Page 48 of The Highseer's Mate

I turn back to Nicole and her eyes are wide. “Wait, how did you do that?”

“Do what?” I ask.

“You spoke in, like, alien or something,” Lara says. She sniffles and clears her throat. “Can you understand them?”

“Yes.”

“How?” Lara asks.

I shake my head. That’s a mystery I still haven’t figured out. “I really don’t know. But if it happened to me, maybe it will happen to the rest of you.”

“I don’t fucking want it to happen to me,” Ryan mutters.

“Draxel will carry Melina,” I say to the women while I point to the massive male on my left.

Nicole hovers closer to Melina. “And you trust him?”

I swallow. A week ago, I wouldn’t have imagined trusting anything that walked on this planet. Now? I know the Vruts are kind. They are gentle. And if there’s a chance that any of the other women in front of me are mates to Vrut males, they will never be more protected than at the glowhollows.

“I do,” I answer. “We are safe with them.”

It takes a bit more convincing, but finally the women let Draxel approach Melina. He picks her up gently, his arms under her back and legs, but his attention remains on Ryan. We pass out the provisions so that the women can get something in theirbellies as we walk. Nicole wraps one of Ryan’s arms across her shoulders to help steady her, despite Ryan’s protests. We walk toward the glowhollows in relative silence.

My friends couldn’t talk to my mate even if they wanted to.

Lara bumps my shoulder, her brows raising as she points to Varek. “That one stares at you.”

I nod, following her gaze. His jaw is tight, no doubt in pain from the slash across his back. I wonder what else has him looking so solemn. Is he worried about what comes next? What will happen when we get back?

I sigh. “He’s my mate.”

Lara blinks back at me rapidly. “I’m sorry, your what?”

“My mate,” I repeat. “It’s a Vrut thing. Hard to explain.”

“Try me.” She takes a big bite of the dried meat in her hands. “Last week I crash landed on an alien planet. Things aren’t seeming so crazy anymore.”

My lips twitch on what would be a smile if I didn’t feel the weight of everything crashing down on my chest. How she can still manage to have a sense of humor is beyond me. But I should probably explain everything just in case we arrive at the glowhollows and she sees a Vrut light up like Varek or Draxel.

I give her a quick rundown on the whole mate thing—at least what I understand. It’s about survival, but it’s also about love. It’s something bigger than any of us, and not something we can control. The glows chose for Varek to be my mate and because of that, the council—the Vrut clan—accepted me into their lives.

It would be the same for my friends, right? The Vruts will accept them even if they didn’t mate with anyone?

From what I’ve learned, mates are so infrequent that even the chance of new female mates is too precious to turn away.

My stomach churns as we walk further and I can see the mountain cliffs. My gaze darts to Varek but he won’t look at me. The tension between us–the distance–makes my skin crawl. As if my body is literally calling to him, begging to make things right.

As we near, I move closer to him and reach for his hand, but he pulls his away. His chest flares bright green like I’ve come to expect, but Varek doesn’t acknowledge me.

“Varek,” I whisper. The sound seems to fizzle out among the soft sprinkle of rain.

Nothing.

I reach for my chest, an ache spreading again.

Nerves knot my belly. Maybe we should have discussed all this before I just made the decision to bring them back.

What if things don’t turn out like I expect? What if my friends are turned away?

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