Chapter 38

Shay

Not even the look of murder on Circe and the bull who thought he owned me can cut through the peace and joy surrounding my soul.

Next to pair is Emjay and the man who must be our sperm donor. “You know this won’t work. You’ll not find a mate here.”

She shrugs. “At least I know our daughters won’t return to your prison.”

The failed match is over quick enough. At least as fast as it can, with their entire herd going full animal every time it’s their turn.

Watching Nik and Tare’s confirmation moved me, but not to tears like Cill and Anjal. Probably because I barely know Tara and that I could feel Cill’s joy and pain through it all as her twin.

Later, I’ll ask her if Helios gave them a message, too.

We suffer through watching a few more of their men shift and fail to match before Emjay and Damian’s turn arrives.

As someone close to Jayce, I’m happy for Damian. I want to feel happiness for Emjay. I just don’t know how to forgive her. She didn’t even try to keep us. I’ve always believed in the principal: “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.” A part of me fears she hates kids as much as I do, and she just didn’t want us. Another part of me doubts that theory as her clock ticked for Damian.

Is there hope for Jayce that I might want children when I’m over fifty?

The commotion and yelling coming from my sperm donor’s herd over Helios blessing Emjay and Damian takes our attention off of their union.

“It’s not possible!” many of them scream.

Once half of them shift, our men join them. Their clothes shredded and flying in pieces off their bodies.

You and the others surround Damian and Emjay, Jayce’s bull orders. I’m going to name him. I’m tired of calling his other half Jayce’s bull when he’s very real and talks to me.

Circe’s the only one who refuses Jayce’s command. Let them stomp on her for all I care. Our Minotaurs form an outer circle around the one we’ve made.

My head turns at Jayce’s bull’s roar. How did I know it was him and not one of the others? A question I’ll ask when I’m not panicking at the sight of Elena hanging in the air by a new Minotaur who wasn’t here for the mating ritual.

Another new male emerges from behind him. “We’re taking all the heifers or this one and the child dies.”

Where’s Jamie? If they killed my sister’s brother, I’ll find a way to kill all these beasts myself.

Despite the hulking mass of muscle and fury holding captive my new sister in a cruel display of dominance, I feel no fear.

Amidst the chaos, Damian and Emjay have emerged from their cocoon. Damian’s Minotaur stands with the rest of our men.

Out of nowhere, a swift and decisive stroke of a blade slices through the sinewy neck of the Minotaur holding Elena like a marionette doll, with a precision born of years of training. It’s for moments like these that our men gather every evening.

A roar of pain fills the air as the Minotaur staggers, his grip on Elena falters before finally releasing its hold. My heart stops for a moment as she falls to the ground. Unseen hands catch her before she lands.

Just when we believe we’ve won, Jamie’s beaten body slides across the concrete thrown by another new male who’s arrived on the scene.

Torn clothes hang from his body. Angry welts and cuts mar his skin. Blood trickles from his split lip, mingling with the dust and grime on his face .

Every movement and breath causes him pain, evident by his protesting limbs.

My heart beats again as his chest rises and falls—slowly. But for how long?

“ENOUGH!” a voice from above roars.

We all look. It can’t be one of our protectors. They’re hidden from sight, sound, and smell with Willow’s magic.

“Enough is right.” The male who gave us the ultimatum to come with him or Elena dies, shouts before shifting.

He throws the first punch at Damian, whose head flies backward, but he quickly recovers.

In the heart of the wreckage left to decay by a hurricane, amidst the towering amusement rides and swampland, a fierce battle rages. Those of us who can’t shift crawl, dragging Jamie’s body with us, under overturned tables in the distance.

The roars from the heat of battle echo throughout the park. I can only hope cars on the interstate passing by chalk the noise up to thunder.

Horns clash in a deadly dance of dominance.

On our side stands the forces of righteousness, their resolve as unyielding as the cypresses that remain untouched by Katrina’s wake.

The eyes of all are ablaze with a fire of determination.

My sperm donor’s herd’s thirst for control has maneuvered them past the point of sanity. They’ve fallen into whatever level is beyond reason and logic.

The clash of flesh against flesh fills the air. The sickening crunch of bone mingles with the anguished cries of the fallen.

The difference between their Minotaurs and ours appears to be the color of their skin. While our men are more brownish, the enemies’ skin is gray and ashen.

Our Minotaurs under Willow’s spell fight alongside our men, confusing the other herd. Six of theirs have fallen, it seems, to their deaths. Their imminent doom hasn’t shaken their resolve to win.

Another three fall to their deaths before the rest raise their hands in surrender. As the dust settles and the cries of the battle fade into the distance, a tense silence descends upon the area.

I stay huddled with the others under the table even though it appears safe to emerge.

Hearing the bulls speak takes me by surprise. It seems silly that I assumed they only communicated telepathically.

The three remaining members of the enemy are on their knees.

“It’s a trick. It’s not possible for my daughter to mate with anyone.” The one speaking must be our grandfather.

Damian’s bull turns his shoulder with his new mark from Helios toward the man. “It is possible. We have no power to mimic Helios.”

“But our herd can’t mate. We made sure of it.”

“I don’t know what that means or care. She stopped being a part of your herd the day she ran. Whatever you did to hold back her destiny doesn’t apply to her.”

“Are you finally finished?” The same voice that spoke to Jayce and me during the ceremony interrupts.

A presence materializes, but he looks more ghostly than tangible.

Our bulls fall to their knees with reverence.

The other three spit at his feet. “You did this. You took our mates,” Grandfather tells him.

“Did I not scream enough just a few minutes ago? Was I not ignored? Is it my fault your men lay dead?”

Heads hang in shame.

“It’s not the same. You could have made her stay. Made her choose me.” Grandfather’s words are whispers on the wind. His voice laced with pain.

“The same way I could have made you stop this fight? You would have me rip someone of their freewill, as you have done?”

Grandfather looks up at Helios in defiance and screams, “If it meant I didn’t have this ache in my soul!”

“You would have found wholeness with another had your heart not turned bitter. The Fates are always ready to restore.

“Now your fate is in her hands.” Helios points to Emjay who’s emerged from under the table. “Ask and it’s done.”

Emjay walks toward the ones left alive. “I want them never to return to the women they’ve kept prisoners.”

Okay, I’m a little moved that she didn’t ask for their deaths. I saw the scars. I see the trauma in the way she moves and the look of pain in her eyes.

Yeah, I’m trying to understand her decisions.

Helios vanishes with a wave, taking the bodies of the dead Minotaurs with him.

I’d pictured us dragging them to the swamp and feeding them to the alligators. Crisis averted because I wasn’t looking forward to the task.

Once our enemy shift back to men, they’re allowed to leave with their heads hung in shame.

There’s no time to celebrate. Elena rushes to help Jamie. She helps him slip on a pair of sweats and a t-shirt someone handed her before she gives us the okay to move him. Jayce lifts him bridal style.

Tears stream down Elena’s face, despite her assurances to all of us that his injuries aren’t life threatening from what she can tell.