Blood Of The Marked

“How are you mated to two of them and I can’t find my own mate?” Iris asked the following afternoon in my dorm room after I had finished telling my friends everything.

“Um, it’s seriously unfair,” Vince agreed with a nod as he took a bite of his pizza.

“Seriously? You guys! I just told you guys all about this craziness and that’s your only response?” I laughed.

“I mean, it’s a good question,” Iris said with a shrug. “But in all seriousness, this is all really crazy.”

“Crazy is one way to put it,” Vince agreed. “Awesome is another way to put it. So, my question is, what will happen once you kiss them all?”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Well, you’ve only kissed two of the four and you’re mated to both of them. So, doesn’t it seem likely that you will end up being mated to the remaining two once you kiss them, too?” he said.

“Oh, that’s a really good point,” Iris agreed.

Huh. I hadn’t even considered the possibility that I could end up being mated to all of the Darken.“What are the odds, though? It’s rare enough to have two mates, let alone four,” I said.

“All I’m saying is that next time you kiss one of the Darken, maybe make sure you’re somewhere comfortable in case you pass out,” Vince replied with a shrug.

“Thank you for that important life advice,” I chuckled. “Last night with Theo was just amazing, you guys.”

“So, who do you like the most?” Iris asked, glancing over at me with a look of intrigue.

“I don’t know,” I replied, shaking my head.

“I guess I need to date them all to figure it out.”

“I just don’t understand,” Vince said. “I get that they all want to see you. It sounds like they all need to get laid really bad—”

“Would you sleep with all of them?” Iris asked me with raised eyebrows.

“I don’t know.” I hadn’t even thought about that yet. “I guess if it… feels right?”

“But my question is what happens once this is all over?” Vince asked. “Once what is all over?” I asked.

“This whole arrangement. I mean, it can’t last forever, can it? Are you just going to be that girl with four boyfriends—or four mates until the end of time? Will you end up picking one of them in the end?”

I sighed. “I don’t know. Like I said, it’s all really complicated.” I hadn’t thought about how this all would end. “If they do all turn out to be my mates, then I won’t have much of a choice, right? Theo told me you’re basically tied and connected to your mate for life.”

“I mean, yeah, pretty much,” Vince agreed with a nod. “So maybe think twice before kissing the other two.”

“What’s the difference?” Iris asked. “She already has two mates.” “There is a very big difference between two and four,” Vince said. “I know, but I mean it’s going to be complicated when there’s more

than one, regardless. You might as well mate to all of them. Plus, that way nobody will feel left out. You don’t want to cause tension among the pack,” Iris said.They went into a full-on heated debate about whether two or four was a better number of mates for me when there was a knock on the door to my dorm room.

As I opened the door, I fully expected to see Theo or one of the other Darken on the other side.So, I was completely caught off-guard when it was the She-Wolves standing outside my door.

“Hey, are you Raven?” Jessica Davis, the Alpha of their pack, asked. “Yeah,” I agreed with a nod.

“We have an invitation for you.” She handed an envelope to me. “Be there or be square,” she added, an almost threatening tone in her voice.

Then, without saying another word, she turned on her heel and walked away from me. The other girls followed after her.

As I closed the door, I wondered what the She-Wolves could have even been inviting me to.

“What is it?” Iris asked, obviously as curious as I was by their random drop-by and invitation.

“I guess we’re about to find out,” I replied as I tore open the envelope, which had my name written on the outside in swirly letters.I read the words written on the invitation.

Congratulations! The She-Wolves pack is looking to expand, and you are being considered as a member.

The reason you have been chosen is because we believe your strength and abilities give you what it takes to be a She-Wolf. The She-Wolves have not added any new members outside of direct descendants of the founding members in more than 40 years, so please recognize what an honor it is that you have been hand-selected.Our induction ceremony is going to be held on November 15th at 9

p.m. in the Dark Woods.

Once I finished reading, I handed the invitation to Iris. Vince read over her shoulder.

“Damn. They must really want you!” Vince said once he finished reading.

“Yeah, apparently,” I replied. Truthfully, I wasn’t entirely sure how to feel about this.

“Why would they want me of all people?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Iris asked. “They must have somehow caught wind of the fact that you’re, like, crazy powerful. They want you to be a part of their pack so that you can make their pack more powerful.”

“Ugh.” I sighed, crumpling the invitation up.

“You’re not even going to think about it?” Vince asked with raised eyebrows.

“Nope. I’m not about to let them try to use me for my so-called powers,” I replied, shaking my head.I may have been powerful, but I wasn’t about to let myself be used by just anyone. I didn’t even know these girls and they were trying to use my powers for themselves.

No, thank you.

Jessica’s threatening tone she’d used when giving me the invitation echoed in my mind. “Be there or be square.”I got the feeling that they weren’t going to like the fact that I was going to be a no-show to their induction ceremony, but oh well.