A lump formed in my throat as I tried to process what he said, but it only had the panic building within me again.
What if completing the bonds had been a trap? What if Dante was coming for us now, and knew where we were? What if we weren’t safe anymore and he’d ensured this would happen?
“Dante is coming for you,” a familiar, amused voice said, echoing through the darkness, “but he’s not coming for you on the island.”
“Mom?” Rowan stared wide eyed down at his mother, who appeared behind our group. My mates parted, allowing me to see her.
She looked almost the same as she had last time. Sunken features, sallow skin, bruised eyes. Sickly, tired.
Rowan stepped forward, uncertainty crossing his eyes for amoment before he met her. Sable opened her arms for him, a sigh of relief passing her lips as he folded into her arms.
The sight of them together had the lump in my throat tightening. Based on the way she looked at me, it felt like a final goodbye.
A shudder wracked my body, but I said nothing. Not as she pulled away from Rowan and cupped his cheek fondly, pouring all her love into that single look.
“What’s going on, Sable?” Maeve questioned, crossing her arms. “Why are we here?”
Sable sighed and pulled away from Rowan. She eyed my vampire mate first before taking in the rest of them with a hard stare—before eventually landing on me. “You’ve completed all your bonds.”
It wasn’t a question, and yet I found myself nodding. “Yes, but it’s still on me.”
Something softened in her gaze, but it was only brief. “You’ve bridged the darkness between your bonds,” she explained. “They are here because your magic is still incomplete.”
“Don’t tell me I have another mate out there,” I murmured, exhausted. “Sable, we’re out of time.”
She nodded, lips pressed together. “Not another mate,” she said, which should have brought me some relief—but it didn’t. “The completion of the bonds should have cleared those pesky runes on your back, though.”
Behind me, Xerxes stilled before pulling back. Without a word, he lifted my shirt and drew in a sharp breath. “They’re healed,” he said, the words tense.
“Healed, but not gone?” I asked, looking over my shoulder. I couldn’t see anything, and unfortunately his expression was guarded.
Both Thor and Elias moved to stand with Xerxes, examining my back. “They’re silver, like they’re old,” my wolf mate said, brushing his fingers over my skin. “Raised.”
A shiver ran through me. “But can you see my mate marks?” There would be four new ones. Four for the mates I’d recently bonded.
I felt Thor’s hand on the small of my back, his voice coming through clearly.Yes,he murmured.I see my bear.
I wished I could see them, but instead I looked to Sable again. “What happens now, then? If they aren’t fully complete, then what do we need to do?”
“You need to get the collar off,” she said, as if it were the simplest thing in the world. “Dante is going to launch a full-scale attack on the Underworld and the rest of Avalon to draw you out.”
“How do you know that?” Damon asked, voice dark.
“I’ve come to know a lot,” she replied, glancing at him. “And he’s going to use me as bait. But do not fall for it.”
“Why?” Rowan stiffened, reaching for her like he wanted to embrace her again, but was frozen in place. “You’re still with him.”
“Oh, my sweet boy.” She softened again, this time tears shining in her eyes. “I’m already dead.”
It felt like the air had been knocked out of my lungs, pain crashing through my chest as I watched Rowan fall to his knees. “What?” he whispered.
I stumbled out of Xerxes’s hold and moved towards my mate, but his eyes were on his mother, who moved to cup his cheek again. “I’ve been dead for a while now, my boy. That’s how I was able to reach Ivy in the first place.”
Rowan pulled out of her hold, staring at her in horror. When I reached him, all I could do was rest my hand on his shoulder as he trembled. “What? How?”
Sable looked from him to me, and for the first time I could really see it. Death hanging over her, like the reaper himself was waiting. “Well,” she murmured, “I couldn’t let him have me or my connection to Nyx. It was the only way to protect it—and you. And it means he cannot use me against you. Do not worry about my body. It will return to Nyx just as she planned, and he will have no leverage. He might have it, but my soul is with you.” She looked down at her son again, tears welling in her violet eyes. “Just know, I didn’t want to leave you like this. But I knew you would survive.”
My mate shook his head, leaning into me as he sucked in shaky, uneven breaths. “You can’t be dead.”
