. “Don’t speak ill of the dead,” she muttered.
Honor yipped in protest. ‘He’s a douche?’ He inspected Julian’s handsome face and then let his tongue loll out in a wolfish grin. ‘But he’s a good-looking one, right?’
Smiling, I nodded. ‘Definitely.’
Julian was more a preppy bro-bro type but, overall, not a bad choice. Especially since we couldn’t really be choosy at this point. I’d explained everything to my crew, but all they could do was support me; this was a one-woman show. Rage came up behind me and massaged my shoulders. “You’ve got this, babe.”
Yeah, put a wolf in a dead high mage without any guidance. No big deal.
Then an epiphany hit me, and I grinned. Gramps couldn’t come to help because he was bound to the Realm of the Dead. But I could still call on my other ancestors. I still had all of their soul stones.
“Zia, Than, Lucia, Raiden, Aine,” I shouted, closing my eyes as I sent my call out to the ethers.
One by one, they popped in around my bewildered-looking friends. My spirit relatives clustered around me, smiling and patting my back.
‘Well done, Nai, that portal was a fantastic idea,’ Lucia said.
‘And your mate is much cuter than you let on,’ Zia added, doing a full circle around Rage, giving me a thumbs up.
I rolled my eyes but couldn’t help but smile. “Focus! I need help putting that wolf”—I pointed at Honor—“into that body!” I pointed to Julian. “Gramps said it’s possible.”
“Who is she talking to?” Fiona asked, wide-eyed. Nell and Rue muttered something akin to agreement, but everyone else just shushed them. They knew my crazy.
Zia bent down and got her face right up to Julian’s and sucked in a deep whiff. ‘Freshly dead.’
Than stepped over to Honor and waved a hand over his wolf. ‘Soul is secure but untethered without a body. If you had some valerian root and selenite, you can easily do the transfer.’
Hope sprung in my chest, and my attention shot to Rage. “Valerian root and selenite, quick! And we need healing elixir or mage wine so I can make some!”
Rage glanced at Noble, who nodded and took off running.
I sat down next to Julian and looked at Honor. ‘You want a body, right? This is your chance.’
He stared back at me, wide-eyed. ‘Hell yes, I want a body again. I just didn’t think I’d look like the son of our arch-nemesis.
’
I snickered. ‘He doesn’t look like old-Honor, but we need to get over that if you want two arms and two legs.’
Honor nodded, his tongue lolling out of his mouth. ‘Already over it. Let’s do this.’
Noble returned a few minutes later with the valerian root and a giant wand of opaque selenite. I accepted the valerian root and the selenite and then looked up at my elders. “Now what?”
Zia pointed to Honor. ‘Have him chew the root to help him relax. We want him in a calm and trancelike state.’ Her attention jumped to Julian’s body. ‘And pull the dagger out and pour healing elixir all over that wound, but save about half the bottle. He’ll need it as soon as his body and soul merge.’
I gave Honor the root, and he gobbled it down as I took care of Julian’s body. As the elixir hit the open wound, the flesh sealed up like there’d been no blade.
Than crouched beside me. ‘Good job. Now, lay the selenite wand over the chest of the dead boy.’
I winced. “His name is Julian. Er, it was.”
Zia waved her hand. ‘Now isn’t the time for political correctness, dear. Time is ticking.’
I lay the wand on Julian’s chest and looked at Zia.
‘Now, let your spirit slip free and scan Honor for his spirit. Tell me when you see it,’ she instructed.
I gulped. I was tired, I wanted to cry, and shower, and eat, and sleep, but now was not the time for a breakdown.
Taking in a deep breath, I let my soul slip free and glided over to Honor. Staring at him, I zoned in on my other sight. There, within the body of the wolf, was his soul. I gasped. It looked like a human man folded into a ball.
‘She sees it,’ Than offered.
‘Now what?’ Soul-me asked.
My ancestors all slowly crept forward as if they were going to gang up on Honor, stalking him like a lion stalks prey. ‘Now have your soul grasp his and yank it out of the wolf while your human self pins the wolf-him down.’
My eyes widened. ‘I can’t do that, not without telling him.’
‘Tell him?’ Lucia cackled. ‘That’d be a rookie mistake, Nai! He’ll clench up, and it’ll take you an hour to tease them apart, at least. No, a quick attack is best.’
Oh mage!
Honor was going to kill me.
Human-body me looked down at Honor and smiled, and then spirit-me attacked. I leapt on his wolf’s back like a lunatic, and spirit-me reached inside of him and grabbed at his soul. ‘Hold still!’
Honor froze, eyes wide. ‘It’s cold. I feel weird.’
I laughed nervously.
“What’s going on?” Rage asked.
“Nothing,” I said too quickly and then leapt for Honor with my human body. Wrapping my legs around him, I pinned his wolf to my chest as soul-me ripped soul-Honor clean out of his wolf’s body.
Honor let loose with an ear-splitting howl, and then the wolf body went limp in my arms.
Crap!
I looked up at Zia with wide eyes.
‘Normal.’ She waved it off. ‘Now, use your spirit magic to place his soul in the dead boy’s body; then lay the wolf on top of the selenite wand, and his soul will naturally call to the wolf’s form, and they will all merge.’
“What the hell, Nai!” Justice stepped forward, but Rage pulled him back.
“Just. Trust. Me,” I grunted, and heaved the limp wolf closer to Julian’s body. Soul me was having the same struggle dragging Honor’s soul across the space and to the body.
‘You could have warned me, Nai!’ Honor’s soul scowled at me.
I took him talking as a good sign. ‘Sorry!’ I shrugged, offering my lame apology. ‘Just doing as I’m told.’
