Mates in Life and Death (13 page)

separated the two now. A breath later, Alec let out an agonized cry. In

his voice, hundreds of souls seemed to speak, and they all rushed out

of Alec—the vessel that had contained them—dissipating into thin

air, until at last, Lucius’s mate faded as well. Everything disappeared

around them, the town, the houses, all the magic that kept the feral

souls trapped here.

Much to Dan’s dismay, he realized Willow was disappearing as

well. Linden reached out to her, but his fingers went straight through

her hand, until at last, her image dimmed and vanished altogether.

88

Scarlet Hyacinth

In front of them, the Magistrate collapsed. It was so shocking to

see the standing stone of their nation fall that no one even moved to

help him. But the moment of weakness passed, and Wolfram got up

once again. He looked very pale, but otherwise, he showed no sign of

the exhaustion he must be feeling after such a fight.

Dan found himself invaded by a sense a safety, renewed energy

coursing through him, casting away the chill. Willow’s image

flickered back briefly. “I have to go now, baby,” she whispered to her

son. “But I go in peace, knowing you are safe.”

Linden cried, but nodded. “I’ll miss you.”

“Me, too, baby. I love you.”

This time, when she disappeared, the pain she left behind in

Linden’s heart—and therefore, in Dan’s—no longer shattered him. In

time, Dan knew his mate would grow to accept his mother’s passing.

He met Wolfram’s eyes and nodded in thanks. How hard had it been

for the Magistrate to allow Willow and Linden that brief goodbye?

“Is everyone all right?” the Magistrate asked.

Dan honestly didn’t know, but he had his mates by his side. He’d

deal with the rest in time.

* * * *

The little town of Timber Lake was no more. The spiritual energy

that created the community and held it anchored in reality burst and

dissipated. The souls inhabiting it were gone. Everything vanished.

It shocked Ash to see it, and it upset him, to the extent that it upset

his mate. Linden had lived here for many years. His house

disappeared with the rest of it. His mother, another lingering soul,

now departed their realm.

Linden didn’t speak and made no comment at all when the

Magistrate decided they all would go to their respective homes. Clara

D’Averam survived her injury, just barely, and with Wolfram’s help,

her condition became stable, until Lucius could take her home. He

Mates in Life and Death

89

seemed to want to say something to Dan, but in the end, refrained

from doing so. Ash was glad. He didn’t know what Wolfram intended

to do about the D’Averams. Clearly, they weren’t stable mentally or

emotionally, and they still needed to be punished for their attack on

the Harts. At this point, he couldn’t think about it. He just didn’t want them anywhere near him or his mates.

Throughout the trip to the Hart compound, Linden remained as

silent as the proverbial grave. Ash had not been to his home for many

years, and coming back, especially with two mates who meant so

much to him, should have made him ecstatic. But he remained very

concerned over Linden. He couldn’t make sense of erratic emotions

coming from his mate. All evening, he dodged questions from his

mother, accepted hugs from his siblings, and suffered through a

thorough exam at Drew’s hands when all he wanted was to retreat to

his room with his mates and comfort Linden.

At the same time, it made him happy to return to his home at last.

He’d missed his family greatly, especially his siblings. He noticed

many things had changed. His sister, Amy, turned into a striking

beauty while his youngest brother, Clay, had become silent and

unreadable. Ash tried to figure out what was wrong with Clay, but he

didn’t manage. He did, however, notice Clay frowned or grimaced

whenever Wolfram appeared in the conversation.

By the time he and his mates retreated to his room, he felt

exhausted. That night, they slept in Ash’s old bed. An antique queen-

size, it allowed the three of them enough space, at the same time

forcing them to cuddle close. Ash and Dan sandwiched Linden

between them, but it took a long time for Ash to even relax enough to

sleep. They’d gotten dressed in comfortable pajamas, intending to

avoid any sexual contact in respect for Linden’s mourning. Even so,

the lack of contact bothered Ash. So many things passed through his

mind, tormenting him. He’d claimed one of his mates, ironically the

one who presented a problem, but he couldn’t very well go and do so

90

Scarlet Hyacinth

with Dan when Linden was in such pain. Would Linden even recover

from losing his mother?

At some point, he must have fallen asleep because he awoke when

he sensed the presence beside him slip away. He cracked his eyes

open and watched Linden cross the room and open the balcony doors.

His mate’s entire being screamed loneliness, and more than ever, Ash

felt thankful for Dan’s presence. Dan understood the human soul

more, and he knew Linden from their previous shared life.

Dan got out of the bed and reached out to him. “He needs both of

us now,” he whispered.

Ash followed wordlessly after Dan, and they joined their young

mate in the balcony. “I never thought I’d ever lose her,” Linden

whispered. “I always told myself that if I worked hard enough, if I

somehow tried harder and harder, I’d find a way to heal her.”

Ash wrapped Linden in his arms. The entire situation seemed far

too crazy to believe. He’d been convinced his family would be able to

help Willow, but none of it worked out the way he’d wanted it to. If

only the Magistrate had found Willow sooner. But even Wolfram’s

power had its limits. Among other things, the Magistrate had told

them it was only because of Linden’s increasing powers that Wolfram

even felt them in the first place.

“I’d do anything to take away that pain from you,” he whispered

to Linden. “Anything.”

Linden turned in his embrace and offered him and Ash a sad

smile. “You’re already helping me by being by my side.”

The light of the dawn came to paint the skies red. The three of

them leaned against the balcony banister and watched the sun appear

from beneath the veil of night. Neither of them spoke, but as the

minutes passed, Ash felt a sense of calm wash over Linden.

