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Acid burns my throat, and I swallow it down. “You’re wrong.”
“Do you see what I mean?”
“No, Cade. I fucking don’t, and honestly, I don’t care either.”
Shoving around him, ignoring the blast of pain as I do, I keep walking in the direction of the Sanctuary. Screw him; screw all of them. I’m vibrating with so much pent-up anger that when Cade grabs my arm, trying to pull me back, I take a swing at him.
Of course, in my weakened state, I miss when he dodges to the side, and my momentum sends me sprawling to the ground.
I can’t stop the cry that explodes from between my clenched teeth as pain spreads from my injured side.
“Shit, I’m sorry?—”
The hand that he offers me is shoved away by an invisible force, and we both turn to see Dove with her palm stretched out toward my alpha. I can feel the power surging in the air before it drives Cade to his knees, his mouth open in a soundless scream.
Holding a hand to my side, I stumble upward, staggering over to her. “Stop!”
Cade groans behind me, agony rippling across his face, but I keep my focus on the little blue-haired female in front of me. “Dove, enough!”
I step back, my stomach twisting as her head snaps toward me, and she pins me with those milky white eyes. I swear to fuck she’s staring right into my soul.
“Enough,” I repeat in a softer voice so I don’t spook her.
Her jaw is clenched as she lowers her hand, and her power recedes. I close the space between us, suddenly needing to touch her. There is nothing in her expression that indicates she is lucid, but even so, I take her face between my hands and scan every inch of her, trying to see beyond the milky orbs staring back at me.
“I don’t need your protection from my pack, but thank you.” I press my forehead against hers, soaking in her presence. I wish a simple touch of our heads could heal her mind, because my insides feel as if they are being shredded every time she doesn’t respond. “I know you’re in there. Please come back to me.”
Nothing happens, and a feeling of hopelessness squeezes my chest so mercilessly it suffocates me.
“You still think she’s not a danger?” Cade’s voice from behind us makes my spine stiffen.
It is as if someone has thrown a bucket of iced water over me. He’s right. Dove is a danger. All the female tau are. Halle shredded the mind of an innocent woman without breaking a sweat. I’ve seen all the girls in action, destroying our enemies.
They are scarily dangerous. All of them, just as Cade and my vargr brothers are.
I release my hold on Dove after pressing a kiss to her temple and then turn to face my alpha. My fingers curl into fists at my side, but loosen a little when I see how much he’s struggling to get to his feet. Whatever Dove did to him hurt.
It thaws some of the ice out of my next words. “Why did you even come out here? I don’t need your help.”
“Because despite everything, you’re part of my pack.”
I laugh. I can’t help it. It’s such a ludicrous thing to say, considering everything that happened. “What pack? We haven’t been a pack since we came to this place.”
“Nothing has changed,” he insists.
“You’re wrong. Everything has. If you don’t see that, then I’m worried about you. This isn’t about pack or keeping control. This is about survival. Every day, every single fucking day, hunters come to take the girls. We both have a stake in this game, Cade.”
The only thing I care about is protecting these women and keeping the rest of us safe. These attacks are getting more frequent. They’re testing our response, and that worries me.
I glance through the trees, taking a second to get my bearings before I slip my bloodied hand into Dove’s, urging her to walk before I take off in the direction of the Sanctuary. I can’t stand being out here for another second.
“I’m worried too.” The way his voice quivers stops me in my tracks. I’ve never known Cade to be afraid of anything. Then again, he didn’t have anything to lose in the past. Now, he has Halle.
I twist to look over my shoulder at him.
“Finally,” I mutter. “Some honesty.”
“I’ve always been honest. I don’t believe the Order is just gonna slink away and let us be. The girls mean too much to them.” The breath he releases holds so much tension and exhaustion that it forces me to face him. Those emotions are mirrored in his expression. “I don’t want to fight you, Jackson. You’re my brother, maybe not by blood, but by something deeper.”
