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“Let’s go. Lead the way,” he says after sliding one of the bracelets on his own wrist. Again, I do as he asks, heading toward the cabin that’s been my home since Ry and I became bonded.
A noise in front of us stops me in my tracks and I almost duck behind a tree. Trevan’s hand on my arm stops me. “Just watch,” he says quietly. Three witches approach us, but they don’t seem to see what’s right in front of them.
“I swear, a portal just closed. I sensed it. But it doesn’t make sense. Why would someone open a portal if they weren’t going to come through it?” one of the witches asks the others.
A second one shrugs. “Maybe it was just to pick a flower or something. Fae are weird like that.” I smirk at her comment, and Trevan tenses. I’m certain that she’s offended him, but I can’t hide my amusement.
“It doesn’t matter. Amber wants us to keep an eye out for anything strange. We need to go report back to her. She’ll tell us what we need to do next,” the third witch states before turning and walking back the direction they came from.
I didn’t know that witches could sense Fae portals. That could explain why Trevan was so hesitant to bring us back this way. I should have asked him to open it closer to the cabin. It never occurred to me that we would be stepping from one world into another and come face-to-face with danger immediately.
“Will this thing block my mate bonds?” I ask, suddenly realizing that I can feel my mates again.
“No, you should be able to talk to them, since we’re in your realm again,” Trevan explains.
Ry? Luca? Orym? Can you guys hear me? I call through the bond, holding my breath while I wait for their responses.
Red? Luca’s voice is hesitant.
Garnet? Orym’s voice is relieved.
Where are you? We’re on our way. And Ry sounds pissed. I should have known that he’d be the one to blame me for disappearing.
We’re coming home. Don’t worry. The witches can’t see or hear us. We’ll be there soon. I respond carefully through the bond, not letting my annoyance go through. I don’t want to fight with any of them, and I already know they’re going to be hesitant to trust Trevan.
LUCA
The moment I hear Red’s voice in my head, I freeze. It has to be my imagination. She can’t really have magically appeared the moment we decided to summon the Fae to find her. I’m terrified to hope that it really is her.
Ryland and Orym turn to look at me and I know it was not my imagination. “Is it really her?” I whisper.
Neither of them says a word. The three of us stare at each other as we respond to our mate’s call. Fear grips me again when she tells us to stay put. “Who’s with her? She keeps saying we. It doesn’t make sense,” Orym wonders aloud.
Ryland shakes his head. “I have no idea, but we need to be ready in case this is an ambush.” Of course, Ryland would expect the worst. I can’t blame him, though. I’m not sure I believe that she’s back either.
We take our places near the door to wait. I’m ready to shift at Ryland’s signal. Orym stands in the kitchen, with Grammy behind him. When the door opens, everyone is on edge, but frozen in our places.
“It’s okay, just come inside. Hurry up, before Ryland tackles you and pins you to the ground,” Red says to whoever she’s brought with her.
It’s really her. She’s back and it seems like she’s okay. Relief washes over me. I step forward to grab her and come face-to-face with the Fae man who helped me escape from Amber. “You. What are you doing here?”
“Helping my daughter save her mate, of course. What are you doing here?” he asks me. I can tell from his tone that he’s teasing, but I still hadn’t expected him to be the one escorting Red.
“Wait, did you say daughter?” Orym steps into the room.
Red rolls her eyes as she walks in behind him. “Yes, he did. But that wasn’t exactly your news to share, was it, Trevan?” Her annoyance is clear, but the Fae man does not seem fazed by it. If anything, he’s amused at her irritation.
“Darling daughter, you cannot expect me to meet your men and not let them know who I am,” he says with a smirk.
“Red, I’m so glad you’re okay!” I pull her into my arms before either of the others can. I have to reassure myself that she’s real, and this isn’t a dream.
“Luca, you’re squeezing too tight,” she squeaks out. I let go, and Ryland drags her away from me. I watch as he kisses her deeply, then shoves her toward Orym so he can face her father.
“Why did you take our mate? Give me one reason not to tear your head off right now,” Ryland growls.
Trevan holds his hands up in surrender. “I took her so she could talk to the injured one over there. His soul was moving on when I stopped it. I basically trapped it in the Fae realm so that he couldn’t die.
RYLAND
