~Kade~
We closed in on the field, walking down the hill. As we stopped by the tilt of the hill, we saw the numbers they had. Rows and rows of warriors stood ready with Nathaniel in the front.
Some were in wolf form, others in their human form and of all ages. We walked down until we were facing them from a distance.
“Kade Arch, I’m glad you got my message,” he said and looked at my people.
I knew who he was looking for. “I did, but I’m sorry to say that your messengers are dead.” His jaw clenched, and he tried to hide how bothered he was.
“No matter, they did their job.” Yes, they did, but he missed out on the highlight. He wanted to see my face when my own people walked over to him and sided against us. The sky was clear. The sun wasn’t warm, but it shone down on us, and everything was uncertain.
I could already see the blood that would paint the grass, the bodies that would lay scattered on the field and their loved ones hoping to get a last goodbye.
I pushed all of that down and looked at Nathaniel. I scanned over the heads of his people. She should be here. She was his secret weapon, so where was she?
Do you smell her?
“I don’t. She’s not here,” my wolf said.
Mason stood next to me. Justin came up on my other side.
“She’s fine. She’s coming soon,” he said.
I turned my head and looked at him, but Justin didn’t meet my gaze. He had mind-linked her. Knowing he’d been in contact with her caused the blood in my veins to heat and the anger to stir against him.
His head turned, and he looked at me. “Focus it on him,” he said and looked back at Nathaniel.
Nathaniel smiled. His eyes began to glow, and he took a step forward.
“Oh, what a sweet world it will be once it’s been rid of your kind. Too bad you sided with the wrong wolves, Justin. I’ll enjoy taking my time killing you,” he said and laughed.
One of their wolves howled, and another one joined. Soon, they all howled up at the sky, and mine did the same. I shifted and ran toward Nathaniel.
Our people against his. Everyone took off toward an enemy, and within a minute, blood was spilling.
I saw one of my men taken down, his body falling to the ground.
Nathaniel shifted into his wolf, his fur as white as snow and eyes as blue as ice, like all of the Emberclaws.
Minutes passed, but it felt like hours. More bodies fell to the ground, and all of them were ours.
My wolf backed away when Nathaniel dug his teeth into our neck.
A loud howl was heard from the woods, and I saw a beautiful wolf running down. I knew that wolf, the one I chased in the woods long ago. Everyone turned their heads and watched when she came running down at a speed unlike anything I had ever seen. She was fast, and her white fur combed down in the wind. I could tell Clara was happy to be free.
She jumped and shifted back. My beautiful mate stood naked in the middle of the field. Her head raised in the air, and her eyes scanned the people that were left. She was here, and suddenly, I saw nothing else.
~Layla~
I heard it, all of it. Tarisa had removed the spell they put on me with candle wax, and now my hearing was better than ever. After having made that warrior leave me with the children, I realized I thought fully, for the first time, about the power I possessed.
They were shaking, terrified, as they, too, heard everything that went on beyond the trees.
“Layla, can you hear me?”
I flew up on my feet and turned away from the pups. “Justin?”
“We’re here.”
“I know, I can hear it.”
“Where are you?”
“I’m at the pack. I’ll join soon.”
He was quiet for a moment.“Layla, in case anything happens to me, I need to know something.”
“Stop, nothing’s going to happen to you,” I said, and I think he heard the promise in my tone.
“What are you planning?”
“To end this, once and for all. Please make sure that my people aren’t harmed…” I gulped. “Please make sure Kade isn’t harmed.” I couldn’t let my daughter grow up without her parents, and my heart couldn’t handle anything happening to him. Not now when I was so close to ending it.
“I promise,” he said.
“One other thing. Stay on the sidelines. I have other plans for you, and they are crucial.”
“When should I join?” he asked, not questioning my request.
“When they begin to rise,” I said and closed the link.
I turned around and looked at the frightened faces in front of me.
“Okay, kids, come here, come in close,” I said and held out my hands. They all gathered around me. A little sniffled and wiped away a tear as his bottom lip began to tremble.
“We don’t want to fight,” he said through the tearful hiccups.
“And I will never let you,” I said and smiled as I wiped away his tears.
They all looked at me, their eyes filling up with hope.
“This is the plan. You need to listen very carefully and do exactly as I say. I’m going to leave soon, and you’re all going to stay here and hide. No matter what you hear or what anyone says, you must leave your position. Is that clear?”
They nodded their heads.
“Good, now go and hide.” I waited and watched as they stuck together in their hiding spots. Nobody was left alone, and they held hands or hugged each other and closed their eyes. We were away from the pack now. The houses were nothing but ash, and it surprised me how the fire didn’t spread, but I remembered a rumor: the nightingale forest had a life of its own and protected itself against threats. Something told me that the forest choked the fire before it could cause any harm outside the border.
They were all safely tucked away in their hiding spots. I closed my eyes and drew a deep breath. My heart beat like a soft song, and I heard hers beating with mine. My baby girl was safe; I could feel it.
“Stay here until someone comes to get you, okay? Look at their memories and see if they can be trusted before you go with them.”
They nodded their little heads, and I tore my eyes away from their innocent faces and tear-filled eyes. The older kids were calming the little ones, and I prayed to the moon goddess to be with them as I left.
* * *
“I will protect her with my life,” Elisabeth promised and hugged my daughter close to her body.
“I know you will, and I want to thank you for everything. You were so nice when you met me. You were like a mother, and I never thought anyone could be that except for mine, but you really took in and made me feel loved,” I said and held her hand. I felt the tears pushing against my eyes, and my throat was closing up.
“You are my daughter. No matter what, you and Anna are part of the family. She has been strong, you know. Everything she has done since you left has been in your name. She looks up to you, and she loves you, and this will break many hearts,” Elisabeth said with a tremble in her voice.
“As am I of her, and she will understand. She’s an aunt now, and she will always see me in my daughter, as will Kade and my family,” I said and moved the blanket away from her sleeping little face. A tear fell on her cheek, and I wiped it slowly with my thumb.
“That is what I fear,” Elisabeth said.
My head jerked up, and I looked at her, tears slowly allowed to fall down her cheeks. Her words were as honest as her heart. She was a wonderful woman, and I was grateful that she would be watching over my daughter.
“I have already let your mother know to meet me in my pack. She will be there with me and the baby, and I will fill her in after the war,” Elisabeth said and straightened her back.
We’d had our emotional goodbye, something neither of us rarely allowed ourselves to have, but this was the last one. They would all be safe, and now it was time to act in defense and survival. Emotions had been released, and the rest were locked in a casket that would follow me to my grave.
“Tell him I love him,” I cried and gave them both a hug.
Elisabeth turned around. Analise had given her a cloak so she could move through the forest without sticking out, and my daughter was hidden underneath it, safe and sound.
