Page 16

EMME

K ellan and Hunter started talking at the same time.

“Pretty mate, we’ve spent the last week tearing our way across America searching for you,” Golden wailed. “Can you never leave my side again. Please. My sanity depends on it.” His blue eyes bore into me as he held on.

Hunter’s voice was all growl: “You’re going to be the fucking death of me, Emmeline. And the death of anyone who touched you when you were away from us.”

I mentally frolicked in a happy place at their declarations, leaning into my mates. “I’m so fucking relieved to see you. I’ve been dying a million deaths without you and our bond. Did your beasts retreat into your essence as well?”

Hunter slid his hands up to grip my cheeks, forcing me to focus on him as I attempted to look at both of them equally. I’d just missed their perfect faces so much. “Your beast retreated?” he demanded, and I nodded around his grip.

“Yeah, I was almost human. No extra senses and no ability to shift. I knew she wasn’t completely gone, but she was close enough that it genuinely worried me I’d lose her.”

Hunter’s expression never changed, but his growl ripped through the morning air, as loud as the dragons fighting above us.

“As concerning as that was,” Finley piped up, from where he stood behind us, too damn close for my liking, “we have a slightly more pressing issue. As you’ve probably noticed, Slade is not the last of his kind.

I found Emme with the other dragon in an underground bunker.

It was nearly impossible to track her there, as the walls were lined and magically blocked, keeping her scent hidden.

It was only when I followed a shifter getting supplies in town that I got on the right track. ”

He paused, and I didn’t turn or acknowledge him, not even as he added, “Emme was locked in a room with the dragon.”

Kellan added to Hunter’s menacing growl, his eyes nearing an intense violet in color. “What did he do to you, Emme?” he asked slowly, as if he barely got the words out. “Did he hurt you in any way?”

It was a loaded question, considering the pulsing bite on my neck.

“He didn’t rape or beat me,” I said quickly, offering what little reassurance I could.

“There’s so much I need to tell you, including how I was taken and who was responsible for that, but first we need to deal with the dragon fight before Slade gets hurt. ”

Or Talon .

Not that I’d mention that out loud until I’d shared all the information, including the fact that our pack was now irrevocably tied to another dragon.

Hunter didn’t release my face, his wolf’s gaze locked onto me.

I silently pleaded with him to give me time, and that I’d tell him everything when our pack was no longer in immediate danger.

With a heavy exhale, he leaned forward and pressed his lips to mine.

A brief touch, no more than a slide of his tongue across mine, and then he released his hold.

Kellan stepped into that space, and his kiss was more passionate as he ran his hands through my hair and pulled me close. His tongue demanded entry, and I gladly obeyed, losing all focus. We needed this reassurance that we were together, alive, and our beasts were all safe.

“We felt your pain,” he whispered when he pulled away, still cupping the back of my neck.

He looked exhausted, and I’d bet good money that none of them had properly slept since I was taken.

“Hours after you were stolen away, there was a rush of pain, and then you faded from our bond. We knew you weren’t dead, but our connection was being blocked. ”

I nodded harshly. “Yeah, they teamed up with the Termaine witches to block us.” And break our quintet. Fletcher had revealed his continued involvement with that coven right after my forced bonding, to really drive home that there was no hope in waiting for my pack to rescue me.

Hunter gaze narrowed on me. “Termaine… you mean the ones from?—”

“Yep, that powerful line who were front and center of the last war. Apparently, they weren’t all killed off, and they’ve been planning this for a long time. They’re involved in my kidnapping, the death of my mother, and a lot of other shit.”

The confusion remained on all their faces as Hunter asked, “What are they trying to achieve? Last time they had an alpha at the helm, but are you saying they’re working alone now?”

Swallowing roughly, I wished I didn’t have to reveal this part, though I doubted he’d be surprised. “Yeah, they still have an alpha, and he wants the same result as last time. The end of quintets and cities, and the return of packs with a single alpha.”

“I will fucking kill Blaine, that piece of shit,” Kellan burst out, grinding his boots into the dirt.

Squeezing my eyes briefly closed, I shook my head. “It’s not just Blaine. He’s involved, but there’s a stronger alpha at the helm.” Hunter met my gaze, and I saw the resignation on his expression right before I said, “It’s Fletcher Davenport.”

Hunter nodded, having guessed it in the seconds before my reveal. “There’s more too. Blaine called him… Father.”

