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48

SKYE

A ll the air in my chest left in a rush that made me lightheaded. I was glad I was still sitting next to Katy because my legs might have given out.

“You want to challenge Damien?” Rhodes said slowly, speaking the words churning over and over in my mind.

Remy nodded, but his gaze was still on me. “Yeah.”

“You think he’ll go for it?” Dante asked, looking uncertain.

Remy sighed and shook his head. “Yes, I think he’ll take the challenge, but I also think we need a backup plan to make sure he doesn’t take Windale.”

“So, what exactly are you proposing?” Nikolai stared at Remy, his gaze thoughtful and inquisitive.

“We stall,” Remy said. “Damien isn’t an honorable guy, but he’ll like the idea of having Blackwater too much to overlook. He thinks he can beat me in a challenge.”

“Which he very well may be able to,” Nikolai replied coolly. “I’ve done my research on Damien Valois. It isn’t by luck that he’s managed to take so many packs and convince men to his way of thinking. His command over his people is every bit as strong as yours, and he has decades of age and wisdom on his side.”

“I know,” Remy agreed reluctantly.

True fear, the kind I hadn’t felt ages, clawed up my throat. “Are you saying you could lose ?”

He gave me a steady look. “I’m saying I’m not invincible, babe. It’s stupid to think beating Damien will be easy.”

Katy’s hand covered my knee in support, but it was obvious she was as shaken by what he had said as I was.

“Even if you win, they’ll still have more people than we do,” Dante pointed out. “He might take the challenge and then have his people attack when it looks like you’re winning. And he’ll have the numbers, Remy.”

“Not if we set the challenge for two days from now,” Remy said firmly. “Damien’s had a hard on for this pack for decades over the shit that went down when my parents were our age. If he thinks there’s a shot of making me look like an idiot, his ego will make him take it.”

“Two days,” I mumbled. “That’s not much time.”

“But it’s enough time for Nikolai’s people to arrive,” Remy replied. “ Your people, Skye.”

“You’re buying us time to get more people here,” I said slowly, catching on.

He nodded grimly back at me. “We call Damien and throw down the challenge. We can say Griffin is hosting it in Windale since their pack is in the middle of the country. That even gives Damien access to the pack to be inside and not have to fight his way in. We set it up for two days from now, which gives us time to get everyone in place. We can even pull in some of the shifters from the west coast packs.”

Michael, who had been mostly silent, cleared his throat. “That also gives Damien time to set up more people on the perimeter of Windale. It gives him just as much time to get people together.”

“But having Nikolai’s numbers with what we can spare will be the show of force we need,” Remy insisted.

I started to shake my head. “We can’t, Remy. We can’t ask my father’s pack to leave their people unprotected to come help us.”

Dimitri started to laugh, and Nikolai smiled, bemused at what I was saying.

“Sweetheart, I can assure you that your pack will be fine either way,” Nikolai told me.

“Narodnaya isn’t going anywhere. And we’re so high in the mountains, attacking us would be suicide,” Dimitri supplied.

“And my people are there,” Lulu finished. “I can have them set up wards in case anyone breaches the perimeter or gets close.”

“Okay,” I agreed softly. “Thank you.”

“Do you think Damien won’t notice an extra five hundred shifters heading his way once they land?” Dimitri snorted. “He’ll know you’re going for war. He might decide to forget the challenge and just make it an all-out fight.”

“People would die,” Katy said, exhaling slowly. “Women, children... We would turn Windale into a battle ground.”

“Not if he doesn’t see them,” Lulu whispered, catching my attention.

“What are you talking about?” I asked, my head turning in her direction.

Lulu sat up a bit, her eyes brighter. “I could mask them.”

“How?” Rhodes demanded.

“A charm,” Lulu answered, her brow furrowing. “Maybe a bracelet or a ring I could charm? He wouldn’t know they were there until it was too late. We have their planes land at the closest public airport, not with ours, and they come in at a different angle.”

“If we tell Damien I’m only bringing our plane with a few dozen people, he’ll really think he’s won,” Remy mused. “We can keep the flight manifest public so he knows exactly what we’re bringing.”

