Fate Mate

Chapter 36

We reached the Black Lupis pack house just before dusk. A majority of the road trip had been spent in quiet deliberation, discussing the logistics of a hybrid attack. Dylan asserted that he'd been preparing the Black Lupis warriors to battle the creatures since their first attack months ago, when Sarah died.

Raegan's main concern lay in how the little ring, which I'd slipped off of Savannah's mutilated finger, could somehow hold enough power to stop a hybrid attack. Truthfully, the more time I spent turning the cool metal over in my fingers, the more I started to doubt the magic, too.

My father, brother, and Lizzie listened eagerly to our tactics. Almost as soon as they stepped foot in the Black Lupis car, they lost contact with the rest of the Golden Walkers, so we had no way of knowing how the battle with the rogues went. We had no way of knowing who survived...

There was so much to worry about, and yet, I could only focus on one thing: Nolan.

My Alpha sat in the driver's seat, one hand clenched on the steering wheel while the other clasped over his mouth. His eyes locked onto the road like ice, an impenetrable, unreadable gaze. My eyes searched the rear-view mirror, any effort to connect with my mate who seemed so lost in his own. I'd have given anything to know what thoughts traveled through his mind

The SUV lurched to a stop in front of the Black Lupis pack house, and we filed out the back seat.

My feet hit the soil with a soft thud, and I let out a long sigh that I hadn't realized I'd been holding in. I'd never been so happy to be back on Black Lupis turf.

Immediately, my gaze searched for Nolan, and I found him stalking toward the front door of the pack house, barking orders at his second and third in command. "Raegan, make sure everyone has received the memo that patrols are to be doubled in size. Dylan, organize the fighting squadrons."

"How long do we have?" Sophia chased after them.

My feet instinctually started to move toward the front door, eager to hear Nolan's answer, and yet, my steps faltered. He'd barely spoken a word to me since I escaped the Golden Walker Pack. Maybe he needed space?

I frowned, lingering a short distance away from the four Black Lupis warriors, and decided I'd listen from afar.

"A day," Nolan growled, "Maybe two."

"Did Dominic tell you when the witches would be arriving?" Raegan questioned, and my heartbeat quickened.

Dominic survived? The last time I'd seen him, his scraggly, black wolf had been cornered by the Golden Walker Alpha himself. If Sehan didn't kill Dominic, then... Did Dominic kill Sehan?

The thought sent a shiver creeping down my spine, and a strange mixture of joy and sadness curned deep in the pits of my stomach. On the one hand, I owed Dominic my life. Not to mention, he'd also managed to inform the witches that we had found the talisman... And yet, I couldn't stand the fact that I was now indebted to him.

"Zephora and Angelina are gathering the rest of their coven," Nolan responded, although his back faced me, so I could only see his tensed shoulders. "They'll be arriving in a few hours."

A few more hours. And then we would have the protection of a coven of witches. I dared to smile at the thought, my heart beat quickening in quiet anticipation. For a moment, I managed to forget about the army of hybrids that wanted me dead.

Consumed by these thoughts, I hardly realized that I'd been blankly staring at the back of Nolan's head until the man turned around and caught my gaze. I immediately blinked and averted my eyes, but I'd been caught.