Page 65 of The Healer and the Wolf: Part Two

Without another word, she continued her ascent and disappeared into the clouds, leaving the lot of us devastated and in shock.

What the fuck were we going to do?

17

LEO

Ven was a dryad.

That was about the only good news that came out of our unexpected encounter with the most powerful witch on the continent. It answered a lot of questions, and I was glad she had those answers just in case…

Well, just in case something happened to me.

How could I not sacrifice myself to keep everyone I loved safe?

“Come on, one of us has to have a connection withsomeconclave of witches!” Ricky barked, slamming his hand on the table. Normally, I wouldn’t let him disrespect Ven’s furniture like that, but Ven didn’t have any kitchen furniture anymore. Mostly because she didn’t have a kitchen.

When Katarina had first left, we’d all been paralyzed by the sheer shock. Ven had been the first to move, screaming her cats’ names and running into her destroyed house. I feared the worst, but somehow, despite all odds, she found all three of them. They’d been clustered together under her bed, tails wide and bushy, the whites of their eyes showing. They were doing muchbetter now in the greenhouse with their food, litter boxes, and Ven’s mattress.

“It’s called a coven, actually,” America corrected, but she sounded more weary than anything else. “And no, none of us do. Most magic users left this area when Katarina’s sons rose to power. And even if there were some lingering around, most of us would avoid them like the plague for obvious reasons.”

“Fuck,” Ricky snapped before standing and pacing the room. I hated to see my beta so wound up. He was frothier than I’d seen him in a long time, his scent sour and full of brimstone. “Then, we send word out to every single shifter we can find. She’s powerful, sure, but even the most powerful sorcerers can be brought down with enough numbers. Look at what we did with the brothers. And we fought multiple of them at a time. Imagine what we could do with a hundred of us!”

I admired Ricky’s passion, but I already knew what I was going to do. In my mind there was only one option. I would do what was necessary to save my pack without risking the lives of hundreds.

Besides, I was never meant for the softer, finer things in life. For kindness. For luxury. I was always destined for war, and with all the brothers gone, I’d served my purpose. So, if a simple sacrifice was enough to secure the future of my pack and everyone they knew, it was a no-brainer.

“We have been sending the word out,” Alicia said. “And we have many people coming in. People who owe your pack everything. But I don’t believe it’ll be enough. Katarina Morgana is the most powerful witch alive. So powerful that all her sons combined still didn’t feel comfortable challenging her. Those same brothers who managed to almost completely destroy your pack and enslave goodness knows how many of us. We need to be realistic about our chances.”

“We’re not giving up,” Ven said hotly. “We’ve already done the impossible, and we can do it again. Katarina knows that her sons did wrong, and although she says we have to atone for that, it’s not like she’s fighting from the heart. We can do this.”

Oh, dear. My beloved mate. I would miss her more than anything. But I felt better knowing she had my entire pack to take care of her. And know she knew what she was.

A dryad.

I’d heard legends of them when I was very young, but that was all they were. Legends. Old-world magical creatures that didn’t exist anymore, wiped out hundreds of years ago with their cousins, the nymphs, only barely surviving because of they’d disappeared into the trees and rocks. Never in a million years would I have guessed that Ven was one of them, nor that her mother had known Frederick. It really was such a small world. I just wished I could stick around longer to comfort her.

I had a week, and I would spend that week loving and cherishing everyone I was lucky enough to have in my circle. I didn’t mind giving them an hour or two to plot around the table, but soon, I would excuse myself. There was too little time to waste on futile scheming when I had already made up my mind.

Of course, Ven noticed that I was checked out, and when the meeting adjourned, she gently gripped my arm.

“Can we take a walk?”

“Of course,” I answered. “Whatever you want.”

We linked arms and headed toward that same river and cave that had become so significant to us. I would never forget the first time I showed it to her, and I was incredibly grateful I’d found someone to share my life with, even if it was only for a short while.

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect once we reached our destination, I was just happy to be there with Ven. Once wereached the riverbank where citronella grew wildly, she whirled to face me, her expression far stormier than I was used to seeing.

“What the hell is wrong with you?”

I blinked at her in surprise. “Come again?”

“I didn’t stutter. What is wrong with you, Leo? You’re completely checked out. It’s like you’ve given up!”

Ah. I was foolish to think my mate wouldn’t pick up on my mood. She was always so insightful, and she knew me better than anyone, save Ricky.

“I’m not checked out, baby. I’m sorry if I gave that impression. I’m… I’m at peace with the situation.”

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