Dante smirked and nodded. “He wouldn’t be able to resist. He’d see it as an easy victory. Even if you were beating him, he can call on his people to take the, what? Forty of us who show up?”

“Meanwhile we have an army hiding nearby,” I whispered, hope starting to blossom like a fragile snowflake about to turn into a blizzard.

Dimitri stepped forward, glaring at Lulu. “That whole plan hinges on you being able to make five hundred charmed objects to cloak all these people.”

“I can do it,” she insisted stubbornly.

“The hell you can,” he snapped, waving a hand at her. “Look at you, Lu. Your power is drained from what happened in Long Mesa yesterday. Your body can’t produce that kind of magic again that soon.”

Her gray eyes flashed. “Don’t tell me what I can and can’t do, Dimitri.”

His teeth ground together. “It’s suicide, Lulu. You’ll die.”

I gasped. “Is that true?”

“He’s being a drama queen,” she told me, ignoring Dimitri.

“Is he?” Nikolai pressed, going over and kneeling in front of the elemental. “You’re exhausted, Lucia. We can all see it. I don’t see how that will change in the next twenty-four hours.”

Lulu leaned forward. “If we don’t do this, then what happens?”

No one had an answer.

“Exactly. We lose . And more importantly? All those women that Elias help Damien squirrel away become fucking commodities to be traded like baseball cards.” Lulu leaned back with a glare directed at all of us. “They lose.”

Katy flinched beside me.

“So, they die or you die?” Dimitri practically spat.

“I might not have to die ,” she sighed, rolling her eyes. “Seriously. Calm down on the theatrics.”

“Could this kill you?” Remy asked, point-blank.

Lulu looked away. “I don’t know. I’ve never pushed myself that far to the edge before. If I had another elemental around, I could use them to help.”

“You said there’s elementals everywhere,” I pointed out quickly. “We can find another one.”

Lulu shook her head. “I wish it was that simple. We would need to find one around here, and then I would need to be able to trust that they would let me use them as a conduit. They could be just as likely to steal my power as I am to use theirs. Then we’d really be fucked.”

“And you’d really be dead,” Dimitri retorted.

“Either way,” Nikolai said sharply, cutting them both off, “it isn’t an option.”

“Another elemental isn’t an option,” Lulu agreed. Her gaze darted to me curiously. “But I might not need one.”

Awareness prickled the nape of my neck until a shudder rolled through me.

“Do you remember our conversation about female Alphas? Specifically the Dashkov ones? And why Elias wanted you?”

I bit my lip, thinking back. “Uh, yeah. Because of my bloodline.”

She gave me an imploring look. “You’re a female Dashkov, Skye.”

“Meaning what?” Remy demanded, his tone going hostile.

“Meaning I might be able to siphon the magic I need from Skye,” Lulu said plainly.

My mouth fell open a little.

“No.” Remy folded his arms over his chest, his expression almost feral.

“No fucking way,” Rhodes agreed.

Lulu held up her hands. “It’s just an idea.”

“Would it work?” I asked, ignoring the pointed glares from my friends. “You said I might have magic in me.”

Remy growled in my direction. “It doesn’t matter because it isn’t happening.”

I shot him a look. “If it could help us—”

“Skye,” Katy cut me off gently, “no. We’re not risking you .”

I resisted the urge to snap at them as my frustration built. Instead I looked at Lulu. “Would it kill me? Would it kill you ?”

She frowned. “No. I don’t think—”

“So, you aren’t sure?’ Remy cut her off. “Then no .”

“Let’s hear Lulu out,” Nikolai said evenly, standing up.

Dimitri’s jaw gaped open. “You’re actually entertaining this idea? You’re willing to risk Lulu and Skye?”

Nikolai’s eyes narrowed. “I’m willing to listen to all potential solutions and not think with my emotions.”

I wasn’t sure if that comment was aimed at Remy or Dimitri, but it seemed to shut them both up, even if now they were only fuming in silence.

“I don’t know exactly what would happen,” Lulu told me.

Remy scoffed under his breath and started shaking his head. I pointedly ignored him.

“But I would be able to sense if it was too much,” she finished. “I’d break the connection before that happened.”

“Would you be able to make all the charms you needed for the pack?” I pressed. I needed all the options before I made my decision.

