Page 22 of Kael (Monsters & Mates #2)

“He was unconscious for hours,” I say, gripping my glass a little tighter. “When he was found, his body temperature was low. Too low. Then he woke up—seemed fine—but out of nowhere, he fitted.” I swallow hard. “He stopped breathing.”

Iris stiffens. “As in had a seizure?”

I bob my head. “Yes. He had a pulse but no breath. I gave him CPR, and he started breathing again. It didn’t make sense. It still doesn’t.” I meet her gaze, my stomach twisting. “We don’t know what’s wrong. We’re at a loss and need your help.”

Iris doesn’t answer immediately. Instead, she stands. I track her movements as she goes to a cabinet, opening it with quick, precise hands. She starts gathering supplies—bundles of herbs, small vials filled with liquid, things I don’t recognise but I suppose must be important.

“So, let me get this straight,” she says, not looking up. “This guy wasn’t just pulled through a rift. He got slingshotted through the core of the Earth?”

Kael nods once as I wince, saying, “It’s just a theory at this point.”

Iris snorts, shaking her head. “Jesus. No wonder he’s fucked up.”

I almost laugh. Almost. Instead, I watch as she keeps working, pulling more items from her stores. And despite everything—the pain, the exhaustion, the way my body still doesn’t quite feel like my own—relief unfurls in my chest.

Because she’s already moving. Already helping. Already calling, “Hen—” Iris barely gets the second syllable of his name out before her mate appears.

One second, the space near the doorway is empty. The next, he’s there.

I jump. Hard. Nearly dropping my empty glass.

Kael doesn’t jump. But he does turn to steel, his entire body locking down in a way that makes my own muscles tense in response. He doesn’t reach for his blade, but I can feel how much he wants to.

I can’t blame him.

The Hendroy— Henny —stands like something conjured from the deepest, most primeval parts of existence. Shadows coil around his massive form, his eyes gleaming with something unreadable and deeply unsettling.

If he had eyebrows, I’m pretty sure they’d be furrowed into a scowl.

Iris, completely unfazed, just sighs and turns to him. “I need to go to Dathanor.”

Henny does not like this.

His stare sharpens, his entire presence seeming to vibrate with displeasure. And yet neither of them speak. They just… look at each other.

It lasts long enough for the hairs on my arms to rise. I shift uncomfortably, glancing back and forth as something icy and silent passes between them.

Oh. Oh hell.

They’re talking. Not out loud, but in that eerie, telepathic, I’m-so-bonded-to-you-I-don’t-even-need-words way. My pulse stumbles, my stomach lurching as the realisation lands with a weight I wasn’t ready for.

Because I started my side of the bond with Kael.

I swallow hard, my heart jumping—not quite in panic, but in the stark awareness that my life is already irrevocably changed.

Before I can spiral too much, Kael shifts closer. Then, to my surprise, he comforts me.

He leans in, his breath warm against my ear as he murmurs, “You are not alone in this.” His voice is low, deep, and threaded with something so steady that my entire body reacts before my mind catches up. A shiver—a delicious one—runs down my spine.

Damn.

I can’t wait to get on a proper bed with this man. This Glowranth who’s promised to be mine. Somehow, I hold back my amusement at myself. Apparently, I’m a fickle bitch.

Iris interrupts before I can do anything about it. “All right, I’m ready.”

I blink. “Shit, already?”

I know we have to go. I know Dawson’s life is hanging in the balance. But damn, I’d really been hoping for food. And maybe five glorious minutes in an actual bed.

Iris watches my expression shift, and then she laughs. “Oh, don’t worry,” she says, her grin knowing. “We’re not walking.”

“What do you mean?” I narrow my eyes.

She gestures vaguely towards Henny. “Why would we trek when my Henny can transport us there in the blink of an eye?”

Kael goes rigid. More rigid than before. I glance at him, then at Henny, who just stares at us. And not in a friendly way. More like he’s picturing our bodies splattered against a rock and wondering whether it would be inconvenient to clean up.

“Right,” I say, exhaling sharply. “That’s… great. I love interdimensional smoke vortex travel.”

Kael does not love it. At all. He looks at me. Looks at Iris. Looks at Henny, who hasn’t moved an inch but still somehow feels closer. “This is a bad idea,” he mutters.

Iris waves a hand. “Relax. You’ll be fine.”

Kael does not relax. Neither do I, honestly. But eventually, we agree, because what other choice do we have?

Henny lifts one massive hand. Smoke swirls around us, thick and curling, swallowing everything in an instant.

As the world distorts, I barely get the chance to say, “If we die, I’m haunting you, Iris,” before the ground vanishes beneath my feet.

The shift from swirling smoke to solid ground is so abrupt that I stumble forwards, catching myself just in time. We’re inside Dathanor’s headquarters, not the main township.

Smart. No need to terrify the masses with Henny’s looming, shadow-drenched presence. That being said, the weapons trained on us aren’t great.

My hands fly up instinctively. “It’s me, Sonny! I’ve brought Iris!”

The mist fully clears just as Varek races through the door. His gaze locks onto me, his frown deep and assessing—but then, just as quickly, it eases. A smile forms, relief flashing in his sharp eyes.

“Sonny,” he greets me, and that single word carries more weight than I expected.

I grin. “Told you I’d make it.”

Varek lets out a short laugh, shaking his head. “That you did.”

We’re still grinning at each other when his gaze flicks past me, landing on Henny.

To most, Varek looks completely calm. Unruffled. But I know better. The tension in his jaw, the subtle way his stance shifts, weight distributing evenly, his body ready despite his relaxed posture—he’s anxious.

Because everyone knows the Hendroy’s reputation.

