Chapter 26
The little bit of peace that Raffe and I had shared floated away, though my limbs were still weak from the amazing exertion.
Raffe groaned, pulling the tight jeans over his legs and carefully zipping up so his dick didn’t get caught since he still was going commando. I’ll need to go back to the house and get the right fucking size. I can’t handle this any longer.
Not going to lie; I enjoy seeing you like this, but I won’t feel that way when other women get the same courtesy. It wasn’t nearly as good as seeing him naked, but I did enjoy seeing all the curves of his muscles in the tight clothing.
Babe, you get to see what’s underneath my clothes anytime you want to. He winked. You don’t need me to wear clothes like this. You have special privileges. He opened the door and marched through the bedroom.
I ran the brush through my hair and glanced in the mirror. My cognac eyes were bright again, likely from Raffe and I reconnecting, but there were dark circles under my eyes from the hell we’d been through the night before.
With our lives hanging in the balance, I didn’t have time to worry about appearances. I put down the brush and hurried after Raffe. I didn’t want to miss a moment of the conversation. I didn’t expect a decision so soon. I wasn’t sure if a quick call was a good sign or bad.
Me neither. The muscles in Raffe’s back tensed, causing them to bulge through his shirt.
As soon as we stepped back into the living room, I was surprised to see Sedona sitting up on the couch with Dru next to her, replacing her bandages. Octavia sat beside Dru, her face strained, with Adam, Lucy, and Fane standing behind the couch. My nose picked up a heavier rosemary scent, so I glanced into the kitchen to find Priestess Caroline holding a steaming mug while leaning against the doorframe. Her face was pale and wrinkled more than normal from exhaustion.
Octavia homed in on me, and her shoulders sagged with relief. She murmured, “Thank gods, you both look almost normal.”
Yeah, it was probably a good thing that I hadn’t looked at myself before the shower. I’d have been a lot more self-conscious now if Raffe hadn’t made me feel truly loved and cherished. But no wonder he’d wanted to take care of me.
Josie and Dave were missing. That was strange, but they had just cemented their bond and might have needed to reconnect like Raffe and me.
Keith stepped away from the side of the couch where he’d been standing next to Sedona and held out the phone. “Keagan is refusing to talk to anyone but you.”
“I sure hope you know what you’re doing.” Priestess Caroline arched a brow. “Making a deal with someone who attacked you is foolish, almost worse than bringing home the woman who almost killed Skylar.”
Raffe’s hands fisted at his sides, and his neck corded. “I’m doing this to protect Skylar. There is nothing more important to me than that, so I don’t appreciate your accusations.”
I hurried to his side, slid my hand into his, making his hand unclench, and pushed calm toward him through our bond. I felt his anger ease slightly as our connection sprang to life.
Priestess Caroline pointed a finger at me and rasped, “The only people protecting your mate effectively are herself and us, so why do you get to decide whether we work with the enemy who killed twenty of my coven members last night when you didn’t lose anyone?”
“Uh …” Keith cleared his throat. “I don’t know how long Keagan is willing to wait, but should I—”
There was no way I would let him finish that sentence with the tension between Caroline and us right now. I stepped forward and lifted a hand. “Priestess Caroline, you’re right. You lost people, people you care about, and somehow, we didn’t. But Raffe didn’t start the conversation; I did. He wasn’t happy about it at first, but believe me, it’s better to make an alliance—and Raffe is the only one who can make this one because of his position in his family company—so we have somewhere safe to go and none of us have to lose anyone else. This is about protecting all of us and preventing the entirety of the Eastern people from threatening to attack us again and again.”
“We didn’t want to attack you.” Sedona glanced over her shoulder at the priestess. “You’ve got to believe me. If Keagan and my mother can find another way to break from King Jovian, they’ll take it in a heartbeat. Raffe has a way.”
“You know I respect you more than anything.” Octavia stood and turned so she could see everyone in the room, but she addressed the priestess. “But Skylar’s right. If we don’t try something, they’ll attack again. It’s not a matter of if. Next time, they’ll bring more people.”
