26. Soren

Oria was mine. This beautiful woman was too good for me. She laid on my chest as I ran my hand up and down her back as I felt our bond settle. It was warm, just like she was, and for once in my entire life I felt settled, safe and truly loved. I knew we hadn't said those words to each other, but if this wasn't love I don't know how it could feel much better than this.

I felt like shards of glass, mismatched, sharp and rough, until she came into my life with her colorful pieces, and we fit together like gorgeous stained glass that brought so much color into my dull life.

Meow.

I rolled my eyes at the stupid cat outside of the door wondering if we would bring him with us. My smile grew when I thought about life after we got out of this mess until I realized we lived with Ryder. Our whole life was so intertwined with him that I didn't know how he would react to our mate. She had already said he wasn't going to mate her, but I didn't see how he could stay away from her.

Oria was addictive, and I was hoping that once he got a taste of her, he wouldn't be able to let her go.

"Penny for your thoughts." She broke our silence. "I feel your worry."

I bit my bottom lip wondering if this was the time to bring up that we lived with Ryder, but I figured we would cross that bridge when we got there.

"I'm wondering what life will be like when we leave," I said, stroking her hair.

A burst of fear jolted through me when she bolted up into a sitting position.

"She's—She's—" She stuttered.

"Blondie, what is it?" I sat up with her.

"We need to leave before Mother returns," she said on the verge of crying. "She'll be here in a few days. Soren, we need to leave, or she will kill you."

"She would kill your mates?"

"Honestly, I don't really know, but Mother will not like that you are here," she said quickly. Her emotions were all over the place as a single tear rolled down her cheek.

"She won"t hurt us," I said, holding on to her tightly. "I won't let her."

"You don't know what she is capable of," she whispered. "We need to leave. I need to figure out how to get out."

"Ok, we will figure it out," I said, as Gray came back into the room with a tray of food.

He looked worried and I wondered how much of her emotions he could feel.

"I hope you"re hungry," Gray said, setting the tray down.

"Come on, Blondie, you need to eat, and we can brainstorm after," I said, looking at my twin, telling him he needed to stay with her.

He nodded at me. I don't know how we communicated, but a look was all we needed so we could be on the same page.

"I'm not?—"

"Please eat," Gray said, picking up his shirt and putting it over her.

Meow.

Catzilla jumped onto the bed hissing at me before going to Oria. Her somber expression made me feel uneasy. The cat went up to her and she immediately embraced him. Her anxiety eased as she pet him and murmured inaudible words in his ear.

Even though the cat and I didn't get along, if he made her feel better, then I'd deal with the furry fucker.

"I'm going to be right back," I said, getting off the bed looking for my pants.

"I brought eggs, some ham and toast," Gray said, quickly entertaining her.

I needed to speak with Ryder and the sooner I did that, both of our anxieties could be eased and I could figure out something to get us out of here.

Once I had my pants zipped up, I leaned over to kiss her quickly. She tasted like jam, and I love that she tasted as sweet as she was.

A hiss made me look down at the grumpy cat.

"Oh, quit getting your panties in a twist, you fucker." I glared at him.

"He's just not used to people," she said, petting him.

"Yeah, I don't think it"s just that, Blondie. I'll be back," I said, leaving the room, taking a deep breath, wondering where the hell Ryder had stayed for the night.

It didn't take longfor me to find Ryder in the workroom. He was staring at an open box in awe. The closer I got to him, I realized he was looking at a box of Oria vials.

"There are four boxes full of vials. We could take this back and make so much money," he said, when I reached the table.

We hadn't told him who she was. After his outburst and the news about Serena, the timing had never seemed right. Telling him that the woman who he was mated with was the manufacturer of this also seemed wrong and made me worry about what he would say or feel.

"There's a lot of stuff in here we could sell."

I leaned against the table.

His nostrils flared when he smelled me.

"We need to pack up this shit and get going," he snarled, closing the box before grabbing a few more, leaving the room.

"Ryder, we need to talk about that." I grabbed a random box, following him down the stairs.

"We should leave in an hour. We can be home and get started on this next job I have that should start before Beltane," he said, opening the door, walking outside.

Was it already Beltane? Shit. How much time had passed by? He set the boxes down by the tree near the exit, turning around to go back into the tower. Leaving my box, I ran back to catch up to him, still trying to wrap my head around how much time we had been here.

"Ryder, can we just talk for a moment?" I asked, going up the stairs after him.

"Let's get out of here before we sit down to talk," he grunted.

"We can't live without her," I said, getting irritated.

"We are not bringing her," he snapped, turning around to look at me.

I laughed at his assumption.

"Why wouldn't I bring our mate?" I said, taking a step up to him.

His lips wobbled, a moment of vulnerability echoed on his face.

"Not our mate," he snapped, his whole face changed into fury.

"She is! I know losing Serena fucking hurts, but?—"

"Don't fucking finish that sentence!" Fur sprouted on his arms. "You know I fucking loved her. Don't make our love seem insignificant," he roared.

"I would never do that," I clipped. "I know you loved her, we all did in our own way, but I'm just saying?—"

"I won't give her up just because some blonde bimbo?—"

"Watch how you speak about my mate. Keep fucking pushing me and I don't care if you're my best friend or the queen of England, but you give her the respect she deserves."

