2. Pandora

2

PANDORA

H unter’s vengeance magic struck Dex, Hemlock, and Skel all at once. With it, a burning sensation seared my lungs like it did when I was floating to the bottom of Odyssey Bluff.

My vision blurred and dark spots floated in the center, blocking parts of Hunter’s form as I stared up at him. His dark blond hair floated in tousled waves around him from the sheer force of his vengeance, and his white eyes glowed so brightly they resembled the moonlight. Two obsidian black horns curved up into sharp points, and his muscular black tail flicked behind him.

I’d never seen him so angry.

I gripped Reed’s shirt tighter, and a gurgled whimper tore from my chest. “They—” I coughed up water and turned to spew it onto the ground. “Mates— stop —” I forced the words out.

Even though the bond between Dex, Hemlock, or Skel wasn’t fully formed, I could somehow feel the remnants of the pain they were enduring.

I hadn’t healed enough for it to be bearable.

Realization dawned on Reed, and his violet eyes widened. “She’s mated to them, too!” Reed shouted at Hunter, voice cracking as he ran his hand down the length of my back.

Hunter’s magic receded.

Air flooded my lungs again, and I looked over at the other three.

Dex’s white-blond hair was soaked, plastered against his neck and curved out toward his shoulders. He gasped for air, coughing up water that splashed into the sand. The jagged white scar encircling his neck throbbed as he heaved. Shadowy tattoos snaked down his arms, twisting as if they were alive. His muscular frame was tense as he forced his head up, and his fog gray eyes met mine with a mixture of pain and determination.

It sent a chill down my spine.

Hemlock coughed violently, choking up water as his body convulsed with each breath. His black hair clung to his face in damp strands. Water slid down the tattoos on his arms. He glanced up at me, and the skull inked into his throat seemed to glow. His lips were swollen as he gasped for air again, but his bleary red eyes were filled with self-loathing.

Skel laid sprawled on the sand, breaths coming in ragged, desperate pulls as he spewed up water. His black and white streaked hair fell in wet, tangled strands around his shoulders, framing his face. He trembled as he expelled the water from his body. The agony etched into his expression hurt me to see. As he looked up at me, his green eyes met mine, and my breath stalled again. The thin, jagged scar running down his right eye was pink and irritated as he tried to calm his breathing. Moonlight reflected off his lip ring, and his tattoos were stark against his pale skin.

He looked…broken.

All three of them did.

Hunter dropped down on his knees next to us and pressed a kiss to my head. “I’m so sorry, starlight. Are you okay?”

I nodded, inhaling the crisp night air. My throat was tight, and I couldn’t bring myself to talk. Everything hurt.

“Pandora…” Dex pushed to his feet before stumbling back and crashing into the ground again.

“What the fuck , Darkmore?” Hemlock’s voice was rough as his hands curled into fists in the sand where he was bent over. “You didn’t even know if it was our fault before striking us down.”

“Was it your fault?” Hunter growled, his tail swishing dangerously behind him.

“Yes.” Hemlock looked down as he thinned his lips.

Skel wheezed as he fumbled with the pipe in his hands before taking a few hits of his pipe between breaths. “There’s so much fear here.”

The matebonds thrummed between myself and each of the men here before fading slightly. But Dex, Hemlock, and Skel?

I didn’t want to look at them anymore—I didn’t want to see their regret after we found out we were fated mates.

“Then you fucking deserved it!” Hunter’s voice was low, and his white eyes glowed with a murderous glint.

“What happened tonight?” Reed asked, glancing down at me with concerned violet eyes.

“We fucked up,” Dex croaked, crawling closer as he sucked in short, ragged breaths. “Fuck, trouble. I’m sorry—I’m so, so sorry.”

“I fucked up the most.” Hemlock fell into a coughing fit. “Fates know I did.”

“It was real,” Skel mumbled again and again, staring, wide-eyed, at my thigh then between me and Hunter. “I—fuck, princess—I’m—no apology will ever be enough.”

My thigh.

I ran my fingers over the raised scars, and horror crashed over me. My wrap had fallen off—my scars were on display for them all to see.

Turning, I buried my face into Reed’s chest. “I can’t do this with you three anymore! I can’t.” Sobs wracked my body as Reed held me closer. “Don’t act like you care now.”

“I care,” Dex choked out.

