Chapter 32

32

SKYE

L ulu scared the hell out of all of us hours later when she suddenly jerked upright with a ragged gasp. Tate jerked awake, my head snapped up, and Dimitri looked ready for war. I must have dozed off myself at some point. My neck ached from how I had been holding it. Rubbing it, I looked curiously at Lulu.

She pressed a hand against her chest, breathing hard. Her gray eyes were huge, her dark complexion looking slightly ashen. “I need to talk to Elias.”

“What?” Dimitri frowned at her, shaking off the remnants of sleep. “We already talked to him, Lu.”

“Explain,” Nikolai said calmly, leaning across the aisle.

Others who had been sleeping around us were now awake and looking over curiously. Natasha stood up from where she had been sleeping and walked down the aisle, leaning her hip against Dimitri’s seat.

Lulu swallowed under the new scrutiny. “I need to talk to him. Actually, I need Skye to talk to him.”

Everyone’s gaze swung to me.

“Me?” My eyebrows rose to my hairline. “I already talked to him. I’m good.”

Lulu leaned her forearms on the table. “For whatever reason, Skye means something to him.”

“Because I’m a damn lab rat to him,” I muttered darkly.

“No, it’s more than that,” she insisted. “When Dimitri and I were with him, he kept asking about you. He wanted to see you .”

Dimitri looked at me, his brows pulled together. “She’s right. It was weird.”

“But why me?” I asked. “I’m no one.”

Nikolai bristled. “You’re my daughter.”

“And as much as I appreciate the fatherly pride, I don’t think that’s it.” I rolled my eyes at him and shook my head.

“Actually? That might be it,” Lulu replied softly. Her gray eyes met mine and held. “Skye’s the first female Dashkov that’s been born in over two hundred years.”

“Princess,” Tate muttered, nudging my side with a smile.

“Exactly,” Lulu said earnestly.

“I still don’t get it,” I returned with a shrug. “You’re going to have to break it down for me.”

But not for Dimitri, apparently, who was staring at Lulu with fascination as understanding dawned. “Because females carry the abilities.”

Lulu turned and looked at him. “Yes.”

“It makes sense.”

Their mouths curved into identical smiles. For a beat, it was like they were in their own world.

I cleared my throat to get their attention. “Can someone explain it to me?”

Lulu grinned at me, her eyes practically sparkling with excitement. “Remember how I told you earth magic and women were linked? Because both are the essence of life?”

“Yeah.” I drew the word out slowly, thinking back.

“Our abilities are carried from mother to daughter. My abilities came from my mother. Your abilities came from your mother, but also from the females of the Dashkov line. It’s all linked, Skye. You have a connection that hasn’t been tapped into in over two hundred years.” She smiled at me like I was supposed to understand what that meant.

“Wait, so only women can... do what you do?” Tate interjected.

Lulu made a face. “Yes, and no.”

“That cleared up a lot,” Tate murmured sarcastically.

“Men have abilities, too, but they’re not quite as strong,” Lulu added. “Skye’s bloodline is part of the first shifters, not just the first pack. She’s a direct descendant of the original two shifters, one of whom was the daughter of the strongest Romani ever in our history. That means she’s probably got a little magic in her blood, too.”

“Which Elias would love to get his hands on,” Nikolai growled, his expression turning thunderous.

“I’m not magical,” I said quickly, emphatically. “If I had any magic at all, don’t you think I would have used it to get out of Long Mesa before I did? Or to stop people from hurting me and my mom?”

“Magic isn’t that cut and dry,” Lulu explained. “You may not have even known you were doing it. It could have been a by-product of circumstances around you that you wrote off as a fluke or something.”

Tate turned and stared at me. “At the Summit. When you and Remy...” She gave me a pointed look, raising her eyebrows. “The bonding wave in Blackwater and at the Summit, remember?”

“Bonding wave?” Nikolai pressed, leaning in.

