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Willa looked behind me to where Lincoln was standing. Her face softened. “Promise me you’ll take care of yourself.”
I brought her in for a hug. “You too. Keep running and don’t stop. No matter what. He’s going to come looking for you.”
If he found her… I shuddered. Luna only knew what he would do to her.
We gave each other one last squeeze before she and Jacob made their way up the ravine and fled into the brush with the remaining Delidos.
I wrapped my arms around myself and watched through teary eyes as they disappeared from view completely.
Lincoln came up behind me, embracing me. I leaned into him and closed my eyes. This was where I belonged, with him and Sawyer. We would find a way to be together.
He placed a kiss on the back of my head. “You could have gone with her. It might have been safer for you.”
“I couldn’t.” My bottom lip trembled, and my face crumpled. “I couldn’t leave you and Sawyer.” I turned in his arms and buried my face in his shoulder. “We have to stop him.”
“We will.”
I peered up at him through my wet lashes as another thought crossed my mind. “What will your father do when he learns she ran away?”
More importantly, was he going to take this out on us?
Eleven
Lincoln smoothed a handthrough my hair as my question hung between us. “I don’t know. He won’t be happy.” He pressed a kiss to the back of my head again. “But know I’ll protect you from him. Always.”
I closed my eyes and relaxed against him. His warmth wrapped around me like a warm blanket. His arms were safe. Home. My eyes popped open as my realization washed over me.
Home. The only thing missing was Sawyer. The rain blurred my vision as I wondered if the three of us would ever get a chance to be together. I said a silent prayer to Luna that we would.
We stayed in that spot, staring at where the wolves had retreated. Part of me wished it had been the three of us, even if it would never be safe. I hoped Willa, and the others, heeded my warning. They couldn’t stop running. Ever.
Willa was my only friend here, and now she was gone. I prayed she stayed safe, and I hoped I’d made the right choice in letting her leave.
Lincoln nuzzled my neck before pressing his lips to my ear. “We should head back. We will want to get back to the cars before my father and the rest of the pack so we can lead them in the wrong direction.”
I put my hand on top of his. Slick, sticky warmth met my fingers, and I pulled my hand away and held it up to my face. The rain washed the red rivulets down my arm, but there was no mistaking what it was.
Blood.
I grasped Lincoln’s arm and stared at it. “You’re bleeding.”
I hadn’t thought he and Jacob had gotten into it enough to draw blood.
“Good.” He pulled away and then offered me his other hand.
“Good?”
He took my hand and pulled me in the direction we’d come. “If my father thought I let Willa go without a fight, then he’d have my head.” He slicked his hair out of his face with his injured hand. “I’m not bleeding enough, actually. We’ll have to say I shifted to heal myself. At least it’s bleeding enough to make a mess.”
He looked down at his clothes.
I followed his gaze. Blood had dribbled down his gray sweater and onto his jeans. My breath caught in my throat. There was so much of it.
“Does it hurt?” I reached across him and gingerly pressed around where the wound was.
It didn’t look deep. The rain was making the weeping look worse than it was, and he was right—it was making a horrible mess.
“Nah. It’s just a cut. Nothing I can’t handle.”