Priestess Caroline waved a hand. “Fine. Proceed. Though don’t be surprised when you get betrayed.”
A deep growl emanated from Raffe, and I squeezed his hand. I linked, Take the call. We both think this is what’s best. She’s tired and not thinking clearly after losing so many of her people. Imagine how she must feel.
He exhaled and rolled his shoulders. You’re right. It’s just—
I know. I understood that he didn’t like her insinuation. Just take the call, and let’s see what they have to say. We could be arguing over nothing.
You’re doing the right thing, Lucy connected with everyone in the room, giving Raffe a reassuring smile. I’d tell you if I disagreed.
This is the safest bet for all of us. Adam nodded, giving his consent.
Raffe took the phone from Keith, unpressed mute, and placed it to his ear. “Hello.”
A smooth, older, masculine voice came across the line. “Is this Prince Raffe?”
“Nope.” Raffe smirked. “Just Raffe. I’m not a prince anymore.”
“So Priestess Ednah informed me, but I find that hard to believe. Why would someone walk away from power like that? Especially a strong wolf like yourself.”
My stomach churned, and the weight of the world settled on my shoulders. This conversation already wasn’t going well, and all the hope I had about finding somewhere safe for us felt like it was slipping between my fingers.
Hey, it’s going to be okay. Raffe’s warm eyes focused on me. He has to ask these questions and hear this for himself. He’s testing me. If he didn’t, I’d be more worried. He then said out loud, “Nothing is more important to me than my fated mate’s safety and having a long life together. You should know that since I refused your and my father’s plan to bridge the gap between us. You don’t want to kill my fated mate—or that’s what your coven told us—but you attacked us to find a way to get your freedom. I have a solution that will gain you that without getting more blood on your hands, and I hope that counts for something.”
“Yes, I’ve heard. I find it interesting. But why should I trust you to follow through on your word?”
“There’s nothing I can do to make that guarantee. You aren’t here, so you can’t smell if I’m lying or not, just the same as I can’t pick up on whether I can trust you in return.” Raffe paused and sighed. “Still, you have more assurances than we do. One of your own that you trust has vouched for our story and how we’ve treated her.”
Keagan laughed darkly. “I’d say you have the upper hand because you have someone you’re already aware is very important to us, and of course she’ll vouch for you. You’re standing around her as she talks to us. Unlike you and the other Western supernaturals, vampires, witches, and shifters get along here. We care for each other like families, and that’s something that bothers your father and, from what I’ve heard, you as well.”
“Yeah, well.” Raffe closed his eyes. “When you’re fated to an arcane-born, the people you love have their own strange fated-mate connections, and your strongest ally is a coven, it puts a lot of shit into perspective.”
“Which may include one of our own,” Keagan growled in frustration. “May I talk with Sedona?”
Raffe glanced at the witch and scowled. “Why? She’s already talked to her mother.”
“Because I have a few questions to ask her myself. Or is there a reason you don’t want to put her on the line?”
“Fine, but you only have a few minutes.” Raffe held the phone out to Sedona.
She leaned forward and took it while the rest of us glanced at each other.
What was your read on the call so far? Raffe linked to everyone here.
I think he’s considering it. Adam placed his hands behind his back. He’s nervous, which makes me believe he’s more genuine, but I don’t know if it’s going to work.
“Alpha Keagan?” Sedona cleared her throat. “How’s Mom?”
“She’s beside herself.” Keagan’s tone warmed. “As we all are. Do you trust them? Because his actions sure remind me of King Jovian, despite his words.”
His question was so blunt that it took me by surprise. He should know that every wolf near them could hear their conversation.
“They seem sincere, and they did help me last night and have fed me and changed my bandages this morning.” Sedona glanced down.
“If they are sincere, they would let you go and not hold you hostage.” Keagan’s voice hardened. “Keeping you doesn’t help them at all.”
