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“Maybe he’s with her?”
“Why didn’t he wake us?”
“You think he was in on it?”
“No,” I moaned, my head throbbing as their conversation continued over me. “He was wholly committed to Sunday. I saw it. Whatever scheme played out here, he wasn’t part of it.”
Another bolt of pure agony ripped through me. Fucking hell. She was having the baby. That had to be what this was. Otherwise, she’d have her defenses up to keep this from affecting me. I had to block this out. I wouldn’t be able to do anything if this continued.
“She’s in labor. We have to help her.” I somehow gritted out the words as I worked to raise my mental barrier.
“It’s too soon. She’s only six months pregnant.” Fur rippled along Kingston’s arms as his wolf fought to break free. Learning his mate was giving birth to his pup had likely triggered a primal instinct.
Alek fared little better, the berserker flashing in his eyes, his muscles rippling. “We all saw her. She looked like a woman at full term. There’s no precedent for a child like ours.”
“Or...” Kingston snarled before continuing, “Whatevershegave Sunday brought on labor.”
“Does it matter the reason? We can’t just leave Sunny to face it alone. What the fuck are we waiting for?” Alek stormed to the front door, but the moment he touched the knob the ground began to shake violently. “I didn’t do that. That wasn’t me.”
I knew. I felt it in my bones, even through the block I’d raised. Relief from Sunday, exhaustion, fear, and beneath it all, pure love. “Congratulations. We’re fathers.” But there was no joy in my words. I dropped my walls and let myself feel her. “No. Dove, you can’t do this,” I whispered.
“What? Thorne, don’t fuck around. What’s happening?” Panic laced Kingston’s voice.
“We’re losing her.”
Alek ripped the door off its hinges, his eyes bleeding black and flickering with lightning.
It was on the tip of my tongue to point out we didn’t know where she was, if she was even still on this island, but as soon as I caught sight of the unnaturally crimson sky I knew she must be. Clouds gathered just on the horizon. Thick black and purple masses with flashes of neon green illuminating them.
We were at the epicenter of the Apocalypse. It was here, and we had done nothing to stop it.
Kingston leapt past Alek, his massive black wolf charging toward the church. He must’ve caught her scent just as I had. So much blood filled the air. Most of it hers.
The three of us took off in that direction, only to come up short as the doors flung open. A violent swirl of copper mist gathered just beyond the chapel. Kingston growled, a low warning rumble as the hair at his ruff lifted and he tensed.
“Odin’s beard,” Alek breathed. “Is that...”
“A horse.”
“I’ve never seen a horse look like that.”
Kingston growled again, his body tensed.
A dark-haired woman stalked out of the church, a tiny wailing bundle nestled in her arms. My heart stopped.
“Eden.” As her name left my lips in a reverent whisper, my pulse kicked back into gear. “That bitch has our baby.”
Kingston moved first, and we followed suit, racing for the woman as she smoothly mounted her horse. He snarled and took a running leap as soon as he was within striking distance, and for a moment, I thought perhaps it would be this easy. That we could cut her off at the pass and save the day.
I’d been a fool.
With one wave of her hand, she sent Kingston flying as an invisible force knocked him out of the air. He tumbled, crashing into the small fence around the churchyard. It cracked in half at the impact, and Kingston whimpered as he came down hard on the broken bits of wood and wire.
She directed her attention to us, smirking as she leaned forward, running her free hand over the steed’s neck with a tenderness that didn’t fit her terrifying aura. Her lips moved as she whispered something into the animal’s ear, and instantly it shot forward at a speed that shouldn’t have been possible.
“Fuck. Look what you did, Kingston. She’s gone, you bloody fool.” Fury ripped through me. If that wolf hadn’t lunged before we arrived with him, we could’ve stopped her.
“Thorne.” Alek’s voice was filled with censure as Kingston struggled back up onto his paws. “If it’s anyone’s fault, it’s yours. You knew what was happening, and you allowed us to sit with our thumbs up our arses. If you had told us what was happening sooner, that vile harpy never would have gotten her hands on our daughter.”
