Oh For Mates Sake
Chapter 81

Clover

My blood dripped down the invisible barrier as I continued to press my fingers against it. I don't know if she brought us to this plane or created it, but something told me if she was dead, I would return. I just had to reach her.

I listened as she began to giggle. She stepped closer and stared at my face. "What do you think you are doing? You can't break through this. However, I am enjoying watching you try." Her head tilted lower, so that she was looking up at my face. She was giving me no choice but to look at her.

"You just had to come and ruin everything..." Her face turned taut, and her eyes narrowed at me. I watched as she curled her fingers together tightly and set her jaw. "It was almost perfect. I had been watching Sion for years! I had been by his side, patiently waiting. Everyone wanted us to be together. We had a good relationship. He was supposed to be mine."

I scoffed and glared at her. "You really think Sion would just sit by while you controlled HIS pack?! Yours? He was yours?" I snorted and shook my head, which looked like it pissed her off. "He was never going to be yours. Not by his own volition. He didn't want you." "YES, HE DID!" She screamed as her brows knitted together. "He wanted me until he found you. Da.mn sheya controlling the mate bond."

"I didn't-"

"Yes, you did! You are too naïve and don't understand your powers. You created the mate bond with Sion. It wasn't there before. You fastened yourself to him. You sank your hooks into him. Subconsciously, you wanted him and claimed him. You are the one who forced him. You are the one who didn't let him decide. He became drunk with the mate bond... only it wasn't..." Her lips curled up in a sickeningly sweet smile. She traced her fingers over the invisible barrier and pressed her face closer.

"You see..." she whispered. "You and I had the same goal in mind. Claim the Alpha... only you are better at manipulating than I am. I have to use engineered stuff... but you are manipulation itself. You choreographed your mate bond."

I shook my head. "That is not true. When Sion showed up, I couldn't even feel the mate bond. He was the one who sought me out. He was the one who-"

"It wasn't your first time meeting him." She stood up and looked at me like I was a disgusting insect. "Your mate was Denny, right?"

"How did you-" Of course... Alpha Scott must have told her. She continued talking like I didn't say anything.

"It would have been ideal for you to have accepted your mate. We could have kept you nicely under control. You would have stayed by your mate's side, who would have ended up under our control. We still weren't sure if you had any powers at that time. After the rejection, you planned to leave the Sulfur pack. You didn't have your wolf to fight and you would be easy to take. Darcia was waiting for you to leave so she could bring you to me." She stopped and glared at me. "But you decided to sink your hooks into what was mine."

It didn't happen that way. That was the first time I had seen Sion since we slept together. He said he knew I was his mate then... I chewed on my inner lip as I mulled over our first time together. Before we slept together, he didn't act like we were mates. Could I have done something? Did I want a relationship so much I... I forced a connection with him? No... no... even Sheena recognized him as our mate. Right, Sheena?

I felt the mate bond... I didn't like how she stopped.

But... I said as I swallowed the lump in my throat.

It doesn't matter, Clover. We are mated and are mates.

It does matter! I screamed at her through our mental link. Could I manipulate the bond even for you?

Yes, you could have willed me to feel the bond. I'm sorry, Clover. I don't know if you did. But we are mates now. We are having his pup. Sion loves us. Maybe... he only thinks he loves us.

Clover, don't overthink this.

Please don't Sheena. I wanted to have a family so badly. I wanted to belong to a pack. I wanted love...

My breath halted as I realized what I could have done. No matter what Sheena was saying, if I had willed Sion to me... the idea hurt. My throat closed and a sharp pain shot through my chest. I lowered my head and looked down at my hands. What had I done? I stared at my fingers, desperate for the truth. Did I really force a bond with Sion? Could my subconscious have been pulling the strings like a puppet master, guiding Sion towards me, even if I hadn't known? A wave of nausea and guilt washed over me as I stared at my trembling hands. Call Me Bree tried to make him hers. Did I do the same thing?

You are not like her! I heard Sheena bark angrily in my head.

Maybe not exactly, but if I forced a mate bond, then Sion's true mate is still out there.

He loves you!

Because I made him think he loved me. My lips parted as I looked down at the demon below. What if Hazel really was his true mate? I know Reapus said he manipulated the mate bond to help guide us... but... I felt so confused. I suddenly felt very lonely. What if all of my relationships were because I willed them? Denny, Jude, and Joey... what if I willed their friendship? Logan, Conner, and Kai...how could I ever know what was real?

The witch in front of me cackled. "You finally realize it! You're just like me. You manipulate and control everyone around you. You're not special. You're just a pathetic little she-wolf who will do whatever it takes to get what she wants."

I gritted my teeth and pushed against the barrier with all my might. "That's not true! I love Sion! I didn't manipulate him! I would have never done that on purpose."

The witch just laughed harder. "Love? Ha! You don't even know what love is. You're just a selfish little creature who wants everyone to adore her. A sheya is a terrifying creature. They bend the wills of everyone around them. People are nothing more than puppets to you."

I felt tears prick at the corners of my eyes. Was she right? Was I really that terrible of a person? I shook my head and took a deep breath. No. I knew what love was. I loved Sion with every fiber of my being. I don't know if I manipulated Sion, but my feelings for him were real. I couldn't think about this right now. I would figure it out later and what that would mean moving forward.

