Page 67 of Owned By Four Alphas

“You might care about this one; it’s why you’re here.”

She glared at him, feeling inwards, trying to find her strands of magic. But with her birthing, with her pain, with her panic…she simply had nothing left.

“Theldir will be undone by a child of fire, earth, shadow, magic, and forest. All his ambitions will crumble to dust, and his purpose destroyed.”

“That’s it?” Selena spat. “You want my child so it doesn’t throw Theldir off his goals? How do you even know it’s even talking about my baby?”

“Come on, Selena,” Castien said, rising to his feet, “of course it’s talking about your child. It’s wrapped up in about a hundred other prophecies about you, about your mates, about your child, your father, Theldir,allof you. And when it says Theldir’s purpose will be destroyed, it meanshim. Gods never truly die, they just…pass on. Change. All they are is their purpose.”

Despite her fear, her pain, her fury, his words ignited something inside of her. She felt like a child, broken and weak, as she stuttered out, “So…my father…”

“Your fatherisgone, Selena,” Castien said, his voice strangely full of sympathy. “I’m sorry, I know you hoped he would have all the answers. But he’s gone. Maybe he’s now part of the forest, maybe he left the Realm altogether. There’s an argument to be made that he isyounow. It never happens the same way, whenever a god moves on. But the being that fathered you is no more.”

She choked on a sob, covering her mouth with her hand, tears splattering against the stone below her.

“It will be fast,” Castien said, turning away from her again, “but your child needs to die for Theldir to rise. He will change everything, Selena. I wish you would be able to see it. It will be…truly beautiful.”

“You’re mad!” she spat, her heart wrenching, “Utterly, completely mad!”

“Maybe,” Castien said with a small smile. “It won’t be long now. I really am sorry.”

With that, he picked up the cup and walked away again, leaving her with nothing but pain, despair, and the burning heat of a wrathful god.

Chapter 26 - Ronan

Ronan hated cramped, enclosed spaces. Small huts, low ceilings, long testing mountainous tunnels.

Just like the one they were currently creeping through, careful to keep silent, trying to establish what exactly it was they were up against. He’d stayed in his wolf skin, wanting to keep his keen senses, and his shoulder and flank were constantly brushing up against the rough ceiling, so much so that he was having to half-crouch.

Malek was in the same position, only marginally smaller than Ronan, his antlers causing him no amount of struggle. Kaelen was practically spitting fire, his dragon far too big to comfortably travel through the space, even though Ronan knew he was burning to shift.

Only Elian seemed happy, prancing down the passageway, his shadows spread out ahead of them searching for any sign of their mate.

“Anything?” Kaelen asked, for the third time.

“Not yet,” Elian said, and Ronan dipped his head to the stone, his nose twitching, seeing if he could pick up any scent where Elian failed to detect magic.

There was nothing. Only brimstone and ash.

So far, it had been relatively straightforward. A singular tunnel, unguarded, stretching out into the darkness ahead of them. Ronan growled. He wanted clear open space. He wanted knowledge about his enemy.

He wanted his mate back.

And up ahead, practically mocking them, there was a fork. Two corridors, equal in size, identical in shape, diverged from the main passage.

Elian stopped, running his hand through his hair. “I don’t know which way to go.”

“We could split up?” asked Malek, but Elian shook his head.

“There are hundreds more divergences after this one. We split up, there’s no guarantee we could get back to one another.”

Kaelen growled, twirling a curved blade around, striking it against the floor. “Left or right?”

“We can’t leave it to chance,” said Ronan. “Benellane, is there no way you can use your magic to detect her?”

“Perhaps,” Elian’s green eyes narrowed, “but not if we want to stay undetected.”

“Should we risk it?” Kaelen turned to Ronan, and he grunted in slight shock.

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