Unfortunately, he was right. Yes, we might have helped the priestess’s daughter, but that didn’t mean we wouldn’t eventually harm her. They could attack us even if we kept her with us. We should let her go.
Keith’s head jerked toward me, his jaw dropping. What? No way. We should keep her here for security.
That wasn’t the real reason he didn’t want us to let her loose, and I doubted any of us here believed him.
We’re in negotiations because of Sedona. Raffe gestured to the witch as if I hadn’t remembered.
Because her mom called her. Otherwise, we’d still be screwed. We can use her mom’s relationship with her to get Keagan to listen, but he’s still hesitant. I didn’t need to be trained to pick up on that, and if I were him, after experiencing all we had with Olwyn and Aldric, I’d feel the same way. They have no reason to trust anything she says, so we need to give them a reason.
What? No! Keith shook his head, forgetting all about the conversation Sedona was having. She needs to stay with us.
Adam rubbed his hands together. Unfortunately, I think Sky’s right. Just because we have her doesn’t mean they won’t attack again.
And hand her back to the enemy so she can attack us again? Lucy’s brows furrowed.
You’re right. Raffe hung his head. The hope he’d had moments ago vanished. Keeping her doesn’t give us any real advantage. Sending her back might be the only thing that proves we’re different from my dad and the others.
In the end, Priestess Caroline might have been right, but at least we’d tried something. It was better than refusing to speak to the enemy. And though I would never say this out loud, if we were going to be defeated, we’d do it with morals. We wouldn’t resort to the same threats and actions as our enemy, and that had to damn well count for something. We need to show we’re different.
Raffe nodded and held out his hand. “Here, I need to talk to him again.”
“Uh, my time’s up.” Sedona mashed her lips together. “Tell Mom I love her.”
I grimaced. Though I knew Sedona realized she wasn’t at risk here, those words made it sound as if she was afraid she might not ever get to tell her mom that again. I wanted to smack her, but she had to be scared, and I couldn’t blame her.
Muting the phone, Raffe pivoted to Dru and asked, “How long until she’s stable enough to move?”
“She’s fine now as long as she takes it slow.” Dru snorted. “You supernaturals and your healing. She can’t walk for miles, but she’s fine to move around.”
“Good.” Raffe unmuted the phone. “Keagan, I’m assuming Priestess Ednah is close by, seeing as we have her daughter. Tell her if she comes to the house that they were going to attack, she will find Sedona there, and she’ll be free to take her.”
“What?” Sedona gasped, her uninjured hand clutching her chest.
“Is this a joke, or do you plan on attacking my people?”
“Neither.” Raffe’s hand tightened on mine like he needed to remind himself I was here. “But my mate agrees with you. Keeping Sedona here is pointless despite one of my pack members claiming she’s his mate. If they’re fated, they’ll figure out a way back together, so there’s no reason for her not to go home.”
“How do I know they won’t be attacked? What assurance can you give me?”
Raffe sneered. “None, the same way we have no assurances you won’t attack us. If you don’t want your priestess pissed at you, I suggest you tell them to be here in thirty minutes. That’s all the time we need to get her up to the house, and it will ensure you don’t have time to regroup and launch an attack. This is a less-than-ideal situation for both of us.”
“What if they don’t come?” Keagan challenged.
“Then she’s more than welcome to stay with us.” Raffe shrugged. “That’ll help me with Keith and his bitching. The decision is up to you. I’m done wasting time and energy talking. You want to see if I’m like my father? Well, here’s your chance.” He hung up the phone and tossed it back to Sedona.
Keith’s face reddened, and his nostrils flared. “What the actual fuck? If that was Skylar, you wouldn’t be handing her over to them!”
“Wait.” Fane rocked back on his heels. “I’m so lost. I get that she and Keith are fated, but aren’t we just handing her back to her own people? Why be upset about that unless it’s because they attacked us last night?”
“I’m for handing the girl back over.” Priestess Caroline walked into the kitchen. “She doesn’t need to be here, watching everything we do. Can one of you link with Josie so she can let Faith and Avalon know they’ll need to gather some members to go up there with you? Between us and the animals still hanging around the woods, they shouldn’t attack right away. Then we need to get some rest.”
