Page 51 of Wishes in the Moonlight (Rocky Mountain Wolves #4)

~Amanda~

Darkness surrounded me. Not cold or terrifying, but more like the deep quiet of an underwater cave. Peaceful, in a way. Inside the blackness, my thoughts floated, sluggish and weightless as the dark beckoned me to go even deeper.

Before I could sink into it, though, a voice cut through the murk, rough and trembling with panic.

“Amanda? Open your eyes. Please. You’re going to be okay. Please be okay.”

Troy.

My mate’s voice anchored me, jumpstarting me out of my lethargy. I clawed toward the sound, the connection between us a golden thread through the dark, and when I finally broke through to consciousness, I surfaced with a gasp.

Light and sound slammed into me all at once.

“Back up! Give her air!” Jasper barked.

Savannah’s voice was softer and nearer. “Troy, let the medic…”

“No! No one touches her.”

My eyes blinked open to find his face above me, drawn tight with worry, sweat beading at his temples. His hand cradled the side of my head, and another held mine like he might lose me if he let go.

“I’m okay,” I rasped, though my tongue felt heavy and dry.

He shook his head, as if he knew better than I did how I felt. “You were out for almost three minutes. That’s not okay.”

Each second of uncertainty over a mate’s health felt like an eternity. I knew that as much as anyone, and now he had just a small idea of how I’d felt the other day when I watched him die.

“I used too much energy,” I admitted softly. “Pulled too much power through the pack. It hit me all at once, but I’ll be fine.”

Troy exhaled shakily, brushing his forehead against mine. “Thank the goddess. You scared the hell out of me.”

Around us, the crowd buzzed in the distance, their voices growing dimmer as the chaos subsided.

Savannah’s voice carried as she ordered the pack members incapable of fighting to retreat to their safe zones.

Jasper shouted instructions to the warriors and reserve fighters.

I could feel the shift in energy as the pack fell back into order, rallying behind us.

So much for my big announcement. The happy news would have to wait for another time.

Assuming we survived.

“We need to move,” I said, already pushing myself up with his help. “The attack’s coming. We still have to prepare…”

“You need to rest,” Troy contradicted even as he helped me sit. “You just dropped like… like…”

He couldn’t even force the words out, but I knew what he meant. Like he had when the bullet hit him.

“You’re not getting rid of me that easily. But maybe after this, we stop nearly dying on each other, alright?”

He blew out a long breath that broke into a weak chuckle. “I’ll try.”

I reached up to cup his cheek, admiring the handsome face I got to call mine for just a second while I had the chance. “Help me stand. That’s all I need.”

My feet almost left the ground as his solid strength lifted me upright, and I found myself face-to-face with Kalo. The genie looked almost as relieved to see me unharmed as my mate did.

“You need to undo the wishes,” he reminded me. “Before the barrier falls.”

Because someone had the chance to kill me in the attack, he meant.

The implication wasn’t lost on me. If I died before I could make the wish, he would remain trapped until he found another person willing to make the wish.

Given how long he’d waited to find even one, I couldn’t blame him for not wanting to take his chances on locating another.

We were all counting on this working.

“I’ll do it as soon as everyone’s in place,” I promised. “The defensive teams are getting in position now. Troy will go to the hospital and…”

“No,” my mate interrupted before I could finish. “I’m going to the frontlines with you.”

What on earth was he talking about? “When I undo the wishes, the bullet returns. You need to be in the hospital so the doctors can help you.”

“Evalina will help me,” he insisted, determination flaring in his eyes. “Between her magic and the power of our bond, my odds of survival are just as good in the forest as in an operating room. As Alpha, you need to be with the warriors, and I’m not leaving your side.”

Damn it. As much as I wanted to argue, part of me understood. After all the years he’d spent watching me from a distance, protecting me from the shadows, of course he wasn’t going to step away now when he had the chance to stand at my side. I wouldn’t either.

“Evalina,” I called, scanning the perimeter. The petite fairy was already moving toward us, Felix trailing after her like a silent shadow. “Do you need anything special to work your magic? Electricity or refrigeration or… I don’t know. Anything?”

She shook her head. “We don’t have such things in my world. The magic works on its own.”

Gold light shimmered at her fingertips, casting a soft glow, and Troy raised his eyebrows at me, a silent ‘see?’ coming through loud and clear.

“You, however, need food and water,” Felix interjected, eyes fixed on me. “You look drained.”

“There’s no time…”

“I’ll mind-link someone to bring it to you,” Savannah interrupted as she and Jasper returned. “You’ll need to stay sharp if you’re going to survive the next few hours.”

“We’ve locked the traitors up,” Jasper added. “They didn’t resist. Whatever you and Kalo did, it shook them to their core. The warriors will be in position within twenty minutes, so we shouldn’t wait much longer.

I nodded, adrenaline rising to replace the weariness still tugging at my limbs. “Then let’s move out. We’ll find a place near the front to undo the wishes, where Evalina can work her magic and I can still lead the troops.”

It all came down to this; three days of planning and preparation, and within the next hour, we’d know if we’d done enough.

Troy stepped into place beside me, taking my hand in his. “Together?”

In an instant, I was back in the moment we marked each other, agreeing to move forward as equals. Just as it did then, the warmth of his presence chased away the last shadows of my exhaustion, bringing a sense of resolve and certainty, even though nothing about the next few hours was guaranteed.

“Together,” I agreed.