Page 100 of Mated Exile

None is looking at us with more wonder than John deLance, whose mouth is actually open in shock. "You healed him from a soul-severing. I didn't think that was possible."

"A lot of things are possible."

"Can I ask how? Can you—would you fix others in our pack? Please, we need the help."

It would be fair to turn him away, after everything he did. But instead I tell him, "Once ours is fixed. If you'll excuse me..."

I brush past him, taking Kieran along with me. Lance and Roarke follow. We walk to a spot in the woods that smells like blood, and I drop Kieran's hand to kneel at the edge of a deep black pit in the earth.

"Took you long enough." Finn looks up at me and raises a brow. "Not that I'm complaining. I think Bastian is the one who's going to need more help."

Roarke kneels at the edge of the pit and puts his hand down towards Finn. "I've gotcha, buddy."

Once Finn is out, I peer down into the darkness, searching for Bastian. It takes a long moment for me to spot him, curled up at the edge of the pit, arms around his knees, body shivering. I brush my awareness against him and wince at the self-loathing, anger, and despair that I feel.

He didn't choose to let the vampires sink into his mind and use him.

But he blames himself for being used the way he was, and all that hurt that he caused.

"It's okay, Bastian."

I reach my hand down, but of course I can't brush my fingers through his hair from this distance. He's too far away.

So I decide to change that. Sinking my awareness into the earth, I call on my powers again. It should be difficult and exhausting after everything I've done, but the earth is glad to have someone recognize it again, after so much time spent dormant. Leaping at my touch, it pushes the bottom of the pit up and moves the ground around it until Bastian is sitting just a few feet away from me.

Growls rumble from the pack behind me. In a commanding tone, Roarke snaps out, "Stop that." They cease.

Leaning forward, I brush my fingers through Bastian's hair. He jerks back at the touch, opening his eyes and staring at me with a mournful gaze. In a low voice I tell him, "I don't blame you."

"You should."

"Never." I drop a kiss on his forehead, enjoying the way he shivers at my touch, this time from something other than shame or fear. "Whatever those assholes did to you, we're going to figure it out and undo it. I promise."

Uncurling his arms from his knees, he reaches out to brush his fingers across my cheek. In a low voice he asks, "Is he really dead?"

"Demetri? Saw him gopoofmyself."

Bastian is quiet for a long moment. Then he grins, and this time, he's the one leaning forward to kiss me—on the mouth.

"That's good news." Shaking himself off, he stretches and stands up. I take his hand and let him pull me to my feet as well. In a solemn voice he says, "But you can't trust me. Not yet, not even if that asshole is dead. What they did to me—I thought it was gone after you made me shift back to human again. It's... not. So you have to figure out a way to make it safe to have me around. Tie me up or... something."

"I wouldn't know where to start. I'm not very experienced in the arts of tying people up," I confess.

Finn pipes up, "I bet Cat could help. It'd probably be sexy."

Though I cut my eyes at him, I can't stop myself from laughing. Looking around at the assembled wolves, I ask, "Anyone got any ideas?"

One of the Stone Pack wolves, the dark-haired female, passes over a set of plastic zip tie cuffs. I don't ask where she got them or why she brought them along. Bastian puts his arms behind his back, and we cuff them together, though it makes my heart quake to do so.

Then we turn towards the trail to town, and I can't help but feel a little lost. Even as our little group ambles to the path and heads down, some part of me feels like I'm missing something.

I keep looking towards the Mating Circle, but Vivia hasn't reappeared yet—maybe she won't until the Summit tomorrow, when we make Roarke our alpha and call on her.

"Something is wrong," I tell everyone abruptly. "I don't know what, but we're missing something. Not the vampires—they're still outside the borders, and I think... I think the land would tell me now if they came back. We've made a connection. Butsomethingis bothering me."

"It's going to be okay," Finn says, clapping me on the shoulder. "You didn't even break my leg when you put us in that pit in the ground."

"Yeah," Kieran agrees with a grin. "I mean, things could've gone better, but they could've gone worse, too. I've even got new fur now! That's cool."

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