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My unicorn friend nodded triumphantly. “Their group moved back into the House once we found the warehouse. They’re staying inside Dylan’s faction, which has been combined with Ethan’s in the last week, so they’re going to have more people fighting on their behalf.”
Grayson released his hold on me and stood abruptly. “They’ll never have enough. No matter how many factions they join with.”
I agreed with my mate. I hadn’t suspected we’d be fighting Johnathon like this, but if that fucker wanted my House, he was going to be sorely disappointed.
I had no intention of giving up my claim to Fire and Fluorite, no matter how many dumbasses he’d convinced to fight for him.
Hell, Hazel could have spelled most of them for all we knew, but what was most important was that we knew their plan and we had time to make our own.
A plan that would include preparing our people today and attacking tomorrow.
I wasn’t going to give Johnathon and Hazel any extra time to plot their next moves.
Not when so many lives were on the line.
“Let’s go find Ryder and Tuck,” I said, standing and joining Grayson, who was already halfway to the door.
“We’re going to stay here,” Lia said. “I want to stay as focused as I can today in case anything changes in my vision. It normally doesn’t work like that, but I’d rather attempt to see something more than miss anything important.”
I nodded and took Grayson’s hand.
It was time to plan a war.
Chapter33
GRAYSON
We showed up at the building Ryder frequented for meetings and found him alone with his head in his hands. Either he hadn’t slept or he’d gotten even more bad news. Possibly both, but hopefully learning that we knew where the cause to all these problems was would fix his mood.
He slowly glanced up at us, his hair in disarray. “What’s going on?”
“Lia found Johnathon and Hazel,” Kinsley said first. “She knows what their current plans are and that they’ve been encouraging Dylan’s decisions. I would go as far as to guess that Ethan might have even been working with them, too.”
Ryder’s fist slammed down on the desk he sat behind. “I don’t have fucking time for this.”
I cocked my head to the side and stepped forward. “Did something else happen?”
Ryder’s red-rimmed eyes narrowed at both of us in turn. “Tuck found two bodies when he did a second go-through on the burned buildings. One of our eldest mated pairs. They didn’t have any family here and we don’t keep a list of… We didn’t know…”
Fuck. The heaviness of guilt weighed down around us.
We’d thought that the faction had gotten lucky with no casualties. I should have known better. Luck and war didn’t often go hand in hand.
“I’m sorry, Ryder, but we don’t have much time,” Kinsley said with compassion. “They’re going to attack again in three days if we don’t make our move first.”
“If you’re not good to fight, you need to tell us now,” I added. “After everything that’s happened over the last few weeks, you have every right to be done with this, but we also have a right to be prepared. It’s my mate’s life on the line here.”
Given all Ryder had done for us, I tried to keep the ire I felt out of my tone, but I wasn’t positive I’d succeeded.
Ryder glanced down briefly and closed his eyes. When he reopened them, he stood and nodded. “We’re going to finish this. Together. What do you want to do?”
There was the shifter I was hoping to see.
“We need to gather those who want to fight,” Kinsley said. “But they need to be fully aware that this could be a fight to the death. Not everyone is going to make it back home. Not when the other side has a witch working for them.”
He nodded and grimaced. “Let me see what I can do about countering Hazel. I’ve been stockpiling certain things for an emergency situation. I might have enough potions that I’ve traded for to make a difference.”
His words reminded me that I had a whole house full of shit that I’d acquired over the years in my dealings.
