Page 52 of Heart of the High King
Chapter 22
Fate wandered through the hallowed halls of her home, brushing her hands on her long gown, trying in vain to rid the ethereal fabric of the stains left behind by angry spirits. With a frown on her face, she turned the corner and nearly went back in the direction that she came from. Two of her sisters were standing there, but she’d just spent a year stuck beyond the veil and was desperate for some company, even if it was a duo she could barely stand on the best of days. When she reached them, she found the pair weeping.
“What’s wrong, Innocence? Someone losing their virginity again?” Fate asked with a snicker. The goddess did her best to keep everyone pure for their mates, which Fate thought was ridiculous. If someone wished to enjoy the call of Desire, then what was the harm?
“No,” Courage snarled. There was such pain in Courage’s silvery eyes that Fate’s humor dried up.
“What’s wrong?”
“He’s dying,” Innocence whispered. She pointed to one of the many circles in their palatial home that allowed them to peek in on any soul they wished.
“I do not recognize him,” Fate answered. Reaching out with her senses, as she tried hard to determine his identity. His face was battered, bloody, and filthy, and his essence muted. He was a shifter but what kind was undetermined, which was something she’d never come across before. “Something is not right. I cannot sense his beast. Who is this man? Are my abilities diminished after so much time beyond the veil?”
“No, sister…his beast has already crossed,” Innocence answered, her voice still so soft Fate could barely hear. “Five months ago.”
“Come now, this is a joke, right? That isnotpossible. When we created shifters, we didn’t grant them the ability to live apart. When a man loses his beast, he will die. Their souls are connected.”
“He survived the impossible, defying everything we know only to die now,” Courage lamented. “I helped him all I could, and his spirit is so strong, but the body is weak. His dragon cannot help him, and these doctors have harmed him further.”
“Oh, with dragon blood he would survive. His significant injuries make sense with his beast missing,” Fate said, surveying the broken man in front of her.
“What is that spirit around him?”
“A young wolf I sent to help him find rescue. He was killed and clings to his soul to help him cross.”
“You say you were looking out for this dragon, and you not only let him come to this, but an innocent wolf you sent died too?”
“I cannot do everything, Fate,” Courage growled, flinging back her blonde hair. “I won’t break the rules and find myself punished. I did bend them as much as I could. There are just some things a soul is not meant to survive. But this man endured and endured. My heart breaks for him.”
“And his mate,” Innocence added.
“He is not bonded,” Fate commented, pointing toward the man. “I sense no connection.”
“They had not the time to grow close enough to seal it. Dear Rafferty could not see the true colors of his family and left Aleksander to walk blindly into their clutches.”
A hot rage swept over Fate. “What do you mean, ‘Aleksander and Rafferty’? Surely you are not saying that man dying in that bed isRafferty?”
Courage nodded, and her shoulders slumped. “It is the man meant to be with our High King.”
“No.No. I will not accept this. They were not supposed to meet yet. Rafferty wasn’t ready. He needed to realize the truth of his family. You fools! Damn Death. She did this on purpose. Aleksander and Rafferty aremine. From birth, Aleksander was to be special. All of you know this.”
“What would you have us do now, Fate?” Innocence asked. “We might be able to save him if you could nudge Aleksander to visit the hospital. If they bound their souls Rafferty would survive. Aleksander’s dragon blood is capable of—”
“I know very well what his blood is capable of. Did I not choose him to be the largest and give him the gold rings so everyone would realize he’s meant to be distinct?” Fate demanded. On another circular disk, she brought up the gorgeous man she’d blessed with an abundance of gifts. He was full of rejection and sadness. There was a longing for Rafferty, but his soul was too full of questions. “If I bring him to the hospital, it will mean a matebond tied without either of them being ready. I will not have Aleksander or Rafferty someday resent their connection.”
“It’s either bond them or lose Rafferty. Your choice, Fate,” Courage stated.
Before Fate could respond to her sister’s angry remark, a noise in the hall had them turning. A woman walked toward them, her black dress flowing behind her in layers of gauzy fabric and her red lips curved in a smile.
“Death, you had no right!” Fate screamed at her. “Didn’t I willingly face my punishment? Did I not wrestle those angry souls across the veil at your bidding? How dare you interfere with Aleksander and Rafferty!”
Death’s enigmatic eyes of black and smoke widened. “Aleksander and Rafferty?” Picking up her skirts, she raced to the viewing circles. “I didn’t interfere with them. I didn’t think they were together yet.”
“Let me catch you up. Somehow they met, even though they were not meant to, and now Rafferty is dying!”
“It’s not his time,” Death murmured, then gave a side-eyed glare to Fate. “Unlike a certain elf I know, he is not meant to cross now.”
“Oh, get over Kalthekor. I checked on him the moment I got out of your purgatory, and he’s happy. Didn’t his centaur give you enough elven souls to be happy?”