“Possibly? It depends on how much magic I can recoup in the next day and how much you can offer.” She leaned back with a frown. “I’ve never done anything like this. I could be totally off base and you might have the magical potential of a gnat.”

“But you don’t think so?”

She shook her head. “No. You’re an Alpha with a bonded mate and you’re a Dashkov. At the very least your mating bond and the rippling effects it had throughout the world says you’ve got some power in you. I mean, you caused a bonding wave from the other side of the world.”

My eyes drifted to a pissed off Remy. “We both did.” I offered him a small smile that he definitely didn’t return.

Lulu leaned forward again, rubbing her palms along her thighs. She looked at me earnestly. “There’s a chance it won’t work, but I really think it will. And I wouldn’t ask you to do this if I thought it would cause permanent damage or hurt you.”

“Permanent damage,” Remy said, derision dripping from his words. “But short term damage is an option?”

“She’d probably feel like I do right now,” Lulu told him evenly. “Tired and worn out. But you’d be fine in a few days.”

“ Probably ,” Remy emphasized. He whirled and practically glared at me.

“Perhaps this is a conversation the two of you should have alone,” Nikolai suggested, his gray eyes meeting mine.

“Or perhaps we should stop thinking about this altogether,” Dimitri replied stiffly.

Lulu shook her head. “This isn’t your call, Dima. It’s mine. And Skye’s.”

I looked at Remy. This wasn’t just my call. What I did affected Remy. If it was up to me, I would have said yes. But Remy was talking about challenging Damien, which meant his focus could be twisted up in a way we couldn’t afford if I got hurt.

“Let’s go upstairs,” I said gently, getting up.

He huffed out a laugh and muttered, “Fine.” A second later, he turned on his heel and stormed out of the room.

I gave everyone a tight smile. “We’ll be back in a few minutes, I guess.”

“Take all the time you need,” Nikolai said warmly.

Michael sighed. “Katy, why don’t you help me figure out where we’re putting all these people in the meantime.”

“Of course,” she agreed, following him out of the room.

“I’ll call Griffin and let him know we’re working on something,” Dante added. He looked at Rhodes. “Can you call Tate and tell her that I’m not meeting her and Ryder at the development?”

Rhodes nodded. “Yeah.” Instead of following Dante, he turned to me. “Cut him some slack, Skye. He’s scared.”

“I know,” I replied softly. I hesitated and looked at Nikolai. “How’s Mom?”

He blinked at me. “She was fine when I left her this morning.”

My brain tripped over his words. “Wait—you spent the night with Mom?”

“I slept in your room,” he told me, an amused twinkle in his eye.

Oh, that made it all make sense.

“Your mate may come back and drag you upstairs if you don’t find him soon,” he advised me.

“Right.” I spun around and headed upstairs to where Remy was waiting for me. I skirted past him into the bedroom and turned to wait for him.

He closed the door to his bedroom and whirled to face me, his eyes blazing. But underneath the simmering anger, I could see the fear that lurked. He was scared, and I understood that. But I still needed him to understand why I should do this.

I pressed my hand over his mouth, gently. “Remy, I need you to trust me.”

He pulled my hand away, almost annoyed that I was trying to silence him. “I trust you, Skye. Haven’t I made that clear yet? I trust you with everything, but we don’t know enough about magic or whatever the hell this is for me to trust it with you .”

“Lulu can’t protect us all. She’s not strong enough after what happened yesterday. She needs an extra boost,” I said, pleading for him to understand. “I might be able to be that boost.”

“You’re not a fucking battery, baby,” he snapped, walking around me and further into the room. “We don’t know what this will do to you.”

“Lulu said—”

He glared at me. “I don’t give a damn what Lulu said. I don’t know her.”

“But I do,” I insisted, crossing the floor to stand in front of him. “I trust her. And after what she did for us in Long Mesa, isn’t that enough?”

His hands came up to frame my face. “Not when you’re involved. You’re asking me to trust someone I don’t know with your life . That’s not a jump I’m ever going to be comfortable making.”

Irritation shot through me. “Remy.”

“I’m sorry, babe. I can’t let you do this.”

I jerked out of his hold. “I’m sorry. Did you say let me ?”