“I do care,” Skel murmured like he was in pain.

“I care more than I deserve to,” Hemlock muttered.

Fates, my scars. I flattened my palm against my thigh. I didn’t want the three of them to look at them.

“I got you, dream girl. I got you,” Reed whispered softly against the shell of my ear.

I gasped for another breath. My lungs still burned, and my magic reserves had all but dwindled to nothing. “And you’re—you three —my mates,” I choked. “Reed and Hunter…they make sense. But you three? You can’t be my mates. You hate me!”

“Hate you?” Dex’s voice sounded broken. “I—I don’t hate you.”

“I didn’t know. I thought—” Hemlock coughed violently. “Fuck!”

“I never hated you,” Skel said before exhaling. “I was scared of you, sure, but I never hated you. You—princess, I?—”

“Shut up!” Hunter growled. “Actions speak louder than words. You’ve shown her nothing but animosity. What’s she supposed to think?”

“Stop.” Reed stood up with me gathered in his arms. “We need to get her to Sunstone Revive.”

“My lungs hurt.” I held onto Reed tighter, loving his cotton candy scent wrapped around me.

“Let me—” Dex started, and it was like I could feel him stumbling closer.

“Don’t come near her,” Hunter snarled, stepping between us and Dex.

The matebonds weren’t even sealed yet, but…I could feel them. Sort of.

I’d read that the instinct of knowing where your fated mate was didn’t happen until after the matebond was sealed and each partner was marked. But I could feel all five of my matebonds. I could feel their souls linked to mine, and small glimpses into their souls hit me in almost random spurts.

Reed’s matebond was a sweetness that made me feel blissful, while Hunter’s was fierce, and it made me feel protected. Dex’s was dark and unhinged in a way that made me unsure of what to expect from it. Hemlock’s was all over the place, almost as if it linked to chaos incarnate. Skel’s was unstable, and it felt like it was clinging to my soul in a desperate manner.

Each matebond was different but familiar. Each one felt like a part of me. I didn’t know how to process it right now—I didn’t want to.

Avoidance wasn’t smart, but it was better than letting my heart be shredded in my chest.

“Fuck off, Darkmore.” Dex’s growl was feral, and his soul craved mine. I could feel it. “She can be pissed at me all she wants, she can—” His voice cracked as he paused. “She can hate me…all she wants, but she’s going to get healed now.”

Darkness encroached around us before swallowing us completely, and we stumbled out of Dex’s shadows and onto Sunstone Revive.

Reed stumbled forward and placed me down before rushing to the side and doubling over, puking. “I wasn’t ready, Shadowheart!”

“Neither was I,” Hunter grumbled, inhaling a deep breath like he was trying not to puke himself. “But Pandora does need to heal.”

The smooth surface of the large sunstone was cold against my soaked body. I shivered as the warmth of healing flooded through me, spreading through my chest cavity.

“Is she okay?” Skel croaked out.

“She’s going to be fine,” Hemlock bit out, but his words lacked the usual venom.

“No thanks to you three,” Hunter growled.

“Fuck you,” Dex spat. “We know we fucked up.”

“Do you?” Reed asked. “Do you honestly know you fucked up? She wasn’t breathing, and we had to do CPR. She’s a demon—a soul eater, and you three pushed her to that state.”

“I know that, okay?” Dex’s voice broke. “I know.”

“And I had to yell at you to get help with CPR,” Reed added, venom bleeding in his tone.

“I’m sorry.” Skel sniffed. “I should’ve been able to help without being snapped out of it, but?—”

“But nothing,” Hunter snapped. “She needed you three, and look what you did.”

Pain simmered through the bonds, and Sunstone Revive was incapable of healing that.

After a few more seconds of listening to them argue, I was able to breathe normally again.

I shifted to my side and pushed up off the sunstone and to my feet. My legs felt like jelly.

The cold wind skimmed over my thigh, and I hated the feeling of the air on my scars. It meant they were exposed, and that was the last thing I wanted—especially in front of the three of them.

“I want to go to my dorm now,” I croaked, dipping my head down. My hair fell around me like a curtain of privacy—one I needed now more than ever.

I only had one shoe on. The other one must be in the lake with my wrap.

Hunter’s sweet chocolate scent engulfed me as he wrapped me in his arms. “Of course, starlight. Let’s go.”

