Chapter 17
Elodie
For once, I was the first one up to make Galyna a cup of coffee. It was strange. As I poured her coffee into one of the misshapen ceramic mugs I’d come to enjoy during our time in this temporary home, I couldn’t help but feel like it was a parting gift for more than just travel.
My stomach was a giant lead ball rolling around unhinged and wreaking havoc on my insides.
I knocked softly on her door, peace-offering-slash-parting-gift coffee in hand.
She pulled it open almost immediately and smiled as she accepted the mug, waving me inside her room.
It was tidier than mine, but that was nothing new.
She must have been practicing some swordsmanship forms, because her blade was leaning against the bed out of its sheath.
“You ready for the road?” she asked, picking up her sword and sheathing it smoothly.
“Just about. I wanted to say goodbye before I walked down.”
She nodded, and I got the strangest sense she was avoiding my gaze.
“Is everything okay? I know I’ve been distracted lately, but you’re my best friend. You can always talk to me if something is bothering you.”
She sighed, shifting her dark braid over her shoulder so she could fiddle with the ends. Which meant something was very, very wrong.
“Spill it, or I’m going to make the whole pack late,” I demanded, parking my ass on the edge of her bed, between her and the door.
She could kick said ass with one hand tied behind her back if she wanted to, I had no doubt. But she wouldn’t.
“The head priestess shared some troubling information with me before we left to hunt for the stone shards with the pack.”
I took a moment to process that she’d kept that from me all this time.
We’d been hunting for the pieces for months.
Which meant whatever information it was, it was considered dangerous and kept only to the very top levels of the enclave.
As the lead partner in our pair, she would be the one responsible for it.
“Okay.”
“But I need to share it with you now, and I wish I didn’t.”
I blinked a few times. “Why not?”
“Because you absolutely cannot tell another soul unless you think the pack’s lives depend on it. And it’s not a fun secret to keep.”
“You’re worrying me, Lyna.”
She clenched the end of her braid in her fist. “We should all be worried.”
Oh shit. She looks like somebody just murdered her cat.
“Okay, just spit it out, because seriously, whatever it is can’t be worse than where my imagination is going right now. And in all seriousness, if I’m not there in the next five minutes, the high alpha is going to be beating our door down, and he’s hella dominant.”
She rolled her eyes at my rambling but acquiesced. “The omega stone can’t truly be destroyed if it’s bonded to an omega. Which is why when Brielle and her pack came back together, they were able to repair it.”
“O-kay.” Not seeing the bad news here, girl.
“The stone was shattered when it was already bonded to an omega.”
There had been no adult omegas to bond with the stone since… I sucked in a breath on a hiss, realizing she meant Narcissa. The bitch who started the omega wars all those years ago. “And what? Her magic is still infecting it somehow? That’s what you think the red is?”
She shook her head. “I don’t know for sure, because the head priestesses don’t know either.
It was an unprecedented situation. But the second the stone was shattered, she and her mate, Bran, fell without a mark on them.
The dwarven defenders took their bodies and hid them away somewhere.
Nobody except the original leaders knows who did it. ”
“Hold on, back up. You said hid them away, not buried them. Why wouldn’t they have been buried like the rest of the dead?”
“Because they weren’t dead. They were incapacitated when the stone broke.”
“Holy shit on a stick. So… what? They’ve been rotting away somewhere all this time, and no one knew?”
Galyna shrugged. “No one lives forever. The enclave believes that they died eventually, from lack of sustenance if nothing else. They were very certain that when the stone was restored, it would be ready to bond a new omega.”
“Why do I feel a ‘but’ coming on?”
“But, from what little they felt free to share about an omega stone with me since it was repaired… the color of the stone indicates what pack controls the stone. It’s been that pretty bluish color this whole time because Kane’s family lineage is Caelestis.
The red? That’s Narcissa’s color. Pack Mordan flew a flaming red standard with a black slash through it during the omega wars. ”
“So we don’t know what it means, but we’re ninety-nine percent sure it’s related to the evilest wolf who ever lived. Excellent.” I couldn’t hold back my sarcasm because, seriously, how was I supposed to keep this to myself? Wouldn’t this knowledge help the pack fight back the evil?
A question hit me as she rummaged through her bag next to the bed, pulling out a simple blue leather-bound book. “Wait, wasn’t her omega gift war?”
Galyna nodded solemnly, pressing the book into my hands. “This is all the collected knowledge the enclave had about Narcissa herself. It’s pretty detailed, going back even to her childhood. Based on what I read… it’s not hard to see how she ended up with a gift for war.”
“Great.” The book was heavy in my hands, as heavy as the secret I had to keep from my friends and charges. “But if she’s still influencing the stone after death somehow, is that going to push the war with the ODL ahead even faster?”
“That’s what I’m afraid of. Stay safe, and if you feel there is no other choice but to tell them, do it. Otherwise, this is considered confidential to the enclave.”
