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Ruling The Pack (Mated To The Night Book 3) 60
The fact that you have these worries already bodes well for your future as a mother. It’s important to think about these things; it’ll make it easier if and when those things come up.”“I guess that’s true.”“It’s normal to have these anxieties when your due date nears,” Violet said. “But if you find that they’re really gnawing at you, you should talk to Night about it. I know he was feeling a bit down, but I’m sure he’ll be open to hearing your worries.”I nodded. It was reasonable advice. “Night was feeling the pressures of being an alpha, but I think he’s been doing a lot better. Our recent successes have helped bolster his confidence, but it was tough for a while there. He even kept the fact that Lance was my brother from me.”Mom’s eyes widened, and Violet demanded, “He did that to you?”“Lance asked him to keep it a secret from everyone, including me.”She let out a tight sigh. “Fates above, I’m so sorry on my son’s behalf. If you need me to, I can give him an earful.”Mom frown
Ruling The Pack (Mated To The Night Book 3) 61
It came to me that this was a pivotal moment. I was always planning on being involved with the search for Troy’s lair—after all, I was the only one who had an idea what the lair looked like—but it meant that I would be going out into the thick of it. I was heavily pregnant, and I’d be leaving the safety of our territory to find a dangerous, crazed man. The Night I had gotten to know months ago would never have let me do something this risky. But how would he react now?There was a pause, and I watched Night’s face closely as the gears turned in his mind. And then, he said, “Bryn, I need you with me.”A flood of emotion, of relief, of love came to me then, rocking me so hard, I actually swayed on my feet.“Of course. I’ll get ready now.”“Wait, Bryn.” Lance stepped up. “It’s too dangerous. If you just tell us what to look for, I’m sure we can find it—”“Lance, no,” Night interrupted before I could open my mouth. “It’s okay. Bryn is the only one who can lead us to Troy’s hideout. She’s
Ruling The Pack (Mated To The Night Book 3) 62
She rolled her eyes. “Great. I guess you’re going to try to make up for two decades’ worth of annoyance.”“That wasn’t my plan at all. Or, it wasn’t before you said that.”I chuckled. It made me giddy to hear them argue like siblings. Compared to Dom, Lance was much stiffer around Bryn, but he was obviously getting used to his role. He was treating Bryn the way I did Tavi, so the scene felt very familiar.We continued our trek. When we arrived on Garou territory, the somber mood of the young wolf who met us at the entrance drained the happy mood right out of us. He had clothes ready for us, including a dress for Bryn.“You’re earlier than we were expecting,” he said. He spoke calmly—in fact, everything about him seemed calm, if stiff. But his dark brown eyes carried that wide, faraway look reserved for those who were suffering very deeply.We shifted to our human forms and accepted the clothes with thanks.“Follow me,” he said. “It’s…it’s a real mess inside.”That turned out to be an
Ruling The Pack (Mated To The Night Book 3) 63
“That sort of arrogance was the reason we left our packs and started this one,” she said. “We weren’t exactly being killed for no reason, but we know what it’s like to be ruled under an alpha’s iron fist. It fucking sucks that we’re back to square one.”“It’s not your fault,” Lance told her. “It’s no one’s fault besides Troy’s. We’re searching for him now, and we’re not leaving the area until we’re sure that he’s dead.”Dom and I nodded along with his words. We were on a mission, and that mission wouldn’t be complete until Troy was dead and buried.“If you need help, we know these lands pretty well. We can—”“Cat,” Leo interrupted, “I’m sure they’ve got things under control.”She paused, then said haltingly, “Oh. Sure. Of course. Sorry about that.”I kept my face neutral about the help that was offered and then taken back. Leo probably already felt stretched thin enough as it was. He probably hadn’t been alpha for more than a couple of years. This sort of attack wasn’t something you w
Ruling The Pack (Mated To The Night Book 3) 64
The sense of dread hit so hard and so fast, I didn’t understand where it was coming from. Not until a wolf to my right suddenly broke off, her jaws snapping at something I couldn’t see. We all came to an abrupt stop as ferals surrounded us.“Bryn, stay close to me!” Night barked, sinking his fangs into a feral who had lunged at him. He tossed the wolf away.I was already moving in as close as I could get without pressing against him. Lance and Dom swarmed in next to me, forming a triangle to protect me from the attack. I looked around, my heart racing at the sheer number of ferals darting in and out between the trees. One by one, our wolves were being overwhelmed by the incoming ferals.“Where the hell did they come from?” Lance growled, then snapped at a wolf when they got too close.“We’ll figure it out later!” Dom replied. “We need to get Bryn out of here!”Every passing second felt like a lifetime. It was like we were in the eye of a tornado of vicious, sharp teeth. My heart rate
Ruling The Pack (Mated To The Night Book 3) 65
I paced the living room until the ache in my side forced me to sit in front of the unlit fireplace. I shifted back into my human form and wrapped my arms around myself as I stared at the old, blackened remnants of the fire. Soon, it would get so cold that I’d need to light it, but I felt so numb with worry, it felt wrong to enjoy any comfort.After all, how could I relax when this cabin was so far off track? I could find my way back to where we were, but there were ferals waiting for us. We would lose too many wolves if we attacked directly like that again. And that meant the path I’d seen was as close to useless as it could get. It felt like I was back to square one.I leaned my head against the brick fireplace and inhaled the scent of soot and wood. I listened for any sound outside, but something told me I was safe. It was snowing hard enough that my tracks would be hard to follow. But I took little comfort in that because it meant Night would have a hard time finding me—if he was
Ruling The Pack (Mated To The Night Book 3) 66
I shook my head and squeezed his hand. “I want to stay with our pack.” I needed the presence of the others. Vince wasn’t the only wolf we’d lost in the attack, and I’d shed tears for them, too. Their families would be devastated to learn that their loved ones hadn’t survived.Our first attempt to find the path that led to Troy had ended in too much death, and guilt settled heavily on my shoulders. The most we could do to give them peace was to kill Troy.Night and I returned to where everyone else was: the fireplace. It was roaring brightly. The sky had turned dark, so the fire was especially bright in the cabin. The last time I’d seen a fire roaring like this had been through Samuel’s eyes. It was a relief to see a warm, comforting fire instead of the awful flames of ritual.Kai, one of Night’s closest and most trusted men, cleared his throat. “I’d like to tell a little story,” he said. “I don’t normally speak up. Actually, this is me stepping in for Vince. He always had a knack for
Ruling The Pack (Mated To The Night Book 3) 67
“That was wonderful, Kai,” I told him. “Your mother told you that story?”He nodded.Frankie patted Kai on the back of his shoulder. “I never would’ve guessed you had it in you, Kai.”He chuckled even as he rubbed the spot she’d hit him. “Yeah, well, my heart just about dropped when I was done, and you all were so quiet.”“It just took a minute to sink in,” I said, reaching over to pat his leg. “That was beautifully told, Kai. Thank you.”He blushed as he rubbed the back of his head. “I’m glad to hear everyone enjoyed it.”Kai’s story had helped many of us relax, and I saw that most of our people looked less devastated. Even those who had been sobbing only minutes ago had hopeful smiles as they looked at each other. The story had been the perfect thing to boost morale.Yet, I felt like an additional weight had settled on my shoulders. The story reminded me of the dream my mother had given me. She’d warned me about the battle that was soon to come, but I still wasn’t sure what my role
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