“That sounds fun.” Natasha smirked and winked at me.

“Mama, please.” Dimitri winced. He rubbed his temple with a groan.

Natasha sighed dramatically. “How are you even my child?”

“Wait, what happened at the Summit?” Lulu asked curiously, leaning forward.

I gave Tate a hard look. Apparently details of my sex life were going to be openly discussed again . Awesome. It never got any less awkward.

“The first time Remy and I were together was at the Summit,” I said softly.

Lulu’s head tilted to the side. “But you said that you two bonded in the fall.”

“We did,” I replied, huffing a little. “But we didn’t do that until the Summit.”

“Why on earth would you wait so long?” Natasha asked incredulously.

“Because I spent my life with sex being used a weapon to belittle, punish, and hurt people,” I snapped, my patience running out as I struggled to keep from blushing. “I wasn’t ready, and Remy was willing to give me all the time I needed.”

Natasha held her hands up innocently. “I didn’t mean to offend.”

“But you know how abnormal that is, right, Skye?” Lulu asked, drawing my attention back to her. “To have the wherewithal to wait? Especially for second gens? The Conclave usually turns into a freaking orgy because the second gen bonds are so strong.”

Natasha grinned. “It is always a fun night.”

“Tasha, maybe we can curtail the commentary until a time when our son isn’t ready to crawl under a seat from embarrassment?” Nikolai murmured.

“More like jump out of the plane,” Dimitri muttered, a disgusted look on his face.

Lulu waved everyone off, focused on me. “Seriously, Skye. You two waiting is like... damn. Your animal instincts should’ve overridden wanting to wait for any reason.”

I threw up my hands in frustration. “I didn’t even know shifters could bond until I went to Blackwater. It’s not like I had a checklist to follow of what mates do when they bond.”

Nikolai reached across the aisle and touched my arm. “No one is blaming you, sweetheart. You’ve done nothing wrong.”

“Of course not,” Lulu agreed firmly. “But it’s just not normal to be able to control your wolf for that long, especially when you’ve just bonded. We’re talking a crazy amount of hormones and pheromones and... regular moans.”

Natasha hid a grin while Dimitri rolled his eyes.

“It wasn’t just me,” I said stubbornly, squirming a little in my seat. “Remy put zero pressure on me. He was fine with waiting. I’m the one who made the first move.”

“A fact that makes me like him a little more,” Nikolai remarked with a half-smile.

“Okay, but back to this bonding wave,” Lulu said, leaning forward with bright eyes. “What does that mean?”

“Right after we... you know ,” I said emphatically, cringing inside, “twelve pairs of mates bonded in our pack.”

“And three others at the Summit,” Tate added.

Lulu whirled on Dimitri. She slapped his shoulder. “Did you know and not tell me?”

His jaw dropped open. “I was dealing with a lot of shit, Lu. Bombings and traitors and finding out I had a sister.”

“You should have told me,” she insisted. “Especially when you found out Skye was a Dashkov.”

He leaned down until their noses were centimeters apart. “And I told you I had other stuff going on.”

They stared at each other for a minute before, surprisingly, Lulu backed down and turned her face away from him.

“Skye, this is huge.” She smiled at me, looking genuinely happy and excited.

“Elias was pretty excited when it happened. Remember? He asked if he could study you and Remy,” Tate pointed out.

Dimitri snorted. “He wouldn’t shut up about it. Probably jerked off thinking about it.”

“Okay, ew,” I said, grimacing. Tate shook her head in disgust, the corners of her mouth pulled down.

Lulu reached for my hand on the table. “Skye, I think he might talk to you. You might stand a chance at getting us more information. We need to know exactly what Norwood is doing.”

I bit my lip, hesitating. I glanced at Nikolai, not sure why I needed his input. But I wanted it, all the same.

“It’s your decision, love,” he said gently. “But it may give you a few more answers or help us. You know what’s at stake.”

