Not that he would complain if Lea was his one true love. His one and only mate. But that was serious stuff, and he didn’t really know if he was ready for that.
“At two in the afternoon?” Ethan had a smile on his face.
“You’re drinking at two in the afternoon. So is everyone else.” Finn motioned around him to the packed bar. The bar was always packed, though. And shifters didn’t feel alcohol until a lot of drinks later, so Finn knew that majority of the people here weren’t drunk at all. It was just a social way to hang out away from the questioning humans in town.
“Yeah, but you’re not the type of guy who drinks at two in the afternoon, are you? You’re always out doing something, never coming to the bar. I think that you’re having some thoughts about something . . . or maybe someone. Lea, perhaps?”
“I’m not answering that.”
“So, I’m right?” Ethan laughed, looking giddy with pleasure. If Finn didn’t consider him his closest friend here, he would’ve punched him for the glee at his own pain. “Am I right about the other thing, too?”
He was mentioning the whole true-love thing. Finn didn’t want to talk about it, mainly because he knew that he would scare himself out of telling Lea that he was in love with her.
“I don’t know. I don’t know at all.”
But he was hoping to figure out soon. After he told Lea that he loved her, that is.
Chapter 15
Finally. Finally, Gabriel was back in the States. In the mountains of America, breathing the fresh air that he realized he had desperately missed.
Gabriel and his friends were staying in quite a beautiful cabin in the middle of nowhere. While it wasn’t near any city–or any town of substance, for that matter–the size of the cabin made up for it. With ten bedrooms and a view that humans would kill for, Gabriel felt quite okay in the cabin. There were paintings that adorned each and every wall, as well as high-tech plumbing and a library that was a relief compared to the one in Ukraine.
Gabriel almost felt like himself again. Almost. Once he had dealt with Michael, Hann, and the rest of the Moonlight Maine Pack–those despicable fools–he would feel much better. He would feel like himself again, and he truly couldn’t wait for his plans to finally be set in motion after all this time of him sitting on his hands and hiding in horrible castles that had seen better days.
While the cabin wasn’t a castle with history like Gabriel liked, it still had class and prestige, which made Gabriel feel like he was slowly morphing back into his true self.
Gabriel was . . . happy. Yes, that was the word. He had something that he thought was truly going to work, and he couldn’t wait to see the results. Of course, there was the fear that this would fail just like the uprising did a few weeks earlier, thanks to Michael and Hann. This time he wasn’t showy or immature about what he was doing. This time, he was smart. This time, he watched what he was doing and made sure that no one leaked information to the other side.
This time, he had a feeling that he was going to win.
And that realization hit him like a ton of bricks in the best way possible. Soon, he would be victorious. Soon, he wouldn’t have to deal with Michael and Hann.
And it would be glorious.
“Gabriel,” one of his Elders said from behind him. Gabriel was currently in the cabin’s library, running his fingers through the books that were stacked high on the bookshelves. He breathed in the scent of literature, loving that he was finally in a room where books were done justice instead of in the dank, decrepit library in Ukraine. They had just arrived at the cabin, and Gabriel immediately went to make sure that everything in the library was in order and just the way it should be.
He’d missed living like this. He had missed it so very much.
“Yes, my friend?” Gabriel asked the Elder, not turning around as he marveled at the new place he would be staying at.
“The others would like to know when you would like to call on the other rogues to form a sort of meeting,” the Elder replied. Gabriel swiveled around, his white skull out for everyone to see. The Elder across from him had his own pale skull covered with the stereotypical black hood and robe that every Elder had and wore. Gabriel hated the garb. He felt constrained in it. He wanted to be set free from hiding himself.
“Oh, we’re going to take our time on that front,” Gabriel told him, an evil smile on his face.
The Elder seemed to be taken aback. Confused. Gabriel knew he would be, and he really didn’t care to update him, though he knew he would inquire about what was going on.
“Excuse me, Gabriel, but what exactly do you mean? The rest of the Elders are waiting for the final motion to be put into place to enact the big uprising that we have been planning for since the very beginning.”
“We’re not planning that right now. We’re going to sit on that and let it grow. I have something else in mind at the moment.”
“But Gabriel . . . last time, we waited to act, and then Michael found out where we were. He found out about everything that was going on in Michigan, and he ruined our whole plan. Are you seriously saying that we’re going to do the same thing as last time, even after the whole thing failed?”
“You need to have faith, my friend. Last time we were messy. Childish. Thinking of victory before the war had even begun. This time, we won’t be as shallow. This time, we are going to do something that they’ll never expect. And this time, Michael won’t have a clue and won’t be able to stop this storm that is coming to rain on his parade.”
“But Gabriel . . . think of what happened in Michigan. Think of all of the things that we lost when that all fell apart. When all of our people had to go to separate ends of the world just to evade Michael and his hunt.”
“We are not in Michigan anymore, friend. We are in Utah. And Michael will not find us. You just need to trust me. You do trust me, don’t you?”
“Yes, Gabriel,” the Elder seemed to mutter before he left the library, finally giving Gabriel the peace that he so desired.
