by Leia Stone
‘Sorry.’
“Thank you. Truly,” I told Arrow.
He bowed his head to me. “Thank you. For coming home.”
Home. That word on his lips felt so right, so much so that it made a stone sink in my gut. In what world could Sawyer and I get married and live together if I were alpha of these lands? I shook off that problem for future Demi.
I didn’t want to ask how many warriors they would get by morning, I just had to trust it would be enough. Arrow, being Rab’s brother, seemed to have a lot of pull in the community, and I knew he’d just stuck his neck out for me and I really appreciated it.
I made my hand into a fist and held it out to him. He frowned and I grinned, grabbing his hand and banging them together. “Fist bump. Goodnight. I’ll be up first thing to see you all off.”
He chuckled, shaking his head. “City girl.”
I smiled and Sage inserted herself between us. “She’s marrying my cousin FYI, but I’m single.”
I smacked her arm and Arrow looked down at her, confused for a second, then her words seemed to dawn on him. “Oh, I’m mated,” he said, and Sage frowned, stepping away from him with a pout. Every male here was distracting eye candy. I wasn’t going to deny that, and clearly Sage had noticed.
“You are? I’d love to meet her,” I told him as movement picked up behind us and everyone started to disperse. I’d always felt a brotherly vibe from Arrow. Was he hot? Yes. But he was sweet and helpful and … totally in the friendzone.
“Tomorrow morning, at first light,” he told me, and then Astra was back, tugging my hand.
“Alpha, come. I’ve been working on your guest home for weeks. Come and see.” She pulled me away and Sage and I followed her.
Weeks?
I shared a look with Sage.
“I knew you would come.” Astra grinned, as she pulled me into the dark trees past where the floodlights had brightened the meadow, and we were plunged into darkness again, only the moon to light our path. There was a flagstone walkway covered in moss, and suddenly my eyes adjusted, noticing the appearance of hundreds of people to the left and right of the path. Some were climbing down from the trees where they had perched, others just stood, arms crossed, talking in hushed tones and watching me closely.
Every three feet was a little solar garden light that lit our path—and also the faces of some seriously pissed-off women.
“Taking our men off to war already, Alpha?” one snapped as I passed by.
I ignored her and yanked on Sage’s arm when she opened her mouth to retort. It wasn’t the time. I needed to go into a dark room and tell Sawyer what was going on and then cry myself to sleep. My wolf leapt into my chest then, and I nodded for Astra to lead the way. I was ready to see where Run had grown up, the land I was supposed to heal and the place in which I was going to lead these people should I be found worthy.
The path led for a good twenty minutes before the dim lights of a bustling village shone in the distance. Sage and I shared a look.
Whoa.
I didn’t know why I expected grass huts and torches. The wall encompassing the Paladin land was made of a deep red brick and stood strong over seven feet tall. Two ornately decorated wrought iron gates stood open, with two soft lights on top of the pillars that held each gate. Again, each light had a tiny solar panel at the top, like the ones you would get for your garden at Home Depot. It wasn’t a strong light, just enough to illuminate the buildings’ shapes and walkways, but I was impressed. Astra skipped along the path to the gates and nodded at the two guards that stood there.
“Told you she’d come!” Astra told them.
Their eyes ran over Sage and I both. “These two city wolves have your permission to be here, Priestess?” one of them asked with a sneer. His pec twitched and Sage and I shared a look.
Man, these guys were ripped. They must work out all day long and eat zero carbs, because there wasn’t an ounce of fat on them.
Astra rolled her eyes. “It’s our alpha! She came!”
My heart broke at her words and I could see Sage’s eyes getting misty. The way she spoke about me, her tone, it was full of reverence and excitement and absolute trust.
The guards stepped aside, glaring at me with suspicion.
Priestess. That word again. I’d had no idea when we’d met Astra in the cages of the dark fey realm that we’d met the priestess of the Paladin people. Everyone seemed to defer to her, even over Rab. Which was surprising since she was so young and meek.