"But you won't respect Serena!" His eyes glowed yellow.

"I haven"t said one disrespectful thing about her!" We were nose to nose when I felt Oria's fear. "I'm just telling you that?—"

"I don't want to fucking hear it." He pushed me back.

"Guys!" Gray yelled when I pushed Ryder.

Ryder shifted the moment Gray came close to us. He lunged for me, digging his claws into my chest snapping at my neck. I threw him off me, using my vampire speed to punch him while he was in the air. I grabbed him by the scruff, but Ryder turned his head too quickly, biting me in my arm.

I growled when we both fell down the stairs, landing hard by the door. We lunged for each other, falling out of the door.

"Come on, guys!" Gray tried pushing my shoulder, getting bit by Ryder, making me even more pissed off.

"Stop!" Gray pushed both of us away.

I was too pissed off to listen, charging at Ryder again, dodging his bite, grabbing his scruff and punching him in his ribs. A loud yelp left his snout as I hit him again before he swiped at me with his huge paws and claws.

"Fuck!" I snarled, letting go of him and kicking him.

I used my speed and strength to punch him twice. My chest and arms burned from the scratches and bites, it felt like he had taken a chunk out of me. I pulled back for another hit when Oria ran in front of me holding her arms out.

"Please, stop," she cried out. "I can't take you hurting each other, please stop."

Ryder tried to get up, but he limped, falling on his side. Oria immediately went to his side as he growled at her, baring his teeth. She didn't even hesitate; she ran her hands over his body making him whimper.

"This might hurt a little," she whispered.

I didn't know if I should have felt jealous or relieved. She stopped us and was tending to Ryder.

"Flos nitor et rutilans tua virtus luceat," she chanted twice.

She started to glow; it went from her hand and up to her arm down her body and even her hair. Her entire body glowed like the sun, making her look like a goddess. My body tingled as I felt it slowly stitching itself back together. Looking down, I saw all my wounds healing with a faint glow over my body.

"She's healing you too," Gray said in awe.

My eyes closed as I felt her around me. My heart felt full and I was truly in awe of her. This beautiful woman was mine.

Her power slowly receded until it was just a small buzz around me that felt like it left too soon. I opened my eyes to see Blondie right in front of me.

"You're healed," she said, looking over my body.

She looked tired, gazing up at me.

"All because of you," I said, kissing her forehead.

"You're amazing, Sunshine." Gray came up next to us.

Ryder shifted and as much as I wanted to feel bad, I wasn't going to. He had been disrespectful and no one should treat her that way.

"So, it"s true. A girl makes the vials from her power," Ryder grunted, getting up from the floor.

"I guess so," Blondie said, pushing her backside against my front.

Ryder looked over us while he just stood there naked. It wasn't uncommon for him to walk around naked and if she wasn't his mate I would have said something. Even though I was mad at him, I still wanted him to be with her.

He nodded as he stared at her with hunger on his face, he wanted her or maybe it was just his wolf who recognized her. His human side was still in love with Serena.

"Taking her with us is risky; whoever is keeping her here won't give her up without a fight," he said, running a hand over his beard. "You might be on the run for the rest of your lives unless you kill them."

Blondie tensed next to me. Killing her mother was off the table; there was no way she would agree to that.

"Then I think we need to get a head start," Gray said, not even acknowledging the killing part.

"We just have one problem," I said.

"I can't leave," she said before me. "I'm trapped and not even the necklaces you have will allow me to leave."

Ryder looked up at her with a look of irritation.

"So, we can't leave because she can't leave," he clipped.

"Give us a day to figure something out and if we can't, then we might start thinking about you leaving and coming back for me," she said.

"Excuse me?"

"Absolutely not," I said at the same time Gray spoke up.

"We can't risk Mother seeing you," she said, grabbing our hands. "If she finds out that I have mates, that could be the end for us."

Worry strummed through our bond.

"So, what if we just leave you and hope she leaves again?" I snapped.

"I… I don't know," she stuttered.

"Because if that"s the case, then I would rather go up against your mother than wait for an opportunity that might not happen anytime soon," I said, trying to keep my anger in. "I just got you, and you expect me to leave you?"

"I'm just staying?—"

"No, that"s not a fucking option," I growled.

"Would you let me talk?" Oria snapped at me, fury blazing in her eyes. "It might be a possibility, but can you let me try a few things before we start panicking."

"There is no sense in worrying if we don't have to, brother," Gray said softly. "Give her the rest of today and if nothing works then we can start figuring out Plan B."

"Please give me today," Oria said looking at Ryder.

He looked at Gray and I, nodding subtly before shifting and taking off. Oria sagged in relief or was it defeat? His rejection must hurt, but I didn't know if it was going to affect her like it would him.

"Come on, Sunshine, let"s get cracking and hopefully we can figure out something." Gray held out his hand for her.

She grabbed it, glancing back at me while they walked away.

Are you ok?Her voice was hesitant.

I just need a minute and then I will help you. I'm sorry I yelled.

It's ok, we are stressed, but please try to not do it again. We can't afford to fall apart.

You're right, Blondie. I'll be right up.

She glanced back again, and I gave her a nod. I watched as my brother took her to the tower. My nerves were too much to handle when all I could think about was leaving her here and the possibility of never getting her out.