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Chapter Twenty-Four
Skylar
The early morning sun made the dew glisten on the blades of grass. It was going to be a beautiful day. The kind of day I’d love to spend sitting on a sunny patio with an iced coffee. That wasn’t going to happen.
“Please be careful,” Elias said as he squeezed my hand.
“I’ll be fine,” I said.
“If she hurts you, I’m going to kill every vampire in your entire realm,” David said.
“That would take a very long time,” I said.
“Time I have, another Skylar, I don’t,” he said.
“I guess I better not let her kill me, then.” I looked at David and Elias. The two of them had set aside the bad blood between them to help me with this. Granted, we were also after their sister, but they could have stormed the place, taken Clara and left.
They didn’t have help with the stone. They were doing this for me. Nobody had ever tried to help me with anything before. Nobody tried to take care of me or worry about my wellbeing. Not that I let anyone in enough to have a chance.
Their support gave me power. Confidence. Faith that if shit hit the fan, they’d come find me.
I stood on my toes and kissed Elias on the cheek. Then I moved to David and did the same. I looked at each in turn and smiled. “Keep your senses open. I know that even from here, you’ve got my back.”
“We do,” Elias said. He glanced at David then back to me. “We both do.”
“If she touches you, we’re going in,” David added.
“I hope so,” I said. I had every confidence that the two of them could take on the queen. It didn’t matter how powerful she was. She was no match for their magic. I’d seen what they could do individually and it was terrifying to consider what they might be capable of together.
They didn’t get a chance to test it out on her during our last encounter since she had me. I pushed the dark thoughts filling my mind aside. I was grateful I was alive but there was no way I’d put myself in that position again. I was going to stay out of her grasp so my mates could finish the job.
With what I hoped was a confident smile, I nodded and turned away from them, leaving our hiding place in the trees.
I could still feel David and Elias nearby as I walked toward the palace. They’d stay close and I had a feeling they wouldn’t wait long after I entered.
Assuming they let me in.
It was worth the risk. The stone was my responsibility and we’d lost too much already. Lola trusted me and I wasn’t going to let her down. There were already shifters under the control of the stone. Members of the pack I’d recently been welcomed into with open arms. I wasn’t about to let them down.
Plus, Xander was in there. He needed me. I’d rather die than let anything happen to my mates. All sense of self-preservation was gone. It was an odd feeling that left me at peace. Usually, when I was hunting, I was in it for myself. I needed to survive no matter the cost. Now, I knew what it was like to value other lives over your own.
I should probably be terrified but I wasn’t. A sense of calm washed over me as I approached the shifters standing outside the gate.
Two of them looked familiar and a lead weight settled into my gut. I wanted to release them of this bond. Free them from the magic keeping them prisoner here.
“No visitors,” one of the shifters said. He was bald and red-faced. I had no idea where he came from but I could sense the animal inside him. It didn’t feel like a wolf.
“The queen will want to see me,” I said.
“I said, no visitors,” he insisted.
I don’t know what I expected, but it certainly wasn’t to be turned away at the door. Maybe it was foolish, but I thought they’d let me in.
“Skylar?”
I turned to see Madison and I caught the momentary look of relief in her expression before returning to a neutral mask.
“Traitor,” I said.
