15. Kye

Chapter 15

Kye

I don't want to let them out of my sight, but Apryle is right. We need to work out what the hell is going on, and I can't do that in front of Savannah.

I don't know Apryle's pack and coven well enough to be friendly with them, and so when all eyes turn to me, my initial response is to growl at them. I have to calm my wolf, urging him to remember these people are not our enemies.

"That poor girl." Tessa's mouth turns down and her eyes fill with sadness. "She's suffered so much."

"She's going to need a lot of support. Memories might start coming back to her, depending on what those animals did to her." This comes from Halle.

The way she says this makes me think she's experienced something similar herself. Her emotions are too personal.

"Do you think she has a block?" Cade asks his mate.

The alpha is an imposing man with broad shoulders nearly as big as mine.

Halle shrugs. "It's impossible to know without having a look in her mind, and we know how well that's worked in the past."

The ripple of unease that moves through the group confuses me. I don't care enough to find out what it means, but there's definitely some history here.

"What is the deal with the blood?"

The girls glance at me before exchanging looks. "Blood-based spells aren't unheard of," Roux says, "but it's dangerous. Hester always warned me about that kind of dark magic."

Sawyer leans back in the chair, his stance radiating a lazy ease that is not mirrored in the tenseness of his shoulders. I've noticed this wolf tries to hide behind humor, and to the untrained eye he manages it, but I see it for what it is. "For a myth this old bitch is getting a lot of airtime right now."

"All myths are based on truth," Abel says, speaking for the first time since he entered the room.

Tessa reaches up to grab his hand, giving it a squeeze and smiling at him. He softens immediately for her, and I wonder if that's the kind of adoration I have in my eyes when I look at my mate.

"We need the others here," Roux says. "Wyatt might know something, maybe even Dove. She's seen the inner workings of the Order, at least."

I straighten at this admission. "In what capacity?" I demand. Was she a captive or a member?

"She was held in one of their facilities, Jackson too," Tessa says. "Neither of them remembers much, but we suspect they could have been used in their breeding program."

Fuck. If that's true I feel for them both.

Halle pulls out her phone, her fingers rapidly bouncing around her screen before she pockets it, glancing around everyone. "I bet I know who has answers to these questions. Hester."

The little I have gleaned from Apryle means I know she betrayed my mate, though she has been less open about the nature of their disagreement, which automatically makes me hate Hester.

"She isn't going to tell you a damn thing," Cade counters. "She lied to us the entire time we were at the Sanctuary."

"I miss her," Sawyer muses, his finger pressed against his lip as his expression turns pensive. "At least we knew where we stood with Hester. Better the devil you know and all that."

"Yeah," Halle says. "Where we stood was in the fucking dark. She knew who that white-haired bastard was all along, which means she probably knows where my mother is. Yet she hasn't said a single thing about it. I don't miss her. We should have rung the answers out of her before we left."

"Violent little thing, aren't you?" Sawyer smirks. "Don't ever piss your mate off, brother. She might smother you in your sleep."

Cade rolls his eyes. "Your imagination, as usual, surpasses expectation."

I want them to focus, to stop fucking around. This is serious. My mate is in danger, and I want to know how to protect her. "Quit joking," I snap. "Come up with answers."

"Hester might be an answer," Roux says, defending her mate. "She knows things."

"Yeah, like the fact her brother is the head of the Order," Halle adds. "Which means she definitely knows where my mom is, even though she won't tell me."

I blink. "What?"

"You didn't know?"

The growl that surges up my throat is savage. "Obviously not."

"Hester and the white-haired asshole are related. Hester is terrified of him and ran away, creating the Sanctuary—a sort of vacation spot for persecuted tau. She lied about everything and when we found out we left her there," Sawyer says. "I think that about covers it."

Apryle hadn't told me any of this yet, though I have no doubt she would have eventually, but I'm blindsided by this news. "So let's grab her and demand answers."

