“I’ll bring his head back for you,” Volt offers softly. “His balls, too, if you’d like.”
She grimaces.
“I’ll add your father to the pile,” Volt continues. “Give me names, I’ll find them and kill them. All of them. Just tell me who.” His earnest promises seem to be thawing her a little.
“It’s not about sexism or saying you can’t hold your own,” Alpha Ebony speaks up. “They’re right. I can feel how agitated their wolves are even here. They can’t fight in this condition. It’ll get them killed.”
Clove deflates. She knows she’s defeated, but she clearly doesn’t like it. And I hate it, too. If she were our mate, we could absolutely take her with us. We would be stronger as a full clan. Our mental hive mind would be in place. Our shared immunity. Everything.
But in this current state, she has to go back to the island.
“All right,” she says, her tone indicating she’s not happy about this, but won’t fight it. “I’ll go back to Carnage Island with Alpha Ebony.”
Tieran swallows, his expression uncharacteristically soft for him. “I’m sorry, Clove. But I promise we’ll make this up to you.”
“By bringing back Bryson’s body for you to burn,” Volt offers hopefully.
Tieran ignores him.
But Clove smiles a little. She knows Volt’s trying. “Looks like we’re having a barbecue, V,” I tell him.
He grins. “Yeah?”
Tieran doesn’t respond, his concentration still on Clove. It’s like he wants to say something, but doesn’t know how. Which is again uncharacteristic of him.
“I would like to watch him burn,” Clove says, her gaze on Tieran, not on Volt.
Which means she misses his ridiculous smile. Probably a good thing because he looks a bit psychotic. Even Alpha Lance takes a step away from him.
“We’ll make it up to you,” Tieran repeats, his palm finding her cheek again. “I promise, Clove.”
“I believe you,” she whispers back to him.
He presses his forehead to hers, a moment of intense emotion seeming to pass from him to her. It’s enough to wipe that look off Volt’s face and sober his expression. He steps forward, taking over her opposite side while I remain on the other.
Then the three of us hug her, our clan embracing our Omega.
It’s a charged moment without words.
Just a passing of knowledge.
A vow of the future.
A destiny engraving itself in all our hearts.
Ours, I think, kissing her temple. Tieran takes her mouth, his own declaration passing to her with his tongue. And Volt nibbles her neck.
When this is done, we’ll be taking her back to Black Mountain Pack as our Omega.
I can feel it in my soul.
She’s the one that will push us through this final challenge.
The reason Tieran will finally ascend.
We’re going home,I think.We’re finally going home.
28
