Page 61 of Wolf Crowned

I pointed to the spot we planned to start our attack and then where the cave was. It wasn’t far. “We believe Sawyer is still in here.”

Emotion clogged my throat. It’d been over twenty-four hours and we hadn’t heard a peep from Sawyer. Either he was still unconscious or Alpha Dane had found him and had him so pumped full of wolfsbane he couldn’t reach out to us.

He was alive. That was what mattered.

I shook the thoughts away and tapped the paper. “I need someone who can get him bandaged up and back to the cars. I think Willa could help with that.”

I couldn’t guarantee her safety, but I could keep her far enough away from the fighting that it should help. And if the worst happened, and we lost, but she got Sawyer out, he would keep her safe.

I shouldn’t think like that.

Stay positive! You got this.

I forced a smile. “We will take all the help we can get.” I met Willa’s gaze. “If I need you to leave without Jacob to get wounded out, can you do that?”

Willa frowned, and she looked away from me, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear before meeting my eyes again. “Yes. I will do whatever is needed.”

I studied her for a long moment. She loved Jacob. He was her mate. I got that. But the pack had to come first. If I could do it, so could she, and she’d never let me down before.

I hoped I wouldn’t regret this. “I’m happy for any help we can get, but you have to promise you will leave if asked to.”

Willa had become like a sister to me. I trusted her with my life and Sawyer’s, but I also knew how much she loved Jacob. And if she was offering to come on this risky mission, then she was prepared to do just about anything.

Willa’s face fell. She looked at her lap where her hands were fisted. “I understand. I’ll do what is needed.” She glanced up and gave me a small smile. “Promise.”

I tapped my cell phone against my leg. “Okay. I want you to be careful. Both of you.”

It was naïve to think there wouldn’t be casualties. I didn’t want to lose anyone. But the reality was, good people were going to die, and I had no control over who. That was the terrifying part.

Willa sat up taller and put her hand over Jacob’s. “We will be. And I’ll do what is needed of me.”

She laced her fingers with Jacob’s and looked back at her lap. “Have you heard from Sawyer?”

I shook my head. The gnawing fear scratching at my belly was back. I shifted in my seat, but it didn’t ease the cramping. “No. But we have to proceed with the plan.”

Holding off any longer gave Alpha Dane a chance to attack us instead. Or the FBI time to find false information and have my family arrested. The time to act was now.

Willa leaned forward, putting her hand on the desk. “I’ll help Kathleen prepare some more of that salve she used on my leg. I have a feeling we are going to need a lot of it.”

I wished I could say she was wrong. “As much as we can get would be best.”

Mom had been working on that when she wasn’t making food for the pack. I wanted to make sure we were prepared for the aftermath of the fighting. If Alpha Dane used that brand of wolfsbane on our people the effects would be instant.

Willa smoothed her fingers over the wood grains. “I had another thought too.”

I lifted my brow. “Oh?”

She tilted her head from side to side. “We could bring some shots of adrenaline for us, too. That way, if someone is wounded they can hopefully keep fighting and get themselves out. It may even allow us to still shift if we are hit with wolfsbane.” She shrugged and chewed on her lower lip.

I shifted my phone from one hand to the other as I leaned back in my chair. “That’s not a bad idea.”

She smiled again. “Yeah?” She looked at Jacob. “I’ve been doing a bit of reading up on medical things to see if there is a way to counteract the wolfsbane.”

I hadn’t known that. “That’s awesome, Willa.”

Her grin grew wider. “I know I can’t fight or help with the rebuilding with my leg still messed up and the baby.” She laughed out loud and shook her head. “And it turns out I’m not good in the kitchen either.”

I frowned at that, but she waved me off and continued. “Your mom would never say anything, but it’s pretty bad. I’ve burned so many things it should be a crime.” She chuckled. “I wanted to make myself useful so I looked at some of the books and read online.”

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