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“Over my dead body,” Ridge grunts.
“So it sounds to me like we need answers regarding Sable’s heritage. Her past,” Archer muses as he shoves his empty food container away and reaches for his soda. “You know there’s one surefire way to get the answers we need.”
Trystan nods, although a muscle ticks in his jaw. “I don’t like it, but it only makes sense. Sable will have to stay here, though.”
“What are you guys talking about?” I ask. “Where can we find answers, and why can’t I go?”
Archer grimaces, but looks me in the eye as he says, “Your uncle. If we want to know about your past, we need to talk to your uncle.”
Cold dread carves a path down my spine, and suddenly, my appetite is gone. I lift my soda only to find it’s empty right when I could use the bubbles to calm my now-roiling stomach.
“Fine,” I say, proud that my voice doesn’t shake. “But I’m coming with you.”
26
Archer
Sable’s fear is visible in her big blue eyes. I can only imagine that the thought of returning to her uncle’s house fills her with the kind of dread I carry around with me regarding the witches. Neither of us would want to return to the site of so much pain and humiliation without a damn good reason.
But behind her fear, there’s determination too. This Sable isn’t the scared little lamb I talked into staying with us that first day I met her, on the day of the council meeting. This Sable has grown and changed—physically, mentally, and emotionally. She’s not giving in to her fear like she used to. Her face is hard and unmoving, ready to take on every single alpha in this room if it means she gets her way.
I’m so proud of her my heart feels like it could burst.
“There’s not a chance in hell,” Trystan snarls, cutting his hand through the air and looking around at the rest of us for support. “Your uncle would kill you sooner than look at you.”
“You’ll stay here. With Amora,” Ridge says in a calmer, less aggressive tone.
“First of all, I don’t need a babysitter.” Sable’s eyes flash, then she glances up at Amora, who’s still standing behind her chair. “No offense.”
“None taken. Get ’em, girl.” Amora offers her a wolfish smile.
“Secondly, this is my past we’re talking about,” Sable adds, turning back to the rest of us. “I’m going.”
Dare shakes his head. He looks at me as if I’m going to have his back before focusing his attention on Sable. “If I have to tie you to the bed, I will.”
Amora cackles. “Come on now. I don’t need to know all your dirty little mate secrets.”
Sable’s lower lip juts out, and I can see she’s gearing up for a fight. I have no doubt she’ll win it too. Before anybody else can speak, I reach out and take her hand. She looks into my eyes, and I try to let every bit of love I have for her shine through my expression.
“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” I ask her, pitching my voice low. The question is just for her, screw the others. I need to know what she thinks.
Sable visibly swallows, her gaze darting around the table, but then she squares her shoulders and juts her chin out. “Yes.”
I nod once. If she’s sure, then I’m going to bat for her.
“No! Are you kidding me? Fuck, no. End of story.” Trystan speaks up before I can. “This isn’t a negotiation.”
“We pulled you out of that man’s basement where he was going to murder you,” Dare growls, his wolf just beneath the surface of his skin. “You aren’t going back there.”
I get it. I really do. They’re all worried about her. Hell, so am I. But she’s a grown woman with her own wants and needs, and with a past that none of them can comprehend. Dare, maybe, if he’d think about it logically in comparison to his own trauma. But he’s not a thinker—he’s a doer. As far as they’re all concerned, she’s an innocent woman who needs protection.
Releasing her hand, I address the other shifters. “None of you understand the situation because you haven’t been there before. There’s a certain need to face your abuser, or to face down the people who hurt you. To close the wound so it can begin to heal. I know, because I’ve never gotten that opportunity.”
I pause, thinking of the way it eats away at me every day. I harbor several years of absolute pain and humiliation in my heart, and I don’t want to. I want to close that chapter and forget.
It’s not that simple.
I want to give Sable the chance to heal the wound in her heart. No amount of time or miracle cures will ever heal the marks her uncle left on her body, but she could have closure in this. It’s a small price to pay, and we’ll all be there with her to protect her from him.
