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Jude

Something tears loose inside my chest. A physical ripping sensation that drops me to my knees in my apartment, gasping for air as waves of terror that aren’t mine crash through my consciousness.

Emmie. Her fear hits me like a sledgehammer, so intense and overwhelming that for a moment I can’t tell where my emotions end and hers begin. Panic, confusion, the sick dread of being trapped with a predator—it all floods through me with crystal clarity.

Soul bond. My Emmie, my Aurora Omega, is soul bonded to me.

When did it happen?

My finger touches my lip and I remember she bit it. That has to be the moment she bonded us together forever.

We’ve talked telepathically, and that in itself is unique for two Omegas but this is something else. I feel her. Truly feel her . I knew we had a connection, but not a Soul bond. The rarest, deepest connection possible between two people, transcending biology and choice.

I’ve been teaching about this for years, describing it in academic terms to students who see it as romantic fantasy. The mythical connection between two souls that allows them to share emotions, thoughts, even physical sensations across any distance. Most scholars consider it theoretical at best.

But there’s nothing theoretical about the terror flooding my system right now, as her feelings are nothing but fear.

My hands shake as I grab my phone, speed-dialing Beck’s number. He answers on the first ring.

“Jude—“

“She’s my soul match,” I blurt out, not bothering with pleasantries. “Beck, she’s my fucking soul match. I can feel everything she’s feeling right now, and she’s terrified. She’s so scared I can barely think straight.”

Silence on the other end, then Beck’s voice, deadly calm: “Are you certain?”

“I’m certain. I can feel her fear like it’s my own.” I pace across my small living room, running my free hand through my hair. “We have to find her. We have to find her now.”

“We will,” Beck says with absolute conviction. “This pack doesn’t go down without a fight. Eli and I are already mobilizing resources—“

“What resources? Blake has a head start, professional security, probably multiple escape routes planned.” The panic in my voice is climbing toward hysteria. “He could take her anywhere. Out of the country, somewhere we’ll never—"

“Jude.” Beck’s Alpha authority cuts through my spiral. “Breathe. If you really have a soul bond with her, then you have an advantage Blake can’t account for. You can reach her.”

He’s right.

If Emmie and I truly are soul-bonded, then distance is irrelevant. I can maintain direct mental contact, assuming I can calm down enough to focus.

“I need something of hers,” I say, already moving toward my bedroom. “Something she’s worn recently, something that’s touched her.”

I know she borrowed a T-shirt after her shower. I find it crumpled in the corner where she’d tossed it—a soft cotton shirt in pale blue that still carries traces of her natural scent. I press it to my face, breathing deeply, using the familiar smell to anchor myself.

“I’m going to try to contact her,” I tell Beck. “If this works, if I can reach her mentally, I’ll get whatever information I can about their location and plans.”

“How long will it take?”

I settle cross-legged on my bed, the T-shirt clutched in my hands like a lifeline. “Could be minutes, could be hours. The bond has to be strong enough, and she has to be receptive to the connection. She might be a little scared to focus right now.”

“Do whatever you have to do,” Beck says fiercely. “And call me the moment you learn anything.”

The line goes dead, and I’m alone knowing that Emmie’s terror is still echoing through my consciousness. I close my eyes, focusing on the sensation of the soul bond, that invisible thread connecting us across whatever distance Blake has already put between us.

Breathe, I tell myself. Center yourself.

This is just like the meditation exercises you teach your students.

But it’s nothing like those peaceful academic exercises.

This is a desperate, clawing need to reach the person who’s become essential to my existence.

The fear that if I fail, I might lose her forever.

I hold the T-shirt against my chest and reach to the golden thread of connection, going deeper and deeper until—

Jude? Her mental voice is faint, confused, hardly a whisper in my mind. But it’s definitely her, and definitely real.

Emmie. Relief floods through me so intensely I nearly break the connection. Oh God, Emmie, I can feel you. Are you hurt?

I don’t... There’s wonder mixed with the fear sliding through our bond line now. We really can do this.

Yes. We’re soul-bonded, love. I can reach you anywhere as long as you’re receptive. I pour every ounce of love and reassurance I can manage through the connection. Where are you? What’s happening?

Helicopter. Blake is... he’s talking to the pilot about flight plans. Her voice grows stronger as she focuses on our connection. Wait, let me listen.

The bond goes quiet for a moment, then her voice returns with urgent clarity. He’s asking about fuel stops. The pilot is saying they need to land at... Lawrence Municipal Airport in New Hampshire. Small private strip. Then they’re changing to a plane and continuing to Aspen.