The second we were in the gates, Astra turned right, heading down a small lane, and we passed house after house, all relatively the same size and the same deep red brick with a thick brown muddy concrete between the lines. The bricks looked hand packed, not machine made, as each one wasn’t exactly perfect, but the masonry was beautiful. The homes stood sturdily with hand-blown glass windows and clay shingle roofs. I felt like I was in Europe or something. This quaint village had such exquisite artistry work that if it were photographed it would earn the appreciation of many people in the human world. Each home had little flower boxes outside what I assumed was the kitchen window. They hung full of herbs I recognized: rosemary, chives, cilantro.
Although I was enchanted with this village, with each step I was dreading having to tell Sawyer what I’d just done, so I stalled by asking Astra about the buildings.
“Did you guys build these? Or…” I let my question linger.
Astra nodded. “We make everything here. Bricks, cement, glass, iron work. Our loom broke, which is why we needed the blankets,” she explained.
I bobbed my head as I took in everything around me. It was … clean, rustic, beautiful. Natural ground cover dotted the side of the walking path with rich ferns and tall grasses, and each home was landscaped lightly with whatever trees and plants were there when they moved in. It looked like they hadn’t moved a single blade of grass or fern, and built their homes into the landscape. But as I looked closer in the moonlight, I noticed some of the leaves looked burnt, curled in with a black fuzz encasing them.
I stopped, leaning forward to inspect it.
“Plant death. Started when Red Moon died. The alpha’s power bleeds from the land and this will cover the crops until we have nothing left. Our people will sicken next.” Astra’s voice came from behind me and my heart squeezed.
Plant death.
After Red died.
This was … my fault. For weeks I’d been in Wolf City just gallivanting around in my Range Rover with my giant engagement ring and they were…
My hand went to my throat as I whimpered.
“The village is beautiful. Do you have running water?” Sage asked quickly, noticing my discomfort and changing the subject, for which I was grateful.
Astra nodded. “Of course.” She pointed off in the distance. “The men fill the gravity fed water tower once a month from the lake, and we have an electric pump fed by solar. We are completely off-grid here, as you might call it in the city.” I followed her line of sight and thought I saw the outline of something, but it was too hard to tell in this light.
Guilt gnawed at my gut, and I could tell from Sage’s pained face it got her thinking as well.
City life in essence was … frivolous and definitely not off-grid.
“Here we are!” Astra bounced up and down in front of an adorable little redbrick cottage with a bright blue door. “I’ve been filling the pantry all day with the freeze-dried food you gave us, and got some blankets in there too. I knew you would come home.” She threw herself forward and wrapped her arms around me again, squeezing me tightly, and I couldn’t hold back the tears anymore. Maybe it was our connection, maybe I was just tired, or turning into a total wuss, but Astra had the most innocent soul and I couldn’t take it anymore. When she pulled back, I wiped my eyes quickly and had to swallow my sob.
“Astra… thank you. This is very kind. Where do you sleep?”
She pointed to a building directly across from my guest house. “In there, obv
iously.”
My gaze ran the length of the giant building. It was the size of ten of the little cottages. Dark red brick ran the length of the large rectangular building; the clay tiled roof shot high up into the sky. There was no cross or anything like that on top, but it looked like a church.
It had the pointed top like the ones I saw in Spokane, near Delphi.
Sage and I shared a look but said nothing. Did Astra … hold church services here? Were the Paladins a religious people? They sure talked about God a lot. Was a priestess in the Paladin culture like a pastor? I was so fascinated.
“Well, I’m exhausted.” Sage yawned and I concurred, pulling myself from my thoughts. We bid Astra goodnight and stepped inside the small guest home.
It was adorable and simple, and absolutely perfect. Everything was handcrafted with expert care. The couch was a wrought iron bench with huge plush padding that had been dyed a bright yellow. The coffee table was wrought iron as well with blown glass. It had little bubbles and swirls, which gave it a rich artistry.
“So you’re staying?” Sage turned and looked at me. She emptied her face of emotion, but I could hear the disappointment in her voice.
