Chapter six

Watching Adara help Mila, then Parker access their wolves' worlds is incredible. She's incredible. As she opens her eyes and smiles at Parker, I breathe a little easier, glad this one didn't end in tears.

Well, she only has one sibling. What would she learn in Parker's world? That he's her sister's true father? My wolf's cackling laugh is anything but amusing, and my jaw clenches.

A hand claps me on the shoulder. "Victor is next and making his way over, but she seems a bit worn out, hm?" Frank says, nodding at the bald hunter making his way across the lawn.

Following his trail back to Adara, I watch as she yawns, trying to hide it behind her hand, and I remember the exhaustion she suffered after helping just Jaz the first time—let alone the two wolves tonight in addition to the emotional bomb that was dropped onto her shoulders.

I still haven't asked her about it. After consoling her in the shower, she dressed in dry clothes and walked downstairs with a plastered on smile. She still hasn't looked at Mila, who's been hiding in the kitchen out of sight. I don't know what happened in her world to discover that kind of secret, but it can't be good.

The second hunter gets near her, moving to sit down in front of her in the grass.

"Victor," I bark, and he stops immediately, standing up straight as he turns back the other direction.

Adara's gaze flicks to me, relief and annoyance warring over her features as I steer closer.

"Come on." I hold out my hand toward her where she sits on the ground before me.

She stares at it for a moment before lifting her chin a few millimeters. "I'm good."

"Adara," I warn.

"Gideon," she mocks, mimicking my tone, brows raised.

"You need to rest." I curl my fingers into my palm, trying to control the wave of irritation at the fact that she refuses to stop putting herself in harm's way. "Last time—"

"Was last time. Not this time. I said I'm good." She looks beyond me, raising her hand to wave the hunter over. "Victor, it's your turn!"

Growling, I flash a look over my shoulder at the approaching wolf before reaching down for my mate.

"I'll rest when I'm ready." Her own eyes are rimmed in silver, making the deep amethyst of her irises look almost black in the dim light of the night. "But if you pull me inside or keep everyone away from me, I'll run back to Eri and grab that book to try to read it. I will not just sit here, Gideon. I'll help these wolves gain strength, and I'll do it tonight. We have no time to waste."

"Pushing yourself to the brink of exhaustion isn't going to help us save them," I snap. "It's only going to put your health at risk."

She shakes her head, avoiding my gaze. "I promise to rest when I'm truly drained."

The spot beneath my eye twitches slightly , my claws piercing my palms as I stalk across the yard toward the house. I know she's lying—she's exhausted, already drained, and it's obvious. I also know I need a glass of whiskey. Now.

"Boss," Frank says, stepping into my path and handing me a cup.

I snatch it from his hand, then glare at the foreign object—a plastic cup with the amber liquid swirling around. "What the hell is this?"

"Whiskey," he says, shrugging, one side of his mouth tipping up. "The not breakable kind."

I scoff, but bring it to my lips and down it in two gulps.

He gestures toward the tree line, and I turn to see Adara and Victor sitting cross-legged, facing each other. His hands rest in hers, and the plastic crumbles in my hand at the sight. Frank laughs. "That's why you got the non-breakable kind. Plastic can crumble, but at least it's not going to shatter into a million shards that'll lead to an expensive replacement."

Throwing it at the ground, I whirl on him, but he holds out a second cup. Plastic. Again. I snatch it from his hand, wanting to drown in it but force myself to take only a sip. "She won't listen to me. She needs to rest. Her eyes… they have circles under them, and her hands are shaking."

"Mm," he says, nodding. "I'd like to say I'm surprised, but she's been defiant with you from the start, you know."

I glare at him, taking another painfully slow sip. "As if I need the reminder. I remember the witch who walked into my bar to cheat at cards, who dared to think she could go unnoticed."

Frank barks a laugh. "The one who stormed out of your office after you showed her the blue book."

Gulping more of the liquor, I relish in the burn as it makes its way down my throat. I change the topic, not wanting to talk about the horror I saw cross her face that day, when she read of all the punishments I doled out to my own pack. She was disgusted and scared… of me. Pushing it all from my mind, I ask, "What about Maddie? Any progress there?"

Lifting the hand holding his drink, he points to the window that shows into the kitchen where Maddie sits with Chloe, Ruya, and Mila. "Making progress, I'd say."

I take a step in their direction, but he grabs my arm.

"Best to let them work, don't you think?"

"Adara?"

Victor's voice rips me out of my plan to storm the kitchen for answers, and I've crossed the lawn in an instant. Adara lays on the grass, black hair fanned out over the wet, verdant blades. "What happened?"

