30. Maxton

30

MAXTON

M y mind was reeling at how different everything was after being a cat for two hundred years. I wasn't allowed in the store since I didn't have a shirt or shoes, so I sat on a bench waiting for Oria to come back to me.

Her anger seemed to have faded slightly and while I understood why she was mad at me or us, I would do it again if it meant that she would be safe. I still felt guilty though, the bond felt hollow without the guys, and I wondered if maybe I should have taken them all with me. After a quick breakfast at a place that had these round things called donuts with coffee they called cold brew, I was feeling like I could run laps for days with the energy I was feeling.

Flying eased that sensation, and I was grateful for expending the energy.

Uh, Max, we are passing the blue dot! Oria squealed. Turn around or find somewhere you can land and then I guess we can walk.

I turned around looking for a spot that would be the best, but it was a tight space, and I tried something that might have been a little risky.

Hold on, Sol, put your bag on you and hold the other stuff. I said, giving her a moment.

Ok, I'm?—

I shifted, her scream made my heart pound as we free fell. I grabbed her, seeing the ground come too quickly before I landed on both feet.

"Max, what the fuck was that!?" she yelled, pushing herself away from me.

"I wasn't going to fit, and I didn't want you to walk too far," I said, grabbing the bag from her, taking out the sweats and the black shirt she got me with the large shoes that still felt a little snug.

"I mean—" her voice trailed off.

I looked up through my lashes, seeing her staring at my chest. Her cheeks grew pink as she scoffed. She turned around, muttering to herself and I enjoyed her flustered look, but it wasn't the same without the guys. My mood plummeted at the offensive thought.

Oria looked at the phone that was spinning until she found the direction we needed to go towards. She was walking and I hated this awkwardness between us. I followed her, worried we might be falling into a trap.

The hairs on the back of my neck stood up and I walked fast to pull Oria towards me. She came willingly as we looked around the small field.

It's a trap, isn't it? she said. Do you feel it?

I don't have a good feeling about this. I said, pushing her in the opposite direction we were supposed to go.

We made it to the trees before I looked back again, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Oria's hands were on my back as she peeked around me.

Oria's fear slammed into me when I turned around ready to shift, pushing her behind me.

"I'm not here to hurt you. I promise." A man with multicolored eyes and a blond man stood behind us with their hands up. "Katarina is our mate."

They were big guys, almost my size, but just as bulky in sweats and no shirts that made me want to scowl and tell Oria to avert her eyes.

"I remember you," Oria said, looking at the blond one.

"I'm Lucien and this is Aeon, he's a seer and we were hoping to make it to you on time because it's a trap," Lucien said.

"Addie betrayed us?" Oria scoffed.

"I don't think she did, but I can tell you to get to her, you're going to have to go through a lot of men," Lucien said, looking behind us.

"Katarina would like for you to come back with us. She said she owed you and wanted to thank you again." Aeon, the one with multicolored eyes, looked at us. "We have to leave now because if we don't, you will be caught."

I was wary of them, but when I looked behind us, I got that same feeling again. Oria looked at me and then behind me.

"Let's go," she said.

"Ok," I said, grabbing her hand.

"Are you ok shifting?" Aeon asked me. "I've seen you can shift into anything."

"Yes, I can shift," I said, seeing them take off their clothes.

"The Belladonna estate is not far from here. It's faster and easier to get to if we run," Lucien said. "Are you ok with running or would you like one of us?—"

I growled. "That won't be necessary."

"Just offering," he smirked, before taking off his sweats.

Oria's eyes looked up as they packed clothes in a bag. I gave Oria my clothes as she turned around to put them in her bag. The men shifted as I took a moment to determine what I wanted to shift into since I would be carrying Oria. I decided on a tiger.

The shift was quick. My paws massaged the dirt and the thought of running had me excited and worried. I still had energy from our breakfast, but not sleeping was going to hit me hard. I knelt down low to allow Oria to climb on me. Once she was settled, we start running.

Did Addie betray us, or do you think someone is using her? Oria asked.

Her emotions were chaotic, but the underlying emotion was sadness.

I don't think she would, but I can't say for sure.

I just want this to be over. I'm tired, Max. She said leaning down on me.

We will figure this out. If it's the last thing we do, we will be together again. I said.

Oria didn't say anything for the rest of the run. We arrived at an enormous home along with a small quaint village not too far down the road. A woman and another wolf were standing in front. The wolves stopped immediately, shifting, as I let Oria down.

Her legs wobbled a little, our bond was exhausted since neither of us had rested well the past day. I shifted back to a man when Oria stumbled, and Aeon caught her.

"Sorry, I think everything is catching up to me," her voice slurred.

My body was sluggish, but my possessiveness burned bright. "I got her," I all but snarled at him, walking to her.

"Hey, are you ok?" A dark-haired woman with violet eyes walked up to Oria.

Oria cried as she reached for the woman. "They're gone. Help me, please."

"Oh, honey." The dark-haired woman wrapped her arms around Oria. "Let's get you guys showered and fed, maybe some sleep? If you're feeling up to it, we can discuss some ideas ok?"

