Chapter 57

Thoughts raced through my head. God of chaos, moon goddess, yin and yang. Details about my parents pummeled my brain.

A warm hand thread its fingers through mine and anchored me. Sten. I squeezed his hand in thanks and focused back on Heris.

"That's adorable. The mating bond." Heris cooed.

"What do you want?" I asked, glaring at him.

"That's easy. Chaos." He shrugged. "But for now I'll settle for you."

"If I come with you, you'll let Erik and Sten leave?" I asked.

"Of course, a deal is a deal." Heris' smile carried darkness with it.

"I want to see Erik, prove to me he's still alive," I demanded.

"Bring him forward." His demand was carried on an even tone.

The group behind Heris parted and two hunters forced Erik through the crowd.

"You shouldn't be here, Astrid," Erik growled.

Only my protector would reprimand me while he was in danger. It almost made me smile. I let my eyes soak him in. He had bruises forming on his face, a cut above his eye that probably needed stitches. The way he stood told me he was in pain from his side, probably his ribs.

He'd taken a beaten when we'd felt the pain through the bond. We knew it had to be bad for us to feel it, but seeing him wearing the after-effects broke my heart. I wouldn't have been able to let him go if he was healthy, but I knew the hunters wouldn't tend his wounds. He needed a healer.

"Fine-" I started.

"That's not going to happen," Sten growled, stepping forward and interrupting me.

"Well, then I'll keep brother dearest as a toy. I do love seeing how fast a regular shifter can heal. It's much different from a legacy like us, isn't that right Astrid? Or haven't you noticed? I have heard that after mating, healing is shared. It'll be fun to figure it out won't it?" Heris grinned.

Erik and Sten exchanged looks, and Erik nodded. A silent agreement had been made without me. I knew in my gut what Sten was going to say next. They were going.

"It's not going to happen, because I'll take her place. Erik and I. That's half of our pack, half of our brains, power, skills. Two of her mates. You'll have the control you seek, just without her." Sten stepped forward.

I opened my mouth.

This is the way it has to be Astrid, don't fight this.

This was their plan. Losing my mates, my vision flashed before my mind. It was still coming true, just in a different way. I was losing my mates.

A faint buzzing coursed through me, a gentle reminder that I still held power. I lashed out, grasping a handful of the hunters near him, watching the connections grow.

"My mates and I are leaving here," I growled.

"Or what? You'll kill them?" He nonchalantly pointed behind them.

"I won't stop with them. I'll track you down and get them all before I find you." I seethed through my clenched teeth.

"Oh, now that's a much better threat. You're getting there, pretty girl. Maybe we can make a villain out of you yet." Heris smiled.

A villain out of me. If turned, joined him, we'd be unstoppable. If he could control me, he'd still be unstoppable. He didn't want us dead, he wanted us to be puppets. It was like a lightbulb went off, and everything started to make sense.

He couldn't get us.

I reached for my power, but Sten squeezed my hand stopping me. Looking at him, I pleaded with my eyes, I shot it down the bond. They couldn't leave me, they couldn't go. I pulled my hand from Sten's, and I stepped forward.

"I'll go," I said, inching closer. "Let Sten and Erik leave, and I'll go."

"No. Frode needs you, Astrid, Rune needs you. It's the only way we'll all get through this. Listen to me, look at me. Astrid, look at me." He commanded.

My gaze shot to Sten, the tone of his voice was heavy with sorrow and pain. I had to obey him. I met his gaze and I saw everything I was feeling reflected back at me.

Hurt, fear, anger.

Then the overwhelming feelings slowly lessened. It became manageable, while Sten looked like he was in complete agony. Sten had taken my pain and anger. He was suffering, while I was numb.

"Erik and I will take her place, Heris. We'll leave now." Sten said stepping forward.

The agony on his face should have weighed on me, but it didn't. He wrapped his arms around me, dropping a kiss on my lips. He pulled back and I felt the warmth of his breath on my ear.

"We love you, forever and always. Remember that. We won't leave you, we'll come back." He whispered, his emotions making his voice thick and heavy.

He kissed my forehead and stepped around me. I turned and saw Erik nod and put his clenched fist over his heart. His silent goodbye. Sten stumbling caught my eye. He was absorbing too much, and it was tiring him.

I watched as they moved away. Unable to move, it was like when my emotions faded so did my will to fight. My heart should have been breaking, it should have been shattered, but instead, I watched in silence as they loaded into dark SUVs and drove away until they were out of sight.

Then it all came back, like a tsunami wave.

It had been overwhelming before Sten took my pain, now it was unbearable. I collapsed to my knees with a sob. The vision I'd wanted so badly to stop had come true in its own way. Two of my mates were gone. A broken scream was pulled from my throat as my hands clawed at the hard dirt below me.

A set of warm arms wrapped around me, and distantly I heard my name be spoken. I fought the embrace. I couldn't be held and comforted while Erik and Sten were hostages. The arms only tightened, and the voice commanded something I couldn't understand.

I felt like I was floating. I recognized the sound of a car door shutting. Spice and pine scents surrounded me. Frode was holding me, that much I knew.

Voices talked around me, but I couldn't understand what was being said-not fully anyway. I caught Sten's name being spoken, but I couldn't focus on what was talked about. My heart and mind was focused on the loss of my mates.

The failure of stopping the vision from happening was heavy on my chest. The vision may not have happened the same way we thought it would, but it had the same effect. We were separated and I was broken. So broken I didn't want to fight.