"We can't," Roux says, which earns a grumble from Halle. "She's a victim in this too."

"A victim with important fucking information," I challenge. It could protect Apryle.

I find Sawyer's hand pressed into my chest as I step toward his mate. Gone is the jovial expression and his eyes are hard. "Don't make me hurt you."

I scoff—as if he could—but I do move back. These are Apryle's friends, her coven too. I don't want to stir up shit.

"I understand the anger you feel. We all had the same response, but I get the impression she's scared of him." Sadness threads through Tessa's words, and I wonder how she deals with her empathy on a daily basis. It's such a burden the way she seems to take everything personally.

"Just assuming that these followers really believe that Revna is real and that she really did create our kind as the stories say," Cade muses, "what difference would it make if she was free?"

"She was trapped by Torsten." Roux taps her fingers on her knee. "I think that's what the story said."

"What it actually says," Sawyer corrects his mate, "is that he rejected her, she went crazy, and he banished her to some dark hole so he could move on with another chick."

"Charming," Halle mutters. "No wonder she was pissed."

I don't like the way the pieces of this puzzle are starting to come together. All I see is danger around Apryle and now Savannah, and I want to avoid that as much as possible. The problem is, I don't know how.

"Whether it's true or not, they believe it is," I say. "And for whatever reason, they think they need blood."

Frustration tears through me. "Whatever the reason, it puts Apryle and Savannah at risk."

"Potentially all the girls." Sawyer's humor vanishes behind a tight smile. "Who knows if they have this ‘special blood' too?"

"We won't let anything happen to either of them," Roux assures me.

"Definitely not," Halle sits up straighter. "They're family, so we need to find out what is going on."

The door opens, and I spin around, my nerves fried. It is only Halle's hand on my arm that stops me from attacking as Dove, Jackson, and Wyatt move into the room.

Jackson stands protectively in front of his mate. I'm not sure if he's aware he's doing it or if it's just instinct, but the way he takes care of her is how I want to look after Apryle. She may allow it now, but previously, I would not have stood a chance.

Dove scans the room before her light gray irises stop on me. I've never seen eyes that color before, and the intensity of her gaze makes me squirm a little.

"Is everyone okay?" Dove asks, finally unpinning me from her stare.

"We're good." Halle indicates that she and the others should sit. Jackson leads his little blue-haired mate over to the armchair, sinking onto it and pulling her into his lap. I watch her, unsure if she is a threat or not but the way Dove wraps her arms around Jackson, as if she cannot bear to be parted from him for even a moment eases some of my concern. "Where've you been?"

"We were helping with the security," Jackson says. "Callum's increased the number of watches around the perimeter. He's pushing for us to attack the Order soon."

Unease spreads through me like wildfire. War is inevitable, and I will fight to protect what's mine, but I don't relish it.

"Well, that's terrifying," Tessa mutters, her hand splaying over her belly, as if she can protect her unborn pup from the storm that's coming.

There will be no shelter from the hell that is going to rain down on us all.

"Even if we attack the Order, what about these followers of Revna? We still have them to contend with," Roux says. "How do we fight a war on two fronts?"

"Who are the followers of Revna?" Wyatt asks, leaning against the wall behind him.

"You know, just another bunch of crazy people who want to steal the blood of tau wolves." Sawyer smiles, though it does not reach his eyes.

Wyatt stares at him as if he has lost his mind, and considering he has no idea what has transpired, I can understand why he might be leaning that way. "I can't tell if you're joking or not."

"He's not," I grumble. "While we were captured, they tried to forcibly draw Apryle's blood."

"Why?" Dove's gray eyes lock onto mine, and I have to resist from shivering.

"We were kind of hoping you might know , " Halle blurts out.

Dove blinks before she frowns. "Why would I know that?"

"You're the only person who has been inside the Order's evil lair. Did you ever hear anything about them needing blood?"

The air in this room is suffocating. All I want to do is get back to my mate and take her as far away from this shit as possible.

