Page 21 of Called By Fate

"You mean the inconsequential shifters?" He laughs and it grates on my already shot nerves. "They're nothing. They meannothing.Little more than pigs for slaughter."Vinson growls at him likeI’ll fucking show you nothingand it totally soaks my panties. Seriously, that’s hot as fuck. I think I might be a tad fucked in the head.

On the outside, I keep my face blank even though I'm imagining clawing his eyes out. That’s about the only thing keeping me from reacting to his words. "Well, as fun as this hasnotbeen, Reggie..." I pause, smirking when his nose turns up at my nickname for him. "It's time for us to bounce. I'm sure we'll see you soon enough."

Giving everyone a silent push through the bond, I make a break for the portal. I’m unsteady on my feet, but thankfully, Vin keeps me upright. Testing the waters, I throw a tendril of shadows over my shoulder at the Elders, hoping to distract them long enough for us to get through safely, but even with the blackness hurtling toward their faces, they don't even so much as flinch. My shadows glide over them like they're not even real. What the actual hell?

“You’re right,” Reginald agrees.

Right about what? Seeing them soon?

Then it dawns on me. They weren’t here to kill me; they were here to taunt me. Unease skates down my spine, but the good news is, we're too close to the portal for them to retaliate. I guess this truly proves the theory about them being untouchable, though. And they fucking know it too judging by the look of triumph on their faces.

Matilda hops in first, keeping it open from the other side then the six of us plus Hemsworth are next and it's barely wide enough to fit us through.

"We'll find you, Mercedes, when it’s time." Those ominous words are the last thing I hear before stepping into the portal, and it sends a chill through me.

The feeling of the portal overtakes me before I can really think about what they mean and then I'm sailing through time and space. I think. Not exactly sure how these damn things work. It's as if every molecule in my body is split apart and then rearranged on the other side. It spits us out smack dab in the middle of a meadow with small cabins surrounding us on all sides. It’s a disorienting feeling to be in one place one moment and another the next. Handy, but confusing.

And why am I on the ground?

"Welcome to the safe haven," Matilda says, smirking when she sees my bewilderment and all of us on the ground, except for her and Reed who have likely traveled this way before.

Even Hemsworth seems a little woozy. “Remind me never to travel that way again,” he groans.

Matilda laughs. “It’s a little disconcerting at first, but you’ll get used to it.”

Reed helps me to my feet by my elbow, and I notice the shifters who were portaled in before us and the trio are exploring the meadow and the cabins. I’m glad we’re surrounded by woods because I know the mated shifters are going to love to explore them in their wolf forms.

"Wow,” I say, in complete awe of this place. “When you said safe haven, I thought you meant an actual house. Nothouses.There have to be at least fifty cabins here or more."

“Aye, and with bunks in most of them. I’d say they're able to house roughly ten or twelve each,” Matilda says.

"Which means—"

"We have plenty of room for anyone who wants to join us," she supplies with a small smile tipping the corner of her lips.

Excitement flows through me at all the possibilities. "This is incredible. Now we just need to get the word out safely."

"Indeed. But leave the world saving for another day, will ya? First, let's get you all settled. Seems like you've been through the wringer." Matilda walks off without another word. Wow, she's a firecracker, that one. I'd love to see her and Bedi interact. If only I knew where the latter was and what the hell she's up to.

I glance at the guys and they all have varying degrees of smirks on their faces with Reed's being the broadest. "We better follow her. She won't wait, trust me," he tells us, shaking his head.

And she doesn't either. Matilda doesn't even lessen her brisk pace to let us catch up as she leads us through several rows of cabins, all of which look fully furnished until we reach a larger, central cabin.

In front of it is a circle of people, sitting around a small fire, chatting and laughing amongst themselves.

Most of them seem to be about the same age as us, with a few older. When they see us approaching, they seem excited at first, then their gazes move past Reed and onto the rest of us and their expressions morph into shock. I’m assuming these are the last of Reed’s faction of Light Weavers.

A man with ruddy, brown hair and smooth facial features questions, "Wha–what are they doing here, Matilda?"

Matilda looks at me with a devious smile splaying across her lips and gestures as if to say,you can handle this one.

I step forward and clear my throat. Might as well rip the Band-Aid off, right? "Hey, my name is Sadie Sinclair and I'm Reed Soleil's mate. These are my other mates—"

A girl with bright pink hair to the left of the ruddy, brown-haired man scoffs, cutting me off. I notice she drops his hand when she stands, but I don’t see a mate mark on either of their wrists, so I’m assuming they’re not true mates. I don’t initially sense anything off about her with my intuition, but she’s definitely not hiding her disdain for us.

“That's impossible,” the girl says and her voice is slightly nasally. “You're a Night Weaver. Your kind hates ours. It's your Elders’ mission to wipe us from the face of the planet. How dare you suggest that you are our King's mate?"

Reed steps in front of me. "Don't, Merri. Sheismy mate and therefore you know how protective of her I will get."

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