“Rest now,” I say to Aster, and she curls up beside me. We have a long drive to the Adirondacks.
The rest of the drive we make in silence. Aster dozes beside me. I stare at Sully the whole time, my eyes wolf-bright. Once in a while his gaze connects with mine in the rearview mirror, but he mostly focuses on the road. His whole body is relaxed in the front seat, his eyes glittering in the moonlight but not blazing. His wolf and his man are one.
The moon is high by the time Sully turns off the narrow mountain highway onto a bumpy dirt road. Branches scrape the window as the car bounces over the rough terrain. Aster wakes and Sully slows the car to a stop and turns to face us.
“What is this place?” I ask.
“Technically it’s a wildlife preserve owned by the Blackthroat Family Foundation. Brick was able to snatch it up under the Adalwulf’s nose. Aiden wasn’t happy because the Foundation land is right up against Adalwulf land. After you find your mother and sister, you’re going to want to cross that ravine and climb up to the other side.” He gives me more details about the terrain–the rock outcroppings that could hide our descent. “There’s a cave you can enter. It has a secret tunnel that will hide you.”
How do you know about this? I sign.
He signs and speaks back, “Moira told me. She was going to use it.” He pauses, swallowing. “My sister was a rebel. She hated Bruce Blackthroat... He was a hard-ass. She had this romantic idea of becoming an Adalwulf and living at Moon Hollow. I don’t know where she got it…some wolf must have been sharing propaganda. I lost contact with her. Two years later, I received a message begging for me to rescue her. I came here” –he glances down to the bottom of the ravine– “and found her body. The Warden killed her for trying to escape and left her to rot.”
“I’m sorry,” Aster says.
Sully’s eyes flash green. He looks distant for a moment then shakes his head, as if flicking a painful memory away. “Thank you, Seeress.”
Pain flits over Aster’s face. “Call me Aster. I’m not the Seeress anymore.”
Sully’s brow creases in confusion.
I pick up Aster’s hand. Fuck. I asked too much of her.
“Mating me made Aster lose her magic,” I explain to Sully.
Aster shrinks a bit, and my wolf wants to howl over her pain.
I take my phone out of my pocket and show it to Sully. I’m leaving this here in case I shift, I sign.
He nods. Good luck.
Thank you. I repeat the sign twice. I don’t say or sign anything more, there aren’t words or signs to express my gratitude. I can’t believe Sully, the head of Blackthroat security, was willing to help us.
It’s almost as if Fate is guiding us again.
Sully gets out and guides us into the forest. He hands me a small black pack he’s carrying. Inside I find rope, duct tape, and strips of cloth that can be used as gags or blindfolds. There’s also a long silver skinning knife in a black leather sheath. I wait until Aster isn’t looking to secure it to my belt and cover it with my shirt.
Sully points out the way down into the valley. “This is as far as I can go. I need to stay on Blackthroat land.” He doesn’t say it, but I understand–if he’s caught by the Adalwulfs, there will be war.
“I’m going to give you a thirty-minute head start, and then I'm going to cause a distraction.”
Thank you, I sign again.
“Don’t thank me. Get your mother and sister out. Alive.”
“We will,” Aster makes the yes sign and turns toward the path to take the first step towards Adalwulf land.
“Wait.” I pull her back. “I want you to go with Sully–”
“No.” Moonlight bathes her face, illuminating her fierce expression. She bares her teeth, pointing to herself then me.
My mate is going to stick beside me, for better or worse.
I could order her to stay. It’s safer for her. But something in me yields.
“You need me,” she says, and that’s that. I need her help finding the purification site. Without her, my mission will fail.
I grip her hand tightly as we walk the path that takes us behind enemy lines.