“Let me—” Dex started.

“You’ve done enough,” Hunter growled, cutting him off.

“I know,” Dex stressed the words. “But just…just let me help, please .”

Reed’s gaze connected with mine, and he raised a brow in my direction. “What do you want us to do?”

I sighed but nodded. “Get me to the dorm, but then…” I scanned over Dex, Hemlock, and Skel. “I want the three of you to leave.”

His shadows swallowed us whole before I could gauge their reactions, and we stepped into my room.

“What is this?” Nebula hissed, the obsidian tar of his soul manifesting and spilling over his stand on the end table as soon as we’d stepped foot in the room. “You’re mated…to these…all five of them?”

“Did he just…” Hunter stammered.

“Talk?” Reed asked.

“He doesn’t usually talk?” Hemlock questioned.

“He’s talked to me before,” Skel murmured.

“Of course he has,” Dex scoffed.

“ Nebula …” Tears welled up hot in my eyes. I padded over the rough textured floor and scooped Nebula up in my hands and sank down on my bed with him. The warmth of his soul spilled over into my hands as his dark presence comforted me. “I don’t know how it happened,” I rasped as discomfort spread through my throat.

“You need to feed.” His voice smoothed over me. “It doesn’t matter how it happened right now. You need to focus on your wellbeing.”

I didn’t know what I needed for that to happen.

“Time for you three to go,” Hunter told them, gesturing toward the door.

Dex’s piercing fog gray eyes met mine, and it sliced me down to my soul. They weren’t as dead as they used to be. There was something deeper flickering in their depths. “If Pandora wants me to go, I’ll go. But, trouble, fuck . I’m sorry. For everything.”

“She already asked you three to go once,” Reed reminded them with a sharp tone.

“Then they should leave,” Nebula’s disembodied voice echoed through the room. “Go, now. ”

I glanced back down to Nebula as my heart swelled in my chest. He’d always been there for me, and now, he was able to talk to someone other than me. I’d known it was lonely for him. But even though he’d spoken to Skel before, he was still taking my side.

“We’ll go,” Hemlock stated coldly, and I flinched.

“But,” Skel protested in a strangled gasp. “I need to?—”

“You don’t need to do anything,” Hunter barked, still fully in demon form. “You’ve all done enough.”

“ We know. She needs space, and we’ll give it to her,” Hemlock said matter-of-factly. He didn’t slur his words.

As I flicked my gaze up to his red eyes, I realized he wasn’t drunk right now, and his expression didn’t match the cold demeanor of his voice. It was hardened, sure, but self-hatred burned in his gaze instead of hatred for me.

All three of them had said awful things to me. Each one had hurt me in some way, but I couldn’t deny the pull of the matebond that had woven our souls together.

I skimmed my gaze over them, and my vision blurred with more tears. All I could see were the enemies I’d fought with since coming to this academy, but I wanted to see something else. I wanted to believe the vulnerability in their eyes—the confusion, the pain. I wanted to believe that they wanted this—wanted me.

But I didn’t.

I didn’t believe that they were sorry—they were only having a change of heart because the Fates bonded our souls. If the bonds hadn’t snapped, they might not have even saved me from drowning. They wouldn’t have cared about some spoiled noble.

No .

If we weren’t mates, they would’ve left me to die.

“Get out,” I croaked, but there was an unmistakable venom laced in my voice.

They winced, but they didn’t argue.

Skel’s eyes glistened with tears, and his knuckles whitened as he gripped his pipe.

Hemlock shut his eyes as his jaw ticked.

Then, Dex’s shadows swallowed them whole as he let out a small whimper.

“ Pandora ,” Nebula called, drawing my attention to his soul oozing out of his skull. “Talk to us.”

“I can’t…I can’t do this.” My breath hitched as tears rolled down my cheeks and splattered on top of Nebula’s ivory bone.

I set him down on the nightstand beside me as my grief consumed me.

“You’ve survived much worse,” he told me.

A sharp intake of air filling my lungs felt like it was about to shatter my chest. “I’ve always wanted to find my soulmate, but those three?”

My shoulders trembled, and a violent sob wracked my body. I doubled over, pressing my forehead against my knees. My hair fell around me, and the sound of my cries filled the room—raw and unrestrained.

