Page 127 of Tangled Hearts

“We go by many names, but you might know us as the moon goddess,” she nodded at the other woman. “The god of death and I am the messenger of the gods.”

We immediately bowed our heads. “We did not know,” I said immediately.

“Of course not, child,” the moon goddess said, lifting my face towards hers. “We are not supposed to be here, but it is a risk we must take, for we have a solution for your mate.”

“Excuse me?” Soren looked at the moon goddess.

“We have something that could bring her back,” the messenger of the gods said.

“Then do it,” I said, as the rest of the guys said the same thing.

“It’s not without its consequences,” Death said, kneeling by Oria, caressing her cheek. “We can only give you choices.”

I held back the urge to growl at him for touching her. The twins looked up at me, ready to take any consequence without knowing what they were.

“What are the consequences?” Max asked.

“We can give you another flower of the gods.” The moon goddess opened her hand, showing a glowing flower that glowed just like Oria did when she healed.

“Yes,” the twins said immediately.

“No,” Max and Taylin said at the same time.

I glared at Taylin. “You have no say in this.”

“You think she wants to come back chained to her power again?” Taylin snarled. “It’s only a matter of time before someone else is sent to imprison her. Are you going to be there every time that happens? Are you going to be strong enough?”

“We will be there every fucking time because she is our mate,” I growled, my wolf on the edge ready to shift if I needed to.

“You couldn’t even keep her safe from Laima, what happens when her sister Moira comes for her?” he snapped.

I stood up as anger vibrated through me. “You were the reason this entire situation started, so don’t start acting holier than thou.”

“Don’t be selfish and put her through this burden again.” He stood up as the air crackled with power.

“Sit down.” Max stood up next to me. “You already fucked everything up, you don’t get a fucking say in this. She is ours, not yours and no matter how much you wish she was yours, she never will be.”

Taylin stepped up to Max, his nostrils flaring, his fist clenching and I prepared myself to intervene.

“Halfling, they have a point,” Death said, looking at Taylin. “You should be punished for your crimes, but it seems the messenger says we need you.”

Taylin glanced down at the woman kneeling by our mate.

“His fate is still being decided, but our present concern is Oria,” she said, smoothing her hair. “If you choose to give her the flower, she will obtain the healing powers and she will be hunted again. Her life will always be in danger. The war of the gods is upon us and if the course of the war has not been deterred, we will still see it in the future. What I can say is, nothing is set in stone. Tomorrow your futures might change.”

“She will have the burden of healing, but she will have her mates this time and her family behind her,” the moon goddess said, looking at the other two gods. “She can resume her place in court and inherit her rightful power.”

I looked at the twins and I knew they were ready to say yes.

“We can protect her,” Gray said confidently. “We will have a chance to go on the offensive before anyone comes near her.”

“I agree, we know better this time,” Soren said. “We can build her a workshop and she can hone her abilities. We will teach her to save herself.”

“You did well,” the messenger of gods said to the moon goddess.

“Mates are my thing,” the moon goddess shrugged. “I chose them to all compliment each other.”

Max looked at the goddesses. “We were chosen for a reason and if we have this opportunity, then I think we should take it. The twins are right, we can give her the tools to protect herself.”

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