Compelled (Shadow Beast Shifters Book 5)

Compared to Mera’s pregnancy, Angel’s had been relatively short and uneventful. There had been no wars or an end of the worlds to deal with, and it appeared to be a very short gestation for their child.

But one part of her pregnancy was similar to Mera’s—this child was also a first of its kind. The first to be born of a Desert Land deity and an Honor Meadow transcendent. The first born of power beyond the normal, conceived in a grotto of gods. The silver sands there, filled with original magic and creation, would be its legacy.

Mera’s child was scary, and I had a feeling that Angel and Reece’s would be exactly the same.

Reece hurried through the Library of Knowledge and toward one of the doors that I could only assume led to the Honor Meadows. He didn’t look back as he powered on, and I was finding it hard to believe that Angel had even convinced him to leave her side to find Mera.

“It’s weird,” Mera said as we raced between the shelves. “But I didn’t feel her through our bond. No labor pains, no call to me, and even now there’s nothing. What does that mean?”

She closed her eyes, lifting her child against her chest. “Is our bond damaged?”

Shadow appeared from wherever the fuck he’d gone, and somehow, he knew I needed pants, which he handed to me. As I pulled on black sweats under Lucien’s shirt, I watched as Shadow hugged Mera against him. They didn’t squish the baby, not that I was worried; she was far less fragile than her newborn appearance indicated.

“The energy required for this birth will take all of Angel’s focus,” Shadow answered her question from before, then breathed in her scent like the five minutes he’d spent away from his mate and child had hurt him. “Your bond will reaffirm itself as soon as you have both recovered from birthing god-children.”

Mera lifted herself up to press her lips against Shadow’s, but he didn’t allow her the quick kiss she’d been aiming for. Changing the angle, he slanted his mouth against hers so he could possess and dominate her completely.

As I turned away from them because, hot damn, Lucien filled my vision. He was closer than I’d thought, and in my next breath, cherry and oak invaded my lungs. It continued to sink into my body, swirling and joining his blood inside.

I’d never felt like this with any other being, not male or female, shifter or supernatural. The insane need he created within me was so strong that it had almost crumbled my world last time. Being away from him hadn’t lessened it, even as I’d fought to move on.

There had been no moving on, and I wasn’t sure what to do now.

Lucien had made it no secret that we weren’t compatible, and while he might be participating in this fake relationship to save me from Carter, I knew it would end as soon as the selection did. And I would be crushed.

“Come on,” Reece all but roared, his patience completely shot. “Otherwise, I’ll leave your asses and you can figure out how to find us.”

Thankful to have a distraction from the vampire, I hurried toward Reece. The others did the same, and Shadow didn’t appear remotely upset with his friend’s outburst. If there was one thing the beast understood, it was losing your shit over your mate.

Lucien was right beside me, his presence both comforting and mild torture. “We have time for this, right?” I asked him. “I want to be there, but I don’t want to bring war to their door if the vampires get pissed off because we’re late for the selection.”

Reece was at the door now, holding it open so we could all step through. Lucien caught my hand at the last moment so that I wasn’t crossing without his help—useful since I had no idea how to control these doorways. “We have time,” he said. “There’s been no official call yet, and it will take them a day at least to send out a summons for the opening ceremony. I believe you were brought in early to ensure that I would no longer stand in the way of their request.”

“Bet none of them expected you to sign yourself up for a mate too,” I said with a strangled laugh just as we stepped through to the Honor Meadows.

Lucien’s response was lost in the swirl of energy from the doorway. It felt stronger and drier than the previous doorway as we arrived in a golden field. The grass itself was what gave the world a golden sheen, and it reminded me so much of the golden fields outside of Crimson City.

Everything smelled fresh, the low light was akin to dusk back in Torma, and the feel of a summer afternoon permeating the air.

Reece took off into the field, stopping a few hundred yards from where we’d started, at a point that looked the same as every other part of this field. “She only has a few levels built up,” he said as he dropped to his knees.

I was just wondering what he was doing when he slammed his hands into the dirt.

What in the…? I knew there were levels of power in this world, but was Reece digging his way to the next one?

I stared wide-eyed, wondering what was going to happen next, and then he appeared to grab two sides of the small hole he’d made, and he… tore the land apart. The golden grass moved under his touch, and when he was done, there was a deep chasm in the earth.

Reece stepped through first and then Shadow and Mera. As I went to follow, a firm grip stopped me from moving and my stupid heart jumped as Lucien took hold of my hand again like we were a damn couple or something. He was really taking this “fake mate” thing seriously.

For so many complex reasons, part of me wanted to tug my hand away. But I also knew that would make me look petty and juvenile, so I bit back my fears and insecurities and settled into the moment. Best to focus on the fact that we were about to be present for another monumental birth.

An experience I never would have had back in Torma.

These were the moments that I had to live for.

In case they were my last.