30. Oria

Ididn't know what to pack or bring with me. The room before me had years of character put into it and leaving it felt wrong. There were so many things I wanted to bring with me that I couldn't let go of.

I grabbed a bag I had hidden for a long time in hopes that I would never use it, but it was there if I needed it. Taking a deep calming breath, I packed my life for the last seventy years in one small bag. I packed away clothes for a few days, my sketchbooks and some trinkets Tay had brought me that gave me joy.

Damn it, Tay. Why did you have to be the bad guy?

I didn't know what to think or how to feel about him. My heart hurt at what he'd done and what he failed to say to me. Why would he come back for me when he conspired with Mother to manipulate and make me look like a fool?

He wasn't just going to let me go, but neither was Mother and he was the lesser of two evils. My dresser was empty except for a few necklaces mother had given me over the years each time she came back. There was one that was exceptionally beautiful that she had gotten me when we first had to hide.

It had beautiful gems and looked like it belonged to royalty. I grabbed the necklace thinking this was the only thing I would take from here. It had always felt like mine and maybe it would serve to remind me that I couldn't be so trusting anymore.

Closing my eyes, Tay's words came back to me.

"They are manipulating you. They've made you believe this lie so they can take you from me."

Had I been so desperate for so long to even consider that this was all a scheme? My heart dropped at the thought that these men were just playing me. It was a lie, it had to be. I felt something with them, I felt a bond. There was no way they could replicate that with magic.

Right?

Loki brushed against my leg, meowing softly. I picked him up to comfort me and give me strength. My lip trembled as I doubted what I was feeling, wondering if it was even real. Did they really care for me? Could this all be magic? I knew there were empaths who could change how you felt, but this wasn't just about how I felt. Bonds were ingrained in you. They were a piece of your soul that was coming back to you when you met your soulmate.

I refused to believe someone could replicate that but… Dammit there was always a but. My life was a big giant what-if or but. I was tired of not believing in myself and right now I believed they loved me. Tay could kiss my ass and if… if they crossed me, I would make sure I would be their worst nightmare. I would no longer be the naive blonde girl in the tower waiting for someone to rescue her. I would be my own savior because no one loved me more than me.

"It's us against the world, Loki," I said, placing him on the floor.

Grabbing the last few things I wanted to take with me, I stuffed them in the bag, and headed down to my workshop to make another potion. Loki followed me down the stairs and waited by the window. Before starting I packed a few potions and grabbed my necklace I had been trying to perfect for the last few years. It was full of charms and stones that I had made to help if and when I left. I got to work, determined to get this potion right and maybe even better than last time.

A knock made me look up when I saw Soren in the doorway. I smiled, but when he didn't smile back, I worried something had gone wrong.

"Is everything ok," I said slowly.

Goddess, did they kill Tay?

My heart started to pound loudly in my ears.

"Nothing bad happened." He rushed to me, cupping my face. "He just wants to talk to you, and I don't like it. I'm afraid he's going to fill your head with doubt, and I can already feel your insecurity."

I bit my bottom lip. "How can I not worry? Everyone lies to me; they keep secrets so that I will stay."

"I would never do anything to hurt you, at least consciously. You have no reason to believe me, but believe in our bond," he whispered, resting his forehead against mine. "Close your eyes and feel me through our bond. I'm irrevocably yours. There is no one else in my heart and I would search for you for a millennia if that meant I would get to spend the rest of my days with you. I exist for you."

I closed my eyes, and I didn't even have to search for our bond. It was bright, strong and it felt like Soren. Magic couldn't replicate this. Soren was mine, Gray was mine and Ryder might not think so, but he was mine too.

They were all pieces of my life that filled the emptiness in my heart. I knew that Tay was wrong. This wasn't magic, this was our tangled fates. This was our destiny.

"I feel it," I said, before crushing my mouth against his.

He opened my mouth with his tongue, kissing me with tenderness that made me tear up.

