Laina stopped crying long enough to grab Jason’s upper arms and scan his dark T-shirt and jeans for any signs of the devastation his body had once endured. “Goddess, you’re as good as new.”
“Fire lily juice. Who knew?”
“Apparently, our pack needs to improve relations with the fae.” She dabbed her eyes.
“Why are you crying?”
“Oh”—she pinched the bridge of her nose—“just realizing that I should have listened to you. Kyle is lying in that bed because…” She drifted off, the tears flowing anew.
Jason pulled her into his arms. “I get it, all right? I slept with Nickelova. I’m the reason Alex was able to find us to begin with. There’s plenty of guilt to go around.”
“What?” Laina pushed him back by the shoulders. “Who told you that?”
“I did,” Silas said, coming into the alcove behind her. He slipped a silver coin into the coffee machine and pressed the button for black. Laina took a moment to appreciate that the offerings in the vending machines behind him included sardines and chrysanthemum flowers but not a single bag of Doritos. “Nickelova was probably searching all the supernatural safe houses in the country when she came across Jason. She would have sensed he was a wolf immediately, but she’d never met him in person. Once he got naked, the phoenix tattoo gave him away. Monty would have sniffed her out in an instant. So she took the job at Hunt Club, knowing Gerty’s magic would mask her own.”
“But why didn’t Gerty sense what she was?”
“When Nickie was hired, they invited her in, allowing her to circumvent Gerty’s wards. Then it was just a matter of finding a way to lure you out of hiding. When Monty sent you to Hunt Club, he handed you over to the enemy. Only, Alex was still on the outside, and Nickelova knew Gerty would sense him if he got too close to where she worked in the east wing. Together, they figured out a way to use Nate to lure all of us out.” His bushy eyebrows sagged, and he fished the coffee from the machine. After one sip, his face twisted, and he frowned into the oddly colored brew. “Acorn coffee. I should have known.”
Jason rested his hands on his hips. “It’s my fault. I wish I’d never met Nickelova.”
“No.” Silas shook his head. “This is Alex’s fault. He’s a psychopath with a brainwashed, dragon-powered sidekick, who will stop at nothing to have his revenge. We didn’t make him what he is. He did that to himself.”
“I don’t want to do this anymore,” Jason said, his eyes finding Laina’s. A tortured expression marred his face. “I just want to go home.”
“Me too,” Laina said.
With a shrug, Silas tossed the full coffee into the garbage and gathered them both into a group hug. “Good news. Rivergate Manor is fully protected and open for business. And I still have Grateful working on Four Paws too, Laina. You’ll be able to go back in a matter of days. Cameron has agreed to let us stay at the manor, together, until we end this thing with Alex.”
“You mean until we find him and kill him.”
“There’s no other way.”
Laina glanced back toward Kyle’s room. She could safely return to Four Paws. The idea should have thrilled her. Instead, her heart felt unexpectedly heavy. Goddess, she would miss him.
Jason grimaced, his eyes darting between Silas and Laina. “You’re not thinking of leaving Kyle, are you? He’s your wolf’s vice! It’ll kill you.”
“It won’t kill her.” Silas slashed a hand through the air. “But it will likely save him.”
Laina closed her eyes and drew a deep breath through her nose. Kyle wouldn’t even be in that bed if it weren’t for her. “I have to give him a chance at a life without all this violence. If I leave now, he might be able to go back to how things were before.”
Jason’s brow wrinkled in sympathy. He knew. Of anyone, he knew how this felt. She was splintering into a million pieces. She was dropping into an eternal, dark abyss. Nothing would be the same after Kyle. Nothing. The only thing strong enough to break the bond she had with Kyle was the bond itself. She loved him enough to leave him.
“I’m sorry, La.” He pulled her into a hug and kissed the top of her head.
“I know,” she said softly.
“Do you want to leave him a note for when he wakes up?” Silas’s tone was soft and kind. “Or we could wait, but—”
“It would only make it harder,” she finished for him. “No, I think the less that is said, the better. Besides, I’d never find the words.”
Silas wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Without another syllable, they left for home.
ChapterThirty-Five
Kyle stared at the spoon in front of his lips but refused to eat. Some part of him understood he was acting like a child, but he didn’t care. His body might have healed over the last weeks, but his heart was irreparably broken.
“Milo,” he called, patting the bed beside him. The mastiff crawled onto the mattress and snuggled in close, resting his head on Kyle’s chest and whining softly. “You miss her too, huh, boy?”
