Page 45 of Forgotten Arcane (Broken Ashes #6)
River suddenly appears, standing between Asher and us. He holds his hands up, and I can feel his magic swell.
It’s obviously strong enough to make the wolf pause.
“We’re here to help. Dare led us here,” River starts.
Logan jogs up with worry in his eyes, “It’s true. River killed Derek, we’re finally free.”
Those words clearly shock the shit out of the beta because he shifts back and just stares at us.
“You killed Derek?” he asks, cautiously, almost like he’s afraid to believe it.
Which I can’t blame him for, they’ve all been tortured by him for decades, and now it’s over.
River nods, “Yes. Most of his wolves are dead. There are some that are being held at the compound, and some that are secured back at the pack house. Those are the only ones left.”
Asher surprises me when he immediately drops to the floor and bares his neck for River.
“Thank you for freeing us, Alpha,” he says, with so many different emotions in his voice.
River crouches down in front of him and smiles, “It was my pleasure, although I do wish I had made him hurt a bit more. Please call me River, and please don’t kneel before me.”
Asher’s eyes fill with confusion. “But you’re the alpha.”
Logan grins, “Yeah, he’s the complete opposite of Derek.”
River reaches his hand out for Asher, who cautiously takes it and stands up.
“How’re you feeling?” River asks him with concern.
Asher clears his throat and shakes out his arms. “Amazing, actually.” He looks at Doc, “Thank you. I was sure I was dead.”
“You were. The only reason why you didn’t move on is because their reaper held your soul to your body and stopped you from feeling the worst of the pain while the doctor healed you,” his mate tells him.
Asher looks over at Raiden, who has just stepped up beside me.
I tense.
Reapers have a really bad reputation, and despite the fact that we have just healed them, if he’s horrible to Raiden now, after he’s just saved his life, I’m going to be really pissed.
Asher steps forward and holds his hand out to Raiden, and surprises us all when he says, “I owe you a life debt. If you need help with anything at all, please don’t hesitate to ask.”
A life debt is a serious thing, especially one made by a wolf. It is definitely not something that should be made lightly, and it says a lot about the kind of wolf that Asher is that he has offered it to Raiden.
Raiden smiles as he shakes his hand, “There’s absolutely no need for that. But I appreciate the offer.”
Asher shakes his head, “Wow, you guys are really different than what we’re used to.”
“Good,” I reply. “We should all get out of here. I’m sure you’ve had enough of this place by now.”
“Great idea, Luna Regia, let’s get the fuck out of here,” Logan says with a smirk.
Asher’s mate frowns, and for a moment, I think that it’s because of what Logan just called me.
“What’s wrong?” I ask her and then add, “I’m so sorry, I don’t know your name?”
Her eyebrows rise slightly at my questions, but she still answers me as she replies, “My name is Amari.”
“Nice to meet you.” I grin and then frown, “Although I do wish that it was under better circumstances.”
Amari smiles, “Yeah, I think we all do.”
“What was wrong before?” I ask her when I realize that somehow I have once again derailed a conversation.
Amari’s smile turns into a frown, and she looks at River, “I’m sorry, Alpha, I mean River, but you said that you had rounded up all of the wolves that were loyal to Derek, but did you check the women?”
My eyes widen, “Shit. Some of these women are loyal to him?”
Amari nods, “Yes. Even after this, they are still loyal, believing that they deserve the punishment and that they’re furthering the cause. His mate, Morana, was in here. She would have been one of the more severely beaten women.”
I growl, that same inhuman growl that I made before, “He beat his own mate?”
Amari’s eyes fill with a fury that matches mine, and I realize that under different circumstances, this is a woman that I could easily be friends with.
“Yes. He has twisted and warped her mind. She will still be loyal to him because she doesn’t know any different, and she doesn’t realize just how wrong the way he treated her was.
She’s become a shell, there’s no fight left in her, and she’s lost her wolf and ability to shift.
At least we think she has. There’s a chance that Derek gave her the order to stop.
None of us have ever seen her shift,” Amari explains.
“We need to find her before she does something that she won’t be able to come back from,” Ransom says.
I realize that while we’ve been talking, all of the guys have gathered around, and the cavern is now empty of people, everyone having been taken to the surface to get treatment.
“We can help her, get her therapy and all of that, and while we can do that, if she does something like go on a rampage, she will have ruined her life,” I say with a frown.
Asher nods, “We also need to talk to the other women and see which of them are still loyal to Derek.”