Soul-me grunted and heaved, and then I began to lay Honor’s soul over Julian’s body with spirit magic. I felt the pull to join my spirit, and it was so weird to see me outside of me. Power flowed through my human form and then into my soul so that I could lay it over Honor and weave him into his new body. Finally, when spirit-me was done, I sat back, panting, and looked at human-me expectantly.
With a final groan, I lay Honor’s limp wolf on top of the selenite wand on Julian’s dead body.
“What now?” I asked out loud, looking at Zia.
She shrugged. ‘Now, we wait.’
Spirit-me joined with my body as I sat beside Julian, er, Honor, waiting with the half-filled bottle of healing elixir.
“Come on,” I said.
“They both look dead,” Justice said flatly.
“They’re not,” I shot back. Then for good measure, I looked at my ancestors. ‘Right?’
Lucia shrugged. ‘Technically, a little, but—’
Julian’s chest rose with a sharp, beautiful intake of breath, and I froze.
Everyone froze.
The entire world seemed to hold its breath … not even the trees moved. We all just stood, watching the rise and fall of previously-dead Julian’s chest with the wolf on top.
“What about his wolf?” Justice asked. “What if you just brought Julian back? Or—”
“Shhh.” I covered my ears to Justice’s pestering comments, too stressed to handle any more.
“Holy crap!” Kaja lurched backward and away from Julian-Honor as his wolf…
Oh Mage.
His wolf had … started to disappear. Like, one second, it was there, and the next, it was … melting? Into his body. A blue hazy light glowed around the wolf’s form, and we all watched, dumbfounded.
“Holy mage,” Justice gasped as the wolf fully sucked into the body.
Julian-Honor sat bolt upright, grasping his chest with wide-open hazel eyes. Honor’s eyes!
His head snapped toward me, and I grinned.
“Honor?” I asked, wanting that last bit of confirmation.
“Definitely Honor,” he said, wincing.
As the crowd surrounding him burst into cheers, I held out the bottle of healing elixir. Relief flooded me as he guzzled it down.
All of it.
And then he hiccupped.
“I think I’m just fine,” he said, slurring his words.
Noble and Justice dropped to his side, and Rage offered me a cheeky grin. “You brought him back as a lush?”
I shrugged. “I didn’t know how much to give him.”
After the brothers had embraced, the Harvest girls knelt near Honor’s new body and tended to him. Rage walked over to me with a grin, shaking his head.
“What?” I asked as he pulled me into his arms.
“You’re amazing, my queen.” He brushed his lips over mine.
“Oh, I do like the sound of that,” I purred, nuzzling his neck.
Rage captured my mouth in a kiss then and spoke through our bond. ‘Now, we can have our happily ever after.’
Chapter Twenty-One
One Year Later
I was so exhausted it felt like my limbs were actually melting into the bed of the healing ward. Twenty-four hours of labor was 110.9% no joke, but the result was completely worth it. I smiled at Rage and then glanced at our four newborns before settling all of my attention on my mate.
“When you said you wanted to try for a baby, I didn’t think this was even an option.” I gestured to the Quads—our quads.
A couple of months after the blood mage attack, when Rage said, “Hey, Nai, let’s have a baby,” I thought, Sure. That sounds like fun! Fun … until the doctor said I was carrying four.
I guess the fated-mate multiples gene was dominant—even if I wasn’t fully a wolf-shifter. But all the months of waddling to and from Alpha Island and High Mage Island, the back pains and nausea and exhaustion … in this moment, it was all worth it. All I felt was love—so much love, for my mate and my children and my friends—everyone.
Rage grinned, looking at the four swaddled girls all tucked in like little pink burritos. “I don’t mind having multiples, but I wasn’t really expecting … this.”
He sat on the bed as I nuzzled up to him and raked my fingers through his hair. I grinned at hi
s declaration. “By this, do you mean being a girl dad?”
Rage blew air through his lips and nodded. “Do you know how many boys I’m going to have to threaten to kill?”
I laughed, a tired but joyous snicker that felt like sunshine. Rage pulled a box from behind his back then and handed it to me. “Sorry it took so long. The castle jeweler had to source the gems and—”
“Rage.” I gasped as I looked down at the box. He’d mentioned commissioning a crown for me, but I’d thought it was a joke. Everyone affectionately called me Queen Nai, but I never thought…
I flipped the clasp and opened the lid.
Mother Mage.
The most beautiful crown I’d ever seen lay nestled in sumptuous black velvet. The platinum circlet was shaped like a woven vine, dotted with green emeralds shaped like leaves. Four giant pink sapphire hearts resided, tangled in the vine, two on either side of a full-moon diamond that glittered in the very center of the crown. My throat constricted as I trailed my fingers over the four heart-shaped gems.
“For our Midnight girls?” I croaked.
Rage nodded, pulling the crown out and putting it on my head. “The second we found out, I called the jeweler.”
“Oh, Rage—”
Before I could tell him what a wonderful girl dad he’d be, and how thoughtful this gift was, the door opened, and Honor, Noble, and Justice walked in, each carrying soft plushie pink toys for the girls. Noble also held flowers for me.
“Congrats, Mama Midnight. Sweet crown.” Noble kissed my cheek and set the flowers down before turning to look at his newborn nieces.
“Four princesses.” Justice whistled and then gave Rage a look of mock terror. “We’ll need to put bars on all the windows in the castle.”
Rage grinned, sliding off the bed to hug his brother. Then he walked over to introduce his brothers to their nieces.
It took some time for Julian to become Honor in my head. He acted like Honor. He talked like him too, but his face was Julian … until a couple of months passed. Now, he was just Honor.
