Slade taps his pen against the page as he considers something before hastily scribbling it down. Shamelessly, I lean over Sabrina’s lap to try and read what he’s writing, and my grin splits my face.
As his pen races across the paper, he muses, “The only way to free a wolf is a female’s claiming bite. That’s why the drug is onlyhalf-working; the person trapped in a half-human, half-wolf state. That’s the one thing that Ash hasn’t been able to replicate to pull it off permanently. And sinceyourbite made us immune to external manipulation, and Aurelia created the original curse that imprisoned them-” his pen slows, and he looks up, more animated than I think I’ve ever seen the man. “This isn’t my area of expertise, but what if we mixed some of Sabrina’s blood into it? There’s little risk of her taking them on as mates since she isn't marking them, but we’ll test it on one guy first and kill him if it backfires to be completely sure before giving it out en masse.”
Reid strums his fingers on the table. “Theoretically, that could work. Can’t hurt to try at least.”
Another crack of thunder is followed by a deluge of rain assaulting the roof as Cin leans forward from his seat across from Sabrina. “She’s everyone’s missing piece, so it makes sense to me that she’d be the key to fixing a drug that he hasn’t been able to perfect even after a decade of trials.”
Sabrina cracks her neck from side to side. “So, we bribe the troops to be at the ready, I lure Ash into a false sense of security, crack open the apocalypse pinata, and then before he can murder my face, we chuck him in a woodchipper to make sure he actually dies this time.”
“Are you trying to seduce me?” Tugging on her braid to pull her closer, I kiss her as if the world isn’t collapsing around us. “Because it’s working.”
As she smiles against my lips, Damian muses, “You know, since Sabrina came into the picture, the Slaughters have been acting differently. Maybe just her presence is enough to have their inner demons recognizing Ash’s manipulation. I bet if we phrased it as the only way to save her, we wouldn’t have to fight them to gain control of the warehouse, they’d hand us the keys.”
“No.” Her voice is succinct and firm, tightening her grip on my hand. “We’renotplaying them. When they come back, we’re laying all of our cards out on the table and letting them choose if they want to help us or not, and if they refuse, so be it. We’ll tranq them or something until we’re done doing what we need to, but we’re not going to trick them into this when it’s entirely possible it’s going to get them killed.”
Hunter grimaces. “If they say no, we’re giving away our entire fucking plan, Sabrina. If Ash is able to dig around in people's heads without having to siphon from them, that means he can tap in whenever he wants to a certain degree. Who's to say he doesn't use the ability to eavesdrop or root around in their memories to keep tabs on everyone that way?”
Lightning flashes, illuminating a slow smile spreading across her face. “That’s what I’m counting on.”
Chapter 4
Sabrina
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Iswipe some of thewater out of my eyes, but it’s futile. It may be morning, but the storm has made it dark enough that it may as well be the middle of the night. The torrential rain has driven the majority of men indoors, so naturally, it’s the perfect time for us to go traipsing around outside.
Turning to Kaige, Damian, and Hunter, I exhale heavily, buzzing my lips. “Careful what you wish for, am I right?” But they look so damn peaceful despite everything that happened yesterday, it’s impossible not to take a little of the edge off of my nerves.
Kaige stretches his arms over his head, basking in the storm with a serene smile. “You mean because I might get everything I wished for and then some? Hate to be the one to break it to you, gorgeous, but this isn’t the life lesson that you think it is.”
Damian ducks beneath a low-hanging branch, leading our way down the path that’s rapidly disappearing beneath the onslaught of water. “We’ll happily endure whatever challenges come with having you in our lives; you’re worth jumping through hoops for. I’m not going to feel bad for getting the things I wished for, even if there are some strings attached. Surprises may suck at times, but still better than sitting around and waiting to die, as far as I’m concerned.”
“Isn’t that the damn truth. I’ll take a little chaos over mind-numbing monotony any day.”
Hunter scans the area with a critical eye, but even he appears less high-strung than usual despite the recent emotional whiplash. Wary of our surroundings and seeking potential threats, sure, but with less anxiety and more natural caution. I’m not sure if it’s because of what I took from him and Damian that caused the shift in their demeanor, or because we have a game plan to give us a false sense of confidence that everything’s going to work out in the end. Whatever the reason, they all seem to have embraced the mantra of ‘it is what it is at this point’, accepting the ironic sense of peace that comes from being at war with the world instead of themselves, for a change.
