Page 81 of Rescued By Four Alphas
"Pathetic," he snarls in the old bear tongue, a language I haven't heard since childhood. "Why do you sit there like a helpless human while your mate's spirit drifts further into the shadow realm? Have you forgotten everything I taught you? Have you forgotten the ways of our people?"
I step back, shocked by the venom in his words. "The doctors say..."
His roar cuts me off, and it shakes the massive trees around us.
"Medicine!" he spits the word like poison. "What do human healers know of the soul? Of bonds that transcend flesh?" He stalks toward me, his form shifting between man and bear with each step, never fully one or the other. "Your mate doesn't need their machines. She needs the ancient power that flows in your blood."
"What power? What are you talking about?" I demand, "I've tried everything!"
"No." My grandfather circles me like prey. "You've tried everything the human world offers. But you are not human, Leo. Neither is she."
"There is a way," he says. "A ritual from the oldest days, when our kind walked this earth as gods."
"Then tell me."
"The Ritual of the Bonds." His massive hand clasps my shoulder. "When a bonded mate's spirit becomes lost between the world of living and the realm of shadows, her Alpha can call her back."
"How?" I ask,
"Listen well, for I will speak this only once." My grandfather says, "The ritual must be performed at the darkest hour, when the veil between worlds thins."
"The darkest hour?"
"Three hours past midnight," he clarifies. "All four Alphas must be present... all who share her bond. No exceptions."
I nod.
"Form a perfect circle around her body," he continues. "Each Alpha must place one hand on her head, heart, hands, feet, and join your free hands to form an unbroken chain."
"And then what?"
"Then you must synchronize your heartbeats and breathing as one entity."
It sounds impossible, but I hold my tongue.
"Ancient words must be spoken in the old tongue to open the pathway between worlds," he explains. "Your combined life force will create a beacon to guide her spirit home."
"That's it? We just need to say some words and..."
"Fool!" My grandfather backhands me with such force that I stumble backward. "This isn't some parlor trick! This ritual demands everything you have. If your bonds are not true, if your love wavers for even an instant, her spirit may be pulled deeper into shadow."
I rub my jaw. "And if we fail?"
His eyes narrow. "If you fail, she will be lost forever."
The forest falls silent around us, and not even the whisper of wind disturbs the trees.
"Teach me the words," I say.
My grandfather nods and begins to speak in a language far older than the bear tongue I know. The sounds scrape against my ears, and he makes me repeat each phrase, correcting my pronunciation until the words burn into my memory.
"The ritual can only be attempted once," he warns as the forest begins to fade around us. "If it fails, the pathway closes forever. Choose wisely."
"Wait!" I reach for him as he and the forest dissolve into mist. "I need to know..."
My eyes snap open, and I'm back in the room. The clock on the wall reads exactly 3:00 AM.
I bolt upright, and my heart pounds against my ribs. That wasn't just a dream. It felt more real than the chair beneath me, more real than the antiseptic smell of the room.
