Page 36 of Rhaz’s Redemption (Shifters of Valo Prime #6)

Rhaz

“How was the birth?” Beatrice asked Julie later that day. The two dekes’s had become one and we all happily sat around the fire celebrating the return of their lost sons.

“Well, it wasn’t easy, I’ll tell you that,” Julie laughed. She’d given birth to her and Orsu’s son a week ago. He was a big baby with fat cheeks and fat little legs to match.

“As you can see, he’s not exactly small,” Julie held up the sleeping baby who looked as peaceful as a person could be.

“She was amazing,” Orsu smiled down at his mate.

“I screamed the entire time,” Julie laughed again.

“Yes, you screamed like a warrior, and you bore our son into the world, what more could I ask for?”

“How are you feeling?” Beatrice asked. “How’s the recovery been?”

“I’m feeling great actually,” Julie looked over at Sozu who was introducing Talia to his younger cousins. “Sozu checked on me every day after the birth and gave me as much of his healing power as he could.”

“I’m glad to hear you’re doing well,” my mate smiled. “And that little Marcelo is doing well too. How did you pick his name?”

“It was my father’s name. Orsu said it was alright with him if we named him after my father.” Julie looked up at her mate with a warm smile.

“Yes, we named this one after your father and we will name the next one after mine,” he agreed with an amused tone.

“Next one? Let’s wait until this one can at least walk before we think about the next one,” Julie shook her head with a smile.

“We will take all the time you need, but we will have many children and they will all be smart and brave like their mother.”

“Oh stop,” Julie blushed, but Orsu only widened his smile. He was so proud to be with her. Orsu radiated joy being around his little family.

“How is it that everyone ended up in the village anyway?” I asked. I had been surprised to come out of the ravine and find myself in the middle of a battle.

“We were looking for Fatima and Anusha. We never even made it back to the mountain after we were rescued,” Julie explained.

“We demanded answers from Dameron and his men, and when they wouldn’t give us any a fight broke out.”

“So we won the battle, but our friends are still lost?” Beatrice sighed.

“Unfortunately, yes,” Orsu admitted. “To their credit, I don’t think they were lying. No one seems to know where that giant took Anusha, and we’ve checked all the local hunting caves for Fatima and Drelic, but they weren’t there.”

“That’s not good,” Beatrice chewed her bottom lip. Fatima was her closest friend here, and Anusha had been close to them both.

“We’ll find her,” I assured my mate.

“I want to help look for her,” she said.

“Then we’ll go together,” I squeezed her hand and she squeezed mine back.

Someone across from us growled and we turned our attention that way. Favalor had tried to sit next to Zander’s sister Vianna, but by the piercing look on his face, Zander wasn’t going to let Drovo’s brother anywhere near her.

“What’s that about?” Beatrice asked.

“I’m not sure,” I admitted. “Zander doesn’t seem to like Favalor very much.”

Vianna, who we all discovered was a snake shifter, slapped her brother on the shoulder and stormed off.

“Zander should be careful,” Julie commented. “They’re at that age where passions run hot and the yearning runs even hotter.”

“They are young adults,” Orsu added. “They will sort things out for themselves.”

I glanced back at Zander who was looking off into the forest with a sad expression on his face.

He liked Fatima, that much had been clear, and now she was out there with stranger.

I couldn’t imagine what that must be like.

She must be terrified. I sent a silent prayer up to the goddess and shifted closer to my mate.

With any luck we’d find both women soon.

When I turned my attention back to our conversation, I found Beatrice staring up at me and studying my face.

“What is it?” I asked.

She squinted her eyes as if to inspect me closer and said, “You died today.”

“Yeah,” I ran my hand through my hair.

“And according to what you’ve told me, you’ve died many times before.”

“That’s also true.” I wasn’t sure where she was going with this.

“No more of that. I don’t ever want to experience that again.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. “I have no intention of dying any time soon.”

“Good.” She gave me a curt nod of her head as if the issue of my ability to die and come back to life had been settled.

I didn’t tell her about how I’d seen our son in the afterlife. I didn’t want her to feel pressured to have a child before she wanted to. Bhaz is an impatient little soul. He pouted when I saw him at the gate with my mother and told him he couldn’t come with me yet.

I unconsciously rubbed the spot where my sire had stabbed me in the heart.

It didn’t hurt anymore, but the emotional pain still lingered.

Even after all we’d been through there had been a part of me that doubted he could go that far.

To be fair, I never thought I’d be able to kill him, but when I saw him holding a knife to Beatrice’s neck again, I knew what I had to do.

Now he was gone, and I wasn’t at all sad about it. I’d grieved the loss of my sire long ago. Every day as a child when he refused to hug me, or spare a kind word, I grieved. By the time I’d become an adult I’d become numb.

That was in the past. I had Beatrice now, and soon we’d have Bhaz.

“Life is going to be different living here,” Beatrice commented as she looked around at our new surroundings. “There’s so much more freedom to walk around. It’s so safe.”

“Will you be okay here,” she turned her attention back to me. “Living back in the place where you have so many bad memories?”

“I have good memories here too,” I assured her. “And we’ll be making good memories together.”

“I’d like that,” the corner of her mouth turned up in a smile.

After dinner that night, Beatrice and I moved into an empty cabin that had been used by one of Dameron’s men. Beatrice spent an hour sweeping the entire thing until she was satisfied every inch had been cleaned, then she proceeded to throw the broom into the dwindling fire.

“There, we got all of the bad energy out,” she nodded to herself then headed back to the cabin where I set out the furs I’d gathered from the cabin we shared in the ravine.

Favalor had agreed to keep the ladder secured to a tree at the top so if anyone were to find themselves in there ever again, they’d have a way to get out.

Over the next several days everyone in the village helped me dismantle Dameron’s cabin.

Nothing went to waste, but the memory of his existence would forever be diminished to a few pieces of wood used to patch up a house, a stone bowl added to someone’s collection, and a few stone cups added to the communal collection.

It was a symbol that while he may be gone, the effects of his actions are still with us. But we can mold and shape those effects into something new. We could heal the wounds that he inflicted and move on to a brighter future.

Beatrice was by my side the entire time, being the strong rock I needed for the times I felt like crumbling.

By the end of the week everything of Dameron’s had been dispersed, and a full moon rose high above us in the sky like a bright new beginning.

Beatrice and I glowed for each other and this time, I did not deny her. This time, I carried her to the furs and begged to pleasure her like the goddess she is.