I just didn’t have the energy for this right now. Especially knowing I had to also have this fight with Sawyer.
I sighed. “Let’s talk in the morning. I’m beat.”
She nodded, yawning again. “Fine. All of the guys are insanely hot here. I know what I’ll be dreaming about tonight.”
I chuckled. “What about Walsh?”
“Who?” she joked, before disappearing into a room with a wink. I heard the oofh of breath leave her as she seemingly leapt into a bed, then I went in search of another room. Down the hall, past a bathroom, I found a light blue blanket draped over a wrought iron four-poster bed. I collapsed onto the thick cotton mattress, kicking off my shoes.
Rolling onto my back, I stared up at the plaster ceiling. It had been dyed a light yellow and I wondered where they got the dye from. Turmeric? Or did they barter for paint? It was incredible to see a self-sufficient place like this…
I was stalling by thinking of other things rather than mind texting Sawyer.
I had to get this over with. Taking in a deep breath, I sent him a message. ‘The Paladins will help.’
Relief coursed through our bond from him and seeped into me.
‘Oh, thank fuck, Demi. Now get back here before I go insane.’ I felt his anxiety and also grief, probably over his father.
Silent tears rolled down my cheeks and onto the pillow. ‘Sawyer … I … told them I would stay and help in exchange for—’
‘Don’t fuck with me like that. I’m too fragile right now,’ he interrupted, and I winced.
This was going to be harder than I thought.
‘I’m serious. They won’t help us unless I step up to the plate and claim my alpha heritage.’
‘Demi, I will cut off my own foot, remove this ankle bracelet, hobble into the woods, and drag you back here if you tell me you are serious again.’
I gulped. ‘I’m … serious.’ I thought of the plant death. ‘Sawyer, their land is dying. They aren’t like the city wolves. Their power is—’
‘Woman, you’re going to kill me.’ He cut me off with an exasperated sigh that bled throughout our bond, bringing with it feelings of helplessness. ‘I’m going to go fully gray and die of heartbreak.’
‘Sawyer, listen. Their power is tied to the alpha. And their land. They need me to survive,’ I pressed, and he was quiet for a whole minute.
‘Demi, I’m in the middle of a war right now. I can’t really have an entire conversation. Will I see you in the morning or no?’
My throat pinched with unshed emotion.
‘No. But obviously—’
‘No?’ I felt his pain slice into my chest. ‘Demi, your parents are hiding in a bomb shelter. Raven just got here asking about you. I’m waiting for my future wife to show up so I can wrap my arms around her as I bury my father in the ground, and now you tell me you’re not coming back? What am I supposed to do with that?’
For someone who couldn’t have a conversation right now, he sure was chatty. Guilt wormed its way into my gut. He was right, it was awful—I was fucking awful for doing this to him in the middle of a war with his father dead. But… ‘Sawyer, they wouldn’t help without me giving them something. Their land is dying, the people are hurting, and I’m not just going to leave them. It’s not who I am, and not who you fell in love with.’
I felt him soften. Tender feelings of love and compassion bled into me.
‘Okay, babe, I get it, but I can’t just traipse into the woods and camp out with you there. I’m alpha, my father just died, we are at war, and I have an ankle monitor on that we still can’t get off. What do you expect me to do?’
My heart panged at the mention of his father again. I wanted to be there with him, and I still didn’t know what this alpha stuff required of me. ‘I know, and this won’t be like last time when I got lost in the Magic Lands. I can come see you. I’ll send the warriors in the morning at first light, and then I’ll check things out here and see how I can help. By tomorrow night I can zip back over and see you again and we can come up with a plan.’
There was silence and I felt his attention divided. Finally he spoke back to me, his voice strained.
‘Zip back over? Demi, my love, we are at war. Our woods are on fire. They’ve just released dark fey into the school grounds and the Ithaki are getting involved. It’s now or never. Come home and you can go to the Paladins after the war settles down, after my ankle bracelet comes off. I’ll go with you. I’ll live in a tent by your side, do whatever it takes, my love—just not now.’
