Simone disagreed. “Yeah, nope.”
Shadow stared down at her, and I almost laughed. My poor beast was so unused to being defied that it took him by surprise when it happened. Unlike when I did it, though, he might kill Simone.
I stepped between them. “Simone,” I said softly, “I can’t have you in danger. Seriously, I would lose my brains. And while I know you’re a total badass, you can’t bring claws to a god fight—it just won’t work.” Her lips trembled, and I reached out to take her hand. “I promise I’ll come to Earth as soon as we handle Dannie.”
“What if you don’t?” she whispered. “What if I never see any of you again and I just have to assume the damn worst happened? Again, Mera! I’ve already done that once this year.”
“I agree,” Sam added. “You’re already important to me, Mera. I’m going to be worried as hell if I don’t hear anything.”
Shadow laughed dryly. “If we fail, the worlds will fall. Even Earth.” The Shadow Bastard was nothing if not blunt. “So I wouldn’t worry too much. We’re the only chance anyone has, and we can’t effectively do our jobs when we’re worrying about those weak and vulnerable.”
Both of the ladies were offended by that, and I couldn’t blame them. Weak and vulnerable were not admirable shifter traits, but in this sort of “god fight,” Shadow wasn’t wrong.
“I concede to this with one stipulation,” Simone finally said. “That if you get a chance to send me and Sam a message or smoke signal or misty communication, you do it. Let us know you’re okay.”
Shadow paused, and it was clear he was thinking about the best way to grant this request. “I have an idea,” he finally said. “I’ll be right back.”
He strode off into the library, and all of us watched silently until he disappeared from sight.
“Phew,” Sam said, letting out a long breath. “He’s intense.”
Simone snorted. “Mera doesn’t seem to mind.”
“Yeah, not even a little,” I said with a laugh, shaking my head at my obsession with that beast. “I keep having to pinch myself to believe this is even real. Just wish there wasn’t war hanging over our heads.”
Simone’s joking smile disappeared in an instant as she hugged me hard. “I’m so scared for you,” she said against my shoulder. “I think I’d rather be here and die, than stuck in Torma imagining the worst.”
I shook my head. “Girl, your death is my worst nightmare. I couldn’t do this knowing you were in danger. Just go to Torma, and… be careful there. You need a good cover story because they think you took off without permission. Be wary around Torin as well; he’s still the same evil dickhead pretending to be an alpha.” I looked between Simone and Sam. “Stick together.”
“I’ve got her back,” Sam said. “I know how to escape from a pack without detection, so if we need to run, we will.”
I had to hug her as well, my new friend who was already starting to feel like one of the pack. “I’m sorry to have dragged you into this, even if I’m not sorry to have met you,” I told her when I pulled away, “and if we all survive this, I promise to make it up to you.”
She waved me off. “Are you kidding me? Meeting you was the best thing that ever happened to me. There’s this whole damn world that I never knew existed, not to mention all of these new supernatural creatures to learn about. Before I met you, I was lonely and sad all the time. I’d take the risk of death over an empty life any damn day.”
“See,” Simone said smugly. “We both feel the same, and I think you should let us stay.”
I didn’t bother to argue; she already knew it was a done deal, but it was in her nature to fight until the bitter end. Before she could try again, Shadow stepped into view, holding what looked like a piece of parchment in his hand.
When he got closer, it was clear how ancient the parchment was, made from a material far thicker and sturdier than normal paper. “Here,” he said, handing one sheet of it to Simone and the second sheet to me. “These are magically-connected parchments. It’s fae magic, and Len left these in my care. If you write on one, it will appear on the other, until such a time that the words are read. Then it disappears. Keep it on you at all times.”
Simone looked down at the parchment, her eyes wide and glassy as she clutched it to her chest. “Old school texting. I love it.”
“Yes, it’s perfect,” I said. “I’ll send messages through the parchment and you can pass it on to Sam.”
A tear spilled down Simone’s cheek, sliding along the smooth skin. “I love you, Meers. Please don’t die. I honestly can’t live in this fucked-up world without you.”
Dammit, now I was about to cry too. “I promise to do my very best to remain alive so we can bitch about men and eat junk food.”
Shadow rumbled, sounding pissed off. At first I thought it was my comment about bitching, but then he said, “Mera’s life is the most valuable life in any of the worlds. I will die for her, as will our pack.”
Simone looked relieved by this, and I could understand why. Shadow was scary and intimidating at the best of times, but when he was like this, he literally sent shivers down my spine.
With one more hug for them both, I followed them into the white hallway, waving as they were led to Earth by my beast.
“They’re going to be okay, right?” I asked Shadow when he returned to me, sans two shifters. “With those assholes in Torma? What if they get hurt there?”
Shadow’s smile was darkly evil. “Torin is about to learn a lesson about touching my wolves without permission. If he oversteps at all, he will suffer. Rest assured, Sunshine, your friends are safe.”
