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Jackson
It seems as if the air around us stills, and there is a moment of almost relief. For so long now, we’ve been hiding out, always on the defensive, but it’s time to fight back. Dove’s right. We can’t spend our lives looking over our shoulders. Hopefully Callum and his group—his coven—have the means to take on the Order, but even if they don’t, I know Dove will want to go back to the facility no matter what. I feel better if we have numbers on our side when that happens.
“If you leave the Sanctuary, I can’t allow you to come back.” Hester drops that bomb in the middle of everything and watches as it explodes. “I won’t risk the safety of anyone else I bring here or anyone who chooses to remain behind.”
I bristle at the ultimatum. It shouldn’t be a choice. We should all be standing together, but Hester is putting up barriers between us. I’ve never really trusted her, and I know my brothers haven’t either, but I can’t help but feel a little sorry for her. She’s watching everything she built and fought for crumble in front of her eyes. That can’t be easy.
“There are people out there suffering, Hester,” Halle snaps back, her temper as fiery as the color of her hair. “My mom needs me, and I’m done sitting on my ass waiting for you to come up with a plan. If you don’t want to let us back here, then fine, whatever. Bury your head, keep hiding, but they’ll come for you too.”
The tension mounts, and I can feel the anger vibrating between everyone.
“The wards will hold,” Hester says stubbornly.
As usual, I find myself studying the tau female closely. I don’t know what it is about Hester, but she puts my wolf on alert. Something about her is not right. Even Callum sensed it, and they’ve only just met.
“If we go, the wards won’t hold at all.” Halle delivers that blow without a hint of apology. “You can’t stay here without us. You need our power.”
Dove nods. “It’s only the combined strength of all of us that’s keeping the wards in place. You’ll be discovered in a few days, Hester. You need to come with us for your own safety.”
“And what about Tessa and Abel? Do you think they’re going to leave, considering Tessa’s condition? Do you think it’s safe for them to leave? Yeah, Halle, not standing up to the Order may be wrong, but leaving the safety we’ve built can come with a price too. We can’t fight the Order, no matter what this asshole says. Some things are just bigger than us.”
If Callum’s offended, he doesn’t show it. “We can fight them and have been for a long time now.”
Hester spins to face him. “And how many have you lost along the way? You’re feeding them hope when no hope exists. That’s a cruel thing to do.”
I step closer to Dove, suddenly wanting her at my side, and she doesn’t resist as I tuck her against me.
Callum steps up to Hester, his eyes narrowing as if he’s trying to see inside her mind. “You’re doing worse. You’re pretending you can protect them here, but you know you can’t.”
Hester snarls at him, her head whipping around to take in the girls. “So this is the thanks I get for taking you in and teaching you how to wield your power safely?”
“It’s not about thanks or being ungrateful,” Dove answers. “We appreciate everything you have done, but it’s time to fight this.”
“Male tau can’t be trusted.” Hester glares at Callum. “You’re making a mistake by putting your faith in them.”
“Maybe we are,” Roux says. “Maybe we’re stupid to trust anyone, but someone has to take that initial leap of faith. We took one when it came to you too.”
“And we all know you have your own motives for what you’re doing.” It’s Cade who levels this accusation. “Let’s face it—you’ve not exactly been an open book either.”
“Have I ever given you a reason to doubt me? I’m trying to keep us all safe.”
I watch as Cade steps up to her, his huge frame suddenly seeming larger as he looms over the smaller female. She doesn’t show a lick of fear, though, and I’m not sure if that’s because she knows Cade isn’t the type to put his hands on a woman or if it’s something else.
“We all know you have secrets, Hester. Things that you have buried deep. What game are you playing? Why are you bringing tau here?”
There is a flash of hurt in her eyes, and for a second, I think we may have gotten this all wrong.
But then anger bleeds into her expression. “I don’t have to explain myself.”
“And neither do we,” Halle says, stepping up behind her mate, showing a united front.
“You should come with us,” Roux adds. “You’re a target if you stay.”
She glances between the girls before stopping on Apryle, who has been unusually quiet during this exchange. We’d usually have to ask her to shut up, but the dark-haired woman seems deep in thought as she watches this play out.
“Everything I have done has been for the greater good of our kind. The Order is dangerous. It can’t be stopped. The man behind it is a ruthless psychopath who despises us. He hates female tau, but his disdain for the male line is beyond anything you can imagine. What do you think he will do when he discovers you’re working with them?” She waves a hand in Callum’s and his coven’s direction.
“Hopefully, it’ll scare the shit out of him when he realizes that we’re not fighting each other anymore but are bringing the fight to him instead,” Halle says clearly. “Aren’t you tired of this?”