“I’ll do it,” I said immediately, picturing Maren. I had to find out where she was.

“You don’t have to,” Tate said softly from my other side.

I swallowed hard and looked at her. “I think he knows where Maren is, Tate.”

Her hazel eyes went wide.

“Can we do it now?” I asked Nikolai.

His lips pressed together for a moment before he nodded. “We should land in less than two hours. Would you like me to come with you?”

“He probably won’t talk with you in the room,” I admitted. I shook my head as Dimitri opened his mouth. “Or you. It should just be Lulu and me.”

“Your uncle is in that room as well,” he said quietly.

“I can handle him,” Lulu promised sharply. “He won’t say a word to her.”

“Very well.” He stood up and looked at the men guarding the back door. “Let them pass.”

Tate grabbed my hand as I started to stand.

“Skye, if he knows where Maren is...” She trailed off with a shudder.

“I’ll find out,” I vowed, squeezing her hand. I looked at Lulu. “Can I use the bathroom first?”

“Take your time,” she said.

“Thanks.” I stepped into the aisle and followed the lights down the back of the plane where the guards were. I gave them a tight-lipped smile and slipped into the bathroom door to the left.

The luxury of the cabin extended to the bathroom which boasted the usual toilet and sink, but also a standing shower. I used the toilet and washed my hands before splashing water onto my face.

I grabbed one of the cloth towels folded to the side and blotted my face and neck as I looked at my reflection in the illuminated mirror.

I looked pale and tired.

I dropped the used towel into the small hamper beside the sink before curling my fingers around the marble counter and bracing my weight on my arms.

“You can do this,” I muttered to my reflection, taking several deep breaths.

I had to do this. For Maren, for Katy, for Tate. For Jayla and Kit.

If Elias’s twisted fascination with me could help them, I was more than willing to exploit it.

When I was sure I was ready, I flipped off the light and opened the door. Lulu was waiting outside for me.

“Ready?”

I nodded. “Yeah.”

She nodded to one of the guards and he unlocked the door and opened it so we could step inside.

I blinked as the overhead lights came on overhead, illuminating the two men inside. Each man sat at his own four- seat table, the set up similar to what I had been sitting at in the front of the plane, but these tables each had an eyebolt in front of the seats. Elias and Linden were cuffed to them.

The door closed behind us as their eyes opened. Elias looked at me and started to smile.

Linden sucked in a breath through his teeth and opened his mouth to speak.

Lulu spun to face him. “Silence.”

His lips mashed together and his eyes bulged as he tried to talk through his closed mouth. A few strained grunts were all he managed to get out.

Lulu walked forward, pausing in the aisle space between their seats. She glared down at Linden. “You will be quiet during this meeting. I’ve bound your lips together. You can try to pry them open, but you’ll leave yourself a bloody mess if you succeed. And if you manage to open your mouth, my next trick will be to have you chew off your own tongue.”

He glared at her, but slumped back into his seat with a huff.

“Wise choice,” she replied coldly before moving to sit in the section with Elias. She slid into the seat by the wall of the plane.

There were no windows here. Just two clusters of tables each with four seats that looked decidedly less comfortable than the ones we had, and a row of seats along the back.

I slipped into the seat next to Lulu, directly across from Elias.

“Skye,” he whispered. “How are you?”

“Not pregnant,” I spat back.

His lips twitched. “Pity.”

“Where’s Maren?” I demanded.

He blinked slowly. “Excuse me?”

“Don’t,” I said sharply, slapping a hand on the table. “I know you know where she is. Where all the missing women are.”

He sighed deeply. “Skye.”

“They took kids, Elias. Took them from the school that you worked at.” I glared at him across the table, wishing I could slap him or hit him.

My wolf would’ve been happy with killing him.

“That was never my intention,” he admitted quietly. “I understood why Damien sequestered the girls in our pack, but taking children from other packs was not something I approved of. He’s done much I haven’t approved of.”

