Page 65 of Curvy Alpha Bride
“No one loves that boy more than me,” she gasps. “But he’d never forgive me if I let harm come to you! Get in the truck! I’ll drive you—”
“What about the others?” I ask, pulling back from her. “Lyssa and the other girls have to come with us.”
“No, Mabel,” Lyssa’s quiet voice comes from behind me, and I turn around to see the other young women standing together, holding hands. “We have to stay here.”
“What?” I cry, starting to lose it. “Why?”
“Because the witch will be coming for you,” Lyssa says. “And if we stay here, we might be able to distract her long enough for you to get away.”
“I’m not going to let you use yourselves as bait!” I yell, lunging forward to grab Lyssa’s hand. “I’m not losing you, no fucking way! Get your ass in gear and get in the truck, right fucking now!”
Tears run down Lyssa’s face, and she shakes her head, hugging me. “It’s not just a question of how much we love you, even though we do,” she whispers. “All of us would happily sacrifice ourselves for you. But this is about so much more than that. If Ivarra gets you, then she gets all of us—then the next town, and the next. We can’t let her feed on the blood of a luna.”
“No,” I say despairingly, holding on to her. “No. I can’t let you do this.”
Lyssa hugs me extra hard, then pulls back, shoving me at Finnah. “Get her out of here!”
Finnah nods and starts dragging me out of the hall. The logic of the situation isn’t lost on me, but emotionally, I can’t bear it, and I struggle with Finnah as I fight to get back to the girls.
Wolves suddenly pour into the courtyard, the entire pack returning. I see Xavier, unmistakable with his night-dark coat edged with patterns of copper swirls. He races straight towards me, shifting in one motion to grab me and almost pick me up in his hurry to get to the truck.
“Get out of here, boy!” Finnah yells. “Take her to safety, don’t worry about us!”
“I will be back,” he swears, his voice thick and guttural with a mixture of determination and rage. “Once I get Mabel to safety, I will return to fight with you!”
“Don’t be a fool, boy!” Serra screams, ushering the others inside. “The witch is playing by new rules now, and we can’t risk her getting you. Stay in the cabin!”
Xavier nods, but I know his affirmation is a lie and that he’ll return as quickly as he can. The strength goes out of me as he shoves me into the truck, and I crumple down in the seat, panting to get my breath back as he pulls out onto the dirt track.
“Are you alright?” he asks. “Did you get hurt?”
“I’m fine,” I mumble, wiping my nose. “What happened?”
“She killed the scouts,” he says, viciously slamming the truck into high gear. “And she threw their bodies down in front of the sentries as if she was putting on a display.”
“Oh my God, Xavier. I’m so sorry.”
“I really thought it would work,” he says. “I know the others can help if we could just contact them.”
Tears pour down my face, and I don’t even try to stop them.
“Maybe the townsfolk are right,” I whisper. “We have to keep Ivarra trapped here and never let her get beyond the valley. This is our burden to bear.”
“Why?” he snaps. “What ancient decree says we should suffer this alone? I won’t accept it. I can’t!”
“But what are we going to do now?” I ask. “She’s coming… for us—both of us!”
“I’m going to get you to the cabin,” he says. “Then I’m going after that bitch.”
I don’t bother to argue with him. Instead, I just curl up in my seat, staring miserably out the window. The beautiful light of the full moon illuminates the landscape, almost as bright as midday. It should comfort me, but all I feel is dread.
By the time we reach the cabin, my fear has worn down, but Xavier seems even more frantic than before. He shoves me inside, then turns to leave.
“Xavier, you can’t,” I protest.
“The hell I can’t. No one will stop me from going back and joining the fight!”
“They won’t be fighting,” I say miserably. “They’ll be locked underground by now. Anyone left outside the bunker will be dead.”
