43. Jake
JAKE
We arrive back in our realm in one piece. Jasmine led us through the portal, and thankfully, it led us to Fernhollow. One thing we didn’t plan for is what would happen if we ended up somewhere else and had to travel to Fernhollow, so I’m glad it didn’t come to that.
Liam stayed behind, but I know we will see him again. Jasmine will have questions, but Liam has to finish out whatever bargain he made with the God.
Marisole and Jasmine follow me in silence as we head to my hotel room. It’s the closest place, and I desperately need a shower after being locked in the dungeon.
I think we’re all shocked to be alive and walking in this realm. Sure, we wanted to succeed, we wanted everything to go to plan, but it’s surreal that we did it.
Jasmine must feel similar, because she randomly laughs.
I turn around to see her loop her arm around Marisole’s, drawing my eyes to their matching snake tattoos since Jasmine decided to remove her glamour. She has the biggest grin on her face. When her gaze meets mine, her eyes are glossy.
I smile back, still thinking how wild it is that we get to live our lives together. Sure, there are a lot of things to figure out now, but we did it.
We get to live.
When we get to my hotel, there’s a familiar face waiting outside.
Kyrian, Silas’s younger brother, stands against the wall with his arms crossed and his usual expression, making it impossible to tell whether he’s angry or simply bored.
When we get close enough, he pushes away from the wall, walking toward me.
“Long time, no see,” he says as he hugs me. He’s the same height, if not an inch taller, than Silas. They could easily be twins with their shaggy, dark hair, nearly black eyes, and athletic build.
“Why are you here?” I ask.
He takes a step back and says, “Junie wouldn’t stop bothering me to check in on you, knowing what you’ve been up to. Silas would have come, but he got caught up in some pack business. That’s how I ended up on a red-eye flight. And, by the way, you look like shit.”
I roll my eyes.
“Also,” he continues. “They tasked me to present you and the demon to the Council.”
I open my mouth to remind him her name, but Marisole beats me to it. She stands to the left of me, hand on one hip, clearly not afraid of Kyrian.
“I have a name, wolf,” she snarls.
Jasmine, thankfully, loops her arm around Marisole’s and apologizes. “Sorry about Marisole, she’s a little cranky.” She gives her sister a glare, then continues, “I’m Jasmine.”
Kyrian’s gaze lingers on Marisole for a minute too long, then his attention moves to Jasmine.
A smile appears on his face, and he brings out the side of himself that’s saved for those he cares about.
Being a scout for our pack, Kyrian’s always putting others before himself.
And when we rescued Junie from a snowstorm two years ago, he was the comedic relief she needed from the grumpy rollercoaster Silas put her in.
So much has changed over these past two years, and it’s odd to stand here now with my mate by my side and a close friend. Sure, fate landed me here, but I like to think we would have found our way to each other somehow.
“Should we go inside?” Kyrian asks. “Silas has asked to be called once I confirm you’re not dead.”
I chuckle. “Yeah, okay. Probably good to do that so Junie doesn’t worry about me.”
Kyrian nods, a smirk on his face. We both know that Junie is the empath of their relationship, and she’s likely been waiting by the phone for us to call.
She has her moments and was similar to Marisole when we first met her.
But over time, Junie has been the best luna for our pack, and I’m very excited for her to meet Jasmine.
Jasmine and Kyrian make small talk on the way up to the hotel room, and I’m grateful to see Kyrian taking an interest in my mate.
He’s always been the more talkative one in our pack and has been the best at reading others.
And although he’s never talked about finding or choosing his mate, I know it can’t be easy to be surrounded by those who have found their person.
When we get into the room, and the door is closed, it’s silent for a beat.
It’s the first time since going to the Underworld that we’re safe, or at least mostly safe, with the precautions I have in place.
Marisole and Jasmine sit at the table, Kyrian sits on the end of the bed, and I lean onto the counter in the tiny kitchenette.
I can’t help but notice that every time Kyrian’s gaze looks around the room, it stays on Marisole a moment longer than the rest. Nothing about the way he’s looking at her can be good, especially with what’s coming in the next few months.
“Should we talk about what comes next?” I ask, interrupting Kyrian’s stare-off with the demon.
He looks at me, knowing I’ve caught him, but nods. “Once we call Silas, he’ll alert the Council that we’re ready to move forward. We will set a date for the marriage and the swearing in of the Council.”
Oh, right. I look at Jasmine and smile, remembering that getting married is a requirement from the Council. Not that we wouldn’t have gotten married in the future, but ideally, we’d date a little longer, I’d propose, and we’d do all the normal things after that.
But with this life, we don’t always get to pick the timeline of everything.
“I can’t wait,” Marisole says lazily, resting her head on her hand. A second later, a bang comes from their direction, and she glares across the table, mumbling, “God, fuck you, Jasmine.”
Be nice, Jasmine mouths. Then she says, “I need to complete the bargain with Mar, too. Ideally, this happens before the thing with the Council.”
“Bargain?” Kyrian looks from Jasmine to me. “What bargain?”
“It’s not relevant. You don’t need to know,” Marisole says, and I know she won’t waver from this. If she’s anything like Jasmine, she’s strong-headed and won’t back down from something once a decision has been made.
Plus, I owe it to her for helping Jasmine over the past decade.
“She’s right, Kyr.”
Kyrian frowns, but nods. Since I’m higher in rank, he knows not to push me on this.
“You’ll have time to do that,” I say to Jasmine.
“Thank you,” she says to me, even though she should know by now that I would do anything for her. All she has to do is ask.
We call Silas after that, filling him in on everything that occurred over the past forty-eight hours—from me ending up in the dungeon, to escaping, to the bargain, and everything in between.
When we get to the subject of the Council, I realize that I’ve been chasing after something I’ve had this entire time.
When I first came to Fernhollow, I was so worried about disappointing Silas.
I had to do something to make him proud of me and to be worthy of the role of his second.
At some point in my life, it’s like I convinced myself I didn’t earn it, that I wasn’t doing enough to be the right person to lead the pack when it mattered.
After Junie and Silas became a pair, and we dealt with multiple packs of rogue wolves, the two years that followed were quiet, and I don’t know why, but I didn’t feel as involved in the pack business as I once was.
But now? I’m looking back and seeing that Silas has always had faith in me, has always let me do what I needed to do to feel fulfilled. Even if that meant taking time to scout with Kyrian for a much-needed break, he let me forge my own path.
Before Jasmine entered my life, I didn’t realize how hard I was on myself, and how I was convinced that failing this job would lead me to not be the second Silas needed to protect the North.
I only ever wanted to be helpful, to show that I’m more than the muscle of the pack, when really, I never had to worry about that.
It only took meeting a demon who had her hands full with bargains for me to realize that even with a life full of twists and turns and setbacks, I never needed to change who I am.
And even now, as I meet Jasmine’s stare and feel the bond between us once more, thriving and pulsing with love, I know that even if the next few years are full of challenges, we’ll be able to overcome them all. Together.