Jackson strokes down his mate's arm, offering comfort.

"I don't think so," she says, glancing at Jackson.

"I don't remember anything much either."

How can we know so little about any of this? It's fucking annoying to me that the answers are out there and yet I don't have them. How can I protect Apryle without this information?

"I was made to use my power repeatedly," Dove says slowly. "They had me doing these exercises with it, as if they were trying to figure out what I could do."

"You must remember something." I can't stop the bite to my words. I need answers, not all this vague shit that doesn't help at all.

Jackson bares his teeth at me, snapping as his eyes flash wolf. My lips peel back too, though I don't blame him for snarling at me. I would have done worse if he'd come at Apryle.

"Don't fucking talk to her like that." That's two males I've pissed off already, but I don't care. My only priority is my mate.

"I need to know what I'm up against." I shove to my feet, suddenly restless. "This new enemy is dangerous. They took us off the street in daylight, in front of humans. They don't fear anything and I have no idea how to protect my mate from them."

"We're all in the same boat, buddy," Sawyer says, uncharacteristically serious. "For every answer, we get more questions popping up. We all have mates to protect."

"I think it's safe to assume they don't intend anything good toward us," Cade says.

"Who cares what they want?" Jackson kneads Dove's nape as he talks and my fingers itch to touch my mate. Sensing her in my mind is barely enough to keep me from going to her. "Let's just add them to the list of people we need to get rid of."

"The only thing I do remember," Dove speaks slowly, leaning into her mate's touch, "is that there was a guard who was always talking about ‘her children.'"

Her children. Whose children? Revna? Another tau? Again, more questions than answers.

"How ominous," Halle mutters.

"The children being tau?" Roux asks. "Or something else?"

Dove blows out a frustrated breath, her fingers moving through her hair. "I don't know. A lot of my time at the facility is blurry or missing from my memory entirely. I wish I could be of more help."

Jackson nuzzles his nose into her neck, offering more comfort to her. "You're doing fine, baby. We appreciate what you do know."

"One thing that sticks out to me is there was a lot of superstition. The guards were always talking about something bad that was coming. Whatever it was, they feared it."

"Something bad like our creator returning from wherever she's being held?" Sawyer laughs, but there is no humor in it.

"Is it really so far-fetched to believe that?" Tessa rubs her stomach.

What would Apryle look like carrying our pups?

I shut that thought down instantly. I want young with her eventually, but not now. Not when so much danger swirls around us.

"Even if we don't," Roux says, bringing my attention back to the conversation, "it's clear these two groups do, and that puts us in danger."

"Which brings us back to the question of what either side wants with us. The Order started out with murder on its mind, but now it's catching us and using us to build an army. This new group wants blood from hybrids and to free Revna."

"I don't like to jump to conclusions." Sawyer moves away from Roux, pacing in front of the window. "But I'm going to take a leap here. Revna's fan club wants blood from tau wolves, and they want to release her from wherever the hell she's trapped. What if the two things are linked?"

"It's possible," Roux muses. "It depends on the spell that was used."

"Let's just run a hypothetical here." Halle stands too, restless, and I feel the same vibe from the others. "The Order hates tau. They spent years trying to kill us and torturing us. Then one day they just decided to wipe our minds and brainwash us into being perfect soldiers while breeding tau and vargr together. They're fighting a war, but we've never been able to understand what they were fighting. I think Savannah may have handed us the answer."

"The Order is trying to stop Revna from escaping wherever she's trapped?" I cock my brow. "That's what all this shit is about?"

"I mean… We don't have definitive proof, but I don't think it's a bad theory."

Before I can respond, panic suddenly flares through my mating bond. It is so strong that if I was not sitting, it would drive me to my knees. Terror like I have never felt consumes me as Apryle's fear pulses.

Apryle!

I stumble to my feet, hitting a wall of silence through the bond that does nothing to calm my racing heart.

