Page 48 of Shattered Soulmates

I gasp, my body propelled forward as if struck by an unknown assailant. I feel as though I’m being torn open and ripped apart. My wolf, who I haven’t felt in years, stirs and begins to howl in my head.

I look down and pull my blouse to the side, my breath catching in my throat. A light pulses from my chest, just above my heart. Then, a symbol begins to burn like a brand, spreading across my skin. A beautiful lunar eclipse, with silvery wisps of light glowing around the edges. A lone wolf appears, howling, crying to the moon.

I sink to my knees, overwhelmed by the beauty of the breathtaking symbol. I can’t take a breath, and tears prick my eyes as I gaze at the vision before me.

Then, suddenly, the pain intensifies, throbbing with each beat of my heart, sending waves of agony through me. The lovely glyph on my chest shatters, splitting into jagged black lines that spread across my skin like a spider’s web.

It feels like my heart is being torn from my chest. I try to scream, but no sound escapes my throat. The webbing grows, pulsing and spreading across my torso like shattered glass, leaving black residue wherever it touches. It weeps a thick, tar-like liquid, dripping and pooling in my lap.

Black tears.

I stagger back and fall to the floor as I tear at my skin, but the stains remain. I watch in horror as it webs down my arms and hands. I can feel the deep burns as it snakes across my once lovely face. The symbol itself isbranded onto me. The liquid seeps from the mark, spreading across my skin and clothes.

A bright white light flashes across my vision, and I blink, finding myself lying in an inky-black void. The oppressive darkness presses down on my lungs. I try to rise, but cannot.

“Help! Help me!” I cry out in futility. “What’s happening to me?”

“Hushhhhhhhhh, daughter,” a harsh feminine voice chides me.

“Where am I?”

“You’re with the moon mother, child,” the voice echoes, twisting around me, taking my breath. “I’m here to answer your questions.”

“Where are you? Why can’t I see you?”

“You aren’t worthy to set eyes upon me, child,” the moon mother scolds. “Because of your greed and selfishness, you sought to take that which wasn’t yours. You are corrupted. Miles was never meant for you. You were meant for someone else.

The darkness dissipates into a thick fog, and suddenly, I’m in a sunny meadow, a distant observer. Before me, a slightly older version of myself stands, smiling up at a beautiful, strong Alpha with broad shoulders and long black hair. His blue-green eyes lookdown at me with a smile. Me! His lips hover near mine, his warm breath brushing my face, and I can almost taste the wine on his tongue. My body and mind ache for him like I’ve never ached for anyone before. I feel the promise of the fated mate bond curl around me like smoke from a fire.

“This was your fated mate, Marissa,” the goddess mocks. “But you were too busy conniving and manipulating to wait for him, so now he’s been given to another.”

“No!” I cry out in agony.

I watch as the Alpha in the vision releases me and turns to look behind him at a beautiful blonde with brown eyes, tall and lithe like me.

He runs to her, and she to him, meeting in the middle and embracing. His pillowy soft lips claim hers in a kiss that sears pain through me, both physically and emotionally.

“Do you know why he has been given to another?”

“No–yes.” I concede.

“You have interfered with a sacred bond that I gifted to Miles and Paisley,” the goddess says, her voice full of anger. “You have torn the very fabric of fate. Now, you will wear the Faithless Mark because you betrayedMiles after promising him fidelity and causing him pain again and again. You’re also responsible for the damage done to their bond... for the pain you’ve caused your sister wolf.”

As I watch the couple before me, the realization hits that I did this to myself. I took Miles from his fated mate. I destroyed their bond.

I shake my head, trying to push the vision and thoughts away, but I will never be able to do so. This mark—the one that is now seeping into my very soul—is my punishment. It’s proof of my faithlessness.

I’ve destroyed something pure. And in punishment, I have lost my future happiness.

Tears sting my eyes, but I can’t let them fall. I can’t break. No matter the pain I have caused or who I’ve hurt. I’ll never escape because the mark continues to burn and ache as it slowly fades to scars.

“Marissa,” the goddess speaks with authority. “These are the consequences. When you wake, you will be judged and sent to Prisoner Island for your crimes. You will not be cared for within the confines of the prison system, but within the wilds outside. Your fated mate is the keeper of Prisoner Island, and as punishment, you will be forced to watch and feel the pain of your intended fated mate being with another for the rest of your life.”

“No, that’s too cruel!”

“It’s nothing less than what you intended for Paisley.”

The webbed mark pulses and continues to weep, despite now being a scar. It’s a constant reminder of the pain I’ve inflicted and will have to endure. I gasp to breathe, digging at my chest, but the burning pain never ceases.

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