Page 28 of Cursed Wolf

Ragnar looks at me, his lips pursed. “We need to talk about our next steps. We’re not safe here. Martell knows this is your mother’s house, so how long before he turns up when he doesn’t find us with the Bane Wolves?”

I blink at him, the food in my stomach sitting heavy. One day of normality, of not feeling scared for my life, is all I ask for.

“We can’t risk you getting hurt right now,” Nikos adds.

“So, where can we be safe?” I ask, putting the flatbread down and wiping my oily fingers on the kitchen tea towel we’re all sharing.

Ragnar swallows the food in his mouth, and every eye is on him. I can’t tell if the rest of the group knows about this decision, but I’m certainly in the dark.

“Our priority is your pregnancy, Narah, and that means getting you to safety. That might mean we all travel south into the Shadowlands Sector.”

I gasp loud enough to draw attention to myself.

“I’m so confused. Didn’t you want to take over Savage Sector? Why aren’t we just hiding low elsewhere for now?” I drop my gaze to my belly, which is covered in crumbs. “I don’t think I have it in me to travel that far. Then there’s Kaira. What’s the plan? Drag her with us while a psycho high priestess still possesses her?” My head’s spinning. I don’t mean to come across as difficult, but my patience isn’t exactly cooperating.

“I’ve thought about that. Hear me out,” Ragnar says and takes a deep inhale. “I know the Alpha in Shadowlands Sector, and he’s a man with strong morals. From what I’ve seen, he’s not corruptible. We lie low until you give birth. Your safety is more important to me, and I’ll deal with Mihai somehow.” He pauses, giving me the chance to respond, but I’m still not sure how I feel.

“The Alpha’s Omega, Meira, is the most incredible girl, who I adore. She saved me when I was stuck there. I know she’ll help us,” Jae says, bouncing in her seat.

“So, how do we get down there?” I ask.

“Carriage,” Nikos says. “There are roads and those willing to take passengers at a cost. We hire one of them, and hopefully, you’re off your feet for most of the trip.”

“And Kaira,” I ask.

Ragnar runs a hand over his mouth, and I see this is a topic of concern in his eyes.

“I had a thought, which is controversial,” Ragnar says softly. His eyes lock on mine, then he twists toward Nikos. “Go collect some water from the river and take Jae with you.”

“What, no,” Jae protests. “I want to hear this.”

Nikos stands and yanks her chair away from the table, with her in it. “You’ll hear all about it later, trust me.”

Jae sighs loudly, rolling her eyes. “I always miss out on all the fun.” She drags her feet as she follows Nikos outside.

Clearly, whatever he has planned, he doesn’t want Jae to know, which sets off my trepidation.

“I’m worried whatever Lyra took from your mom has made her more powerful, and nothing we do will remove her from your sister’s body. The longer we leave them locked together, the greater harm could come to Kaira,” Ragnar explains in a serious tone.

“So, what do you have in mind?” I ask, fumbling with the kitchen towel in my lap.

“Do you remember how your mother cleansed us of the curse? She completely reset us.”

“Are you insane?” I rear back. “You want to kill Kaira?” I get to my feet and pace up and down the room, going over the chaos Mother caused us. “She drowned us in the river behind her house, drew our energy, then revived us with magic. Yes, we were reset, but at a huge risk we might not make it or that we’d turn into zombies.”

Ragnar’s lips grew thin.

“I don’t know if it’ll work. What will happen to Lyra?” I pause at the end of the table. Crius and Stone haven’t said a word, but I see the dread in their expressions, too.

“I guess she’ll be evicted from Kaira’s body, and with nowhere to go, she’ll perish,” Ragnar answers.

“There’s a lot of guessing. What if I accidentally draw her into me?” Shaking, I sat on a stool, placing a hand over my belly.

“We use an object to focus the energy, so that doesn’t happen,” Stone speaks up finally. “I’ve seen witches do it to eradicate dark spirits.”

“This isn’t what I want,” Ragnar says, moving over to sit by my side and taking my hand in his. “But we don’t have another solution. We need her out of your sister before it’s too late and before she attacks us.”

My chest rises and falls quickly with shallow breaths while my pulse thunders. So many thoughts blur in my mind, and nothing I can think of offers a way to remove the witch.

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