Chapter 29 You Have To Lie #2
Astrid's brow furrows. "And after? When my team searches the entire facility and finds empty cells where magickal prisoners should be?"
"That's where the difficult part comes in," Cormac says quietly.
I watch Astrid's face carefully, tracking every micro-expression as understanding dawns. The slight widening of her eyes. The tightening at the corners of her mouth. The barely perceptible increase in her heartbeat.
She's realizing the true cost of helping us. Of helping me.
"You want me to lie," she says finally. "To tell Hayes the magickal prisoners escaped during the chaos of the raid."
"Yes," I say simply.
She stands abruptly, pacing across her small living room. "One slip-up and it's not just my career on the line—it's my life."
Her words carve through me, sharp as claws against flesh. If anything happens to her… The thought remains unfinished. Unthinkable. I will not let it come to that.
"We know," Cormac acknowledges. "That's why we're giving you this.
" He reaches into his jacket and pulls out a small, sleek device that resembles a standard communications earpiece, but with faint symbols etched into its surface.
"This is a direct link to the team at the ranch.
It operates on frequencies GUIDE can't detect or intercept. "
Astrid takes it, turning it over in her fingers. "So I'll be on two channels during the raid. My official GUIDE comm with my team, and this one with you."
"It will allow us to coordinate," I explain. "And to warn you if there's any danger." As if a piece of magickal tech could replace having me at her side. But I don’t have a choice. I can’t be with her.
She sets the device on the table, her expression troubled. "This is bigger than just lying to Hayes. This is actively undermining a GUIDE operation."
I stand, deliberately moving to her side.
To hell with restraint. I position myself close enough to feel the warmth radiating from her body but not touching.
Not yet. "Astrid, those prisoners aren't criminals.
They're victims. People who were torn from their homes, their worlds, just like Tharin.
GUIDE would execute them simply for existing. "
"I know," she says softly, the conflict evident in her voice. "I know what GUIDE does. I also know what they'd do to me..."
She doesn't finish the thought. She doesn't need to.
They would kill her. My Astrid. For helping me. I know the truth. And I hate that I’m putting her into this position. "I’ll protect you,” I promise her. “No matter what, Astrid, but you're straddling two worlds."
Her eyes meet mine, fierce with determination despite the doubt clouding them. "And what happens when those worlds can't coexist anymore? When I have to choose?"
The question hangs between us. My wolf stirs restlessly, wanting to claim, to protect, to eliminate any threat to what is ours. But the man in me understands the complexity of her position, the impossible choice she's being forced to make.
"One mission at a time," I say finally, resisting the urge to reach for her. "Tonight, we focus on saving lives. Both human and magickal."
She takes a deep breath, squaring her shoulders and nods.
I've dodged her question. We both know it.
What happens when she must choose? When there's no middle ground left to stand on?
The thought gnaws at me. My wolf wants certainty—wants to hear her declare allegiance, pledge herself to our side, to me. But the man in me understands impossible choices. Understands duty and honor and oaths sworn.
I watch her steel herself, armor sliding back into place. Professional. Focused. The agent reclaiming control.
It's easier this way. Safer. For now.
But the question remains. Will echo in my mind long after I leave her apartment. Will haunt my dreams until answered.
When forced to choose between worlds, which will she pick?
And what will I do if she chooses wrong?
We return to the table, where Cormac has already begun marking entry and exit points on the blueprint with a red pen.
"The timing will be crucial," he says. "We need to be in position here—" he taps the rear of the building, "—before your team breaches the front entrance. As soon as the distraction begins, we'll move in."
"How many prisoners are we looking at?" Astrid asks.
"At least twelve, according to Tharin," I answer. "Possibly more. They're being held in specialized containment cells that suppress their magickal abilities."
"Which means they'll likely be weakened," Cormac adds. "Some may need to be carried out. We’ll manage fine, but it will slow us down a little."
Astrid nods, her tactical mind clearly working through the logistics. "And where will you take them? Back to this ranch place?"
"Initially," I confirm. "We'll get them back to their home worlds as quickly as possible."
"How? You guys have a spaceship somewhere?"
I can't help the snort that escapes me. "A space-ship?" The word feels ridiculous in my mouth. "No, we do not have boats that travel between planets."
The corner of her mouth twitches. Progress.
"We do have sirens, though," I answer, letting a smug grin spread across my face. "We can travel through any body of water."
Her eyes widen and she pauses. "Can anything from your worlds move through water like that?"
"I suppose." I shrug, enjoying her fascination a little too much. "No one can travel the water portals without a siren, though.”
She nods. "Sirens. That's how they disappeared through the fountain."
"Who did?" I ask, my amusement fading.
“The Chimeras we were tracking. They jumped into a fountain and disappeared.”
Fuck. What are the sirens doing with Chimeras? I meet Cormac’s gaze, but he shakes his head.
“Do you know anything about them? The chimeras?” Astrid asks.
“No.” Cormac crosses his arms. “Chimeras are nearly extinct. I haven’t seen one in centuries. And they’re not exactly friendly. I don’t know how they would communicate with a siren.”
“Fen?” She turns to me.
“What Cormac speaks is truth. They are very intelligent creatures, but they can’t speak.”
She sighs. “Fine.”
"We need to get back to the ranch to finalize preparations on our end," Cormac says. "I'll wait downstairs, Fen. Give you two a minute." He tips his chin and quietly walks out her front door.
