Reborn (Shadow Beast Shifters Book 3)

The room felt emptier and colder without Angel, but at least Reece stopped acting like a fuckwit, which told me his mood had been all thanks to my gorgeous friend. More specifically, my gorgeous friend at full power.

No one allowed me to pry further into the situation as we focused on war talk. “We cannot delay heading to the Shadow Realm,” Shadow said, still holding me down by my thighs, his very healthy erection wedged between us.

“We’re going to head into the Shadow Realm tomorrow?” I confirmed.

I felt him nod behind me. “Yes. We may have to practice some spells first, but after that, we will make our move on the realm.”

“Do we want to maybe go in stealthily?” I pushed for more information. “Or are we just guns blazing, racing across the realm until we find her?”

Alistair chuckled, the cool and calming nature of his energy caressing the room, keeping us all relaxed. “As interesting as the guns blazing visual is, Dannie might actually come to us. If she senses your energy, she will seek to rectify the situation.”

I felt Galleli’s essence a beat before he spoke in our heads. I’ve been observing her energy from afar. Taking into account the fluctuation of the realm’s power, Dannie grows in both strength and confidence. Her need to restore balance and order will destroy everything, but she truly believes she is doing the right thing.

“I have sensed the same,” Shadow said gruffly. “And while Mera hopes to convince my mother to release the stone on her own, I think she’s too far gone. I believe we need to create a fortress of binding power. It’s what we’ll practice to achieve tomorrow.”

There was a heavy, almost stunned silence in the room then, but he sure as hell had all of their attention. “I know you spoke of a prison circle, but… the fortress?” Len shook his head. “I mean, I expected you to come in hard, but that’s… harder.”

I sat there without a single clue what this fortress was, waiting patiently for someone to explain.

“The fortress is forbidden,” Reece said, sounding fifty percent less of an angry fuck than he had with Angel. “It could kill us all and destroy the realm.”

Well, shit. That didn’t sound good.

“We’ve all created one before,” Shadow said, not denying what Reece had said. “And we know there’s nothing else strong enough to contain the Danamain long enough for her powers to be stripped away. It’s our only real hope.”

“Maybe it won’t come to that,” Lucien said, clearly trying to sound hopeful. Trying and failing. “Mera’s plan is still solid. Dannie was reasonable at one point in time, and maybe with enough of us to give intervention a try, we might get through to her.”

No one looked convinced. Not even a little, but we needed the hope.

“We have a Plan A and a Plan B now,” Shadow finally said. “We can work with that.”

The others got to their feet, since it was clearly the end of his speech. “All of you rest up,” he continued, “and keep your powers as flexible and close to the surface as possible. We’re going to have to be at the top of our game tomorrow, which will start with fortress training.”

His friends nodded, trusting in him and his plan. “We’ll be in the library if you need us,” Reece said. “All of us will remain close tonight.”

Shadow agreed, and I was taken by surprise when he stood, dragging me up with him. Probably so that everyone didn’t see his raging hard-on.

“We’ll meet you all later in the dining hall,” he said. “For those of us who need to eat, it will be one last chance to fuel up.”

My stomach rumbled, and I was more excited than I’d ever admit, to know I had one last feast in front of me. Of course, all thoughts of my stomach vanished when the guys turned to leave.

Maybe it was the firm grip of Shadow’s hands on my hips, biting just enough that I could feel his imprint across my skin. Or more likely, it was the fact that while I knew we were going to have sex the moment they walked out the door, I didn’t know the how, where, or what Kama Sutra position he was going to put me into. The unknown was enough to have my knees weak, breaths short, and panties wet.

Shadow’s chest rose and fell behind me, his grip unyielding, and I started to mentally urge the others out of the lair. Were they moving in slow motion?

Just when we were almost clear of witnesses, Lucien turned back toward us. Shadow’s chest rumbled, but I elbowed him. We could wait a few more minutes, since the vampire looked like he had a lot on his mind.

Some of Shadow’s tension eased as he focused on his friend. “What is it, Lucien?” he asked, sounding like he actually gave a shit. I mean, he did care about his friends, but he was also rocking dick-brain and if I knew anything about that condition, it made it difficult to focus.

“Is Simone okay?” The question was directed at me, and I blinked. I hadn’t expected that; I should have expected it, but I hadn’t.

Patting my pockets, I wiggled until Shadow put me down. “Hang on. Let me check.”

I finally found the parchment, but of course I had no pen on me. “Use your magic,” Shadow murmured, close behind.

“Right, right,” I murmured before I placed my fingers on the ancient parchment, willing words to appear.

Simone, are you okay, girl? We found Angel and will head to the realm tomorrow.

Lucien remained quiet, even though I felt tension emanating from him. The parchment lit up, and I held it tighter watching as the words I’d written faded away.

“What does that mean?” I asked, tilting my head to see Shadow.

“She read it,” he replied shortly.

Okay, excellent. That was excellent news.

All good here. Words glowed on the page, and I followed as she wrote them. Torin is acting weird and confused, so the pack is a bit of a mess, but that’s an improvement. You stay safe. You hear me? I love you, Meers.

My hands shook for a beat, and as soon as I read her last word, it disappeared off the parchment, which I placed back in my pocket.

“She’s safe,” I told Lucien. “Back in Torma. Earth is the securest place for her to be.”

His eyes flashed, the green darkening. “That pack is trash,” he said bluntly. “They need to be wiped from the face of the Earth.”

He was upset, and I really fucking needed to talk to Simone. Where had all of this tension between my friends come from? Maybe I was finally noticing because my own tension with Shadow was somewhat resolved.

“She has the power to protect herself now,” Shadow said bluntly. I wasn’t surprised when his next words were, “Is there anything else, Luce?”

My mate was nothing if not an impatient bastard. Lucien finally seemed to register the position Shadow and I were in, especially the way he held me against his body. A ghost of a smile appeared on the vampire’s face. “Nothing else for now. As long as she’s safe, my responsibility is over.”

I had my doubts that was the truth, but neither of us called him out on it. He waved before strolling away. “See you two tonight at dinner. If either one of you can walk, that is.”

Then he laughed, the sound only fading away when he exited through the portal, leaving us alone in the lair.

“Inky, guard the door,” Shadow said softly, and the mist wrapped around us a few times before it drifted off, disappearing from sight as well.

Then it was me and Shadow.

Anticipation sent bubbles through my veins, making me feel lightheaded. I had a brief moment where I wondered if I needed to check into Sex Addicts Anonymous, but considering Torin had left me as dry as the desert, I knew it wasn’t sex I was addicted to.

It was sex with Shadow.

The Shadow Beast, demon of the darkness, and plunderer of my vagina.

Okay, that sounded wrong, but sometimes wrong was the exact kind of right I needed.

Which also made no sense, but who expected sense when one was about to be fucked by their mate? Their love? The plunderer of their vagina?

Because we were going with that.