Page 150 of Daisy
I hadn't realized I was holding my breath. I let it out shakily.
"Then we die fighting for something that matters," Hawk says with that reckless grin of his. "Instead of hiding and dying anyway when your uncle eventually finds us."
"Second thoughts?" Cassian asks. There's no judgment in his voice. Just understanding.
"Terrified thoughts," I admit. "What if I'm making the wrong choice? What if I get you all killed?"
"Are you kidding?" Hawk stands up. His expression is fierce, but when his hand touches my shoulder, it's soft. Protective. "You think we'd let you do this alone? Princess, I've been watching the system crush people my whole life. If you want to tear it down, I'm with you."
"Sunshine," August says quietly. There's something in his tone—pride mixed with protective concern—that makes my chest warm. "You know we'll follow you anywhere. We've been yours since the moment we found you."
He pauses. Choosing his words with the same care he uses when selecting a book for me to read. "But I need you to understand something. Once we do this, there's no hiding from who you really are anymore. And I think that's exactly what the world needs to see."
Gunner just nods once. But I can feel his absolute commitment through the bond.
Cassian's scarred hands clench into fists. "Burn it down."
"We'll need allies," Dante continues, slipping into that tactical mode I know so well. "Resources. A way to protect ourselves when they come for us… and they will come for us, Beautiful."
"We'll figure it out," I say. And for the first time in my life, I actually believe we can.
Dante crosses the room and comes to stand in front of me. His hands cup my face, and I can feel how proud he is of me. How scared. How completely devoted.
"Do you understand what you're asking us to become, Beautiful?" he asks quietly.
"What?"
"Revolutionaries. Outlaws. The most wanted people in the country."
I reach up and cover his hands with mine. "I understand that I can't live knowing what I know and doing nothing about it. I understand that we have something incredible here, and it's not enough if other people can't have it too."
"And you understand that they'll try to kill us all?"
"Then we make sure they don't succeed."
Something breaks open in his face—all that careful control finally cracking. "God, I love you."
"I love you too. All of you." I look around at my pack. My chosen family. "And that's exactly why we have to do this. Love shouldn't be a privilege for the lucky few."
They move toward me then. All of them. Until I'm surrounded by their warmth and their scents and their absolute devotion. Gunner's huge arms wrap around me from behind. August takes my hand. Hawk ruffles my hair with a grin that's equal parts fierce and tender. Cassian nods at me with something that looks like respect. And Dante kisses my forehead like a blessing.
"We're really doing this," August says softly. "All of us. Together."
"Pack first," Gunner rumbles against my ear. "Always."
"Revolution second," Cassian adds with a dark smile.
I feel something shift in the air around us. Our scents getting stronger, mixing together until I can't tell where one ends and another begins. It's like we're scent-marking our decision. Making it real.
"Then we better get started," Dante says.
For the first time since we ran away from the city, I feel like I can actually breathe. Not because we're safe—we're about to become the most dangerous people alive. But because we're finally going to stop hiding.
Holy shit. We're really going to do this.
We're going to fight. And somehow, against all odds, we're going to win.
"There's one more thing," I say. My voice is steady now. "The male omega. The one my uncle is hiding. We get him out first. Before we do anything else."