"I-I—"

I look from Adara's sleeping form to the young man before me, claws already out and fur starting to ripple beneath my skin. "What. Happened. Don't make me ask three times, Victor."

"I d-don't know, boss. She was with me—successful. But… she grabbed her temple, and then she just… She was out."

"Out how? Out of your world? Passed out like this?" I snarl, my fingers touching her shoulder as I watch her chest rise and fall with each breath.

Victor grimaces, palming his bare head. "Both, boss. She was ripped from my world instantly, and when I opened my eyes, she was passed out."

She's exhausted. You shouldn't have let her continue, my wolf growls.

"Shut up," I mutter, scooping her into my arms. "Gods know she never listens to me." I storm past Victor and into the house. The soft sound of her breaths is the only thing keeping my wolf inside, the only thing reminding me that she's okay and only needing rest.

Her pale skin is a stark contrast to the ebony of her hair, and as I lay her on the bed, I brush a strand from her face and place a kiss on her temple. I linger for a moment, gazing down at this woman—this witch—who's helped my pack more than she could ever begin to fathom, before a tapping comes from the window. Kaylus sits perched on the other side, so I make my way around the bed and open it for him. He wastes no time hopping inside, onto the nightstand by the bed, and nesting on the pillow beside Adara—another sight that brings reassurance she's okay, knowing her familiar and their shared life force exists.

"You've done well protecting your light."

I glance over my shoulder to find Maddie leaning against the doorframe, the words she spoke just weeks ago feeling like another lifetime entirely. "Yeah, I've been working on not… What was it you'd said? Squelching the few lights I have left?"

She smiles. "I'm proud of you, you know."

Shaking my head, I make my way toward her and slowly close the bedroom door behind us. "Yes, well, isn't that the goal?"

"Sarcasm has never looked great on you, Gideon," she says, as she follows me a few steps down the hall.

I lean back against the wall and cross my arms over my chest. "What witch gave you that lost souls spell, Maddie?"

"Ah, ever the suspicion from you." She sighs. "It wasn't her, if you're worried about that."

"How do you know? You wouldn't be the first Monique has tricked with a different name, or hell, even a different face."

"Because this witch is a friend. A friend I've known a long time." She holds up one hand when I open my mouth to ask another question—how long, what friend, can she actually be sure she can be trusted and that she wasn't Monique in disguise. "Gideon, trust me. Have my instincts ever been wrong?"

Pressing my lips into a firm line, I stare at her. She's never given me advice that's steered me in the wrong direction, always a person I can rely on in any situation. "I want to meet her then."

Maddie nods, eyes twinkling. "I could've guessed as much, but unfortunately, she was a friend from very long ago. I'm afraid she's no longer with us."

"I'm sorry, Maddie," I say, sighing.

She shrugs. "It's the way life works, isn't it? Love and loss and all of that. A true, kind witch doesn't live forever."

Leaning back against the wall, I study her for a moment. "What made you decide to use it in the first place?"

She rests her hands on the railing, facing me from across the hall. "You know, you were the first lost soul to find me."

I scoff. "I was far from an orphaned child, Maddie."

Laughing, she shakes her head. "You think it's only children who are lost?" A glint sparks in her gaze when I roll my eyes at her words. "It's changed over the years, but originally, I wanted to help anyone I could. When I'd found you all those years ago, wandering the woods with Frank, I knew you needed a home with those who loved you. You couldn't see beyond the heartache and pain you carried inside you. You couldn't see anything but a future of bloodshed." One corner of her mouth quirks, nostalgia heavy in her voice. "You were such a pup back then, heart a tattered mess. Now look at you. The alpha of our pack, guiding the young pups," she glances at the bedroom door, "falling in love."

"You helped me find a new way forward," I say softly. "A way to carry my grief without bleeding out on the floor each day and suffering the loss over and over again."

"Yes," she says, looking back to me. "I believe that's true. Helping you fed the fire within me to want to help others, so I kept the spell active, recasting it every few years when I felt it weakening. I know you haven't always trusted witches—and for good reason—but they weren't all bad, Gideon. I have to say I have no regrets. It brought you to me, and you brought me the strongest pack in existence, a safe haven to raise lost pups in."

I offer my arm, gesturing for us to make our way downstairs and patting her hand when she places it in the crook of my elbow. "I'd do it again to find you. We should go check on the spell reversal progress now. Adara needs time to rest before helping the rest of our group gain strength, and I'd like a plan for when she wakes."

"Of course, dear," Maddie says, allowing me to guide her back to the kitchen.