"No sleep, we don't have much time," she hiccupped.

My heart felt heavy with our decision to split up.

"No one is useful when they are tired," she said. "Come on."

She looked over at me. "Hello, my name is Max."

"Were you the cheetah who jumped out of the car?" She raised an eyebrow.

I tilted my head until it clicked. "That was me," I said. "Feels like a lifetime ago."

She nodded. "Come on."

The moment we stepped into the house I knew we had made the right decision in coming here and we just might have a chance at bringing the guys back.

Oria and I didn't even make it through eating before we were falling asleep. They showed us to a room, and we were both asleep within minutes. We woke up just as night was falling. They provided us with clothing and more food. Right now, we were in an expansive library, sitting at a table as Oria explained what had happened and who she was to the woman and her mates.

"You said, one day you hoped you could return that favor and I'm asking for it now," Oria said, looking at the woman whose name was Katarina.

"What do you need? she asked, with no hesitation.

"I need supplies," she said. "I need to make a powerful enough magic-canceling potion to affect her enough that I can hurt her or kill her."

"Will it work?" Aeon asked

"I… I don't know," she said, as her cheeks grew pink. "Laima has been getting stronger for years. I've seen her kill a dozen men with a snap of her fingers."

"If she's that powerful, why didn't she come yesterday?" I asked.

Oria turned to me with her brows furrowed, but a glimmer of hope was in her eyes. "I don't know. Maybe she's getting weaker? She hasn't gotten any healing from me in months."

"Is that how she's stayed alive?" Lucien asked. "Because two hundred years to stay alive as a witch is a long time."

"Yes, I was healing her?—"

"Wait, you've been imprisoned for two hundred years?" The biggest shifter, Zev, said, leaning forward.

"Yes, not at the same place, but yes, it's been two hundred years," she said, having a hard time keeping his gaze.

Zev was the alpha and he exuded power. I don't think he was doing it maliciously, but even I could feel his dominance.

"Anyone think it's strange that we and Oria were imprisoned at the same time?" Zev looked at his pack.

"You think Caston's family imprisoned her too?" Aeon looked confused. "But what?—"

"Wait, Caston?" Oria shouted. "He was the one who called Laima away. He needed her help, and she talked about renegotiating her terms at the tower. She also said she would talk to his mother."

"What if our situations are connected?" Aeon looked around the table. "Caston said something about making the world pure. What if there was a reason we were all imprisoned? They needed to weaken our pack and?—"

"They needed to weaken the Fae," I said. "We went back home and there was nothing left."

"Were your mother and father's names, Georgios and Isona?" Zev asked.

Oria looked at me.

"Yes, they were her parents," I said. "Oria doesn't remember much from before she was taken. It's only coming back in bits and pieces."

"It seems Caston's family was trying to take out big families. The less powerful paranormals were, the easier it would be to raise a god war," Lucien said. "Isn't that what Caston said was on the horizon?"

"That's what Gray told us one of their informants said." I looked over at Oria.

"That's what Addie said," she said, looking over at me. "She also said ‘If she gets her back, she is the catalyst that will start the war, and she needs to be hidden.'"

Oria repeated Addie's words verbatim.

"That's why we took you away. It's why we decided you needed to be saved," I said. "I know you hate that we made the decision for you, but if a god war is on the horizon, then we need to do whatever it takes to stop it, even if that means we die."

Oria stood abruptly, knocking the chair over. "So that I can live a life without my mates?" Her eyes watered. "I save the world, but my payment is to live alone, again?! I told you I don't want to be alone. I lived in a tower for two hundred years alone with my cat, but I won't do that again, I can't."

She whispered those last words as tears fell down her face.

I opened my mouth to say something when the sound of a chair moving made me stop. Zev got up from his chair, walking to Oria. I growled when he took her hands, but a soft hand on my arm had me looking back at Katarina, giving me a look to calm down.

"I will do everything in my power for you to get your mates back. If you get taken, I will lose everything, the love of my existence, my pack mates and… and our child," he said, as more tears fell down her face. "I promise to give you every resource, all the money and everything in my power to help you."

"Why did you pull the baby card?" Oria laughed, but then cried and he held her. "That's not fair."

I was supposed to be her rock, and the growl was at the tip of my tongue.

"Your mates were thinking of the bigger picture even if it was a little selfish. We all have a lot at stake, and I'd like it if we all got what was stolen from us," Zev said, pulling back. "Let's make them pay."

Oria's eyes glanced over at me.

It was selfish. I'll always put you before me. I thought.

I'm still mad, but I guess I understand.

"Ok, let's make them pay," she said, looking at Zev and then the rest of us.

"Then, let's get cooking, Blondie," Aeon said, getting up.

"It's Oria," she said immediately.

"Of course, I'm sorry," Aeon said immediately.

"Soren calls me Blondie." Her voice cracked on the last word.

Aeon's face fell. "I didn't?—"

"It's ok. Come on, Sol, let's get our family back," I said, getting up and holding my hand out to her.

I felt our tension ease as she held my hand. It was the first step in the right direction. We spent the rest of the night making everything she needed and replenishing her necklace. Now all we needed was a plan.