A sob ripped from my chest, and I had to slap a hand over my mouth to muffle it.
‘Sawyer, the land is blackened and dying. They aren’t like your wolves, they will start to get sick too if I don’t step up to my responsibilities. I have to be here right now.’
He was silent so damn long I had to call his name again.
‘Sawyer?’
I felt my agony mix with his, merging together through our bond, coalescing like a tornado, threatening to rip us both in two.
‘Demi, loving you means I support whatever your desires are. If you really want to stay there and … help the Paladin people, then … I support you.’
My heart felt heavy, like a stone in my chest. Sawyer was the epitome of the perfect man and I felt like I was letting him down.
‘We will be together soon. I promise,’ I assured him.
‘I gotta go now. Read the note I gave you, okay?’ He sounded disappointed, but there was nothing more I could say. I’d completely forgotten about the note he’d shoved in my pocket when I’d seen him in the war room in his parents’ house.
‘I will. I love you, Sawyer. I love you so much. Thanks for supporting me.’
‘Goodnight, Demi. I love you too.’
I lay there for a moment letting this hollow feeling spread from my chest through my limbs. There was no good way out of this situation. It sucked no matter what. Either way, someone was going to be disappointed.
Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out the letter and sat up, leaning into the window and letting the outside porch light cast its glow onto the white paper.
I unfolded it, confused about what it was and how he could have written me a letter before he even knew I was coming here. He’d have had no time between the vampire attack at the hotel and getting his mother back to his house after his father’s death.
The second I saw his cursive script across the page, I finally let the sobs free.
Engagement speech was scrolled across the top.
He’d written a speech for our special night, something I hadn’t even thought to do—one he never got to read.
My heart pounded against my chest as I read the next line.
Demi, loving you is easy.
From the first day I met you, I saw your strength, your fire, and a little
bit of your pain.
Tears streamed down my face and onto the paper.
And I knew that day that I had met my equal, my better half.
Where I am hard and unyielding, you are soft and forgiving. Where my mind thinks in straights lines and squares, yours thinks in swirls and arcs.
Demi, we are not exact copies of each other, but we are perfect for one another. You are the one I choose to love, the one I choose to place all my bets on, my future wife.
You love your family and friends with a loyal fierceness that gives me pride to watch, and I am lucky enough to be one of those people.
Thank you for choosing me. Thank you for saying yes.
I burst into tears then, my vision blurry as I read the last line.
(Now kiss her).
I fell back onto the pillow, clutching the letter in my hands, and sobbed into the blanket as my emotions overwhelmed me. I just wanted to marry him and be normal.
But there was no normal here, no going back now. We were at war, and if I was honest, my time running for my life through the Magic Lands had changed me. I was a fighter, a survivor, a Paladin alpha. I couldn’t just ignore that and sit back in a glass castle with Sawyer and be his wife.
I did want to be his wife, I wanted a life with him, but I had my own path to walk too, and the agony of not knowing an immediate solution for Sawyer and my relationship tore at me until I finally dozed off.
Sage woke me while it was still dark out. I’d had to pull myself from the comfortable bed and brush my teeth quickly before rushing outside. Murmured low voices came from the church across the street. Sage and I crossed the brick walkway and I balked at the sight of nearly a thousand warriors. They were all bare chested despite the chilly air breezing through the town, and they held a variety of deadly looking weapons. The bright blue streaks of paint across their faces and chests gave me chills. These men were true warriors. You could see it in their eyes, the way they not only looked like they weren’t afraid of death, they welcomed it. Most of the warriors were men, but I spied a few women, just as deadly and fierce looking.
Arrow and Rab were talking animatedly to each other, while Astra had her hands on a man’s shoulders as she seemingly prayed for him. Being in such a different culture was fascinating. I wanted to know everything about the Paladins and their customs, but now was not the time to learn. Footsteps sounded behind me and I turned to see a large pack of wolves coming down the street, a hundred of them or more.