Page 98 of Awakening His Mate

“I’m grateful we’re alive,” Apryle agrees, “but I kind of thought there would be more of a revolutionary feel to this place, not some weird cult vibe.”

Roux frowns. “Are you that eager to fight?”

Apryle shifts her shoulders. “Killing the assholes who want us dead should be pretty high on our agenda.”

Who knew Apryle was so bloodthirsty.

“Halle and I will see if we can find Callum,” Cade says.

She seems surprised that he’s insisting she go with him. To be honest, so am I. Cade is nothing if not overbearing.

“Wait,” Halle says. “You’re letting me leave the building?”

He scowls, clearly feeling stressed by the situation. “Wherever I go, you go too. You do not leave my side for anything.”

“We should all go together,” Wyatt counters.

“This is a plan I like,” Sawyer adds. “No one gets left behind. We present a united front. Might make anyone considering attacking us hesitate.”

“We can’t exactly drag a pregnant Tessa around,” Roux says.

Tessa holds up her hands. “I’d rather be with you than sit here worrying on my own.” Abel reaches down to squeeze her shoulder, telling her without words that she would never be left here alone.

“It’s decided then. Off we go together,” Sawyer announces, sounding far too happy about the prospect of getting outside.

From the tight set of Jackson’s jaw, he would prefer to stay behind locked doors, but we can’t hide away forever. We need to find our place with these people and work out our next steps.

Once everyone is ready, boots on, coats in place, we leave the relative sanctuary of the building we have been given. Cade leads us in the direction of the big building we saw when we first came in, and as we pass tau and wolves alike, their stare burns into us.

“Anyone else feel like we are on display?” Halle glances around, leaning closer into her mate.

“It’s only because we’re new,” I say, hoping it's true. “Fresh meat.”

“I’ve never felt so much magic in one place,” Roux whispers. “I can feel it buzzing through the air.”

I focus for a moment, and I realize the static electricity I feel against my skin is power.

“Is that a good or bad thing?” Wyatt mutters.

He’s still displaying signs of exhaustion, but at least he is on his feet, walking on his own. None of us has to tell him how close he came to being a footnote.

“I guess time will tell.”

As we approach the main building, we see three males standing at the door and a small female between them. They aren’t wearing uniforms or even closely matching garments, but they all have knives strapped to their chests. I can smell the power in them and their wolves too.

The girl steps in front of us, her dark hair pulled tight into a braided ponytail. Her gaze roams over Cade before moving to the rest of us. “So you’re our newest recruits.”

Cade’s back stiffens, but it’s Sawyer who answers.

“That’s us. The newest freaks in the sideshow. Any idea where your fearless leader is? We need to see Callum.”

She doesn’t move, but the three guys exchange glances. After a moment, she leans into Cade, sucking in a lungful of air that makes Halle’s back snap ramrod straight. “You might be an alpha out there, vargr, but in here you’re no one.”

Cade peels his lips back into a snarl as his wolf flashes in his eyes at the challenge. Halle grips his arm before he can unleash.

“We don’t want trouble,” Halle says. “We just want to see Callum. He told us to come here if we needed anything.”

“Quit being a bitch, Talia, and let them through.” Ayden’s voice breaks through the tension, and when I turn, I see him standing behind us.

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