Aspen, Colorado?

Yes. Blake has a house there . He ’s telling the pilot about landing clearance for a private residence. Her fear spikes again. Jude, I’m so scared. He keeps looking at me like... like I’m a prize he’s won.

Help is coming, I promise her, already reaching for my phone to call Beck with the location information. Beck and Eli are mobilizing everything. We’re going to find you.

What if you can’t? What if he takes me somewhere you’ll never find me?

That w on't happen . I pour absolute conviction through the bond. Emmie, listen to me. You are my soul match. My other half. I will move heaven and earth before I let him keep you.

Soul match, she repeats, and I feel her latching onto the concept like an anchor. I love you, Jude. I love all of you so much. Please let Eli and Beck know in case I don’t come back. I’m glad I got to love you, even if it was for a short time.

I love you too. More than I knew was possible. The admission comes easily, naturally, carrying my absolute truth. Stay strong, love. Keep the bond open if you can. I’m going to call Beck with this information, then I’ll contact you again.

Hurry, she whispers, and the connection fades as she focuses back on her physical surroundings.

I immediately speed-dial Beck, pacing again as I wait for him to answer.

“What do you have?” he asks without preamble.

“Lawrence Municipal Airport in New Hampshire. They’re stopping there to take a plane, then they're continuing to Aspen, Colorado. Blake has a house there with private landing clearance.”

“Not Montana…Aspen. Are you sure?” I can hear him already moving, probably heading for his own transportation. “How is she holding up?”

“Scared, but unharmed so far. The soul bond is...intense. I can feel everything she’s feeling.” I swallow hard against the renewed wave of her terror washing through me. “Beck, we have to get there before he...”

“We will,” he says grimly. “I’m coordinating with my contact now. We’ll have people waiting at both locations. Because one is obviously a lie.”

“I’m coming with you.”

“Jude—“

“She’s my soul match,” I repeat fiercely. “My soul match, Beck. I’m not sitting here helplessly while she’s in danger.”

He pauses for a moment. “Understood. But if you’re coming, you follow orders. This isn’t going to be a gentle rescue operation.” The implications in his voice are clear—people are going to get hurt tonight. Probably killed. And I’ll be directly involved in whatever violence follows.

For Emmie, I’ll carry that weight.

“I understand,” I say. “Just get me to her.”

“Twenty minutes. Be ready.”

After ending the call, I settle back on the bed, clutching her T-shirt and reaching out through the bond again. This time the connection forms more easily, that golden thread between us growing stronger with practice.

Emmie? Are you there?

I’m here. Her mental voice is steadier now, drawing strength from our connection. We’re landing at the airport I mentioned. There are men waiting—more of Blake’s people.

How many?

Three, maybe four. All armed. Fear spikes through the bond again.

Jude, Blake is talking about moving me to some kind of facility.

Somewhere secure where I can’t escape. The casual way she relays this information makes my blood run cold.

Blake isn’t just planning to use her—he’s planning to imprison her permanently.

That won't happen , I tell her with fierce certainty. Help is already on the way to all locations. Beck has resources Blake doesn’t know about.

What kind of resources?

I hesitate, not wanting to frighten her further. The kind that gets results. Just focus on staying safe and keeping this connection open. Can you do that?

I think so. It’s getting easier. There’s wonder in her mental voice. I never believed soul bonds were real. But that was why I studied it. I wanted to know. And now this...feeling you in my mind, knowing you’re fighting for me. It’s keeping me sane.

Good. hold on to that. Hold on to us. I pour every ounce of love I can manage through the connection. Whatever happens, remember that you are loved. Completely, unconditionally loved.

I love you too. More than I knew was possible. Her mental voice grows faint as physical demands pull her attention away. They’re moving me to another aircraft. I have to go.

Stay strong, love. We’re coming.

The connection fades, leaving me alone with her steely determination mixing with her fear. But something has changed in the quality of her emotions—beneath the terror, there’s a core of steel I hadn’t felt before. She’s not just surviving anymore. She’s preparing to fight.

My phone buzzes with a text from Beck. Car outside. Time to go.

I grab a jacket and head for the door, still clutching her T-shirt like a talisman.

Whatever’s waiting for us in Aspen, whatever violence and chaos Beck’s “resources” might unleash, I’m ready for it.

Emmie is my soul match, my other half, my everything. And I’ll burn the world down before I let her stepfather keep her.

The golden thread of our connection pulses steadily in my consciousness as I head out into the night, a beacon guiding me toward the woman who owns my soul.

Your pack is coming, love. Hold on.