"What's wrong?" someone asks, but I rush out of the house.

Every instinct in my body is alert and firing on full power. My wolf howls, urging me to run faster, to reach our mate, and I pump my legs, unaware of anything but the invisible hand around my throat.

I hit the door at full speed, bursting through the lock and bouncing off the opposite wall. I barely acknowledge the pain spreading through my shoulder as a bloodcurdling scream pierces the air. The hairs on my arms and at the back of my neck stand to attention even as my wolf raises his hackles.

Apryle… I'm coming.

I can smell her everywhere, her scent strong enough to tell me she's still here, but that doesn't ease the sticky, ugly feeling spreading through me. Our bond tethers me to her like a rope, pulling me toward her, and I follow it to the stairs, taking them two at a time.

I don't stop to consider the danger as I burst through the bedroom door, ready to shift if I need my wolf.

I smell my mate before I see her. She's slumped against the wall, her hair curtaining her face from me as she clings to Savannah.

My mouth dries as I rush to them, seeing nothing dangerous in the room.

"Apryle!"

I grab her head in my hands, lifting it so her hair parts to show me her face. The coppery-iron scent of blood stings my nostrils as her eyes slide open. She's bleeding from under her hairline somewhere, and there's a gash along her throat that freezes my heart in my chest.

"You're okay." I gasp the words as I search for any other injuries, but I can't see past Savannah, who hasn't moved. "Is she hurt?"

"I don't… I don't think so." Her brows furrow even as her eyes widen.

She's in shock and I have no idea why.

I grab Apryle's face when her attention wanders, forcing her gaze to mine. "What happened?"

Apryle swallows hard, but her eyes remain a little glazed. "She tried to kill me."

I glance down at Savannah, confused. My mate is clinging to her as if she is trying to protect her, not stop her from hurting her. "Savannah tried to kill you?"

Apryle shakes her head, licking her lips. "No."

"Kye, you need to see this." Cade speaks, and I realize they must have followed me here. Still, I ignore his demand.

"Talk to me."

"Now, Kye." Cade's insistence irritates the fuck out of me. I turn to snarl at him, but the look on his face stops me from laying into him.

Trailing my fingers off Apryle's cheek, I push up from my crouch and follow him into the bathroom.

As I push around him, I see the figure of a small female slumped against the tub, her eyes closed and her jaw slackened. She's not young, but she's not old either. Her dark hair falls around her shoulders and blood is caked on her face and neck. My gaze instantly locks on the tattoo spanning her forearm—a crescent moon with a sword through it. What the fuck?

"What does that mean?" I demand.

"Nothing good," Sawyer mutters from behind me, this time with no jokes on his tongue.

"Find out who she is and how the fuck she got in here." I broke the front door down to get inside, so whatever route she took was not the obvious one.

I leave the others to take care of it, returning to my mate. Apryle hasn't moved, and my fear morphs into concern. Carefully, I lift her and Savannah together, placing them on the bed.

Apryle grips my hand as soon as she's settled, spooked by whatever transpired in this room.

"That's the last time I'm somewhere you're not," I tell her, meaning every word. I'm not letting her out of my sight.

"I'm okay." She forces a smile, but I can see how shaken she is.

"How the hell did she get in here?" I demand.

Apryle lifts her eyes to me. "Savannah was dreaming, crying in her sleep. I felt the surge of magic and then the… woman… she appeared out of nowhere."

"You're saying Savannah used magic to bring your attacker here?"

"Yeah, that is exactly what I'm saying."

I turn to Savannah, who is still clinging to Apryle.

"Savannah, sweetheart, can you look at me?" She doesn't move immediately, but after a moment she pulls her face out of Apryle's chest. Her tear-stained cheeks gore me, and I want to fix everything for her.

"Do you know the female you brought here?"

Savannah licks her lips and glances between us before she nods.

"Okay… good. Can you tell me who she is?"

Savannah's jaw locks and her eyes harden. "She's the bad woman."