He knew his plan. He knew his plan would work. He knew that the rogues and the rest of his Elders wanted to bring the uprising to everyone, but he wanted to wait. He wanted to perfect the ultimate battle instead of rushing into it like they almost did in Michigan.
He needed to prepare. But that didn’t mean he didn’t have a few tricks up his sleeve.
Chapter 16
Lea knew what she had to do. She had to tell Finn how she really felt.
No more beating around the bush, no more acting like she just wanted him for sex. Was the sex good? Yes. But she wanted more. She needed more. Their relationship was already slowly forming into this partnership of love and trust, but neither of them would admit it.
She didn’t care if he left her or decided that he didn’t want to be with her anymore. She had to tell him. She had to let him know where she stood. And she had to let him know how desperately in love with him she was.
Lea finally got home after her long day, immediately going to her kitchen to grab a water bottle because she was so dehydrated. She instantly remembered the conversation she’d had earlier with Lorelei and Tatiana, who she grew to really like–fast. They consistently told her that she was much too good for Finn and that he wasn’t all that great like he seemed to be. They laughed and giggled, though, and Lea could see in their eyes that they loved Finn like an older brother. And Lea had to disagree with them on one aspect: Finn was as great as he seemed to be.
But it seemed that even Finn didn’t know it.
Lea pulled out her phone, determined to call him and invite him over. Or meet him someplace. Anywhere. She just knew that she needed to see him and tell him this before she lost the courage and nerve that she somehow had. Being apart from him was like living without one of her major organs. It hurt. And she didn’t want it to last any longer.
And once she told him how deeply she cared for him, how she had slowly fallen in love with him over this short amount of time that they had known each other,
she hoped that he would accept it. She hoped that he would accept her. And she desperately hoped that he would love her back just as much as she loved him.
Before she had a chance to even dial his number, she heard a knock at her front door. Glancing at the kitchen clock to see that it was about eight at night, she walked to the door wondering who it could be. She quickly opened it to find Finn staring at her from the other side, a smile lighting up his face when he saw her. Her heart quickened in her chest, and she felt the butterflies in her stomach go crazy. How did he affect her so much, even after all this time? Would she always feel like this with him?
She hoped so. She never wanted to stop feeling like this.
“Hey, you,” she told him as she pulled him into her house, shutting the door behind them. Finn pulled her into his arms, planting a kiss on her head and hugging her with all of his strength. She didn’t know what he was doing at her place, but she loved that he was there. It was like he had known that she was missing him and had raced to be at her side.
“I want to tell you something,” he murmured in her hair, still holding her in his arms. She could feel his heartbeat, and she wondered why it was beating so fast against her chest. “And I don’t want you to freak out. I just need to get this off my chest.”
The worst entered Lea’s mind. Was he breaking things off with her? Did he not like where their relationship was heading after all? If he was done with her, why was he holding her? Why did he kiss her when he first got there? Was everyone right about him being a bad boy–and he was just out to use her after all? Sleep with her and then bail?
Lea felt like her heart was a few seconds from breaking into a million tiny pieces in her chest, and she realized that she was struggling to breathe from the panic her mind was playing out for her.
Lea took a step away from Finn so that she could look into his eyes, though he still held her in his arms. She saw so much passion and love in his eyes, and the despair she was feeling earlier instantly dissipated. She just looked into his eyes, waiting for what was to come. She was no longer scared. The moment . . . well, the moment felt just right to her.
“Tell me,” she finally said, sounding a bit breathless even to her own ears.
“I love you.”
Lea stood there in shock. That wasn’t what she thought he was going to say. It wasn’t anywhere near what she thought he was going to say. It was so much better.
A smile lit up her face, and Finn’s worried expression that he wore as he waited for her response instantly changed. They both smiled at each other, reveling in the fact that everything was now changing between them before their very eyes. And they loved it.
“I love you, too,” Lea told him, laughing as he pulled her to him and into the most passionate kiss he had given her yet. She clung to him as if her life depended on it. As if he was her everything and even more.
She felt like it was so crazy how everything had fallen into place between them. What started as a chance encounter one morning led to a friendship, which ultimately led to where they were now. Lea couldn’t believe she had gotten so lucky to be in love and to be loved back, by someone like Finn. He was all she had ever dreamed of.
Lea couldn’t believe that he had come to her place. She had just decided that she was going to tell him how she truly felt, that she was madly in love with him and had been since their first moment together, when he rang her doorbell. It was like they were tied in ways that weren’t possible. It was like they needed each other equally, and they loved each other equally.
Lea didn’t know what was going on, and she couldn’t really explain it, but she didn’t care. She loved Finn. And Finn loved her. And that was all that mattered right then and there. All they needed in this world was each other, and now they had each other more than they ever had before. And Lea was happy.
“I was just calling you to tell you the exact same thing,” she told him in between kisses, her cheeks hurting from all the smiling she was doing. She felt like she was floating on a cloud, and she felt like she would never come down. She was in heaven as they stared at each other, love in the air.