There was a flicker of gold in the darkest recesses of Hunter’s storm cloud eyes as he said, “I don’t know or care about that part, but I wished I was surprised about Fletcher’s involvement. That fuck has always been obsessed with omegas, which was why I was determined to never allow him near you.”

Swallowing hard, I whispered, “I think he’s killed omegas in the past. I believe he’s been taking them for years, secretly, and experimenting on them.

He implied that there weren’t enough to experiment on, but in the same breath told me that my mom’s death was his doing.

If we investigated his life, I bet we’d find others. ”

There was a surge of Hunter’s rage through our bond. “Did he touch you?”

“No,” I hurriedly said. “Not really. He has others to take care of his dirty work.”

Unintentionally, my gaze lifted to Talon, and as I stretched, the neckline of my sweatshirt slipped, and Kellan’s howl was my first indication that he’d caught sight of my new bite.

As his broken, furious cry filled the air, it caught even the dragon’s attentions, and Slade dropped into a dive, heading straight for us.

Talon right behind him.

I didn’t see what happened next as Kellan wrapped his hands around my biceps and lifted me off the ground. I focused on his paler-than-usual face, hoping this wasn’t the moment my pack was destroyed beyond repair. “Emme,” he choked out. “Baby. What did they do to you?”

I brushed my hand down his cheek in an attempt to calm his raging beast, as Hunter pressed in closer to my side, no doubt wondering what he’d missed.

Finley’s expression was sad as he met mine, and he nodded as if to say he had my back.

“Fletcher has had that dragon under his control for years,” I said, as calmy as I could.

“When they first took me, he forced the dragon to bite me, and since I was being controlled by magic, I had no choice but to bite him back.” As their devastated expressions wavered before my tear-filled gaze, I pushed on.

“We’re bonded. Me and Talon. Which means you can’t kill him, at least not until we figure out if the bond can be broken. ”

Hunter’s expression shattered as he reached out, as if to tear me from Kellan’s shaky hold, only he never got the chance. The thump of Slade’s dragon slamming into the ground distracted us all, as he raced on all fours in our direction. Talon right on his tail.

“Put me down,” I whispered, wriggling against Kellan. “Come on, Golden Boy, you need to pull it together. We’re all still here and able to fight. Don’t give up yet.”

That snapped him out of his daze, and when my feet touched the ground, I turned to run for Slade, only to have Hunter stepping in my path. I ducked to avoid his hold, which was impossible when the damn alpha had arms longer than my body.

“We can’t let them kill each other,” I shouted, fighting his hold. “I’m the only one who can stop it.”

“Not a fucking chance!” Finley snarled, taking both of us by surprise—Hunter’s eyebrows drew together as he attempted to process the bear protecting me. “You will not risk yourself by getting between two fire-breathing dragons. They can take care of themselves. You cannot.”

Goddess, I needed proper fight training so they’d stop seeing me as this vulnerable little cupcake.

“You saw Talon in the bunker,” I said with a snap.

“He’s protective. He considers me to be part of his clan, or his possession…

whatever concept dragons use. He’s not going to kill me, especially not when we’re newly bonded, which would possibly kill him as well. ”

Finley’s stubborn expression didn’t soften, and Hunter’s hold only tightened.

Yeah, we were all shocked.

“Baby,” Kellan breathed, still sounding so devastated, it felt like that word stabbed through my heart. “We can’t lose you. Not even to save Slade.”

I couldn’t see him around Hunter’s hold, but he’d hear me just fine.

“It’s going to be okay, Golden. After living through almost losing you, I’m not willing to accept any of us not surviving and having our happily-ever-afters.

There’s a way to fix this, I’m sure of it, and if not…

well, we’ll be the first sextet or whatever the hell you call a pack of six.

Even if Talon has to stay locked in the basement for the rest of eternity.

He was raised in isolation by Fletcher Davenport, so I have no idea if he’s redeemable or not, but for now he’s part of our pack. ”

There was a choked growl from Hunter, reminding me he was raised by the same male.

“You’re one of the best alphas I’ve ever known,” I said, meaning every word.

“Slade too. Which means there’s a chance for Talon, and I’m willing to bet on that chance.

” I shot him my most pleading stare. “Now I just need you to bet on me. Please, Alpha.”

As Hunter contemplated my request, his breaths even and deep, Finley pushed closer to me. “They’re heading right for us.” His body swelled like he wanted to shift, though he didn’t make the final change. “What do you want to do?”

Even though I was angry at him, I wanted to assure him that if he shifted and couldn’t get back, I wouldn’t leave him to deal with it alone.

We would always be a pack, even if that was all we ever had.