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“It’s so beautiful here,” I said to Will, who sat on the ground beside me.
We were surrounded by our pack, some sitting, others exploring a little. I’d already done my rounds twice, checking on everyone and making my presence known.
As the alpha, my family—because my pack was my family—looked to me for strength.
We were all in this together. Though I only knew as much as they did, I had to put on a brave face. The truth was, I was scared too. We’d escaped the war zone but the war was far from over. I’d trusted Brian enough to allow him to remain behind, but I was fighting the urge to chew at my nails with worry. He wasn’t a child. He was a man—and a brave one, at that. But he was still my son and my only child.
Still, Will had been right. I needed to trust him the way I’d wanted my father to trust me. Besides, I had a pack to take care of. As much as I’d wanted to stay behind with my son, I had others to worry about.
“Yes, it’s breathtaking,” Will answered, looking around. “Brian will be okay,” He added, as if reading my mind. He took my hand. “Our son is the best of both of us, and that includes our abilities.”
That was absolutely true.
I squeezed my mate’s hand. “I know,” I replied and he turned my hand over to kiss my palm.
While I was the pack’s strength, Will was mine. It was sad how familiar this situation felt, because he and I had already endured a war like this. Though this was far worse—the potential destruction of every realm—I was with him now, as I had been back on Earth, and I was glad of it.
“This reminds me of the time you took me to the Dragon Territory,” I said.
“You were so in love with me, even though you tried to deny it,” he replied.
I jabbed him with my elbow. “Says the man who wanted to stay away but couldn’t,” I said, mimicking his voice, and he chuckled.
Back then, we’d had no idea we’d end up here. We didn’t know our world was about to be turned upside down outside of our taboo relationship.
At the end of that war, Will and I had been given a thousand lifetimes together, and I wanted Brian to have that, too. I wanted him to have love that was eternal. And I believed he would.
I’d always known about his feelings for Rehema. The way he looked at her, although he tried to hide it, made it clear enough. But this damn war needed to end for them to find happiness.
“I hate that we’re back in this situation,” I told Will. “It’s as if we’ve traveled back in time to when we weren’t sure we’d be alive in the next hour.”
“We got through it then, and we will get through it again, now,” he said with confidence. “Natalie’s as brave as you are.”
“She is,” I sighed. “Even without chaos, she’s a fighter.”
A group of witches drew our attention when they flocked to Hekate and got on their knees. Hekate tried to get them to stand, but the witches refused. Wolves and other species who were sitting joined them in prayer, and Hekate’s pale skin suddenly became more vibrant.
Hekate was the only Imperium who hadn’t entered her alternate reality when the war got out of hand, and she deserved all of our prayers. She had enough divinity left to be here with us, but she was visibly weak.
I’d heard whispers that the witches had felt neglected and not protected by their creator, but Hekate had been busy trying to save everyone, not just her witches. All the species felt betrayed by the gods, because they’d kept the truth about the virus a secret. Still, the gods had done that to protect us.
The witches’ chants grew louder, and Hekate grew stronger. I sent my thanks to her in a prayer because from what Brian had told me, she’d believed in Natalie from the start.
Hekate’s cheeks became rosy, her dull hair returned to its usually glossy state, and her deep purple eyes regained their shine. Finally, the witches rose to their feet.
“Thank you, all of you,” Hekate said, her voice easily reaching the millions of souls across the vast land. “To my children, I’m sorry,” she continued, while reaching out to take the hand of a nearby witch. “I neglected you, but it wasn’t my intention.”
“You have nothing to be sorry for, Hekate,” the witch said, bowing her head. “You were only trying to protect all life. We’re the ones who should be begging your forgiveness.”
“Alpha?”
I looked down and found a little boy from my pack pulling on the hem of my top. I bent down to him, and saw his eyes were puffy from crying.
“Yes, Sebastian? Are you hungry?”
“I want to go home,” he replied, his blue eyes becoming glassy. I glanced behind him at his mother, Jane, who looked wary. Many of the other faces in the pack were wearing the same expression. “When can we go home?”
“Soon,” I told him. “We’re safe here for now. The Goddess is fighting for us, and we need to remain strong for her. Send her your prayers. Okay? Natalie is with her, and they’re doing everything they can.”