“She used to love mornings like these,” Linden said. “When we

lived in the woods, we’d sometimes watch the sunrise. She told me

each day was a chance for the world to do better. It meant hope.”

Mates in Life and Death

91

“I’m sure she’s still watching over you, from somewhere above

those clouds,” Dan replied.

For a few moments, Linden didn’t reply. “Maybe. But I think

most importantly, she’s found peace at last. It hurts, but I can live

with that.”

Linden turned his back on the beautiful sight and walked back

inside. He climbed onto the bed, his eyes warm when he looked at

them. Ash did the same and caressed the side of his face. “Come here

and let me hold you.”

Linden obeyed. When Dan joined them, Ash finally began to feel

the pieces falling into place.

He didn’t know how it happened. O ne moment, they were just

lying there in silence, the next, their hands roamed under the materials

of their pajamas, getting rid of the comfortable clothing. Linden

sighed as he pushed closer against Ash. His mate craved their

connection, and in turn, Ash ached to make their bond complete.

The gentleness of the first caresses became almost savage with

need. They rubbed against each other, skin to skin, rigid cocks

straining to get more friction, more contact. They exchanged

desperate kisses in which Ash tasted all their want, all their love for

each other. Tongues dueled in a dance of passion and muscles ached

with the fervor of passion.

Ash touched everywhere he could reach, acknowledging

everything he could have lost and everything he’d been gifted with.

Inside him, he experienced Linden’s emotions, the need to feel alive,

to feel loved, wanted, and protected.

All of it came to a natural conclusion when Dan positioned Linden

on all fours on the bed. In a flash, Ash rushed to the bathroom,

grateful for Trent’s insistence on giving him a tube of lubricant. He

hadn’t thought they’d come to use it very soon, not with Linden in

mourning, but perhaps this was what Linden really needed, the

proximity only a union of bodies could create.

92

Scarlet Hyacinth

Ash returned to the bedroom and tossed the tube to Dan. Dan

popped it open and squirted a generous amount of fluid on his fingers.

He rubbed it against Linden’s willing hole, making their mate arch

and moan against the bed.

The sight of Dan finger- fucking Linden was pure sin. Ash’s

mouth watered and his dick throbbed, begging to be let in on the

action. For once, Ash allowed his cock to do the thinking and joined

his mates on the bed. Dan tossed Ash the lubricant and positioned

himself on all fours as well, giving Ash access to his opening. Ash

groaned, his hands trembling as he poured lubed on his fingers.

He’d have liked to take it easy, to make their first time together

slow, but the circumstances didn’t allow it. Dan thrust his ass up

greedily, his entire demeanor screaming eagerness. How could Ash

resist?

He thrust two slick digits inside Dan. His mate’s body swallowed

them, as if asking for more. Ash aimed for Dan’s prostate and grinned

in satisfaction when his wolf lover let out a groan of pleasure. He

rubbed the tiny gland mercilessly, all the while marveling at the fact

that Dan, somehow, still managed to keep pleasuring Linden. With his

mates crying out their pleasure and begging for more, Ash could no

longer contain himself. He retracted his fingers and caressed Dan’s

hip. He felt, rather than saw, Dan’s intention, and he sensed it when

his wolf’s fingers left their mate’s body and were replaced by Dan’s

thick cock.

Linden let out a choked sound as Dan penetrated him. As soon as

Dan was fully seated inside their human, Ash pressed his cock deep

inside his wolf mate. For a few moments, he didn’t even move, too

ecstatic, too amazed at the pleasure coursing through him. One tiny

motion might even bring him to climax and end this before it even

began.

When he at last thought his control would hold, he began to move,

and his mates moved with him. They established a delicious rhythm,

back and forth, over and over, sometimes slow, sometimes faster,

Mates in Life and Death

93

both hard and gentle. Both carnal and emotional, the symphony of

their desire spread into an all-consuming blaze.

Dan’s ass engulfed Ash in a vise- like grip, a velvet fist that

seemed to want to hold him captive. Through his connection with

Linden, Ash experienced everything so much deeper. He was so

close, so very close to exploding. His every nerve tingled with sexual

energy that gathered into his balls. And yet, something was missing.

Their bond remained incomplete. Ash’s fangs descended, and he

buried them in Dan’s flesh. His mate’s blood filled his mouth, the

taste intoxicating, like rich, aged wine. His brain short-circuited when

their connection clicked into place, so right and perfect he nearly

wept.

With a final thrust, Ash exploded, his earth-shattering climax

sending him into a world where no one but himself and his two lovers

existed. He felt them find their peak as well, heard their cries of

completion, and sensed the ecstasy deep within him, into his very

soul. Every fiber of his being molded with Linden and Dan, until the

three of them became one. Their hearts beat at the same pace, and

every breath they took became a shared experience. His senses

sharpened even further, his spirit cleansed of all fears and doubts.

He didn’t know how long it lasted, but when his mind finally

returned to reality, he felt drained of strength. He regretted leaving the warmth of Dan’s body but found compensation when the three of

them collapsed on the bed and cuddled together in a sweaty, messy

heap.

“I love you,” Linden said. “Both of you, so very much.”

Ash smiled to himself and kissed his human mate’s sweaty

forehead. “And I love you.”

“Ditto,” Dan said with a grin.

Chuckling, Ash hugged his two mates tighter. Their connection

shone between them, strong and pure. No matter what happened now,

they would be all right. Their souls were bonded, and never again

would he allow Linden and Dan to suffer. This dawn did indeed bring

hope and a new beginning, and Ash fully intended to take advantage

of the chance he’d been given.

94

Scarlet Hyacinth

Epilogue

A few days later

Linden watched as earth began to fall on his mother’s casket. The