Dex, Hemlock, and Skel—three demons I’d initially felt a connection with, but each one had proved to me they didn’t feel the same way I did.

If anything, they hated me. Regardless of how they felt now, I knew they didn’t like me before the bonds snapped in place.

Dex had relished in my pain and lashed out at me—it had brought him joy.

My hands clutched at the fabric of my damp skirt, twisting it in my fists as I rocked back and forth.

Hemlock had spat insults at me and teased me about the wrap on my thigh and my voice.

My sobs grew louder, each one hollowing my heart.

Skel had scared me, but then he shared his pipe with me. We’d had a moment. He’d met Nebula—but he still wielded his fear magic against me. He still said hurtful things to me.

My throat burned as I gasped for air, drowning in the reality of them being my fated mates.

The bed dipped on both sides of me. The scents of cotton candy and sweet chocolate mixed. Hunter and Reed became my saviors while I was drowning again.

“They aren’t your only mates, starlight,” Hunter murmured, his hand resting over mine that was clutching my skirt.

My sobs started to subside as a wave of exhaustion slammed into me. Tears slid down my cheeks, but I lifted my head and met Hunter’s gaze.

“We’re your fated mates, too, dream girl,” Reed whispered softly.

I turned and met his violet eyes and sucked in a shuddering breath. I lost the grip on my skirt, and the hand Hunter wasn’t holding fell limp to my side.

“You are,” I rasped.

Reed slipped his fingers through mine and squeezed. “I’ve wanted to be your mate since I met you. I’m yours if you’ll have me.”

“Of course,” I choked out, forcing the words to come even though my throat ached. “I want both of you as my fated mates.”

They weren’t the reason I was upset in the slightest. I was overjoyed to be mated to Hunter and Reed.

I was just…in utter shock that I was mated to Dex, Hemlock, and Skel, too. I didn’t understand what the Fates were thinking by mating me to the three of them.

“I’ve wanted to be your fated mate since the moment I found you, too.” Hunter pulled my hand up and brushed his lips over the back of it. “We’re yours, both Reed and myself.”

They shared a look over me.

“But it’s okay to wait to accept our bonds too, if you need the time to process everything.” Reed leaned in and kissed my cheek. “We would understand.”

“And we won’t let the other three near you.” A growl rumbled in Hunter’s chest.

“Not until you want them around,” Reed murmured.

Hunter’s growl rippled through the room. “ If she ever does.”

“They’re still her mates,” Nebula reminded him darkly. “One day she may want them around.”

“ If she doesn’t reject them,” Hunter snapped, his tail flicking wildly behind him.

My heart plummeted.

Reject them?

The thought hadn’t crossed my mind.

My tongue darted out to wet my bottom lip. “I don’t want to accept them…not right now. Not until they show me that they aren’t who they’ve shown me to be. I believe in the Fates. I know they’ve messed up, but…I can’t imagine rejecting them.”

Was I wrong in that?

Maybe…I should’ve considered rejection, but the way my gut churned at the thought of breaking our bonds forever made me push the thought to the darkest recesses of my mind.

Hunter’s warm thumb skimmed across the scars on my thigh. “You hide these, but you should know that you don’t have to. Scars on demons mean that you have survived the most unfavorable conditions.”

Fear clawed up my throat, but I swallowed it down. “You sound like Daryl.”

He visibly winced and choked up a cough. “Comparing me to your father is not what I want my fated mate to do.”

“But he’s right,” Reed chuckled lightly. “Both Hunter and your dad are. Your scars may have been carved into your flesh against your will, but how you wear them is completely up to you. If you wish to hide them or wear them with pride, either way is valid.”

“I’ve told you both some things about my mother.” I squeezed my eyes shut tightly before opening them again. “The extent of her abuse isn’t something I planned to talk about for a while, but—” My heart lurched in my throat, and I swallowed hard. “She…”

Why was it so hard to find the words to explain this?

“If you’re not ready, you don’t have to tell us anything,” Hunter murmured.

“I need to,” I croaked.

Reed slipped his hand from mine and got up to grab my bag that was sitting next to the door. He grabbed my enchanted water bottle and walked back, handing it to me. “Drink.”

The corners of my mouth lifted into a smile as I brought the bottle to my lips and drank. The icy water slid down my throat, soothing the pain almost immediately. “Thanks.” I put the top back on and sat it on the end table.

