Page 20 of Savage Sacrifice (The Savage Six #4)

WYLDER

“ W hat’s the plan of action now?” Lincoln asks, eyes still locked on the spot where Belladora was standing a few moments ago.

I’m helpless to answer. My brain isn’t functioning at full capacity yet. Not with Polaris standing right in front of me. He’s had time to acknowledge everything is okay. And from the scent in the air, he’s had time to fuck her too. I, however, am sinking in relief.

Inching toward her, I can’t stop myself reaching for her hand, and as I lace my fingers with hers, she smiles up at me. The need to touch her is undeniable, the warmth of her palm against mine grounding me, but it’s that sparkle in her eyes that pieces me back together.

I was hurting; I’ll be hurting for some time.

Watching the woman you love die at her own hands to save her friend will leave a scar to last a lifetime.

Seeing her again with my own eyes, being able to touch her and breathe in her scent, is the first step toward healing.

Especially when she smiles at me like I mean something.

No one could break me to the core and piece me back together quite like her.

However, the reality is that it won’t last for long. The calmness I feel, that settles in my stomach, isn’t one that will last. Not when we’re still forging through an uphill battle.

“How about we all discuss what’s been going on?” Polaris offers, eyeing Ben and Bianca splayed out on the floor.

I squeeze her hand in mine as Asher speaks. “It all centers around you, Silver.”

He’s not wrong there. She’s the whole reason we’re here.

“Maybe, but I also know nothing,” she admits, her eyebrows gathering slightly at the admission.

Understanding quickly washes over me. We’ve been through much more than her these past few days. Sure, she’s been living a new life, but we’ve been overcoming obstacles to get to her.

I run my thumb over her knuckles as I try to start at the beginning while keeping it as brief as possible.

“Sian was an issue, she definitely doesn’t care what she did to the poor guy,” I state, nodding at Ben, and Polaris’s smile grows strained.

“Professor Whitmore is an issue. We went looking for you near Krystal, where you obviously weren’t, but he put a lot of obstacles in our way before we could leave campus,” I offer, and her eyebrows rise in surprise.

“That’s odd,” she murmurs before Lincoln clears his throat.

“Something tells me she isn’t the bad guy in all of this,” he mutters, garnering everyone’s attention as I blink at him in confusion.

“Who?” Minnie asks, and Lincoln shrugs.

“Belladora.”

“What makes you say that?” Polaris asks, and I nod along, intrigued by how he got to that realization.

“The fact that she stayed and helped, without question,” he rattles off, and Blaze grunts.

“She must be gaining something though.” He has a point.

“Freedom?” Lincoln considers, and Asher scoffs.

“Don’t be insane.”

Lincoln cocks a brow at him. Freedom is a word that surrounds us time and again. Especially when The Crow is involved. Lincoln could be on to something here.

Lincoln sighs, another shrug jolting his shoulders.

“I don’t know, I just know she didn’t hesitate in helping.

When she realized I was there, in that hospital, with access to my memories, her entire demeanor changed.

The guy from the vision was there with her too,” he adds, and I rake through the memory to recall his name.

“Jonah?” I blurt, and Lincoln nods, wagging his finger at me.

“Yes, him.”

“If you’re right, we need to find her,” Minnie states, earning a nod from everyone as Tatum turns his attention to Lincoln.

“Where will she be?”

Uncertainty crinkles the corner of Lincoln’s eyes. “Fuck knows, she transported us here from New York in five seconds, so she could be anywhere now.”

Polaris nods. “Well, if you’re right, she’ll be back.”

“But what do we do until then? We can’t wait around for someone else to help us,” Blaze mutters, wiping a hand down his face, and I turn to peer at him, finally voicing the question that’s been swirling in my thoughts.

“Help us with what, exactly? Like, what’s our intention here? Let’s make sure we’re all on the same page.”

Polaris’s hand tightens around mine as Lincoln waves toward the spot Belladora disappeared from. “You heard her, we could end the curse.”

His words linger in the air, not a question, but an invitation for us all to get on board with.

Polaris worries her bottom lip as she slowly nods. “I want that,” she breathes, and Tatum shuffles to stand on her other side.

“I want that too.”

“Me three,” Asher adds with a firm nod, and Polaris’s smile grows.

“Four, because when I breed the fuck out of my woman, our child won’t be faced with this same pain,” I blurt, my hold on Polaris’s hand growing tighter as she gasps, looking up at me with a mixture of surprise and horror.

“Wylder, you can’t say that,” Minnie says, her hand over her mouth in a failed attempt to stifle the giggle that escapes.

“I just did,” I state with a shrug, watching as Polaris’s cheeks glow, and I wink, watching the pink hue deepen.

I fucking love it.

“Okay, so we’re all on the same page?” Lincoln clarifies, redirecting the conversation, and I relent, letting the matter simmer as I nod in agreement.

“And we’re on the same page that Whitmore is giving a weird vibe?

” Minnie adds, and everyone nods, except Bryony, who sinks her teeth into her bottom lip, watching us all.

If anyone else notices, they don’t say a word, so I opt to keep my mouth shut for now as Minnie turns her attention to Polaris, but I instantly hate the grimace on her lips before she even speaks.

“If that’s the case, then Polaris has to stay here, and we have to go home. ”

“She is my home,” I grunt, my heart rate spiking at the thought of being apart from her again.

“Wylder,” Polaris breathes, clenching my hand tightly as my heart aches. I can’t look at her, though. That might break me more. Instead, I continue to glare at Minnie, even though I know she isn’t the enemy here.

