“You may have destroyed some supernatural beings, but you didn’t destroy the mission. The purpose behind the organization is bigger than any of its members,” Kimily said, showing more emotion than Peri had yet seen from her.
“That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard, and I’m friends with the female version of the Three Stooges, so I’ve heard a lot of dumb things. Without people giving life to an idea, a purpose, or cause, there is not one. Ideas don’t form themselves. Stomp out the people and destroy the idea.” Peri held up her hand when Kimily started to say something else. “I don’t want to hear any more of your brainwashed foolishness. I need to know if you told anyone, human or supernatural, about the child.”
Kimily shook her head.
Peri nodded. “Good. Then I am done here. Kimily Blankenship of the Elves, for the crimes of child abduction and endangerment and attempting to kill a fae warrior, I hereby sentence you to death. Because you cooperated, I will make it quick.” Peri tilted her head slightly, and her lips turned up in a barely there smile. “I suppose I do have mercy after all.” Peri walked over to the woman and placed her hand over Kimily’s heart. “I almost pity you. You’ve been conditioned from a young age to believe the nonsense spouted by the Order. But you grew up into an adult who could think for herself. You made the decision to cling to the very people who cast you out as easily as yesterday’s trash because of something your mother did. For that reason, any possible benevolence I could have felt vanishes.”
A single tear fell from Kimily’s eye as Peri pushed her magic into the elf and stopped her heart instantly. Peri used her power to ease the lifeless body down to the floor then stood there trembling as her own tears fell.
“Beloved, let me help you,”Lucian’s voice whispered into her mind.“You do not have to bear such burdens alone, not anymore.”
Peri shook her head, despite the fact that he couldn’t see her.“That’s where you’re wrong, wolf. With the power I wield, I must be alone. I already care too deeply for the ones placed under my protection. I cannot add a lover to that list, not even if he has the other half of my soul. It is one thing to be willing to destroy the world for those you love, but it is a completely different thing to actually have the power to act on it.”She forced the walls back into place in her mind, which had become weakened with her emotions. Peri didn’t want to hear Lucian’s response. It would, no doubt, be something that would cause her to admit how badly she wanted to have someone care for her, the way all male wolves cared for their mates. Peri wasn’t overexaggerating when she said she would destroy the world for those she loved. The evidence of her willingness to crush those who harmed those she cared for lay at her feet in a lifeless heap.
Before she flashed, she put in an anonymous call to the human’s emergency responders. Pretending to be a tenant in the building, she said she’d heard something distressing from apartment 305 and hadn’t been able to get a hold of the apartment manager to get the door open. The police would find Kimily’s body. Whoever examined her would determine her cause of death was simply a heart attack.
Peri then used her power to leave a final spell on the home that had belonged to Kimily Blankenship. It would erase all traces of magic, as well as anything else that linked the woman to a supernatural organization. Once the apartment was empty of any living being, it would burn, but harm nothing outside of its walls. Yes, there were perks to being powerful. Incinerating an apartment without damaging any others was one of those perks.
All she had left to deal with was the aftermath of Thia’s unplanned adventure that most likely took decades of life away from her parents. Luckily, they are immortal. “Won’t this be fun,” she murmured as she flashed back to the Serbian pack mansion.
* * *
Decebel pulledJennifer down beside him on the large couch in their suite. He could feel her exhaustion and worry but could do nothing to comfort her. Jacque, Fane, Costin, and Sally had left to go get them all food, so he was taking advantage of the privacy. He pulled her on top of him, draping her over him like a blanket. It was one of his favorite positions in which to be, his mate’s warm body covering his, their hearts beating in sync, pressed closely together. His wolf rumbled his approval at the intimate act, and Decebel sighed as his mate’s scent surrounded him. He could smell Thia on Jennifer, as well, and it only made him squeeze her tighter.
“Can’t breathe, baby,” Jennifer said through clenched teeth.
“Sorry,” he replied, quickly relaxing his hold but not dropping his arms. His hands roamed, eventually lifting the back of her shirt so he could caress her bare skin. He knew he was seeking his own comfort through being close to his mate, but he hoped it would give her comfort as well. She moaned, bringing a small smile to his face. Her body arched up attempting to get closer to his touch when he lifted his hands away.
“Don’t tease.” She growled. “Fish or cut bait, B.”
“I’m not fishing, Jennifer. I’m enjoying my mate’s body.”
“You might be enjoying it, but you know that it’s driving me crazy,” Jennifer grumbled.
Decebel chuckled. “My female likes a firm hand,” he muttered, lowering his head so that his mouth was next to her ear. Because of his wolf’s satisfaction with the touch of their mate, the man was almost able to ignore the fear that was eating him from the inside out. Decebel craved the touch, as well, but it was hard for the man to feel comfortable taking time to share an intimate moment with his mate when their daughter was missing, even if they couldn’t do anything now but wait.We need her touch,his wolf growled at him.We need the reassurance so the fear doesn’t paralyze. And she needs us. Can you not feel her anguish?Decebel froze as he considered his wolf’s words, and then he flowed into Jennifer’s mind through the bond. He didn’t normally push deeper than what she offered him but this time he did, and he felt what his wolf had described. His mate’s subconscious mind was filled with pain and loss. She was putting on a strong front for him and her friends. Decebel knew she wasn’t doing it because she thought she’d look weak if she didn’t. She was holding herself together to keep her friends from feeling bad and to help keep him from worrying.
“I love you, Jennifer,” he murmured against her ear as he pushed his love, need, and desire through their bond. He heard her sharp inhale and smiled as he pressed a kiss to the spot on her neck that bore his bite mark. She hummed in approval as she tilted her head back further so he could kiss down her neck to her collar bone. She tasted sweet against his tongue as he licked and kissed his way down to her exposed cleavage. Decebel slid his right hand up her body until he cupped her clothed breast and then froze.
Jen felt her mate’s body stiffen, and not in the good way, as soon as his large hand was wrapped around one of his favorite body parts. This was not his usual reaction when his greedy paws got to play with the girls. She pulled her head back to look down at him and frowned. “What?” she asked.
“Is it supposed to be wet?” Decebel asked. His words were measured and cautious.
Jen bit her lips to keep from laughing. “We’re making out like a couple of teenagers, andyouaskmeif it’s supposed to be wet? Really, Dec? Do we need to have a talk about what happens when a female body gets aroused?”
He rolled her eyes and let out a little growl. “I’m not talking aboutthat.I’m talking about your boob, Jennifer.” He gave said body part a gentle squeeze. “Your shirt is soaked.”
Pushing past the lust haze that his touch was creating, Jen looked down as Decebel moved his hand and saw that the fabric over her left nipple was indeed soaked. “Guess the current brand of breast pads I’m using get an F on foreplay protection.”
Decebel frowned at her. “What?”
“Foreplay, or any sexual stimulation, can cause my milk to let down, which then in turn makes it drip out of me like a leaky faucet. My breast pads are supposed to keep this”—she pointed to her shirt—“from happening.” Her face fell as she realized another reason she was leaking. “And I haven’t nursed Thia in hours and hadn’t even thought about pumping. Looks like they’re a bit full.”
“Oh,” Decebel said and then smiled, hoping to bring her back to the moment. “So what you’re saying is, kissing me can make you wet?” His voice was dry and almost bored sounding, but Jen saw the wicked gleam in his eyes.
“Ha, ha, B. You’re so clever with your sexual innuendos and whatnot,” Jen said as she started to sit up.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Decebel asked as he pulled her back down on top of him.
“I’m going to find another shirt to wear. I’ll just grab something and be right back,” she told him as she tried again to push herself up.
