SableWhen I open my eyes the next morning, I feel better. Physically stronger and much more refreshed—but mentally, I’m still worried and anxious. That moment last night with Dare and Archer was a nice break from reality, and was exactly what I needed to let go of my swirling emotions and thoughts for a short time. But in the harsh light of day, that bit of peace feels like it was ages ago.Too bad I can’t just have sex with my mates all day, every day. Life would feel infinitely easier that way.Archer is gone, and Dare is on watch beside the bed when I wake up. He’s clearly been awake a while—his messy black hair is still wet from a shower, he’s wearing clean clothes, and he’s clutching a steaming mug of coffee.“Did I explode?” I ask him, my voice a mumble with my cheek pressed against the pillow.He shakes his head. “Archer saw your scars go black late in the night, but otherwise, you slept peacefully.”I push away from the mattress and sit up to shove my tangled mess of blonde h
sableStill, I manage to catch his eye and shoot him a small smile.His expression doesn’t change much, but the dark brown of his irises seems to melt like warm chocolate, the flecks of gold glinting in a way that makes my heart flutter.He knows.“I am sure you will welcome our sisters and brothers of the North and West packs with open arms,” Malcolm says. There’s a note of warning in his voice, and I take it to mean if anyone doesn’t welcome the other packs, they’ll have hell to pay from their alpha. Even as sickly as his body is, he still exudes an aura of authority that I doubt anyone will want to test.“Now,” he goes on, his stern gaze sweeping the crowd, “we have another ally with us. Many of you have likely heard the rumors that my son, Archer, has finally taken a mate. And alongside those rumors, I’m sure you’ve also heard that she’s a witch.”Another burst of noise and movement comes from the crowd, and my heart turns fluttery in my chest. Archer, who stands between his dad an
Trystan“I’d like it to be known that I disagree with this plan.”As I speak, I slam my empty beer can on the coffee table, already regretting that I finished it too fast. It’s the only one I’ll have tonight. We’ve gotta stay sharp and alert, but I needed something to calm my fucking nerves.The guys and I are gathered around our mate on the couch at Archer’s place as she prepares to try to break into Cleo’s mind again.I get it—we want to be prepared. What’s coming isn’t going to be easy. How the fuck do you fight magic with claws and fangs? You don’t. Not really. You just try not to get your ass kicked too hard.For the first time in shifter history, we actually have a chance to fight magic with magic. If Sable can walk through the bond into Cleo’s head one more time and get us a timeline on their planned attack, that information could be priceless.But I don’t have to like it.“We need to know what they’re doing and what’s happening next,” Sable says simply. “If this attack is comi
TrystanI raise an eyebrow, but Dare’s the one who answers for all of us. “You shouldn’t be alone at all.”“I feel weak.” She grimaces as she speaks the last word, her blue eyes darting between the four of us. “I’m still recuperating from traveling, and using magic earlier today, I don’t… I don’t trust myself, okay? I think it would be safer if I slept alone, and you guys kept watch out here. Away from me.”“We aren’t afraid of you, Sable,” Archer says gently.“No. I know.” She smiles, but it doesn’t reach her eyes. “It’s just… I think it would be harder for me to hurt you with an unexpected spell if you’re farther away.”I exchange looks with the other men. It’s clear they all feel the same way I do. We don’t want to be without her. Not for a single night. But I trust Sable to know her boundaries, and if she says she feels weak and needs us to be away from her, I’m willing to cede to her judgment. It’s not so much out of my own self-preservation as it is to protect her—because if she
SableOf course it’s Trystan who goes against my wishes and barges into the bedroom like he owns the place.But I can’t even be mad. The sight of him looming in the doorway, his shoulders so broad he barely fits, is a welcome one. Then he’s on the bed, his arms warm and real around me. I clutch his t-shirt and lean into him, breathing in his scent, taking strength in his presence.Since I returned from my latest trip into Cleo’s mind, I’ve been working constantly to keep up a barrier inside my own head so that the coven leader can’t track me down. I don’t know how much she saw or felt, but I can’t risk her making her way into my head. God forbid she realize there’s a connection between us.What if she could control me through the bond? Make me kill my mates? Make me destroy the East Pack’s village?But I don’t know how long I can keep up these barriers. I don’t have any practice with them, and my magic is tenuous and uncooperative at best. I feel raw and on edge. I’ve been sitting her
SableTrystan does just what he promises.I fall asleep in his arms, and although I wake up the next morning alone, I feel more rested than I have in a long time.The North and West packs arrive early, before the sun has fully crested the horizon. I manage to chug a single cup of coffee before we have to hurry out to join the gathering crowd and help get them settled in various places around the village.Of course we chose to combine all three packs in the smallest of the three villages. In hindsight, that was probably a terrible idea.But the East Pack steps up, every home graciously accepting entire families from the neighboring packs. We have to deal with the logistics of keeping children and the elderly safe by making sure they end up in houses that have basements where they can be sheltered during the battle.I spend several hours carting cots, pillows, and blankets into the meetinghouse for overflow, while Ridge and Trystan do a roll call with their packs, making sure nobody is
DareThe cabin’s so quiet I can hear the clock ticking in the kitchen. Fucking loud as hell.Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock.I want to rip the motherfucker off the wall and hurl it out a closed window just so I can watch the glass shatter. I don’t know how Archer lives with the damn thing with his heightened shifter hearing, but I’m reaching my limit.Sable, Ridge, Amora, and Archer sit around the table playing cards, while Trystan wears a groove into the floor by the front window. He’s the only one who looks how I feel—on edge, ready to break apart at the seams.The witches were supposed to come yesterday. Sable saw it in Cleo’s mind the last time she checked on the witch coven. Plain and clear, they were planning on yesterday, but they didn’t come. The day passed in a haze of worry and choking tension as we all waited for hell to break loose. But then night came, and… nothing.None of us slept. At least, no one in this cabin did.I had my hopes up for a fight. I was raring for it, r
DareI take down another witch—a big guy standing over a dead wolf. I’m not pretty about it. He’s standing over a dead shifter, and as far as I’m concerned, he doesn’t deserve to die with his head attached.It seems like an eternity passes as I race through the chaos, but I know it’s only a few moments. There’s magic everywhere, and smoke hangs thick and heavy, obscuring my vision. The gunshots are fewer now, whether that’s because the shifters carrying the weapons are dead, or because they can’t see well enough to take a shot, I don’t know. There are witches all around me, but I’ve lost sight of the wolves.Cleo was right about one thing—if it were just the East Pack against the coven, the witches would decimate Archer’s people.As it is, we’ve given them a false sense of victory. Enough to hopefully make them cocky and stupid.I barrel into another male witch’s legs and throw the fucker off his feet. Before I can dart in and finish him off, blinding pain slams into my haunches, and