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‘We’re on our way. You did so well,’ I encouraged her. It was a miracle that any of them were alive right now. The stench of rogues was everywhere. I’d never seen such a massive attack and her pack operated a vineyard. They were not trained to handle this type of attack. ‘Now leave the rest to us. Where are they?’
‘Their in the back, I blocked the front door and windows, but there’s a giant patio around back, they’re beginning to climb through.’
‘We’ll be right there,’ I assured her.
‘Be careful. I can’t l-lose you. I can’t lose anyone else.’
‘I won’t even lift a finger,’ I promised her. I meant it. As heartbroken as I was over Tori and my sister, Mom, Aunt Kassie and Adrien were itching to destroy and vent their rage and grief, and their men were more than willing to let them grieve however they needed. I let everyone know what was happening and we started dividing the tasks we needed to save my twin.
“I’ll bring the rain, Cory, you divert them to the structures,” Uncle Lalo came walking over to me while Mom and Aunt Kassie headed over to fight. Mom was bringing forth her fire while Aunt Kassie was already running toward the back using her vampire speed. Adrien and Elias teleported toward the fight, and Dad grabbed Mom and prepared to leap them into the fight.
“Honey, can you please ask Bells to pull down the earth blocking their front door? I can go in and heal them,” Aunt Nat asked.
“Only the ones seriously hurt and the children, Aunt Nat. You’ve healed a lot tonight,” I ordered her weakly. It was more of an imploration, really. The woman could still beat me with a chancla if she wanted. Not that she ever had.
“You’re worse than Helios,” she snorted but saluted as she walked away anyway.
‘Bells, let Aunt Nat in the front door. She wants to heal anyone in need of it.’
‘Okay,’ her answer was soft, almost broken, and by the amount of bodies I saw through the pack grounds, I knew she was thinking about every life she’d already lost, including her own mate. I didn’t say anything about it. I knew more than anyone the need to keep strong until you were behind closed doors. We would have time to mourn later.
Less than an hour later, the rogues had been dealt with, and the fires had been put out. Valeria and Aunt Nat put Evergreen, Uncle Lalo, and some of the warriors to work clearing the communal spaces and the guest bedrooms into habitable places. Some warriors were boarding up the windows that were broken and checking the houses to see how well they held up to the attack and if there were any survivors hiding.
Evie was taking down names and addresses for everyone who survived so Bells could have a census of the status of her pack after the attack. Her gamma was dead, her mother-in-law was visiting her sister and unreachable and the beta was currently missing. We were her only support right now.
Violet wasn’t letting go of Christopher and screamed any time that anyone tried to touch her, so Bells sent them up to her room, saying she would be sleeping in one of the guest rooms.
Christopher looked tired but didn’t complain about having to continue carrying my sister. His arms had to be screaming for relief after almost five hours, but he simply went where instructed in that quiet way he had. When Dad thanked him for doing it, he assured Dad that as long as Violet felt safe, he was willing to do whatever was needed of him. Mom set him up to sit against the headboard, surrounded by mountains of pillows to help with the strain of holding my sister for countless hours.
Dad, Uncle Helios, and I were cutting down wood for the pyres. Adrien and Elias were cleaning up Tori inside. They refused to send her back with the rest and refused to go with them. They were saying goodbye to their daughter here. Uncle Theo, Uncle Seb, Jo, Areli, Grandpa and my cousins were all flying up later today after ensuring there wasn’t an attack on the packs. Some of us would stay a few days to help Bells through this, while others were leaving tomorrow after resting.
Bells appeared at my left, a few trees down, and began to hack at a tree with an ax.
“Bells, you should be resting,” I chided. She looked pale and exhausted, and I didn’t like the way I couldn’t feel her grief anymore. “It’s bad for the pup,” I added, trying to entice her into taking a rest.
Fuck, my words reminded me I hadn’t talked to Evie about our pups. Too much shit kept getting in the way, but I made myself a promise that I would speak with her when we managed to get some rest.
“You’re one to talk. You had a double dose of wolfsbane and are working away. I’m fine, Cory. I need something to do,” she grunted and continued hacking at the tree with more force than was normal. She was choosing to vent her emotions against the tree. I felt bad for the tree.
I kept an eye on her as I continued to hack at the trees, and the moment I saw her sway and drop her axe, I ran to her.
“Bells! I told you it wasn’t a good idea. I’m getting you inside,” I growled.
Bells looked paler than before, and her eyes fluttered open and closed for a moment before she pushed away and stood.
“I’m fine, Cory,” she told me stubbornly and grabbed her fallen axe.
“The hell you are,” I growled and saw Dad approaching. “I want Aunt Nat to check you over. You’re pale, and fainting isn’t normal.” I took the axe from her and threw it to the side.
“What’s going on?” Dad asked.
“She almost fainted, and she’s trying to keep working. It’s not good for the pup.” Bells turned away and walked toward the axe again, but I saw the tears coming down her face as she did. Dad looked conflicted as we stared after her and then concerned when she bent down to pick up the axe.
“Bells, you’re bleeding,” he said, running up to her.
“I have been for a few hours now. I had a miscarriage when Brandon died. P-Please, Dad, just let me do something,” she cried when Dad took the axe away from her, but Dad took her into his arms, and my sister finally crumbled.
I sank to the ground next to them and hugged them as she cried out her pain, feeling the ache of it in my heart. I talked to her many times since she found out she was pregnant. She admitted that she was taken by surprise at the news, and she suspected her mother-in-law had messed with her birth control again, but now that she was pregnant, she couldn’t wait to hold her pup. It felt cruel that she had finally gotten excited over her pregnancy only to lose it.
