Dream of Us

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Dyani’s POV.

There’s a staff room of sorts at the end of the corridor, right next to a set of metal stairs. Denali raises his gun and goes in first. We don’t have to worry about being as quiet anymore because we’re in the heart of the building, I can sense that Calian is downstairs.

“Hands up, now,” he orders.

The way he barks the command sends a shiver down my spine. I look at him with unbridled lust and Sian rolls her eyes next to me.

“Not the time,” she mutters.

There are six people in the room. Sian and I point our guns at them, too. They all stand, their hands in the air. A couple of them look like they’re tensing up, ready to fight back. Denali goes for the man closest to him, the one with a dangerous look in his eye.

“Dyani, aim at him,” Denali asks.

I point the gun at him, holding my position with it aimed at his chest as Denali grabs his neck. The man struggles but can’t fight the pinch as he falls to the floor unconscious.

“This won’t hurt,” Denali says to the group as he goes around.

Sian and I watch each of them carefully, making sure that none of them resist or try to call for help. With any luck, King Inteus hasn’t been informed yet. We’ve avoided cameras and making a scene all the way to the door.

Before Denali grabs the last person, he points his gun at him. “How many are downstairs?”

She glares at him and spits by his feet. Denali presses the gun to her chest.

“How many?” He asks through gritted teeth.

“Screw you,” she murmurs.

Out of nowhere, Sian pistol-whips her with the butt of her gun. Not particularly hard, but enough to make the woman curse and stumble back, clutching her head.

“He asked you a question,” Sian says threateningly.

I look at my friend in a whole new light. I know she wants revenge for her parents, grief can be a very powerful motivator for some.

“Three,” the woman snarls.

Denali puts her unconscious and then looks at Sian with appreciation.

“That was impressive.”

She shrugs back at him. “I want you and your mates reunited, it’s the only way we’ll have enough power to take down the King.” She glances at me. “Plus you’ll get your happily ever after and all that.”

“Obviously,” I reply with a grin. “Let’s get Calian.”

His name already sounds more familiar on my tongue. I’m eager to meet him. Denali goes first out of the room, with Sian and I flanking him either side. We all keep our guns raised as we descend the stairs, treading quietly on the metal.

The gate at the bottom has another biometric scanner. Denali and I carry down one of the unconscious people from the staff room down and press their hand to it. The gate hisses open and we cautiously step inside.

The corridor is long and lit with oppressive fluorescent strip lights, one of which starts to flicker at the very end as we walk down it. Denali looks up at the lights and then at me.

“He’s here.”

The corridor splits both ways in the shape of a ‘T’ at the end. We’re all surprised by two guards who are seated on either end of the T. There is no time to grab them to put them to sleep. Denali shoots one in the chest, purposefully aiming for their body armour. Sian and I both shoot at the second one. He falls back with the impact of the bullets. I keep my gun pointed at him as Sian sits on his chest and pinches the pressure point on his neck.

She climbs off him just as Denali is using the other guard’s hand to open the final door. The steel thing must be at least ten inches thick as it swings open heavily. The three of us stand in the doorway, looking in.

A man hangs from a web of chains, suspending him in the air with only the tips of his toes touching the floor. He appears to be in a state of catatonia. Drawn to him, I step forward on instinct and feel an invisible barrier pushing me back.

“Magic,” Denali comments next to me.

“How do we break it?” I ask him, raising my gun.

He puts his hand on the barrel and pushes it back down. He lifts the shoulder strap off his body and places his gun on the ground. I do the same and look at him expectantly.

“Take my hands, we’re going to break the spell together.”

Sian steps back to watch us. We stand opposite each other in the doorway, holding hands.

“Close your eyes and concentrate on the barrier. Remember, although powerful mages may have placed this enchantment on the room, we’re more powerful. We’re celestials. When we’re together...”

“Nothing can stop us,” I finish for him, frowning in concentration.

The first sign that something is happening begins in our joined hands. It’s as simple as a tingle in my fingertips, but it spreads across my palms and up my arms. The tingles turn to a warm sensation. I can physically feel the gold tendrils beginning to stream up my arms, thrumming under my skin with growing power.

