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As if I’d passed the speaking stick, Flint echoed my words. “You’re a better leader than any of them ever could have been. Some people think that alphas stay at the top of the hierarchy by standing on the backs of lower wolves, but it should be the other way around. Good alphas are the foundation, the ones who keep the pack stable and safe, the ones who serve the pack.”
He slashed a hand toward the hallway.
“Frost Fang needs you more than the Howling Echo ever has. And I know you’re too honorable to turn your back on them the way they turned their backs on us.”
Gage growled in frustration. “Then what? Am I just supposed to give up the Howling Echo? Turn us all into Frost Fang wolves? Leave our lives behind?”
I knew Gage wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he abandoned Frost Fang, but I wasn’t willing to sacrifice our pack, either.
“No.” I would’ve crossed my arms, but I wasn’t willing to give up Freya’s hand.
Instead, I looked down at her, thinking about how much everything had changed, even before Gage killed Nira. What would Freya think?
“No,” Flint echoed. “We keep doing things the way we always have — we buck tradition. We figure it out together. Just as soon as Rowan gets here…”
His words hung in the air until Gage completed the thought.
“And just as soon as Freya wakes up.” Gage’s deep and commanding voice made his words feel like an order.
Then the powerful pack alpha leaned over the bed and placed a gentle kiss on Freya’s forehead.
His next words may have been a whisper, but Flint and I both heard them, and we both agreed with the sentiment.
“You’re my number one priority, princess. Now wake up.”
Chapter 28
Freya
I drifted in and out of consciousness, but opening my eyes felt too difficult. From time to time, I heard familiar voices, and I tried to call out to them, but doing so felt impossible. It was like I was caught in molasses and unable to move or speak. When I became aware of people around me, they seemed to move like bees, zipping in and away before I fully registered their presence.
But over time, they slowed down, or I sped up. I could catch snippets of conversations before I fell into a deeper sleep again. And eventually, finally, I could open my eyes.
Heath jolted when I squeezed his hand, then smiled down at me. Tears gathered in the corners of his eyes.
“Freya, you’re awake.”
“Heath,” was all I managed to say before sleep claimed me once more.
This time, I dreamed. A woman smiled at me with pride in her deep-blue eyes. In a scratchy voice, she murmured, “I wanted to destroy the pack alliance, but you ended it so much better than even I had planned.”
The next time I woke up, opening my eyes felt easier. I remembered how hard it had been to wake up last time, and adrenaline flooded my veins.
I’d come too close to dying, and apparently the battle wasn’t won just yet. The edges of my vision blurred with darkness, but I fought.
What would happen to Flint if I stopped fighting?
As if the thought had summoned the man, he rushed to my side.
“How are you feeling?”
“What…” I tried to ask, but getting out the word ‘happened’ seemed impossible.
“You’re going to make it, Freya. You’re pulling through.” Flint’s words seemed like they were meant to reassure me, but instead, they made me wonder why that had been in question. Why did I feel so weak?
Whatever was causing it, I needed to keep fighting. For Flint’s sake. And for my other packmates. Gage had said so many things I wanted to explore. His words had filled me with a warmth I wanted to chase forever. And yes, I wanted to figure things out with Heath as well.
I wouldn’t let unconsciousness claim me again if it meant I might not wake up.
