Page 98 of Owning His Mate

Erik glares at him. “We’re all going to die, you dumb fucking dog.”

“Maybe, but I figure you’re going to go before the rest of us, and I can live with that.”

“She’s free, and I did that.” Apryle’s whisper brings my attention to her. Halle and Dove exchange sympathetic glances.

“None of this is your fault, Apryle,” I tell her in a stern voice.

“He’s right,” Halle says. “How were you supposed to know you had the blood of the original spellcasters?”

Apryle clings to me, her fingers digging into the backs of my biceps. “I should have listened to Hester. I should have run.”

“And what would that have achieved?” Dove demands. “They got to you, surrounded by an army. You think you would have stood a better chance out there on your own?”

“She wouldn’t have been on her own,” I growl.

“The point is,” Dove says, “they would have found you. And the outcome would have been the same.” No, it would’ve been worse. Without Halle to heal her, without the people who defended them in order for her to be healed, she would have died.

I glance around at the faces that defended us, a sense of belonging washing through me. They were always Apryle’s friends, but in this moment I realize they’re mine too.

Our pack.

Cade and Jackson rush over to us, no longer in their wolf forms, and although they are both topless, they have on sweatpants. A pair is thrust at me, and I release Apryle grudgingly to pull them on, while Cade and Jackson go totheir mates. Dove isn’t hurt, but Jackson pulls her into his chest anyway while Cade holds back Halle’s hair to examine the wound, his eyes flashing anger.

“I’m good,” she assures him, “although I think I’m going to have a hell of a headache in the morning.”

I slip my hands around Apryle’s elbows, helping her slide off the stone. Her legs are a little wobbly, but other than that, she seems good.

I want to drag her back to the main hall, grab Savannah, and run, but that is not an option. It has never been one.

We surround Erik, though I keep my mate close in case this asshole has a trick up his sleeve. Looking at him all I see is weakness. Hester was right. He is nothing without his followers.

“What happens now?” Apryle asks, fear dancing in her eyes. I wish I could take it from her, but there’s nothing I can say to remedy this situation.

Revna is free, and judging from what we know about her life, I don’t think she’s going to just forgive and forget what was done to her. She was betrayed by most of the people in her life and hurt by the man she loved, the father of her children.

“My mother will need time to rebuild her strength before she attacks. I suggest we use that time to create another sanctuary and hide,” Hester says, her gaze never leaving her brother’s.

I can only imagine the satisfaction she must feel seeing him on his knees, guns pointing at his head, while Beck puts him in chains. The others are already seeing to the wounded and gathering up the tau under the control of the Order. I don’t know if we will ever be able to fix them and what has been done to them in this bastard’s facilities, but we have to try.

“Yeah, because that worked out so well last time,” Sawyer says. “And I don’t know if you noticed, but your mother isn’t some kid doing card tricks. She has real magic, and she also hasher trusty sidekicks, the four witches of Eastwick who put us all down on the ground without even breaking a sweat.”

“Then what do you propose we do, Sawyer? We can’t fight everyone.”

“A truce,” Erik says.

“Shut up,” Hester, Sawyer, Cade, and Halle all say at the same time.

“I mean plenty of offense when I say this,” Jackson speaks. “I wouldn’t trust you if you were the last person on this planet. Not with my life, not with my mate’s life, and not with my friends’.”

Wyatt and a couple of others from Callum’s group wander over. “A bunch of hunters got away. We tracked them as far as we could, but figured we had the real prize back here.” His gaze moves to Erik. “You’re about to have a very bad day.”

“I’ll go first.” Roux steps up to him, and then, to my astonishment, pulls her fist back and slams it into his jaw. His head snaps to the side with enough force for blood to spray out of his mouth. “That’s for ruining everything,” she snarls in his face, shaking her hand out as she winces.

Her mate wraps his arms around her, her back to his chest. “You have no idea how turned on I am right now.”

“We all shifted,” this comes from Talia. “Every single one of us. I’m latent. I’ve never shifted in my entire life. It nearly killed me at my first moon ceremony when I tried and failed.”

“My wolf has always been kind of in the background,” Apryle muses, “but now she feels closer to the surface than ever before. But I didn’t shift. How come everyone else shifted but not me?”

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