Page 45 of The Arabis Triad

Paxt’s gaze darted over the both of them. “She needs all of us. Touch her and touch the crystal. Do it. Now.”

* * *

Evelyn

Evelyn had totally lost track of time. She was frozen to the core, her body shivering with a frigid cold she was sure would never go.

Clouds swirled around her, caging her in with the solidity of metal bars. She couldn’t see a damn thing, nothing but the cold, black sand beneath her feet. Her yelling was dulled, her throat raw from screaming.

At one stage, she thought she’d caught sight of Ashir, but she wasn’t sure if it was her imagination clutching at straws. Heat hammered in her throat, those last moments replaying through her mind. She could only hope he was all right.

Hunger gnawed her stomach. She was parched, so dry her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth. The water from the lake lapped at the shore, tempting her. Salty. Completely undrinkable. She sank into the cold sand, tucking her body into a ball in an attempt to stay warm, but it left her back open to the chill and made her ribs ache.

What she wouldn’t give to be back on the shore of the real lake, making love to her mates… herhusbands.

All three of them, as ludicrous as it sounded. Not so long ago she didn’t want one, and now she had three.

She shook her head, huffing a chuckle. It was strange. Being caught in a cage of clouds had let her think with no distractions. She’d spent hours—maybe days—with nothing else to do but focus on her thoughts. Enough time to get her head around the recent events. Amazing what changes a few days could make to a life. Irrevocably. She could never go back to the way she had been. She didn’t want to.

She just wanted to be treated and held with the care they gave. At first, she hadn’t known what it was, but after so long pondering it, she could name what she felt. Cared for. Cherished. Loved.

It had taken her a while to attach the meaning to the words. She’d never had anything to go by, except television shows and romance novels. Now she knew what they were writing about. Thatknowing, deep down inside that made her soul sing. It righted all her wrongs and gave her something to live for. It was undefinable, intangible, but as real as anything she could physically touch.

So different than what she was used to. Evelyn could now see she’d set herself up to fail even before she’d entered into a relationship. Better to be rejected by an arsehole than to potentially lose her heart. It was less painful.

She probably would have continued to live her life that way, if Paxt, Coltan, and Ashir hadn’t been different. They had forced her to see the contrast, with their special brand of never-take-no-for-an-answer.

She’d pushed them away. Been unsure. Uncertain.

But now.

Now she missed them. She wanted them. She needed them. She would give anything to find her way out of wherever she was, and then she would grab what they offered with both hands and never let go.

She now saw the bond for what it was—a gift of a life that she’d had no chance of achieving before.

Anger erupted through her. It was the first time she ever had a chance of happiness and it had been ripped away from her.

She threw her head back and screamed, “Let me out of here, you bastard!”

Then she screamed and screamed and screamed.

Finally, spent and panting and more exhausted than before, she clenched her fists and opened her eyes. And frowned.

The clouds glowed with magenta, the color slashing through the dull black, jarring her from so long only seeing monochrome. The tint grew and as it expanded, the clouds recoiled and thinned. Sunlight made the pink glow from behind.

Hope stirred a rapid beat of her heart.

She reached upwards, her fingers stretching as she rose up on her toes. “Help me! Please! I can’t get out of here.” Warm wetness trickled on her cheeks that she belatedly realized were her tears. “Paxt! Coltan! Ashir! Please, please, please find me.Please.”

A squall battered around her, whipping her hair into her eyes, strong enough to knock her off her feet. She landed on the cold, damp sand, her vision hampered. The black edged into the color, bleeding it away. The light receded, sending her back into shadows.

Panicked, she came up on her knees, anger pulsing through her. She was done with accepting bad deals in life. She had something more than great and she was going to seize it right here, right now. No one had the right to take love away from her. She wouldn’t let them. She wasn’t going to give away that sort of power ever again.

She staggered to her feet, fighting against the buffeting wind that fought to take her back down. She ignored the frigid cold and her shaking body. She would fight for what she wanted.

“No. I won’t let you go,” she yelled to the sky. “Come back. I want… I want you. All of you. I don’t want to live without you. All of you, and I want to be your mate. Please, come back. Please. I… I love you. All of you.”

She squinted in the sudden brightness as pink and warmth surrounded her. She felt light. So light that she lifted upwards, a few grains of sand falling from the soles of her feet. She didn’t look back as the light washed out her vision and swept her away.

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