“And yet here you are,” I retorted bitterly. “You’re keeping his secrets and helping him. Spying on me. Did you know Damien sent someone to try and kidnap me to force Remy to back down yesterday?”

Elias frowned. “Remy survived?”

I lunged forward, but Lulu grabbed me before I could put my hands around his throat. My body vibrated with rage as I settled back into my chair, seconds from shifting and ripping his damn throat out.

“Tell me about the elementalist you found,” Lulu commented softly. “We know you’re working with one.”

His eyes shifted to her. “I already told you, I won’t betray my Alpha.”

“No, you’ll just betray people who were your friends. People who trusted you,” I responded in disgust. “You’ll betray the people you’ve spent your life trying to save.”

“I truly believe in what Damien is doing, Skye,” he said with a grimace. “I know his methods seem troublesome—”

“Troublesome?” I interrupted with a hollow laugh. “He’s kidnapping women and children. He killed dozens of men. He’s forced his way into packs, taking their people and giving them no choice. That’s a little more than troublesome, Elias.”

“What is his system?” Lulu asked quizzically. “What can he possibly hope to gain by this?”

Elias studied her for a minute, seeming to try and decide how much of Alpha’s plan was safe to unveil.

“I told him how Narodnaya is organized,” he finally said. “The lunar wolf cycles. I especially emphasized how vital a role women played. How they were respected and protected at all costs.”

I snorted. “And obviously kidnapping them was the next logical step.”

His eyes narrowed. “What you call kidnapping, others might call liberating.”

“And how are these little girls being liberated , Elias?” I demanded.

He exhaled through his nose slowly. “We have a facility where we’ve been keeping the women and girls.” He met my gaze. “Unharmed. This isn’t like Long Mesa, Skye. They’re not being abused.”

Thank God . I closed my eyes, the weight of his reassurance enough to make me want to cry.

Katy had been terrified Maren was being abused the way Mom and I had been. At least that wasn’t happening.

“They’re being trained,” he added.

My eyes snapped open, and Lulu frowned. “Trained how?”

“You’re right. We found an elementalist. One who was connected to earth. When I explained what you were doing, she said she could do the same. We focused on using what you were doing with the lunar cycles on those of age.” He looked down. “But there have been complications.”

“What kind of complications?” I ground out.

“Women have died. Their bodies got... frozen in their shift. Their hearts gave out under the stress.”

“What moon phase did you use?” Lulu whispered.

“All of them,” he replied honestly. “We needed to prove it could work.”

Her mouth gaped open in horror. “You fool. You stupid, old, manipulative fucking fool .”

I tensed, bracing for Lulu’s wrath as her chest heaved. She was furious. Dangerously, lethally furious.

And it was all aimed at Elias.

“Did it ever occur to you that there’s a reason we don’t do this monthly? You have to have the right lunar phase, which any true earth elementalist would know! That’s why they’re dying. We also don’t force participation. It’s all voluntary. The human has to want to be one with their wolf.” Lulu looked ready to reach across the table and choke him.

Elias dipped his head. “I will relay that information when all of this is over to Damien. We will make the necessary adjustments.”

“You’re not going to win this,” I replied coolly, folding my arms across my chest. “Remy did survive, and he’s Blackwater’s Alpha. And not just Blackwater. Other packs that don’t want Damien as their leader are joining us. Nikolai isn’t coming to America just to bring me home. He’s bringing me an army.”

For the first time, Elias looked nervous.

“Damien is going to lose, and I’m going to free those women and girls he’s planning to auction off.”

Surprise and confusion twisted his features. “Auction? No, Skye. He’s planning on placing these women with a genetically compatible mate.”

“No, Elias,” I replied tartly, “he’s planning to auction them off. Nikolai has someone inside the pack. Terms of the auction are already being discussed openly.”

A snort from across the aisle caught my attention. Linden was still managing to smirk despite his mouth being magically glued shut.

