He gaped down at himself, then at Sabina, who was also gaping at him, but then I saw it.

A tiny starfish hand was on his chest.

I gulped at the sight, then rasped, “Knight was touching you as you crossed the totem circle, Eli.”

The four of us shared a look, before Ethan surged to his feet and Sabina retreated to the other side of the circle once more.

Gurgling, a happy smile on his face, one that was so ill-fitting for the occasion, Knight laughed as he smacked a hand on Ethan’s arm, and Sabina and my twin timed it so that they crossed through together.

Ethan groaned, then cursed under his breath when he made it to the other side, but he too was fucking healed.

“Holy Mother,” I bit off, seeing their broken bodies in one piece once more.

“This is happening for a reason,” Ethan managed to get out, his voice strangled as, his arms high, he twisted around to study himself. He was still filthy, still absolutely covered in dirt and blood and all kinds of nasty shit, but Mother, he was whole once more.

I stared at Knight, his tiny, beaming, beatific face, and I leaned down and picked up Marjory, a bitch who worked at the post office, who never failed to make me feel like a piece of dog crap on her heel, and hustled her corpse into my arms.

Sabina, picking up on what I was doing, retreated through the circle once more, and when Knight touched her, and we crossed the line?

Marjory started to move.

My eyes grew wet with tears, stupid tears, happy tears.

Grief coalesced with joy, and I stared at our baby, my little shit machine, and whispered, “My boy.”

As I laid Marjory on the ground, I surged forward, as did my brothers. We gathered around him, each of us pressing a thankful kiss to his tiny head, a head that couldn’t even comprehend what he was doing, before we looked at Sabina and each of us whispered, “Thank you.”

“I didn’t do anything,” she argued, her eyes starry as she focused her gaze on Knight.

“You did. You gave birth to this magnificent boy,” Eli rasped.

“My sister is the reason for all these deaths,” she countered, shaking her head. “No. This is all Knight.” She kissed him, squishing him to her, and rasped, “This means…”

I knew why she broke off, too.

Mates wouldn’t be torn apart.

Families wouldn’t be ruptured.

The pack wouldn’t be grieving these losses for decades to come.

I sucked in a breath. “Let’s get to work.”

We had a pack to save.

Todd

When I woke up, I had no choice but to stare at the sky. I was on my back, my head at the perfect angle for gazing upward, but there were no stars to watch, no clouds to see the shape of a wonky dog or the Tower of Pisa in.

It was twilight, cloudless.

The sky was rich with color, making it like no other twilight I’d ever seen before. The purples and the blues, the oranges and the reds, it was like Van Gogh’s Starry Night in real life, except without the stars and only streaks of color.

I remembered what had happened, could taste Jana’s blood in my mouth, could even feel the memory of the bullet tearing into my belly.

What I couldn’t remember was coming here.

Only the Mother’s chosen people were brought to Nevaehai, the Mother’s soul. Her place of sanctuary for Her children.

I’d never been before, and I knew my father and grandfather had never been blessed either. That I was here told me I’d almost died and that, somehow, Lara had saved me.

Some things were denied to us, even the guardians of knowledge, and the keys to Nevaehai were one such thing. I had no idea how she’d done it, but I was grateful.

Even if I knew the Mother had no alternative.

If I’d died, my grandfather would have been the sole remaining kumiho, and he was too old and infirm to beget another son, to bring forth a generation that would keep our people alive.

With only two of us on Earth, the Mother had an obligation to save us, but I knew Lara was involved.

She had to be.

I twisted my head left and right, trying to find her, and saw her at the Pond of Dreams. It was nothing like I’d imagined. The tales had been passed down, of course. Of the waterfall, of the clear water that was transparent but gleamed as if micro diamonds tainted it. Of the rocks which gleamed like they were dusted with gold. It was enchanting, beautiful to a degree that went beyond words, but the most beautiful thing of all?

Lara.

She sat there, her toes dipped into the water, perched on a rock like a siren of old, her legs swaying back and forth, her hair falling backward, brushing the lower curve of her spine as she peered up at the sky.

She was magnificent.

Glorious.

Mine.

It beggared belief, even though I’d known, somewhere along my life, I’d find a mate. I had to. There was no alternative for the kumiho. Like my father, I was a lucky man. I’d found mine while I was young. My grandfather had been nearly two-hundred when he’d found my grandmother.

Even though it hadn’t for my parents, I hoped this boded well for our future, a positive portent that would make up for the dubious circumstances of our beginnings.

Feeling a little sleepy even if, in myself, I felt well, I moved into a standing position and quietly walked toward her. She knew, of course, and when she turned to me, I felt my dick harden as I saw her eyes.

My smile, when it came, was slow, but she must have sensed the change in me, because her eyes were like silver now. All knowing. All seeing.

She wouldn’t know. How could she? There were no mirrors here. No physical items that came without a request from the Mother. She was as naked as I, as proud as I in her nudity, unaware that she’d grown a thousand times more gorgeous just by turning her head so I could look at her and see the truth—the Moon Child.

When I slipped into the water, which was the perfect temperature, not too cold, not too hot, I sighed with delight and moved over to her. She watched me with those silvery eyes, and I wondered if, when we returned to the other world, to the real world, if they’d remain silver and she’d have to wear contacts for the rest of her life.

We lived in an area that was mostly shifter, and the humans tended to know about us, so maybe she’d get away with it. Hiding those orbs would be a travesty.

I rested my chest against her calves and leaned into her, staring up at her as I said, “Thank you.”

“For what?”

Her modesty had me smiling. “Saving me.”

“I don’t think I can take much responsibility for that. The wolf, the one Sabina calls Berry, she did it.”

I arched a brow. “The wolf did?”

“Yes.” Her gaze turned pensive. “Of course, I know she’s not just a she-wolf now.”

“No, they’re from this realm, aren’t they?”

“Yes. But she’s also Eli’s mother. The twins’ mother too.” Her lips pursed. “Very complicated.”

“Infinitely complicated.” I blinked. “That’s unusual.”

“What is?”

“Siblings.” I plucked at my lip. Maybe Maribel and her son, with a child on the way, weren’t the siblings of legend.

Maybe Eli and his twin brothers were.

I thought about that for a second, then decided there was little point in worrying about what would be learned with time. Time, all kumiho knew, passed very swiftly, and information that was not yet known would be learned as the clock ticked away.