His gaze darkened. “Skye—”

I held up a hand to stop him. “No. Let’s get this straight right now, okay? I love you. I’m here, willing to try and find a compromise because I value your opinion. But last I checked? I was an Alpha, too, and the people on their way here are because of me. Lulu is here because of me .”

“I know,” he ground out.

“Then maybe start acting like it,” I shot back. “This gives all of us the best chance. Blackwater, Windale, those missing girls... All of us, but most especially you . You don’t get to throw yourself into an Alpha challenge again and again and expect that I’m just going to sit by and do nothing.”

He exhaled slowly and rolled his neck, cracking it audibly. “I’m not asking you to do nothing.”

“No, you aren’t,” I agreed. “You’re the one always saying how strong I am and how much I value, but that means crap if you tuck me away on a shelf when things get hard.”

“Is that what you think I’m doing?” he whispered, stunned. The hurt in his eyes was palpable.

“Not intentionally,” I hedged. “I know you want to protect me, but that means I get to protect you, too.”

“And this is how you do that?”

I closed the distance between us and framed his face with my hands. “We can’t get to Windale without Lulu’s help, and she’s too weak to make enough charms to protect us all. We have to be able to sneak people past Damien before he realizes what we’re doing for this to work.”

“Then we send less people,” he tried.

“You know that won’t work,” I replied sadly. “There’s too many people on Damien’s side now. We need all the manpower we can get to make this anything close to a fair fight. Remy, we can’t do this without Lulu, and she can’t do this without me.”

“We’ll... wait for her to get stronger.” He knew that wouldn’t work either, but he was grasping at straws in an attempt to save me.

God, I loved this man. I loved how insufferably stubborn he could be, especially when it came to how he wanted to protect me.

But right now, I needed him to get over it and get on board with the plan.

“We can’t wait. Griffin needs our help, or we’re going to lose them. You said it yourself. Damien won’t wait. He’ll attack Windale, and we both know it will be a bloodbath. Griffin won’t roll over like the other packs Norwood took. He’ll fight back, and he’ll lose .” I swallowed, begging him to understand with my eyes.

He flinched, his jaw tight. He knew I was right, but he wasn’t going to admit it.

I sighed, kissing the inside of his wrist. “Remy, a lot of people are going to die if I don’t do this. It’s the only way.”

One of his hands slipped from my face to the back of my head. He hauled me forward, crushing his mouth to mine.

My hands fisted in his shirt as I clung to him, holding on for dear life as he dominated the kiss. He tongue licked into my mouth, hot and demanding, until my knees trembled and my head spun.

“Fine,” he whispered against my mouth. “I hate this, but fine. If you really think you need to do this, then I’ll support you.”

I opened my eyes, more than a little dazed. I had lost count of how many times Remy had kissed me, but they never failed to leave me craving more. I would never get enough of him.

“That’s all I wanted in the first place,” I said gently. “I just need you to support me.”

He sighed and leaned his forehead against mine. “I’m sorry. I should have heard you out. I just...”

“You just want to protect me,” I finished warmly. “I love that you want to protect me, but I feel the same way about you. And for the first time, in a long time, I can actually do something about those feelings.”

“Yeah. But I’m staying with you the whole time,” he added fiercely. “If it looks like it’s too much or it’s hurting you, I’m stopping it. Got it?”

I nodded, willing to compromise. “Deal.”

He kissed me again, softer this time.

“Who knew that when we stood in here two weeks ago arguing over me going to the Summit, that we’d be where we are now?” I mumbled, looking around his bedroom.

“It’s been a long two weeks,” he replied, one hand tangling in my hair and the other settling on my waist possessively.

“Feels like it’s been months,” I said, shaking my head. “Whoever said absence makes the heart grow fonder was an idiot.”

“You’re calling Thomas Haynes an idiot?” He smiled at me, an eyebrow raised questioningly.

I laughed, loving that Remy was as much of a literature nerd as he was an Alpha. “Yeah. I am.”

“He would be deeply offended,” Remy chuckled, kissing the underside of my jaw.

I pulled back in mock outrage. “Whose side are you on? Mine or Tommy’s?”

He smiled softly at me, completely sincere. “Yours, babe. Always yours.”