“You have something to add?” Lulu asked archly, lifting a brow.

His mouth fell open suddenly.

“Speak,” she ordered, snapping her fingers like he was a dog she could bring to heel.

He glared at her, working his jaw. “I don’t take orders from those beneath me.”

Lulu rested her elbow on the table and propped up her chin on her hand. “Did you know that I could start snapping your bones with a single thought? I could break a rib so it pierces your lung or your heart. Maybe crack open that thick skull of yours. Or demolish every tooth in your foul mouth until you’re choking on your own blood.”

He glowered for another second before turning to Elias. “She’s right, old man. You’re a fucking fool. Of course he’s selling them off to the highest bidder. War’s expensive, and men are willing to fight if they know they’re getting a shiny new toy at the end of their battle. The girls will fetch a higher price since they’re... untried. Damien was sure to keep them intact for his friends.”

My stomach lurched dangerously, and I could see Lulu looked just as disturbed as I felt.

“No,” Elias stammered, shaking his head. “He wouldn’t—”

“And I’m the one you shut up?’ Linden snarked with a chuckle. “Damien was right. You really are blinded by devotion to your precious cause. Those girls will be passed out like fucking party favors. Every Alpha who was aligned with him before the Summit knew this. It was part of the fucking reason we joined. He’s taking the women and girls from every pack he controls. At the end of this war, he’ll have most of the female shifters in North America. His to assign to whatever mate he chooses.”

Linden turned his glare to me. “Including you. Although, part of the deal I made was that you and your mother be returned to Long Mesa along with my wife and daughter at the end.”

“Do you even hear yourself?” I whispered. “Your wife. Your daughter . Your sister and your niece. Does family mean nothing to you? What the hell made you so damn twisted inside?”

“My father made it abundantly clear how much more valuable my darling sister was to me my entire life. He always doted on her, coddled her. He was even going to make her mate Alpha of our pack,” he spat, venom dripping from his words.

“So, this was all because Daddy liked her more? You’re a jealous asshat who decided to lash out because you couldn’t hack it as a real Alpha?”

“The omega house was my idea.” Linden smirked at me scornfully. “Well, mine and Allan’s. After all the challenges that followed the war because of your mother, my father was too weak for another challenge. We offered him a deal. Let us control the omega house, and he could keep his pack.”

“She’s your sister,” I choked out, horrified.

“She is,” he replied grimly, “which is the only thing that kept me out of that house. I let Allan use her as often as he wanted, and I took the person the only other person Adalynne cared about for myself.”

“Zara,” I murmured, stunned, “her best friend.”

He laughed, shaking his head. “Damien is going to win. Even with your father, your mate , and all your little allies, he’s going to win. And you know why? Because he’s been preparing for this for years. How do you think he got women from so many packs? How he got someone close to you in fucking Russia? He has people everywhere, embedded in every pack, who believe in what he’s doing.”

I stared at him. “You really are a monster.”

He laughed callously. “You have no idea what’s coming for you, little girl. I can’t wait to see you completely broken down the way your mother was.”

“Shut him up,” I said quietly to Lulu.

Instantly his mouth sealed shut, but there was glee in his bright green eyes as he watched us.

I turned to Elias. “Now do you see who you’ve been helping? What you’ve done?”

“I never wanted this,” he replied brokenly, looking utterly defeated.

“I don’t care,” I remarked with a shrug. “All that matters is how you’re going to help us fix it.”

His head hung sadly. “It’s too heavily guarded, Skye. You’ll never make it. It’s isolated, and they’ll see you coming from a mile away. And even if you have the manpower to take it down, he might kill everyone inside just for spite. The only way to get to it is…”

“Is how?” I challenged, my tone hardening.

“You’ll have to win,” he answered. “You’ll have to win and take Damien’s pack from him.”

I smiled back at him. “That’s exactly what we plan to do.”