Right now, this bitch needed to die. I pushed harder on the barrier, determined to break through. "Sion!"

I glanced down hearing Demetri's deep voice. Sion had his head bowed low towards Logan and Odell, but immediately his eyes were drawn to me like two electrified magnets. His head lifted skyward as if he was hunting for something... someone... me. He could sense I was here. His golden eyes seemed to lock with mine in an intense, enigmatic gaze. I wasn't sure if he could actually see me or was just able to locate my presence.

"Tsk." I heard Call Me Bree hiss. "How could Darcia have lost?!"

Sion's body seethed with energy as he morphed into Anubis. His voice carried like a clap of thunder, reverberating through the air with unyielding vigor, "Demetri! Conner! Stay back!" He strode towards the demon with unparalleled confidence. I had no doubt that they would be safe now, but I couldn't help but wonder what would happen next.

"So, the rumors were true." Call Me Bree began to laugh, and I turned my gaze to her. "It is hilarious, isn't it? He ended up dying and becoming a soul collector. He is like the garbage man of souls. Look what you have done to him. He was a respectable Alpha and had everything going for him. Now he is a slave."

"He is powerful. He isn't a slave. It isn't like that."

The witch cackled again. "You really are delusional. He is a host for Anubis now. He is no longer the same Sion. He is tainted. A soul collector for Reapus. He is a lap dog for death." Call Me Bree sneered at me. "All thanks to you. I can see how you are good for him." She said in a mocking tone.

I gritted my teeth, refusing to show her that her words had gotten to me. I don't know if it was so much that her words got to me, or if it was because of my own self-doubt.

"You-" I began, but Sion's furious growl interrupted our conversation. He had reached the demon and the two of them were now locked in a fierce battle. Sion moved at lightning-fast speed, his movements fluid and precise as he dodged the demon's attacks and launched his own. The demon was larger and more brutish, relying on sheer force to overpower her opponent. Sion, however, seemed calm and collected. As if the battle was already won. And he would win... I already knew that. It was obvious by looking at the battle.

I glared at Call Me Bree with unbridled fury, my nostrils flaring in anger. No longer would I stand helplessly while someone else got the honor of claiming the kill. The taste of her blood was already on my tongue, and I was not going to let it go.

I focused all of my energy on breaking through the barrier, feeling the strain on my muscles as I pushed and pushed. Sweat dripped down my forehead and my breathing came in short gasps, but I refused to give up. I watched as white cracks formed at my fingertips. Call Me Bree stepped away from the barrier and shook her head.

"Impossible." She muttered as intense pressure built up in my body. I was pushing past my limits, but I didn't care. I was going to end this. With one final burst of energy, I broke through the barrier and surged forward towards the battle. She tried to run, but I was too fast.

My claws elongated as my fangs grew in anger. I pounced on her, my claws digging into her flesh. Blood splattered over me, the metallic scent filling my nostrils. She was using all of her power to hold the astral plane and had nothing left to fight against me. My teeth bared as I growled ferociously, sinking them into her flesh. Blood flowed from her wounds, but I didn't let up. I continued to attack, fueled by a powerful rage that burned within me.

"This changes nothing. You are just like me! You have done the same thing!" She screamed and then a pulsating energy flung me away from her. Her body shifted into her sandy colored wolf. She was going to fight against me in her wolf form?! This fight was already

over.

I shifted into Sheena, and our two wolves stood adjacent to each other. I snarled and raced towards her; my fangs bared. She attempted to strike me with her front paws, but I had no intention of letting her. Her left side was now open. I rammed into her body, and she spun around, the momentum throwing her off balance. She spun around, her large, sharp teeth grazed my flesh and she bit into my shoulder. Her movements were so fast I barely registered that she was coming towards me until I felt the pain.

She must have enchanted herself. There was no other explanation. I attempted to attack her, but she had already left. I crouched and sprang forward, ramming my body into her. She tumbled across the astral plane, her body colliding into an invisible force. It was clear that this was a strain on her body. She couldn't keep it up.

Knowing she was being depleted, I continued my onslaught. I didn't give her a chance to catch her breath. I tore at her body, ripping into her flesh and relishing in the feeling of her warm blood dripping down my chin. I pinned down her body, my paws wrapped around her neck, and I squeezed as hard as I could, not letting up as her eyes bulged and her body twisted frantically. Her blood spurted across the astral plane. Her eyes widened with fear as I glared back at her. With a final snarl, I ripped her throat out, silencing her forever. Her body crumpled to the ground, and I stood over her, panting heavily. I felt a sense of satisfaction wash over me, knowing that I had finally taken revenge for all the pain and suffering she had caused.

I sank into the invisible barrier, feeling my body crushed by an unseen force. The area around me seemed to crumble away as if being slowly consumed by some unseen darkness. I peered down to see Sion slice through the neck of the demon, severing its head in one swift and fierce movement. Blood sprayed up in a gruesome arc, splattering over Sion's face before he threw the head away in disgust. His gaze then lifted to the sky, once again searching for me.

I stayed there quietly waiting for the magic to diminish. The battle had been won... but I had lost something inside of me.