When it closes behind him, the atmosphere in the room shifts instantly. The professional veneer we've both maintained cracks as our eyes lock. The three feet of space between us suddenly feels like both too much and not enough.
"This is really happening," she says quietly, but I can hear her elevated heartbeat, see the pulse fluttering at her throat.
"Having second thoughts?" I ask, keeping my voice neutral despite the tension coiling inside me, the need to touch her becoming nearly overwhelming.
She shakes her head. "No. Just... processing what it means. For a long time, my work with GUIDE was straightforward. Hunt the dangerous creatures. Protect humanity. Now..." She gestures vaguely between us, a flush creeping up her neck. "Everything's more complicated."
I step closer, unable to resist the pull between us any longer. "Some complications are worth it."
Her eyes meet mine, and that electrical current that's always present between us flares hot and bright. "Are they? Because from where I'm standing, this feels like walking a tightrope over a very deep pit filled with venomous snakes." Her voice drops lower.
"You won't fall," I tell her, reaching out to brush my fingers against her cheek. She leans into my touch, her eyelids fluttering. "And if you do, I'll catch you."
A small smile touches her lips. "The big bad wolf, promising to keep me safe. Isn't that the opposite of how the story usually goes?"
Then… A miracle. Her hand comes up to my chest, fingers splaying over my heart.
I freeze. Stunned. My wolf goes still too, afraid to shatter this moment. Her touch burns through my shirt, brands my skin beneath. My heartbeat accelerates, hammering against her palm. There's no hiding it… the effect she has on me. The power she holds.
"Maybe it's time for a new story," I murmur, leaning down until our faces are inches apart. The scent of her arousal hits me and it's nearly impossible to think of anything but tasting her again.
She tilts her chin up, her breath warm against my lips. "Maybe it is." Her fingers curl into the fabric of my shirt, tugging me closer. "Though we should probably wait until after the mission to continue revisiting that particular story."
My hand slides to her waist, finding the warm skin beneath her shirt. "Should we?" I ask.
"Definitely not," she whispers, and then her mouth is on mine, hot and desperate. I back her against the counter, lifting her easily, her legs wrapping around my waist as the kiss deepens.
Her hands tangle in my hair, pulling slightly in a way that sends fire racing down my spine. My wolf rejoices at her boldness.
I trail kisses down her throat, breathing in her intoxicating scent.
The soft sounds she makes when my teeth graze the sensitive spot where her neck meets her shoulder send a primal surge of satisfaction through me. Mine, my wolf growls. Ours.
Her legs tighten around my waist as I press her more firmly against the counter.
"Fen," she breathes. Her head falls back, giving me better access to the elegant column of her throat. I take full advantage, tasting the salt of her skin, feeling her pulse race beneath my lips.
Time loses meaning. There is only the silk of her hair between my fingers, the heat of her body against mine, the sweetness of her mouth. She kisses like she fights, with precision and passion, giving no quarter and expecting none in return.
My wolf surges forward, canines lengthening, the urge to bite nearly overwhelming. To mark. To claim. To bind her to me.
I wrench myself away, the shock of separation like cold water.
We're both breathing heavily. Her eyes, normally so sharp and assessing, are soft with wonder and hazy with desire. I rest my forehead against hers, trying to rein in the thundering of my heart, the urgent demand of my body.
"Stay," she whispers, her fingers tracing the line of my jaw. "Tonight."
Every fiber of my being screams to accept, to carry her to that bed where I've already held her through the night. To do more than just hold her this time.
"I can't," I manage, though the words cost me. "If I stay, Astrid..." I cup her face in my hands, forcing myself to meet those questioning eyes. "If I stay tonight, I don't trust myself to hold back from claiming you completely."
"Would that be so terrible?" she asks, voice low and tempting.
"No," I admit, brushing my thumb across her lower lip. "It would be glorious. But it would be permanent and I have things to explain before that happens."
Her eyes close briefly. When they open again, there's a vulnerability there I've rarely glimpsed. "Promise me you'll come back after the mission and tell me."
"I swear it," I tell her, the words carrying the weight of an oath.
My eyes drop to her chest, to the faint glow visible only to me—the fragment of my soul. She is my soul mate. "Nothing could keep me from returning to you."
She nods, slipping from my grasp with obvious reluctance. The small distance she puts between us feels like miles. "Tomorrow, then. After the mission."
"After the mission," I agree, already aching for her though she stands mere feet away.
The air between us remains charged, heavy with promises and possibilities. Part of me still wants to damn the consequences and stay, to lose myself in her until the world outside ceases to exist. But the warrior in me knows better. Tomorrow's mission demands focus, demands sacrifice.
Even if that sacrifice is walking away from her tonight.
"I should go," I say finally, though every step away from her feels wrong. "Cormac is waiting."
She nods, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "The mission," she agrees, voice steadier now. "We focus on that first."
At the door, I pause for one last look at her, flushed and beautiful, her lips still swollen from my kisses, her eyes bright. The sight burns into my memory, something to hold close during the hours of separation ahead.
"Tomorrow," I say softly.
She straightens, the professional agent beginning to resurface. "Don't be late, wolf."
The smile that curves my lips is private, meant only for her. "I wouldn't dare."
The door closes behind me with a soft click, leaving her scent and the memory of her touch to follow me down the stairs to where Cormac waits. Tomorrow we face danger together. Not for duty. Not for honor. Not for some ancient code.
For her. Only her. The future worth fighting for. The future I won't surrender.