Varek doesn’t step closer—because he knows that would be stupid. Instead, he inclines his head in something between diplomacy and self-preservation. “Thank you for coming.”

Henny doesn’t respond. Just stares.

Varek moves on quickly. “We relocated Dawson to a medical room on the west side of Dathanor.”

I nod, understanding immediately. That area isn’t for residents. It’s cordoned off. Secure. Likely hiding the prince away as much as possible—though let’s be real, everyone knows he’s here.

Shit . Has Aelith been throwing his title around? I want to ask. I won’t, though, not with Henny and Kael here. Instead, I cut straight to what matters. “What’s his status?”

Iris speaks before Varek can. “Explain while we walk. I want to see him.”

No argument there.

We move, falling into step with Varek leading us. I stay at Iris’s side, Kael a silent shadow behind me. Henny lingers just beyond that, and even with all the space around us, everyone gives him a wide berth.

Varek doesn’t comment, keeping his voice level as he starts explaining. “He was conscious once, but not for long,” he says. “His body isn’t stabilising. We put him on a drip.”

I nod. “Good thing we’ve scavenged enough human buildings to stock some medical supplies.”

“It’s helped,” Varek agrees. “But his vitals keep fluctuating. He should be dead.”

Something in my stomach twists. “But he’s not.”

“No.” Varek glances at me. “Not yet.”

The unease in his voice needles at me, but I keep my focus forwards as we step outside. The air is fresh. Familiar. It smells like home.

The blue sky and green grass back at Iris’s place were glorious, but this—this is real. Not conjured. Not built from the dreams of a woman who wanted to live in a Christmas movie.

Dathanor is mine. And I belong here. Something I can’t believe I’m actually admitting to myself, but here I am.

The walk is short, our route avoiding prying eyes. But when we arrive at the west gate, the guards let us through immediately. I catch the way their gazes widen slightly when they see me. And damn it, is it bad that I want to stick my chest out a little?

Because fuck yeah, I made this happen. Admittedly, Kael may have done the grunt work, but I managed to not get us killed by Henny. It’s a definite win.

The moment Varek silently opens the door to the medical bay, my self-praise screeches to a halt. My gaze lands on Dawson, and my stomach plummets. What the fuck? He’s pale— so pale, his skin looks almost translucent. His usual warmth, the deep bronze of his complexion, is gone.

“We were only gone three days,” I whisper, my voice wobbly.

A sharp movement pulls my attention. The prince. Prince Aelith looks— fuck . He looks haggard. Barely half the Glowranth he was when we left. The sharp lines of his face seem more pronounced, his posture wrong, like he’s not just exhausted but drained.

Kael’s worry slams into me. It’s visceral. Deep. Shakes my very core, and it propels him forwards. He doesn’t hesitate, moving straight to his prince’s side.

I watch the exchange, the way Kael’s hands press to Aelith’s shoulders, steadying him, offering whatever comfort he can. Aelith exhales sharply, and though he doesn’t speak, I feel the weight of what passes between them. My chest tightens.

Iris, meanwhile, rushes straight to Dawson, her movements quick and certain.

A sound rumbles low in the room.

The prince.

A warning.

Kael turns sharply. “No.” The word is a command, his voice edged with steel, and Aelith stills, though tension vibrates through his body. Then, suddenly?—

Black mist billows into the room. Thick. Blinding.

I curse, instinctively reaching for Kael, but before I can so much as move, Iris’s voice cuts through the haze. “Henny, knock it off!”

Silence.

Then the mist vanishes just as suddenly as it came, revealing an irritated Iris and a stone-faced Henny near the door, dark energy still curling faintly around his fingers.

Iris exhales sharply. “I need space. Room.”

“No,” Aelith says immediately, his voice hoarse but firm.

She turns to him fully, her eyes searching, really looking. Then she says, “You’re his fated.” It’s not a question. Kael stiffens beside Aelith. Iris lifts a brow. “But it’s not a fully formed bond yet?”

A beat. Then Aelith answers, voice tight. “No.”

She nods, gaze shifting, calculating. “Fine. You can stay. Everyone else, out.”

Tension crackles through the room. The mist stirs again, thickening.

Iris sighs and turns to Henny. “Fine,” she says softly, frustration curling at the edges of her words. “Stay. But disappear.”

Henny legit goes poof . One second, he’s there. A hulking, ominous presence. The next—gone.

I gape at the now-empty space. Will there ever be a time when I get used to this weird, monstrous shit? No. Probably not.

I move towards the door, Kael at my side—until Aelith speaks again.

“Kael. Stay.”

Kael hesitates. His shoulders tense. He’s torn.

I glance at him, catching the war on his face, the conflict in his stance. His concern for Aelith is palpable. And so, before I think too hard about it, I offer him a small smile. A reassuring nod. And I send comfort to him through our bond.

His breath stutters. His gaze flicks to me. Then he swallows, and I feel his gratitude ripple through the growing tether between us.

The door closes behind me. And fuck?—

Why does it hurt? It shouldn’t hurt like this. Right?

A shadow moves in front of me, blocking my view of the small window in the door. Varek. His massive frame looms, his presence solid. His expression? Not good.

“Sonny,” he says, voice low. “What the fuck have you done?” Concern laces his features, sharp and unrelenting.

I grimace. “You make it sound like I burned down a village.”

He doesn’t even blink.

“ Frigth drigth , Sonny,” he mutters, dragging a hand down his face. “Three days. Three days you’re out of my sight, and you what? Tell me what I’m sensing isn’t true.” His eyes bore into me. Waiting. Demanding.

I swallow. And suddenly, I really, really wish I’d got a full night’s sleep before dealing with this shit.