Page 11 of Boss Level

Sweet Girl doesn’t need any direction, and I’m surprised by how gentle she is when she places her hoof over the cuffs and gently rocks forward to apply pressure. An eerie glow comes from under her hoof that I’ve never noticed before. I guess this is how she broke through the cells so easily.

Naively, I thought it was because she was so strong, but maybe she’s got some kind of magic as well. The longer I think about it, the more sense that makes. My mother wasn’t restrained in any physical kind of way, yet she couldn’t break free.

Cato and Odas never managed to escape, and one is a Dragon whose shifted form is massive and extremely powerful. Of course, Odas is also massive in his other form. If all it took was strength, they’d have been free years ago.

I watch Sweet Girl work, then there’s a loud ass crack. The reverberation coming from Sky and the shackles imprisoning his power echo around the dungeon. The air crackles with magic, and I take a step back. Love gasps, dropping beside Sky, and I watch, slightly mystified, as the blue-haired man starts to sizzle with electricity. A blue light whips over him, lighting up the translucent skin and causing his hair to stand on end.

As it moves, I watch it heal him. Slowly, the open wounds on his arms close, and the burns around where the shackles sat go from bright red to a pale peach. He looks…better? He must be powerful.

I wait, giving him time to shake off the shock and pain.

“So, do you know how to–” I start to ask, but I’m cut off…

“Mate!” he growls so suddenly and unexpectedly that we all just stare. I freeze, because what the fuck? My first thought is, ‘Not another one.’ Thankfully not.

He pounces on Love, kissing the woman stupid. I let out a long sigh of relief. In the short moment between him saying mate, and pouncing Love, my thoughts scrambled. Love might murder me, I don’t need another one, I have eleven. Any more, and I would need to find a management system for the dick work. Seriously. Maybe tokens for chores? Thank fucking Mungus farts that he’s not talking to me.

“Mungus farts?” I whisper to myself, because…why is my brain like this?

I shake it off and focus on Love, getting her face half devoured by Sky. I stare too long because my cheeks turn pink, and I feel like I’m intruding. Turning around, I face my mates, Grams, and the others. Apparently, I was the only one not giving them privacy.

Were they not aware they were mates before? His magic must be connected to his Heart-Bond to her. I won’t pretend to understand any of that.

“Shine?” a deep, scratchy voice murmurs, and my head whips up.

The King is cupping my mother’s cheek in his hand, as they stare into each other’s eyes. My heart aches. What would twenty years of being separated from your mate feel like? Pure fucking hell.

“My Queen, my mate…” he says, his voice breaking. My mother lets out a ragged sob, before hugging the man so tightly I don’t think he can breathe.

“Oh, Lark, you remember me!” she gasps, and the King lets out a growl.

“Remember my mate? Of course. I could never forget you…” he says, clutching her tightly to his chest.

“Moon,” my mother says suddenly, looking up at me. I freeze once again. “Our daughter, Lark,” he starts to turn to look at me, but my mother stops him with a soft touch to his chin. “You’ve been under a spell for twenty years, my love. She’s an adult. All grown up,” Mom says with tears in her eyes, and I swallow thickly. Looking back at me, she offers an encouraging smile and a slight nod of her head.

“Okay,” he whispers so quietly I almost couldn’t hear him. Slowly, he turns, and I step closer because my mother holds her hand out for me. I take it, as they move, sitting up more. I kneel, just to be closer to them both. My mother brushes the hair out of my face and looks between her mate and me.

“Uh, hi,” I say, awkward as fuck. He looks at me, eyes going wide before his face breaks.

“Oh, I’ve missed so much.” Tears fill his eyes, and my mother grips his shoulder, offering her support.

“I missed her life too. When she was five, Norma cursed me. If I got near Moon, she became violently ill. I was forced to keep my distance for years. Her mate was able to break the curse for me. The Queen is meddling again. She wants me dead. She doesn’t want to lose her control over you. She tried to have Moon killed,” my mother explains, and all the while, the King keeps his eyes on me.

Grams, her Coven members, and my men keep their distance, giving us a moment to reacquaint. Or, I guess, meet for the first time, in my case.

“This reunion will need to be put on pause,” I say, mostly because I can’t deal with the intense way Lark is looking at me.

“Moon’s right. We need to move,” Grams says. She doesn’t waste any time turning to Love and Sky. “You two need to leave.”

“Leave?” I ask, whipping my head around to look at them.

“Yes, leave. We can’t risk him being captured once again. We have enough manpower here, and trouble heading our way. He needs to return to his Coven. You two, escort them,” Grams says to the men she brought with her.

They say nothing, just move in unison toward Love and Sky.

“There’s an exit this way,” Daire says to them, before turning to me. “Let me escort them, and then I will return to your side.”

“Okay,” I agree with a nod. Daire presses a kiss to my cheek, then turns to one of the Coven members, speaking quietly. “Good luck. I hope I’ll see you again,” I say to Love, who nods.

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