As we concentrate harder, I picture our magic breaking the invisible barrier, the way a knife would cut through butter. Something crackles and hisses next to me. The temptation to open my eyes is strong, but I tell myself that it must be working.

There’s a pop and more crackling right in front of me. I can’t resist peeking one eye open, and I’m startled to see that golden flames are rising from mine and Denali’s joined hands. They lick the air, dancing around. I squeeze my eyes shut again and focus with everything in me. The barrier to my left starts to weaken, I can feel my mind pushing against it, the resistance is diminishing.

“Almost there,” Denali whispers but I hear him.

I can feel his strength coming off him in waves. It flows through our joined hands and fills my body. The fire continues to burn between us, leaving our skin untouched but warming the air near my face. My body starts to heat up, it feels the same as it has done the last few days, a growing need in the form of a burn. My heat is returning, no doubt triggered from us using magic.

A headache starts to form, taking place as a tight band across my forehead. I wince at the discomfort and try to ignore it, focussing only breaking the barrier. When the resistance finally fades and I feel the energy give way to my left, I let out a shaky breath.

Denali drops my hands, and my eyes fly open. The flames disappear into sparks between us, skipping in the air before flickering out. Energy is still humming around the room, flowing into the cell that holds Calian.

Denali goes in first, walking through the doorway without an issue now that the barrier is gone. I follow after him. Calian remains unresponsive as Denali grabs one of the chains and pulls. The muscles in his arms flex with the strain, igniting arousal inside me. I push it down, reminding myself that this is not the time, it’s only my heat talking.

I help him and start to break the chains, dropping them to the floor. The clatters don’t make Calian stir, he is expressionless and staring blankly ahead. He’s beautiful, as I expected, and his face is familiar, like Denali’s was when I first met him.

From what I can see, he has an incredibly defined jaw, covered in dark stubble. His skin isn’t as dark as Denali’s, he has a colouration similar to mine. His hair is similar to my other mate’s though, it’s coal black and despite being short at the sides, he has a head of luscious curls on top.

He’s so attractive.

Denali catches me staring and smirks. I drop eye contact, embarrassed to have been caught, and continue snapping the chains. Together, we free him of his bonds. His feet flatten on the ground, and he stands up by himself, gazing ahead. Denali stands in front of Calian. He takes his face in his hands and closes his eyes. I watch in amazement as he concentrates, his hands glowing gold. The tendrils appear under his skin and flow into Calian’s face.

Calian’s eyes suddenly open, his irises burning gold. They look like they have the light of stars shining in them, like two star beams. The glow fills the room, Sian gasps next to me. Denali opens his eyes and steps back from him. Calian blinks a few times, the glow fades and his eyes return to a navy shade.

He shakes his head to clear the fog. He looks around, staring at Denali and then at me. Recognition flashes in his eyes. He grabs Denali and pulls him in for a hug.

“Brother! You’re here.”

His voice is raspy from disuse. I’m ashamed by my body’s reaction to it. My nipples harden and press against my top. I can’t stop looking at him, I’m so drawn to him. He releases Denali and looks at me.

"Marita,” he murmurs.

I recognise the word as Latin for wife. I don’t know how I know that; I must have learned it at some point. Shreds of memories flash in my mind of Calian calling me marita in the kitchen, as we’re running as wolves, and as we’re laid in bed together. I remember him, I remember us.

“Calian,” I breathe out his name.

He takes my arms in his hands and pulls me into a hug. I close my eyes and breathe in his smell. He smells like home, full of warmth and oh, so comforting.

“You have no idea how long I’ve waited to do this,” he whispers in my ear, rubbing my back.

I don’t know what to say. I’m so overcome with emotion. He lets go and steps back, looking at me with affection.

“Do you have your memories back?”

“No, bits and pieces keep coming back to me,” I tell him.

“We’re hoping that when we get Nuka back, we will have enough power to return Dyani’s memories,” Denali adds.

The three of us look at each other, savouring the moment of being reunited. There is only one more mate needed to complete our bond.

“I don’t want to break up a cute reunion and all, but we should probably get out of here before King Inteus finds out,” Sian says, interrupting our moment.

Denali’s face becomes serious. “Sian’s right, we should go.”

“Where are we going?” Calian asks as he rolls his shoulders, alleviating ten years of stiffness.

“To get our mate back.”

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