I hated that they hadn’t slept after dealing with the dead, but we needed to try something different. Even if they didn’t ally with us, we would need to find another place to hide and hope I could control my power enough so Olwyn couldn’t locate us.
“Listen, I can go back to my people and vouch for you.” Sedona stood on wobbly feet. “If they see I’m not under duress, it will go better, and any shifter will know I’m not lying.”
Keith reached out to steady her, but he scowled. “What if they don’t listen and I don’t ever see you again?”
Uh … we should give them a minute alone. I caught Octavia’s and Dru’s gazes and nodded toward the door, wanting them to come with us.
When I went to catch Fane’s attention, I noticed that Lucy’s and Fane’s eyes were faintly glowing at the same time, and they moved toward the door as if they’d spoken without words.
I froze.
What’s wrong?Raffe scanned the room for whatever had caught my attention.
Maybe I was seeing things, so I linked with my brother and Lucy and asked, Did you two complete the bond?
The corners of Lucy’s mouth tipped upward as she made her way to the door. Yes, we did last night.
And you can link with him? Is he becoming a shifter? I didn’t know how any of this worked anymore since I’d become a wolf myself.
We can link, but I don’t know about him turning into a wolf. Lucy held the door open as Octavia and Dru walked out.
Oh, gods. Raffe groaned faintly. How much more chaotic can all this shit get?
I smacked him in the chest, but the weight of the world settled. Stop. I’m glad my brother found her.
Outside, the sun was out and shining down on us, and realization jolted through me. Wait. Lucy and I are now sisters!
She smiled and moved closer to Fane. “We are. I’m so glad you’re okay with it. We were worried about how everyone would react, so we told Dru and Octavia this morning. Thankfully, they were fine with it as well.”
Adam rolled his eyes. “Unfortunately, I got to be in the bedroom next to them when it happened.”
No wonder everyone had been absent this morning, and I couldn’t complain; Raffe and I had needed our own time alone. None of us knew how much longer we had left, but I tried to push the worrisome thought away.
“I’m just happy that both my kids found the love of their lives,” Octavia sighed while placing a hand on Dru’s arm. “Though I never dreamed they would be wolf shifters.”
“As much as I hate to ruin this moment, we need to discuss what we’re going to do when we get to the house.” Adam’s jaw clenched. “What if they come here to fight?”
Fair question. I looked around the neighborhood, but I didn’t see any of the animals from last night. I closed my eyes for a second and felt a faint hissing inside me from a spot close to my wolf magic.
“The coven members will be with us, and we got some rest,” Raffe answered. “You, Lucy, and Josie can be in wolf form, while Keith, Skylar, and I stay in human form to make the swap.”
Even as I listened to the conversation, I continued to be puzzled by what I felt inside. I tried pulling on the hiss, and it flared to a faint jolt.
Holy shit. I’d found my power. The jolt had been faint, my power still tired, but it was there, giving me hope I could connect with the animals. I tugged at it a little more and asked, Are you all okay?
“Are you sure Keith should be there?” Dru asked. “He might have a hard time letting her go.”
Raffe huffed. “He won’t be able to stay away. If they are fated mates, I understand damn well how he’s feeling. All we’ll do is fight if we try to keep him away.”
When I was about to give up on receiving a response, the strange, converged answer came through: Yes, do you need us?
My heartbeat quickened. I could speak to them again, and for some reason, that made me feel more whole.
We need to meet with people at the house, but we don’t want to attack them unless they wish us harm. I swallowed, hating to ask for more from them. Can you be near us in case they attack?
Of course. Anything you need, they replied almost together.
“The animals are going to help us again and be there in case Keagan’s people try to harm us.” I opened my eyes to find all six of them staring at me.
“You just talked to them?” Fane arched a brow.