"I know it"s too early to say this, but I love you," he said against my lips. "When I saw that man"s hands on you, I realized I would kill anyone who tried to hurt you. I don't care if it"s us against the world. I will find a way to keep you safe and if that means sacrificing the world, so be it. Let the world burn, Blondie."

"The world doesn't need?—"

"The world will pay its penance for your suffering, Blondie, I don't care," he said before crushing his lips to my own.

I knew I should take pleasure in knowing he would do such a thing, but what can you say when a man says he will kill for you. That's love.

"I—"

"Don't, not yet." He shook his head. "Don't say it because I did. You say it when you feel it, when you can't hold in those words anymore because you are filled with so much love."

I wanted to say it back, but a small part of me worried I was saying it just to say it. The bond burned hot in my chest and ‘I love you' was on the tip of my tongue, but I decided to wait. It probably wouldn't be long until I told him. These men had totally and irrevocably changed my life.

I nodded. "I'll wait, but not for long."

He growled. "If we had time, I would lay you on this table, make you scream as loud as possible so Tay knew who you belonged to. Think I can make you come quickly?"

"Soren," I tried not to laugh, but failed. "I don't think I want anyone to know what I sound like when I scream your name."

"I love it when you talk dirty to me," he growled. "Come on, let"s see what this douchebag has to say and then we can get the hell out of here."

I nodded as Soren held my hand leading us out of the tower. When we got closer to Tay, Soren wrapped an arm around my shoulder bringing me in for a deep kiss.

The air was electrified with Tay"s power when I pulled away. Gray had a smirk on his face while Ryder was staring at Tay like he wanted to kill him.

"Ria," he said in pain.

"Tay." I tried to keep my voice neutral.

We stared at each other and I remembered a time when he used to make my heart race, when I thought he was the only one who cared.

"You know these men are con artists, right? They steal things for the highest bidder," he said, in disgust. "Their job is to steal the rarest items, sell them or find them and hold onto them for the right buyer."

"Don't listen to him, Sunshine, he's just a sore loser," Gray said. "I told you what we do and why we came here."

Doubt started to creep into my mind until I felt for my bond with Soren and Gray.

"They won"t hurt me, I'm their mate," I said, stepping towards him. "Unlike you, they are worried about me."

"I always worried about you," he replied.

"If you did, then you wouldn't have used me! You and Mother played me. You kept me under your thumb so you could make sure I stayed here and you both got to benefit from that!" I was out of breath from yelling. "I fucking trusted you and you used me."

"Ria, I had no choice," he yelled. "I'm…"

Tay looked like he was going to be sick, or he was in agony.

"Taylin," I said, removing myself from Soren"s embrace.

"Blondie," Soren protested.

"It's fine," I whispered, walking to Tay, kneeling in front of him.

Tay's blue eyes had unshed tears in them. I had never seen him so vulnerable before; the urge to wrap my arms around him and comfort him was unbearable.

"I'm sorry and I know you're going to hate me," he whispered.

"I already do, you played me for a fool," I said.

"I'm indebted to Laima," he said, taking a shaky breath in. "She saved our ship a hundred years ago and in return she asked for a hundred years of servitude. At the time I thought, what's the worst she could make me do, until you were almost taken from her, and we saved you. Goddess, you were beautiful."

Ryder growled.

"At first, I kept my distance from you because you were so afraid of everything. Any little noise made you flinch. It was worse when you were around my men. So, I would personally go up to get the vials myself, in hopes that you would get comfortable around me. When you stopped flinching, we would exchange pleasantries and that's when Laima caught onto my feelings."

I clenched my jaw to keep from crying.

"She told me to get close to you, making herself scarce when I would come to the tower. She knew you were getting bored. It's why she let you have those gifts," he said, looking like he was in a memory.

"So, she bought me those gifts?"

"No, Ria, that was all me." He snapped his gaze towards me. "All my feelings were true, but Laima used them to threaten me if I didn't keep you entertained in the tower. If I didn't, she would make sure my men and I paid dearly."