“You’re welcome.” He laced his fingers through mine again.

“I guess I should start with telling you that these aren’t my only scars,” I said meekly, staring at the raised cuts on my thigh. The ghostly feeling of a shadow tendril winding around my thigh and slicing to the bone slammed into me, and a whimper escaped my lips.

They froze, but their grips on my hands tightened.

“I have scars all over my back and stomach,” I admitted, my heart tangling in a web of shame—even though I knew I had nothing to be ashamed about. I couldn’t stop her, and I was only a baby when the abuse started. “They were places I could hide them. She always thought that I’d figure out how to be a shadow demon. She used to tell me how she’d parade me around to find a pairing when I could be useful. That meant, she only really scarred areas that I could hide with clothes. Funnily enough, she’d never once bought me clothes. Maybe when I was a baby, but I don’t remember a time I wasn’t bare.”

They both took sharp intakes of a breath.

“Her shadows always cut deep enough to hit bone on several occasions. I’m surprised I never bled to death when she nicked my stomach one year.” A strangled laugh belted out of me, but my chin trembled. “I wasn’t able to feed my reserves because…I thought I was a shadow demon. That’s what my mother told me. She hurt me to give me pain to feed…at least, that’s what she said.”

I screwed my eyes shut again and grabbed the bottle to take another drink, letting go of their hands. I clutched the bottle in my lap and took a shaky breath. “My healing never worked. I healed better than a human, maybe on par with a banshee.”

“Because you were never able to feed,” Reed whispered in realization.

I nodded, flattening my lips together. “My larynx and vocal cords are scarred and damaged, so a lot of talking hurts. That’s why my voice is like this. I never had cold water before Daryl found me, but I…I love it. Water helps the discomfort so much.” I glanced at Hunter. “You didn’t know about my throat, but you got me the best gift for it.”

“How?” Hunter’s white eyes were glowing, and there was so much agony in his gaze.

“I screamed too loud when she was slicing into my back one day.” I could practically feel the terrible pain in my throat. “She didn’t like it when I screamed. She forced a sharp shadow tendril down my throat to my vocal cords and cut them.” Hot tears seared down my cheeks, but I kept talking. “Fates, that hurt. It was worse than the pain I went through when she mutilated my body and slit my throat before I killed her. I wasn’t able to make a sound for an entire year, but they healed more than I thought they would.”

“How old were you?” Reed asked, his voice thick with pain.

“I had to be around five when it happened. I still can’t scream, though. My attempts sound low and scratchy,” I explained.

“How old were you when the abuse started?” Hunter asked.

“I can’t remember a day she didn’t,” I told them, taking another drink. “But she had told me I was one when she put me in the cellar.”

“Cellar?” Reed’s eyes widened. “What cellar?”

Hunter’s eyes fluttered shut and open before he cleared his throat. “It was where her father and I found her when she awakened. She was… chained by her ankle in a dark, cold cellar under the sand. You couldn’t find the hatch from the top unless you knew what you were looking for.”

Their reactions reminded me of Daryl’s when I’d told him—horrified and physically pained.

Reed scooted closer, and his arm went around my shoulder. I leaned into him and noticed the tears trickling down his cheeks.

“She did more heinous acts through the years.” Nebula’s voice slid through the room. “I thought she was going to be killed more times than I want to admit.”

I let out a watery chuckle. “I didn’t think she would actually kill me. I was surprised when she actually slit my throat.”

“Oh, Pandora,” Hunter murmured, his expression tight. “If she wasn’t already dead…”

“We’d kill her,” Reed finished. His eyes had taken on a purple galaxy look, and he was fighting transforming into his demon form.

I wondered why. His demon form was as beautiful as Hunter’s.

I smiled—a genuine, relieved smile because even though I’d been through hell because of my mother, the Fates did bless me with fated mates. Even if three of them may not have been redeemable, these two were perfect for me.

Hunter and Reed were perfect. I craved their souls and identified with them in ways I never thought possible.

“I accept your bonds, of course I do,” I stated in a raspy, croaked voice. Heat bloomed over my cheeks. “But I do want to wait to…mark each other. If that’s okay, I mean.”

“Oh, my Fates,” Hunter chuckled, leaning down and kissing my cheek. “Of course it’s okay.”

