Page 92 of The Dark War

“Princess,” Osirus cooed, putting his hand palm up for me to take.

“No,” I snapped, pushing him away. “He isn’t gone, not yet.”

Osirus and Wesley shared a knowing look, both shaking their heads. Charlotte sniffed, burying her face into her mate’s chest.Not today. I will not gain any pity.

Heavy, slow torturous breathing came from behind me. Osirus had meticulously stepped away from me, whispering to Wesley. The heavy breathing halted, now covering me over with a shadow. Two giant beings, clad in black robes with the traditional scythe of a curved blade and wooden handle in the skeletal hand.

Their free hands held out for Kane, but I gripped my mate tighter. “No, you will not take him!” I screamed. “You cannot! Look what he has done to sacrifice! What we sacrificed! I will not let you take his spirit!” The Grims stood back, turning their heads to each other as if having a silent conversation. My gentle touches to my mate’s chest, the sword that had impaled him I pulled from his chest. A gaping hole was what was left, along with the black tar around the wound.

Kane’s sticky blood hung onto The Reckoning. I threw it until it landed on the edge of the cliff. One Grim walked over to retrieve it, putting it in his robes.

“You won’t leave. You hear me?” I whispered. My tear dripped down my heated cheek, landing in his eyes. “Giana and I won’t have it,” I sniffed. “We won’t.” I choked back a sob.

He looked peaceful, his brows no longer furrowed, his face not in a hardened scowl. He looked like he was sleeping, a cold sleep that I couldn’t wake him from. “I’m giving you all I have,” I whispered. “Every part of me, even if it kills me too.”

As much as I loved my daughter and wanted her to run into my arms and cradle her every night, I knew I wouldn’t be the same person again. Part of me would be gone, my spirit broken. I straddled his body, gently laying Kane’s head down on the rock. The Grims watched intently, their hands at their sides, waiting to see what I would do.

I scowled at them, their expressionless faces making me angrier by the second. Both my hands cupped Kane’s face, my forehead touching his.

“Everything, Alpha. I will give you my everything.” Giana slowly planted her paws in the soft grasses of my mind. Walking straight toward me. Her eyes glowed so brightly that they drowned out the world around her. Her eyes entrapped me, pushing the bright light through my eyes.

My own world faded. The only one I saw was Kane. I lifted his eyelids, peering into those dull, lifeless eyes, but I saw his spirit stir. It moved beneath the blinding light I sent forth into his mind. Giana urged me forward, my hand reaching out until I fell into Kane’s unconscious. He lay unmoving, groaning.

“Kane,” I whispered his name, running toward him. His mind was unsettling, the darkness slowly swallowing him whole. Black sludge that coated the floor pulled at my feet, trying to pull me into the night. The tar substance continued pulling until I landed on my knees in front of my mate.

His spirit was dying, the last bit of him almost unrecognizable. The graying skin, the black tar creeping up his face. Giana nudged me, my spirit wanting to repeat the same position as my physical one on the other side. “Heal his soul,” Giana purred. “Heal him from the inside.”

I took a staggering breath, placing my lips over his. The warmth engulfed us, bringing a bright light to the darkness. My body glowed warmth as I tried to chase away the tar that dared try to cover him. The tar cracked until it began to fall away from his body like clumps of dirt. Small blades of grass began to grow, covering up the blackness. It was the same grass that Torin would play through in Kane’s mind.

Torin’s fur stroked the side of my arm, but my body was too focused on Kane. Giana wasn’t far, her wolf nudging Torin to a calmer part of the grass. Torin was here. I just needed Kane.

Deepening the kiss, longing for him to wake up and yell at me for risking my life, I poured deeper. I set off all the emotions that filled me. Every bit of love I had for him, the love of our daughter, the reminders of why he should be here with me.

Warm hands pushed upward on my back. I sighed, feeling the tingles that began to flow in my body again. The bond mending, the world coming into a clearer space. His claws gently nicked my mark as his hands cupped my face.

“My mate.” I let out a sob, pushing my bare breasts into his chest. “You’re alive!” It was true, unbelievable, but true. His spirit had not left him. I found him before he had been completely consumed. There was no doubt I would never be able to do this to anyone else because Kane was my connection. He had my heart. My soul wrapped around his so tight that it could not become unwoven.

“Baby, don’t cry,” his voice came out utterly smooth. My face came up from the mark I placed my lips upon and met his lips again. It was salty, filled with nothing but tears of joy.

A voice clearing had us pause at our glorious moment. “Excuse me,” a small voice, meek and mild, came from the grasses now growing taller in the sunlight. She was small, like my height, with white robes and platinum blonde hair. Her eyes held a bright green with hints of gold flecks inside.

“I just came to tell you that this was just one time.” She held up her index finger. “One blessing of the gods, you will never be able to attempt such a thing again.” Her eyes softened, her hands clasping together.

“Ch-Charis?” I gasped. “Goddess Charis?” The goddess that had blessed me at birth stood right before me. She nodded meekly with a small smile. “Yes,” she said before she faded into the meadow. “Thank you,” I muttered, only to have Kane roll me on my back.

“I was scared, baby. Scared that I lost you. That I wouldn’t be able to come back to you like I promised.” His nose went into my neck. “You shouldn’t have come for me. You could have died too.” I shook my head, cupping his face.

“I’d do it again,” I chided. “I’d do it all over again.” Kane chuckled, his eyes darkening. His lips twitched, and his mouth smashed into me. His hands roamed my body, cupping my ass as I put my dirtied leg over his.

He hummed in satisfaction, his hand cupping my breasts. My mate was a wolf of so few words. He was a wolf of actions, his love language obviously that of touch. His cock rested on top of my pussy, rubbing it erotically over my lips. I moaned, feeling his length so close to my entrance.

“I want to take you now, but I fear what our bodies are doing.” I paused, my lips still puckered, glancing everywhere but him.

“Skittles, you don’t think we are doing it in front of people, do you?” I fluttered my lashes, but Kane pushed the tip of his cock closer to my entrance. Something cold prodded there that had my eyebrows reaching my hairline. “Did the little alpha get hurt?” I squeaked.

Kane scoffed. “Little alpha?” he questioned. I giggled.

“Don’t change the subject,” I playfully hit his shoulder. Kane leaned on his elbow, his finger tracing down my chest.

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