Anger burned through me as I listened to him.

"When you propositioned me, I said no, because I didn't want your first time to be with someone like me," he said, looking away from me. "When you insisted, I wanted you to be sure. Once you settled down, I thought that would be the last time we talked about it, but you weren't the only one who insisted I sleep with you. Laima said it would keep you in line and if I could make you fall in love with me, the better. She expected me to make you my mate."

"Stop," I snapped, when I couldn't listen anymore.

My vision became blurry, my anger was at its boiling point. She had fabricated a life for me so I would be fine with being trapped for the rest of my life. I was her prisoner, but she wanted to make it seem like it was my idea. She influenced my fear, kept me from the outside world, isolating me so I felt alone and vulnerable.

And he helped her.

"Fuck you, Tay," I snarled, as my tears spilled on to my cheeks.

I could finally see him. His head was hanging down.

"I put off making you my mate, saying I wasn't going to force you," he said, looking up with tears streaming down his cheeks. "I wanted you to choose me, Ria."

I would have chosen him if he had asked. I had liked Tay enough that I would have spent the rest of my life with him, but I never entertained the idea. Who would want to be shackled to a woman who could never see the world? He was also a pirate who longed for the water when he was on shore for too long. What kind of life would we have had?

"It's why I came back for you. Laima is preoccupied with a coven of witches, and this might be our only chance to get you away." He wiped the tears from his eyes. "Let me save you. I owe that to you and at the end of the day, I just want you to be happy, Ria."

"Oh, for fuck's sake," one of the guys mumbled.

A loud hissed alerted me that Loki was nearby, he hissed again before launching himself at Tay. No moved as he tried to attack Tay but he batted him away. I quickly grabbed Loki before Tay hurt him.

"I don't know if we can trust him," Gray said. "He might be lying just to get you out of here and Catzilla doesn't trust him."

"I agree with Soren," Ryder agreed. "Trust the cat".

"I would never do anything to hurt her," Tay growled looking at Loki.

"Just manipulating her and emotionally abusing her for your own gain," Soren sneered.

"Fuck you. You don't know shit about me," Tay snarled. "I did what I had to protect her."

Loki hissed in my arms again growling loudly.

"We all know your reputation, Taylin. Dark prince of the ocean," Ryder said, squatting next to him. "The only other pirate more feared than you is Merrick, and I hear you have ruled the seas together for centuries. The perfect duo, along with the sea king. The perfect trifecta to rule the ocean."

I knew Tay was powerful and he was feared among his men, but to hear it from Ryder made it all seem more daunting.

"I knew Merrick had a tie to Oria, I just didn't realize how close he was to the source," Gray added. "So, don't play the innocent card because you had a stake in the production. It was in your best interest to keep her here, making the vials for you."

My blood ran cold.

"I had to be that person. If I didn't, think about what could have happened to her," Tay clipped. "If I had to be a monster to protect her, then so fucking be it. You think Laima cares what kind of man is with Ria? She could care less who ended up with her because at the end of the day the only real bad guy is Laima."

"Oh Taylin, you don't know who the real monsters are," Soren laughed.

"Two vampires and a shifter?" Tay laughed. "You aren't even on my radar."

"Says the man who was bested by a wolf and two vampires," Ryder taunted.

"If Ria hadn't hit me with a potion, you'd be dead." Tay"s cold voice made me worry.

"Well, too bad the woman you love fucked up your plan." Ryder punched him in the face. "At the end of the day three monsters are better than one. Why don't you sit down and let us handle her safety."

"Three monsters won't do shit for Laima. She could have us all killed in a moment," Tay said, with a hint of fear in his voice.

"Then, if you really love her, you'd help us save her," Gray said.

Tay looked at me. My emotions were raw, but I still felt something for him.

"Ok, I'll help, but she decides if I stay or I go."