I bit my bottom lip. “Yeah. Is that not okay? I sorta can feel my power now, even though I’m not upset, and I was able to reach out to them.”
Raffe turned to me, cupping my cheek. “You’re fucking amazing.”
“I’m just glad she won’t be breaking our furniture anymore,” Lucy teased. “I never replaced the coffee table because she has such a knack for destroying things.”
That was the night I’d come home to learn that Raffe was Lucy’s cousin, and he’d had his arm around Josie, pretending to be with her. The hurt had taken me by surprise, and I’d lost control. It was so strange that it was not even months ago when everything had gone down.
The door to the house next door opened, and Josie, Dave, Avalon, and Faith stepped outside. Avalon and Faith had dark circles under their eyes, but they headed over.
“We have coven members in the woods heading up to the house, so we should get going.” Avalon yawned and rubbed her face. “I just hope we don’t have to fight again because we’re drained.”
“Adam, Lucy, and Josie, shift and join them.” Raffe pointed to a group of women heading into the woods. “We’ll get Sedona and head up there.”
“I’ll stay close to Josie and run ahead to make sure I don’t see anything.” Dave crossed his arms. “I can let Josie know if something seems odd.”
He could run faster than any of us.
“Okay.” Raffe gestured to Octavia, Dru, and Fane. “You should remain here.”
“What? But Lucy—” Fane started.
Mom cut him off, “If something happens and you get hurt, Lucy will be distracted. She’s a supernatural, and you’re not, so it’ll be safer for her if you stay back. Believe me, I don’t like it any more than you do, especially with her and Skylar in danger.”
Fane’s jaw clenched, but he nodded. He kissed Lucy before he backed away and watched her, Adam, Josie, and Dave hurry away.
Keith, come on. We need to move, Raffe linked and winced, knowing that Keith wouldn’t be happy with what was going on.
While we waited for Sedona and Keith, I scanned the neighborhood. If I hadn’t been involved in the fight, I never would’ve known that something had happened. The place looked normal, though something sinister hung in the air that could only be described as death. I hoped that the souls had found peace.
Sedona, Keith, and Priestess Caroline came out, and the five of us followed the gravel road toward the house, leaving Octavia, Dru, and Fane behind.
Our pace was slow since we didn’t want to push Sedona. The sun kept the chill at bay, and I tried to enjoy being out in nature.
The animals are arriving, Josie linked. Dave sees them. That’s the only thing as of now.
Good. We wanted to get there before Priestess Ednah and her group.
Gravel crunched under our feet. Raffe and I held hands, and I noticed that Sedona and Keith kept staring at each other as if this might be the last time they ever saw one another.
My heart ached. I wished I could promise them that everything would be okay.
We reached the spot in front of the house.
Is everyone in place? Raffe linked with our pack.
We are, Adam replied. There’re at least a hundred animals here that we can see, and the coven is circling the backyard.
The five of us stood and waited, listening to the sound of birds singing from nearby trees.
After what felt like hours, Lucy linked, I see wolves.
An engine purred, heading in our direction.
My breath caught. Why are they coming in a car?
Sedona’s weak. They don’t want to make her walk, and they’ll want to get her out fast before we change our minds, Raffe answered, brushing his arm against mine.
A black Navigator appeared and came to a slow stop several feet from us.
The wolves stopped moving forward, Adam replied. They’re staying fifty feet back.
My heart hammered. Maybe they hadn’t come in attacking, but I wasn’t sure what the future held.
Then, the driver, passenger, and back passenger doors opened.
A tall, burly man with a thick beard stepped from the driver’s side. He was almost the same size as Raffe and alpha power radiated from him. Keagan.
The woman from the front passenger seat stood tall, nearly six feet, with dark-blue eyes that matched Keagan’s. She looked close to our age, which made me think she was his daughter.
The one Raffe was supposed to marry.
A deep growl escaped me, my wolf surging forward. My power grew in strength, flaring straight to a high fizz as I studied the woman who could have taken Raffe from me had King Jovian gotten his way. Is that Keagan’s daughter?