“I’ll wait as long as you want.” Reed kissed my other cheek. “Don’t worry about that.”

Their bonds flared with longing, but it was so very fleeting.

“Can you feel my emotions through the bond?” I blurted.

They shook their heads.

“We won’t be able to until we mark each other,” Hunter explained, tucking a piece of my hair behind my ear. “Why? Can you?”

I nodded. “Very fleeting, but yes.”

“Probably a perk of being a soul eater. Fated mates are soul bonds. It would make sense for you to be able to feel them.” Reed smiled.

“I’m sure you’ll feel it a lot stronger after we fully mate.” Hunter’s cheeks tinged pink, but his eyes darkened.

“I also accept these two,” Nebula claimed haughtily. “In case you were wondering.”

I giggled. “Thanks, Nebula.”

“But the drunk one has a lot to answer for,” he said. “As well as the other two damaged ones.”

I nibbled my bottom lip. “They feel so much regret and guilt. Hemlock feels self-hatred, too. It was muted, but the feelings were clear.”

“Good.” Hunter kicked off his shoes before getting up and kneeling down in front of me and taking my one remaining shoe off. It plopped to the hard floor with a soggy thump.

“Yes, good,” Nebula agreed.

“They should feel that way.” Reed shifted before grabbing the hem of his shirt and pulling it off, and my eyes tracked the way the muscles in his arms flexed with each movement. Then, he handed it to me. “Here. So you’re not sleeping in wet clothes.”

The contours of his exposed chest almost made my mouth water, and I blinked. Reed was so attractive—and he was my mate…

Our fingers brushed as I took the shirt from him, and a jolt of magic rushed through me from our bond, urging me closer to him.

I clutched the warm fabric in my hands and took a quick sniff of his cotton candy scent that was soaked into it. “Thank you.”

I got up and moved over to the closet, sneaking a look at both of them.

Reed’s gaze was on me, and his pupils were dilated. Hunter’s was the same, and he gently bit down on his lip.

The matebonds were urging us to complete the bond, but…

I clutched the shirt tighter. “Um, I’m not ready for you to see my other scars yet.”

Their heated gazes dropped, and they quickly turned around to give me privacy.

“Sorry, starlight,” Hunter mumbled.

“We didn’t mean to stare, and we didn’t stare because of the scars,” Reed added.

“Definitely not because of the scars,” Hunter agreed.

“I know. It’s because of the bonds.” It felt there was like cotton in my throat as I swallowed the butterflies down. I peeled off the wet clothes and tossed them in a pile, bra and panties included, before pulling his shirt over my head and grabbing a fresh pair of panties.

“Why did you get to give her your shirt to wear?” Hunter whispered in an almost accusatory tone.

Reed chuckled lowly, and the sound skittered beautifully down my spine. “Just because you didn’t do it first doesn’t mean you can be a sore loser.”

“He’s got a point, Hunter.” Nebula’s laugh tittered through the room as I checked the mirror. Reed’s purple shirt hit me just below my ass, but it covered everything except the scars on my thigh. A hollow feeling spread in my chest knowing my mates would see them still.

But that was okay. I was comfortable with Hunter and Reed.

I grabbed a hair tie and flipped over to gather my hair up, twisting it into a sandy, messy bun. I’d take a shower in the morning, but this would have to do tonight.

“I know the three of them should feel bad, but I just…didn’t expect it.” I crawled into the bed before snuggling into the covers. “They were so?—”

“Vicious?” Nebula supplied.

“Exactly.” Hunter joined me on the bed.

Reed climbed into bed with me on the other side. “You look really cute in my shirt,” he whispered.

I smiled so hard my cheeks hurt, and I snuggled between them both.

“All three of them have a lot to answer for,” Hunter murmured. “But I can’t use my vengeance magic on them without it affecting you. So, their redemption will have to be on them.”

“And just because the Fates bonded you to them doesn’t mean you have to forgive them,” Reed whispered, his breath fanning over my shoulder.

“I won’t forgive them unless I feel they truly deserve it. Right now, I don’t know how I feel about it.” A weight pressed on my chest, and I could feel the strands of the matebonds tied to my soul. Hunter’s and Reed’s were light and welcomed, but the other three felt heavy and ached.

What had the Fates been thinking by bonding me to my enemies?