Page 77 of Stolen By Shadow Beasts

Every uncertainty within me falls away. I care for my shadow beasts. I know this fight is important and that I’m not walking away from it. As long as Rayne is on board, as long as he can accept this, I can finally take the three big men as my mates.

Four mates.It’s a lot. But it’s better than one mate and four broken hearts. Mine included.

And like my mind has summoned them, or my heart, or even the unknown force in my body that connects me to them, Onyx and Phantom walk in with Dusk trailing a few feet behind. They all look exhausted, their shoulders slumped, and their faces pale. But maybe some good news will be the thing to cheer them up, if only a little.

I squeeze Rayne’s hand and smile, then mouth, “Thank you.”

But when I look up, nothing is the way I expect. The second their gazes fall on me and Rayne together, they only seem more tired, more angry. And it hits me! They don’t know about the fabulous revelation that’s just happened.

I look up at Onyx and smile. He turns his head as if looking at me isn’t the way he wants to start this day, which hurts more than I can say. But I won't be discouraged. I untangle myself from Rayne and sit up.

"You guys get any rest? Did you stop at the main cave?"

Onyx and Dusk avoid my gaze, going to the shelves where they keep their supplies.

I glance at Phantom, who stands by the entrance to the cave, arms crossed over his chest. For a long minute he seems to be trying to avoid my gaze too, but then he shoots me a scowl. “We’re only here to get stuff to patrol tonight.”

He’s angry. They all are. I get it, but I hope my revelation will ease some of that.

“I’m staying here tonight.” My words come out firm and proud.That's right, guys, I'm not leaving. I don't have to be torn between Rayne and them. We can all stay at this cave, together.

He nods. And I realize my words came out all wrong. I meant that I wantthemto stay with me. That we can be here together, share this space. Shareme. But instead, maybe they think I just meant Rayne and I would be taking over their cave for the night.

No, no, that's not it. I'm not saying anything right."I'm not going back to the academy."

But they don’t speak to me. They just... leave.

“Hey!” I call after them. I have to say something. I have to explain the amazing thing that just happened.

But a group glare points at me from outside the cave, and the other things I wanted to say die on my lips. By the time I have a plan of what to say and how to say it, they're long gone. I sigh, scolding myself. Yes, I've always been a bit awkward and not at all good with challenging situations, but I thought my time with the shadow beasts had changed me, at least a little.

Apparently, not so much.

It’s going to be another long night.

EIGHT

Onyx

The night isdark with an edge of chill. The moon is waning overhead, slowly stealing the light from the night, one day at a time. Looking up at it, I'm reminded of home. Our world was always like a bright night. Brighter than it is now, the sky streaked with grey, forever and always. And beneath the pale light of the moon that forever hung in the sky, we flourished. Shifting into our other form, we'd race through our lands, enjoying the different plants, chasing the different animals, and living in a world that was as much a part of our soul as our own hearts.

That world is gone now. After the king stole the moon from the sky and blanketed it all in darkness, the plants died, most of the animals died, and those that remained were dark creatures with dark souls. Except our fellow shadow beasts, the poor bastards, who were simply forced to remain in their other form, under their father's control. Working with the very creatures they once hated, once hunted for the protection of our people.

But I don't want to think about them now. I can't think about my friends, lost to an enemy I can't control.

Nights like tonight just make me miss our home. Make me miss the moon goddess in the sky. Even the smells are different here. Richer and fuller in many ways, but less herbal. In our world, flowers bloomed in the darkness, radiating with light. They also released a scent similar to caramel, only a touch less sweet. Any time I was walking around the palace back home, I would stop and breathe in that familiar scent.

It feels like we came to earth with nothing from our world, but at least, I have my brothers. And they're better than any light, or smell, or sound.

Dusk and Phantom walk beside me in silence, their backs curved, their strides slow. We're all still sore from the battle. And heartbroken from Ann. As easy as it would be to do, I don't blame her for all of this. Being homesick isn't her fault. Feeling lost and alone isn't her fault. But still, I can't push away the pain I feel every time I think of her. It's as if we were barely holding our heads above water before, and now someone has given us a stone to carry too.

It's too much. For all of us.

Not that I can let my brothers see how much this is hurting me. They need someone to be strong, so it might as well be me.

Even though we're all suffering together.

A patrol to protect Ann while she’s withhimseems a fitting punishment for whatever horrors we’ve inflicted on the world. Because, truly, this is a punishment. Maybe Rayne is having sex with Ann right now. It’s a thought that makes me want to punch my fist through every tree in this fucking forest. Maybe he's just holding her close. But it doesn't matter: we're out in the cold, and our mate is with another man. It's painful, to say the least, and easily one of the most miserable experiences of my life, and I've had a lot of miserable experiences.

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