Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 92232 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 461(@200wpm)___ 369(@250wpm)___ 307(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92232 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 461(@200wpm)___ 369(@250wpm)___ 307(@300wpm)
“That woman is a fucking trooper. My mate is a ride or die for real, brother. I love that woman,” Bradan says while wincing.
“You should step back out,” Reilly says.
I nod and step out of the room. Now that I know Reilly is the one healing Bradan, I get why everyone is in the hall. I run a hand through my hair.
The last thing we need is for Bradan to lose his power, but that iron can’t remain. I close my eyes as his screams increase. Billy yelps, grabbing my attention. I turn to see her patting at her shoulder.
“Sorry,” Taylor says, her eyes wide. “I’m losing control. I hate hearing him in pain.”
“I get it. Don’t worry, but you stay your little ass over there for now,” Billy says.
I snort at the two. I note that something has changed with Billy as well. She’s giving off much more power than before when she and Ardan left.
My brother walks over to his mate and places a palm over the area Taylor accidentally singed. She looks up at him with a smile and gives him a nod.
I’m sure they are speaking to one another through their link. My heart begins to ache for Ray. I haven’t seen her in a few hours. I hope she has eaten and gotten some rest.
“What are all the long faces for? You’d think a motherfucker died or something. Hell ain’t got a flame hot enough to burn me. You feel me,” Bradan pants as he comes through the infirmary door and leans in its jamb.
“Bra,” Taylor sings and jumps up from the floor to run into his arms.
He grunts as he lifts her up onto his waist, clearly still in pain. I look into his eyes. He gives me a nod. Reilly steps from the room, looking concerned.
“I don’t like this. A weapon that can blast blessed iron at us is a problem.”
“I’ve sent Dagger and Rock out to double our efforts to find Seraphina. I want to know where she got the weapon from.”
“You still believe our father is on our side in all of this?” Ardan asks.
“Yes, I do. Actually, I’m certain,” I say.
“How so?”
“Not here out in the open. We need to complete the ceremony. We can get to all this later. We don’t know who we can trust,” Reilly says as he glances at the healers.
“He’s right,” I say.
I’d prefer to have the women connected to us and the brothers sooner rather than later. Once they are, if something happened to us, they could always connect to the rest of the community.
Here They Come
We are all gathered in the temple for the ceremony. Bradan looks like he’s getting better by the minute. Taylor looks happy as she’s tucked into his side.
To be honest, all the sisters look happy to be back together, including Ray, who still looks a little crestfallen over her father. I wish there was more I could do for my mate.
This all has been so hard on her. As much as I want Venus gone, I can see that Ray has feelings of contention about her departure. They have bonded in a way I’ve yet to understand.
“Shall we get started?” Nuvos asks.
Nuvos is our master of ceremonies. The golem oversees all other weddings, blessings, and bonding ceremonies like this one. When I marry Ray, he will perform that ceremony as well.
“Yes. They’re setting up for a celebration upstairs. We shouldn’t keep them waiting,” I reply.
“Ah, yes. I was informed there would be a stone cake for me. Let’s be quick,” Nuvos says.
My brothers and I move to our respective locations on the crest engraved on the floor, each tugging our mates to stand before us. Nuvos steps into the center as always. I smile down at a nervous-looking Ray.
“It will be fine, my love. This should only take a few minutes,” I say through our bond.
“Okay, I’m just nervous to have so many people in my head. You and Venus are already a lot.”
I give a chuckle. “It isn’t like that. You will be able to open and close the link as you do ours. You will get used to it.”
Nuvos begins and we fall silent. I can feel my brothers’ excitement. This is a big deal for us. Our mates are being brought into the fold. They’re taking their thrones.
However, the excitement is short-lived as simultaneously the four women lift into the air. Their heads are thrown back and their mouths are open. This isn’t normal. Bonding ceremonies don’t happen this way.
“Nuvos, what’s happening?” I demand. “Nuvos,” I roar when he doesn’t answer.
He’s still chanting. I look up frantically. The sisters now have their palms turned out at their sides. Lightning jumps from Ray’s palm to Taylor’s. Then flames jump from Taylor’s palm to Billy’s. From Billy’s palm jumps water into Lee Ann’s palm and from Lee Ann’s hand flows sand into Ray’s and the cycle repeats.