“Were you?” He smiled down at her, an unreadable expression in his eyes. Lea wondered what he was thinking at that moment, but he pulled her back to him for another kiss, and she instantly forgot about everything that she was thinking.
He swept her off her feet in every single way, and just a look from him could make her legs feel like jelly. And he was in love with her. And she was in love with him. No matter how many times she told herself, she couldn’t seem to grasp how their relationship had changed in the last few minutes.
Suddenly, they felt something cold hit the air. Lea and Finn parted, looking at each other with confusion and fear. Something wasn’t right. They could feel it in their bones, in their soul. Their wolves instantly started howling inside of their beings, calling for them to be let out. But Lea and Finn didn’t know why. They didn’t understand why every single hair on their body was standing up, they didn’t know why chills racked their body, and they didn’t understand how their hearts could start beating so fast. Their senses were on alert, they knew something was wrong, but they knew that there was absolutely nothing in their vicinity.
There was no one in the house.
There was no one outside the house.
So, why were their senses so on edge? Why were their wolves begging to be let out? What exactly was going on?
And then, they heard Hann’s voice in their head. And they realized just what was happening; just what was at stake.
“There are rogues attacking from all sides of our territory,” Hann said in their head, using the mental communication they all shared. Lea and Finn’s eyes instantly widened in fear. “There are many of us that are already wounded. I am calling all shifters in this territory to come to the area of the forest in between the gym and the bar. We will all meet there, and we will all fight together. If you are wounded or in any way unable to fight with us, please hide and stay safe until I signal that all is over. And please, my friends . . . stay safe. I will help you as much as I can. We are all a family here.”
Finn and Lea looked at each other in fright as Hann’s voice faded into the distance, signaling that he was done speaking for now. For a few seconds, they just stood there, not knowing what to do or say. They never thought this would happen. They never thought that the fight would come to them, quite literally, even though Kaiser and Gabriel had come through before.
This time, though . . . this time felt different. The air was cold and bitter, and the fear of what was to come was pressing down on their minds.
“I love you,” Lea said immediately, throwing her jacket off and beginning to strip. She wanted her clothes off as soon as possible so that she could shift and go join the others.
“Don’t talk like that,” Finn responded, shedding his clothes just like her. “I love you, too.”
They stood in front of each other, naked and unashamed. Finn pulled her to him for one last kiss before they both shifted and were out the door.
They ran together, in unison and united like never before. There was something different between them, and Lea felt like anyone they came across would fear from the power and love that they shared. Finn and Lea took off to the area that Hann signaled everyone to meet. Lea knew exactly what he was talking about. There was a clearing in the forest in between these two shifter hotspots, and she felt like it was going to be a battleground by the time they got to it.
Lea and Finn stayed close to the shadows and ran down the alleyways, as Lea lived in a very populated part of town where humans were rampant. They didn’t want to scare anyone or cause any more trouble than normal. That was the last thing that they needed.
Lea felt safe to know that no humans would accidentally stumble onto the battle. The area that Hann was talking about was so deep into the forest that the humans wouldn’t even hear the carnage that would take place. At most, they would hear howls from the wolves that they all knew
roved around their forest–and then they would go about their night.
Also, Hann had made the forest ‘government’ property a long time ago, so anyone that went past certain points was trespassing. The small town normally regarded these signs as reasons to stay out, and no hunting was allowed in the forest, so Hann and the rest didn’t have to worry about getting shot. Every now and then, they had an incident, and they dealt with it accordingly. But, for the most part, these incidents consisted of rebellious youth thinking that they were big and bad because they trespassed on government property. Or the kids were looking for a place to hang out and drink underage without their parents knowing, to which the pack just ignored and made sure to steer clear of the area.
In what seemed like no time, Finn and Lea found themselves exiting the little town and getting closer to the forest that held destruction and death. Lea could smell the evil in there, and her wolf was torn. One part screamed to go in and help her pack mates and friends, while the other half screamed at her to run away and never enter those dense, dark woods.
As they neared closer to an opening in the big forest, Lea and Finn ran into Hazel, who ran up alongside Lea with fear in her eyes. Lea was glad she had found Hazel before the battle even began. She knew that she would be stressed, constantly looking over her shoulder to try and find her best friend, which would definitely weaken her fighting skills. With her best friend and the love of her life by her side, Lea felt more confident than ever going into the battle that could end her life.
And then Ethan joined, who sidled up and ran alongside Hazel. Lea couldn’t help but notice the way the two looked at each other, though she knew that neither would ever admit or say anything about their true feelings. Kind of like her and Finn were just a few hours ago.
As they finally entered the dense forest, Lea felt a sort of calm overcome her. No longer was she overcome with fear and images of her death. Of Finn’s death. Of Hazel’s death. Of her brothers’ deaths. No, now she felt more prepared than ever. The memories of all of her classes with Britta and Finn came rushing back to her, and she made sure to fuel energy into all of her senses so that she wasn’t caught off guard. She wouldn’t go into this battle blind. She would go into this battle prepared. Fearless. Courageous. A fighter.
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