Reborn (Shadow Beast Shifters Book 3)

By the time we were done with our judgment, half of the pack was spared. Those shifters would be able to remain in Torma and rebuild their life. I sincerely hoped they did more with it than the first Torma pack.

At the end, Jaxson made his way toward me again. “Hello, old friend,” he said.

Pain finally hit me, right as Jaxson reached out and grasped onto my furred and feathered hand. “You look amazing, Mera,” he said, and I could tell he meant it. “Strong and beautiful. Powerful in a way that I always knew you could be.” His words were the polar opposite of the disgust Torin had shown over my new form, and once again, I was content with my decision.

Jaxson released me then, turning to Shadow. “Thank you for saving her when I couldn’t do it.”

Shadow crossed his arms, staring his Anubis nose down on him. “She saved herself. And me.”

Jaxson nodded, like he should have thought of that. Returning his gaze to me, he asked, “Why didn’t you strip my wolf?”

I met his eyes. “Your soul is pure, even if you have been led astray at times.”

He quickly glanced at his dead father, still untouched on the ground, not a single shifter taking his body away for a true burial. “It’s a liberating feeling to finally be free. Kinda sucks that it comes with having to lose you. Will I ever see you again?”

“Fuck yes, you will,” Simone said, finally having exhausted her patience in waiting, barging through the remaining crowds to reach me. We hugged hard, my fire wings popping away just in time so no one got burned.

“I missed you so much,” she cried, “and you’re in deep fucking trouble for not sending me any more messages.”

“I’m so sorry. I kind of lost the parchment,” I said against her shoulder.

She grumbled but didn’t call me out on how I’d lost it. Best she didn’t know about my almost death.

“I missed you so much, Sim,” I said when we finally pulled away. “It’s been so hard knowing you were here, with Torin and those others.”

She shrugged. “Shadow gave me a few extra skills. Every time Torin tried to come near me, he was hit with a strike of electricity. A magical taser, if you will. It’s been brilliant.”

I snorted, side-eying my mate, who was still standing in awkward silence with Jaxson.

Turning back to Simone, I sighed at how happy I was to see her face. “Tell me about Sam going back to her pack?”

Her expression grew grim, and my smile faded away. “She didn’t have a lot of choice. They called her back to deal with unfinished pack business.”

A trickle of unease ran down my spine. “Are you sure she’s okay? They didn’t treat her very well, which is why she tried to get out in the first place.”

Simone nodded. “Yes, I’ve spoken to her on the phone every day, and she says it’s all going okay there. Just dealing with some shit because her true mate wants to try to make it work.”

“The true mate who rejected her?” I confirmed.

Simone grimaced. “Yep, that would be the bastard.”

My unease didn’t disappear, worried that Sam was in a situation that could turn to shit very fast. Would she ask for help if she needed it?

“She’s not in any immediate danger,” Shadow told me, tilting his head as if he was sensing her out in the universe. Sometimes it was scary how powerful he was, especially when it came to shifters. “Her emotional state is subdued, but her physical state is good.”

I made a mental note to check in on her myself soon. I’d made the mistake before with Dannie, trusting she was okay, only to find that Shadow’s definition of okay was not exactly the same as mine. This time, I would ensure the safety of my friend, but as long as she was in no immediate danger today, we could clean up our other messes first.

Simone started to circle me, examining my form from all angles. “The wings,” she said, “are fucking awesome. Where do they disappear to? Do they really fly or are they just show pieces?”

My wings reappeared and I shot up into the air, and those of the Torma shifters still around clapped and laughed as I zoomed around like a showoff. When I landed back at my mate’s side, we were once again all business.

“There’re some rather large holes in Torma’s power structure now,” I said, staring at the scattered shifters.

“Who is the new alpha?” someone nearby asked, having heard my statement.

Shadow looked at me, but I shook my head. “I don’t know who’s worthy, outside of Simone.”

My friend in question held both her hands up as she shook her head. “No. Nope. Absolutely not a fucking chance. I’m not vibing that sort of power play and responsibility.”

I snorted. “And why am I not at all surprised?”

Simone shrugged, and we both laughed. Jaxson cleared his throat, interrupting, and I was suddenly worried he would suggest himself as alpha. He had the power, and the control, but it would take more than that to strengthen this pack. Thankfully, he just said, “Why don’t you allow us to rebuild slowly, and maybe a worthy alpha will emerge? We can have a true selection by the pack… a vote.”

Shadow didn’t love that idea, if the annoyed huff he exuded was any indication, but he didn’t argue. My ancient mate probably just hated his traditions being messed with. “I think that’s a plan to work with,” I said, trying to hide my amusement. “We’ll periodically check in on you all, and hopefully by then, you’ll have figured out who is alpha enough for Torma. Until then, Shadow will protect you from other packs, right, mate?”

He tried to kill me with his eyes, but unfortunately for him, he’d fallen in love with me and now he was stuck forever dealing with my shit. Sucker.

“Right,” he growled.

Simone snorted out some laughter before shaking her head. “What about me?” she said. “Now that Mom and Dad got the old heave-ho back to human they go, I’m not sure where I fit.”

“I’m sorry about your parents,” I said quickly. That had been a tough decision for me, but there was no denying their complicity in all the bullshit that had gone on in Torma. A lot more than I’d even known about until I touched them and saw into their souls. It was dark in there, even if a lot of it was initiated by Victor. But they’d never tried to fight his corruption, and for that, they’d lost their wolves.

She shrugged. “They had it coming, in more ways than one. Mostly I want to know when I will see you again. Can I visit the library?” She took my hand. “You’re my family, Mera, and I refuse to live this life away from you.”

Gods, my friends were legit going to kill me today. Between Angel almost dying and Simone hitting me in the feels, I was maxed out on emotions.

Wanting to have this conversation in my normal form, I released my power and returned to the human-Mera. Shadow handed me clothing that he had to have created in about a second, and once I was dressed, I was able to hug my friend again without feeling like I was a giant compared to her. “You can visit me whenever you want,” I said, sniffling at how happy I was. “I want to see you all the time, talk to you every day, and we will figure out a way to make that happen.”

Shadow didn’t tell me it was impossible, which gave me hope that there was a way.

“We’re pack,” I said, pulling away. “Family. Always.”

“You know it,” Simone choked out with tears in her eyes. “And we have so much to catch up on. I need to know everything that happened. How you turned into a fire bird wolf goddess. Is Dannie gone now? Did anyone else get… hurt?”

I think we all knew who the anyone was in that situation. “Dannie’s dead, she chose not to be reborn, and all of us made it through mostly alive. Lucien is fine.”

She sagged in relief, her face a complexity of emotions that spoke of memories I still wasn’t aware of. A lot had happened in the library and Valdor between those two, and one day very soon I wanted to know all of it.

“Do you want to see him?” I asked her gently.

She shook her head. “Not… yet. It’s too hard to know the truth of what can never be. There’s a shit ton of backstory there, and I will spill it all when we meet up next for our weekly PJ and margarita girls’ party in Shadow’s room. Deal?”

“Deal!” I said, right around the time Shadow wrapped an arm around me and hauled me back against him. He was still in his huge flaming form, and as the warmth surrounded me, I sighed in pure contentment.

Torma was dealt with. The pack had one final chance. And now it was time for us to head back home. We had a dinner to attend.