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“Nothing exactly,” I said. “But there’s something I need to say before it’s too late. I think, whether we hear from the fae or not—but especially if we don’t—it’d be best if you all went to your ownestates.”
The last few words made my throat ache coming up. My whole body ached, thinking about it. Seeing the way my mates stared at me inresponse.
“You want us toleaveyou?” Nate said, as incredulously as if I’d suggested he should fly back to his estate with his arms instead of ajet.
“Well, I’d be leaving too,” I said, willing my voice to stay steady. “I think I should be at the canine estate. It’s been hit the hardest already, and the vampires from both New York and Chicago will be focused there. So if I can only protect one place, that seems like the one that’ll need me the most. And your kin need you with them more than I do tonight. You can rally them, keep themhopeful.”
I caught Nate’s gaze, and then Marco’s. “Most of yours haven’t seen you since before this warstarted.”
“Serenity,” Aaron said softly. I realized I was trembling. I clenched my hands, drawing my shouldersback.
I’d never been apart from my mates, not by more than an hour or two’s drive, since they’d found me. It’d wrenched at me having Aaron gone on a reconnaissance mission for less than aday.
But I’d have my fire whether they were all with me or not. I meant what I’d said. Their kin needed them more. I couldn’t hold them back for my own comfort. Then the rogues really would be right about me distracting the alphas from their duty to the rest of theirpeople.
“I’ll be fine,” I said. “I have to get used to it anyway, don’t I? You all will have business on your estates and the other settlements after this is over. It’s not like you’re supposed to be with me 24-7.”
“No,” Aaron agreed. “But given the circumstances—how long you were apart from shifter society—ideally we’d have stayed with you until you were a little more settledin.”
I laughed roughly. “Not much chance of really getting settled until we’ve dealt with the vampires, isthere?”
“Well, wherever you’re going, I’m going too,” Kylie announced. “In case there was any doubt aboutthat.”
I smiled at her. “I was counting onit.”
“Are you sure, Ren?” Marco asked. “I’d imagine my kin think they haven’t much use for me atall.”
“They think that, but we both know how much you do for them,” Isaid.
The corner of his mouth quirked up, but he still looked sad. “I can’t argue with that,princess.”
Nate opened and closed his hands as if he didn’t know what to do with them. “I don’t like it,” he said. “Leaving you with just one of us to defend you—no offense meant to you, West. Or to you, Ren. I know you can defend yourself. But if you’re injuredagain…”
“Then West will be there, and all his kin too,” I said, and touched the bear shifter’s arm. My throat tightened. “I don’t want to be apart from you either. Any of you. But my job is to make sure all our kin have what they need, isn’t it? And I can’t let what I want get in the way ofthat.”
He sighed, bowing his head by mine. “Iknow.”
“All right. Then we should all go, quickly, while we still have time to make it back beforenightfall.”
I bobbed up on my toes to press a quick but determined kiss to Nate’s lips. Marco caught me next, teasing his fingers into my hair as he brought our mouths together. I turned to Aaron, and he kissed me gently before resting his forehead againstmine.
“We’ll be with you, either way,” he said. “Part of us always willbe.”
The nervous jittering inside me calmed just slightly. “And part of me will be withyou.”
I wasn’t going to let myself think about how this might be the last time I saw any ofthem.
West had stayed quiet through the whole conversation. There wasn’t much for him to say, I guessed, when he was the one I’d be with. And I knew he had to want to get back to his own kin. But when I came up beside him as we all strode out toward the air strip, he looked almosthaunted.
“You haven’t even had all of us for a whole two days yet, Sparks,” hesaid.
I managed to smile. “Oh, I don’t know. I think I had you a lot longer thanthat.”
He glanced at me with a flash of his eyes. His mouth twitched. “All right. I’ll give youthat.”
"You'd better go round up the rest of your kin who came with us," I told him. "I think my best friend will be particularly disappointed if a certain fox shifter gets leftbehind."
West chuckled and loped off toward the courtyard. The best friend in question looped her arm around mine. "Always looking out for my bestinterests."