I nodded and rose from the bed, the lead ball in my gut sinking a little deeper, doing a fresh wave of damage. What was one more complication added to the pile at this point? “Stay safe until we return.”
When I walked out of her bedroom door, I paused, hand on the frame. I took one last look over my shoulder, as if I was taking a mental picture. For some reason, it felt important.
“You’re going to have to run now. You’re officially late.”
I swore, and I ran.
Nobody commented on me being late to leave, mostly because Leigh waddled up a moment after me, looking like she was ready to shoot first and ask questions later. She was usually a morning person, so it was uncommon for her to start the day grouchy.
We all loaded up into two big black SUVs, and I did my best to ignore Valens’s presence nearby as he climbed in front with Gael, who was driving, and I slid in next to Leigh in the seat behind them.
Being this close to Valens and not speaking to him was like an itch just under the skin I couldn’t scratch.
My wolf was on high alert, every sense tuned toward her mate, who was casually chatting in the front seat.
His golden hair was damp, still slicked back as if he were fresh from the shower, and I thought I got the faintest whiff of shampoo lingering in the air around him.
Even his damn shampoo smelled delicious. I was in so much trouble.
I definitely wasn’t taking deeper breaths just in hopes of getting a solid whiff of his brown-sugar-and-toasty-campfire scent in the enclosed space without giving myself away.
Not that Leigh was paying attention.
“You okay over there?” I asked gently. Her head was leaned back against the rest, eyes closed and both hands on her belly.
Her mouth twisted to one side before she begrudgingly answered. “I’m fine. Just… a little crampy.” She whispered the last bit, shooting a cautious glance to the front seats.
So, Gael doesn’t know.
“Anything concerning?” I kept my voice low as well, trying not to draw attention she clearly didn’t want.
One small lift of a shoulder was her only response.
Shit. I drummed my fingers on my thigh, considering. If she was having any sort of distress, Brielle could help her, and Brielle was going along on the trip. But she also might need bed rest.
I whipped out my cell phone and texted Galyna.
E: Leigh’s feeling crampy. She’s not even thirty weeks yet. I asked if it was anything concerning, and all she did was shrug and ignore me. Should we stop the trip? Take her directly to the enclave?
Lyna: The enclave is closer to the pack castle than here. But it’s hard to say. What does your gut tell you?
My gut? I scoffed, shaking my head. My gut was all up in knots these days, not giving me any great intuitive insights.
I drummed my fingertips again, taking a deep breath before forcing myself to stillness so I could think. I got the overwhelming urge to put my hand on Leigh’s, which was… new.
But the urge was undeniable, so I lay my hand lightly across hers.
The second I did, lights burst behind my eyes. It was just like with the pixie magic at the crime scene, only more subtle. My head didn’t swim as the colors coalesced over Leigh’s form, bright white light emanating from her belly like a beacon.
The omega pup she carries.
My jaw dropped, and I stared, awed at the huge display of power from a pup who wasn’t even born yet. Leigh herself was a softer sparkle, but the white light in her was equally beautiful.
“Why are you staring at me like that?” she hissed under her breath.
“I— I’m sorry. Not important.”
My wolf yipped to get my attention. Dehydration.
What? I managed to keep the question internal, at least.
The female needs water. Salt. For the cramps. My wolf drawled out each word as if I were slow on the uptake.
“Hey, Leigh, you feeling thirsty?”
She squinted at me but didn’t comment on the sudden change of topic. “Maybe? I’m just tired.”
“My wolf thinks you might be dehydrated and need some electrolytes.”
One questioning, arched brow was her only response to that.
Gael called from the front. “There’s a cooler in the back.”
“Excellent.” I twisted in my seat, found an assortment of sports drinks, and handed her one. She drank deeply, and my wolf rumbled approval in her chest before curling up, as if she was thoroughly done with the situation.
When Leigh twisted the cap back on the bottle and set it aside, she turned those knowing blue eyes on me. “So, want to tell me why your wolf’s assessing me?”
I swallowed hard. It sounded crazy. But if anyone understood crazy, it was this pack, right?
“I have no fucking clue.”
Leigh coughed to cover up her laugh. “Fair.”
I quickly explained about what I’d seen at Sandrine the gnome’s house, how I’d just somehow known pixies left the signature. How as soon as I’d touched her, my wolf had known what she needed.
“Huh. Well… we’ve all got a little extra Goddess-blessed action happening.
” She lifted her marked palm, which shone lightly in the dim morning light.
“Maybe you’re getting some bonus powers too.
” Another shrug, and she reclined her seat, getting comfortable.
“Not to be bad company, but I feel like I could sleep for a week straight, so I’m going to make the most of the drive. ”
“Of course, rest.” I patted her hand, readjusting a bit in my own seat. But when I looked up, my gaze locked with Valens’s in the rearview mirror, a host of unanswered questions hanging in the silence between us.