I lean against the weapons rack, choosing my words carefully. “Levi has feelings. That I don’t return. He’s having difficulty accepting that.”
“And Kier?”
Heat creeps up my neck despite my best efforts to remaincomposed. “Kier is a friend who helped me survive captivity.”
Dane snorts. “Right. And I’m secretly a unicorn.” He crosses his arms, studying me with the patience that makes him such an effective tracker. “Sister, I’ve seen how you look at each other.”
My cheeks flame. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Don’t you?” He steps closer, his voice dropping to the tone he used when we were children and he was trying to talk me out of some reckless plan. “Lithia, you’re my twin. I know you better than anyone. And right now, you’re scared.”
The accuracy of his assessment makes my wolf whine. “I’m not scared.”
“You’re terrified,” he corrects gently. “Do you really think you should go out into the field knowing that if something were to happen, you’d have regrets?”
“Everyone leaves, Dane.” The words slip out before I can stop them, raw with pain I’ve been carrying for years. “Everyone dies or betrays or just… goes away. It’s better to keep a distance.”
“Mom and Dad didn’t choose to leave,” he says quietly. “They died protecting us. That’s not the same as abandonment.”
“Isn’t it? The result is the same—we’re alone.”
“We’re not alone.” His hand finds my shoulder, squeezing gently. “You have me. You have this pack. And if you’d stop being stubborn for five minutes, you might have something even better.”
Before I can respond, the sound of approaching footsteps interrupts us. I turn to see Kier entering the weapons room, his expression carefully neutral.
“Sorry,” he says, noticing our serious conversation. “Didn’t mean to interrupt. Elias said I should come select gear for tomorrow.”
“No interruption,” Dane says smoothly, though his pointed glance at me makes me want to smack him. “I was just leaving.” He heads for the door, pausing to add, “Think about what I said, sister.”
Then he’s gone, leaving Kier and me alone among the weapons with tension thick enough to cut.
“Everything all right?” Kier asks, moving to examine the selection of blades.
“Fine,” I say too quickly. “Just sibling stuff.”
He nods, but I can feel his attention on me as I busy myself organizing weapons that don’t need organizing. The silence stretches between us, comfortable and uncomfortable at the same time.
“You know,” he says finally, his tone deliberately casual, “if you’re having second thoughts about me joining the team?—”
“I’m not.” The response comes out sharper than intended, making him raise an eyebrow. “Your knowledge of the facility is valuable. It makes tactical sense.”
“Tactical sense,” he repeats, something unreadable in his voice. “Right.”
I risk a glance at him and find him studying a particularly vicious-looking dagger with more attention than it warrants. His dark copper hair falls across his forehead, and there’s tension in the line of his shoulders that suggests he’s as affected by our proximity as I am.
Just be professional,I tell myself.Focus on the mission.
But when he moves to test the weapon’s balance, his shirt pulls tight across his chest and shoulders, and I’m suddenly remembering the feel of those muscles under my hands, the taste of his skin, the way he’d gasped my name when I’d taken him in my mouth.
Heat pools low in my belly, and I have to look away before I do something stupid.
“These blades,” he says, thankfully oblivious to myinternal struggle, “they’re specifically designed for enhanced enemies?”
“According to Elias, yes.” I force my voice to remain steady. “He’s tried to include anything in them that he knows is a weakness for supernaturals. Silver, salt, iron. We don’t know what those guards are spliced with. Their DNA could be anything.”
“Clever.” He sheathes the dagger, moving to examine a set of throwing knives. “What about armor? If we’re facing enhanced guards?—”
“There’s limited protection available in human form,” I interrupt. “And nothing in were. If you want, there’s some leather which is better than nothing, but won’t stop a determined assault.”
