Page 46 of Conflicted Fate
Following his finger, I was easily able to pick it out. It was twice the size of any of the others, as was the tent going up around it.
“Yeah. That’s got to be one of them, right?”
“Nycitus,” Kiel said with a thoughtfulhmm.
“Why’s that so interesting?” I asked. “Good or bad?”
“Not sure,” he admitted as we watched the tent go up. “He’s the most warlike, but just as arrogant as Lycaonus. Which could be a benefit or a detriment.”
“A little over the top, don’t you think?” I asked as the pavilion took shape.
Kiel grunted his agreement.
The Alpha’s tent was a large octagon, standing twice as high as any other command tent, let alone the solders’ sleeping tents. It also had two smaller wing-like structures attached to it by short tubes of canvas. Each of the smaller hexagons could have slept thirty with ease, while the center pylon could probably hold triple digits with room to spare.
“Could make things more difficult,” I said as a thought hit me. “Won’t know which one he sleeps in.”
“We’ll just have to deal with it. Nothing we can do about that.”
“When do we hit them?”
“Tonight, I think,” he said calmly. “They won’t expect us to try anything right away, and it’ll be the most disorganized as everyone settles into their roles and routines. The guards will be the most alert, but if we wait any longer, we risk them coming for the city first.”
“Tonight it is, then,” I said.
“Which leaves you several hours to find your mother and make things right,” he pointed out, returning to the original subject. “Just hug her, if nothing else. The rest will sort itself out.”
“You won’t stop bothering me until I do, will you?”
He shook his head, one corner of his mouth turning up.
“Fine,” I said, pushing off the wall and brushing past him, heading for the stairs down. “If it makes you happy.”
“Youmake me happy,” he growled with such unexpected possessiveness that I nearly fell headfirst down the stairs. “But I’m not doing this for me. I’m doing it for you.”
“Um, okay,” I said, heart suddenly racing.
He winked, then made a shooing motion to push me on my way. I managed to make it down the stairs without my legs giving out, though I didn’t know how.
You make me happy.
The words were cemented in my head. The walk through the city to my parents’ safehouse was like a dream.
I made him happy.
“Jada, hi,” my dad said as he pulled open the door following my knock.
I accepted his somewhat tentative hug, squeezing back hard, letting him know it was okay. That we were good. He returned the grip, some of his tension fading.
“Is Mom around?” I asked.
“She’s in the back,” he said, giving me an inquisitive look. “Do you want me to go for a walk again?”
“Did she tell you?”
He nodded. “Yes.”
“How do you feel?” I asked, curious about his thoughts.