“I know, but I think the element of surprise that we have can work in our favor. An illusion, if you will.”

“How?” Tatum asks, the same weariness in his tone that I feel in my gut.

“The longer they don’t know that we know, the better, right?” Minnie glances around the room, and I hate to see a few nods in agreement.

Fuck.

I know she’s right, but I don’t like it. Not one bit.

“If you say so,” I grunt, looking down at my feet to try and hide the disappointment, but I can feel Polaris’s eyes on me anyway.

Movement from the corner of my eye gains my attention, and I quickly realize Ben and Bianca are coming to.

“Damn it. You guys probably shouldn’t be here when they wake up,” Polaris mutters, sadness thick in her voice, and my chest tightens.

“Fuck, I want more time with you,” I rush out, turning us so we’re face to face.

The sadness in her eyes bleeds into my soul.

“Go. It’s not forever. It’s just for now,” she promises, and despite the ache consuming me, I nod.

“Go about your life like it was before we got here.”

She nods, a tight smile on her lips as my pulse thunders in my ears. “I will. I’ll be here or at college,” she states with a nod, and my nose crinkles in distaste.

“No boys.” She balks before rolling her eyes at me. “I mean it,” I warn, and she gives me a pointed look before twirling her finger.

“I think I have enough to handle already, don’t you?”

I grin, the lightness finding root inside of me again as I nod. “Fuck yeah, you do.”

The second Bryony’s magic wears off and we’re back at Trinity Falls Academy, my heart sinks. I hate leaving her, but Minnie’s right. We need to play this carefully and close to our chest, even if we don’t actually have a clue what’s happening.

Before anyone else can say a word, Minnie steps forward, squeezing Lincoln’s arm in comfort. “You guys head over to the wolf dorms, I’m going to go and relax with Bryony for a bit,” she states, but Bryony quickly shakes her head.

“No, it’s fine. We can go with them.”

Minnie turns a tired smile her way. “I’ve had enough testosterone to last a lifetime these past few days. I need to decompress with ice cream and a movie. I do my best thinking then.”

She’s not wrong, she really does think best then, but something isn’t sitting right with me.

“If you’re sure,” Bryony murmurs, eyeing her with caution, and Minnie beams, linking her arm through hers before heading toward the witches’ dorms.

The five of us watch them leaving, waiting for them to turn the corner before Blaze grunts. “I don’t know her as well as you guys do, but something tells me she wouldn’t usually step away from an important situation like this without reason.”

“You’re right,” Lincoln murmurs, frowning as he scrubs the back of his neck. “Especially when Belladora mentioned something about coins. She would be all over that shit to see what she might have meant.”

“But she didn’t bring it up then,” Tatum adds, and I nod as Asher plants his hands on his hips.

“Do you think she’s as suspicious of Bryony as I am?”

“Fuck, right?” Blaze grunts, eyes wide, but their color quickly darkens with anger.

“I think maybe Minnie was telling us to go check the coins out for ourselves, and she’ll entertain Bryony so she doesn’t see what we see?” Lincoln thinks out loud, and Asher scoffs.

“ If we see anything at all.”

“Even without giving us orders, Minnie still runs us. Who is the alpha here again?” Blaze says with a smirk, earning a withering look from Lincoln, and a thought comes to mind.

“Wait, are you two still tethered?” I ask, pointing between Lincoln and Tatum, and they both shake their heads.

“I felt the change when Belladora used my connection to Polaris to bring back her memories,” Lincoln offers and Tatum nods.

“I haven’t felt the tug in my chest from the moment he called.”

I nod. “So we don’t need the witch?” I clarify, and Asher shrugs.

“I don’t know, but we need to keep her close. Illusions, remember?”

I grunt my agreement before turning for the wolf dorms. We hurry back, storming into the building without care before making our way to the office.

Lincoln takes the lead, pausing at the door with his hand braced on the handle. “Wait, you didn’t replace me, did you?”

“Are you even still a wolf?” Blaze asks, and Lincoln’s frown deepens.

“I don’t know what the fuck I am. I haven’t had time to think,” he admits, and I plant my hand on his shoulder.

“Regardless of what you are, for now, you need to be a wolf. If for no other reason than to further the illusion,” I state, repeating Asher’s words, and he nods, entering the office, and we all follow after him.

The coins are still spread out on the desk, and the five of us quickly gather around them, inspecting the coins with a new level of ferocity. It takes a second for my brain to see it, but two coins aren’t the same color as the others.

“Two have changed to a coppery color,” Blaze points out, and I nod in agreement.

My heartbeat thrums through my body as I let the weight of the knowledge settle.

“We have to change all of them to break the curse,” Tatum adds, and my lips purse as I lean closer, getting a better look at them.

“Lincoln didn’t own a coin, though, and two of them have changed, so it appears that one represents him,” Asher murmurs, and I run my finger over one of the copper coins.

“The color is not the only thing that changed,” I blurt, running my finger over a golden coin. “The symbol has changed too.”

They’re all matching now. A six-pointed star fills one side, and as I turn it over, eager to inspect the other side, I only find further confirmation.

There, etched into the coin where it once read T.K.O.G, is a word. Just one. But not any word. Ours.

Savage.

“They no longer represent the old coven; they represent us,” Lincoln mutters, and a shiver runs down my spine.

Savage, in conjunction with a six-pointed star, can only mean one thing.

“The new coins are for The Savage Six.”