Sage shifts too, shuddering from the sudden chill. “You’re not angry at the tree, Ro.”
“No fucking shit, Sherlock.” I thrust a hand toward the house. “I’m angry at him. At Rip. At every fucking thing!”
The words hang there, ugly and untrue. I’m not really angry with Tobias. I’m just… hurt. I press my forehead to the bark, trying to breathe. “I’m angry because I couldn’t stop it. I’m angry because Ivy is hurt, and Tobias—” My voice breaks. “He’s blaming himself. I can feel it.”
Through the bond, Tobias’s guilt bleeds through me like smoke, thick and suffocating. It pulses like knives against my ribs. Is he still with the others? Alone? I have no clue.
Grant changes forms too, leaning against a nearby tree. “He’s still adjusting, though. This thing between you—between all of us, really—it’s new to him. Toby has never had a pack to think about.”
“Doesn’t matter.” I push off the tree, my claws itching under my skin. “I still feel it, the need to protect him. He’s mine, Grant. My fated one. That means his safety is my responsibility.”
“That’s bullshit. He’s all of ours. He’s one of us now.”
I turn away. He doesn’t get it.
“Grant is right,” Sage says, surprising me. “Being fated doesn’t separate us from the pack. If anything, it gives us a bigger reason to fight. You don’tget to control who it chooses for you. You just get to choose if you accept it.”
“I have accepted it from the moment I realized it, Sage.He’sthe one whohasn’t.”
“That’s not true.” Sage steps closer. “Tobias has embraced it just as easily as you. He’s still living with his past, though. The things he’s been through? They’re a part of him.”
“How can I protect him from that? He’s not supposed to live through it again!” My voice cracks. “He’s supposed to be safe here—with me, with all of us. If Rip can get in his head… fuck!” I punch the tree again.
It hits me then why Tobias kept this from me—the whispers. He knew I’d want to protect him. And I can’t. Not from this.
Sage’s gaze softens. “The bond means you have a bigger reason to live. It doesn’t mean that reason will come without pain.”
The words hit too close. I turn away, running a hand over my face. My pulse won’t slow. The tether hums again, faint but steady. I can feel Tobias’s heartbeat echoing through it—faster than normal, uneven.
He’s scared. Ashamed. Possibly alone.
Toby.
Grant moves closer, lowering his voice. “We’ll reinforce the perimeter. Double our security cameras, double our patrol runs. Forest is already contacting the other packs. We’ll figure this out.” He claps a hand on my shoulder. “You’renotcarrying this alone, you hear me?”
I nod absently, but my mind’s not on strategy. It’s on Tobias.
“He keeps saying Rip owns him,” I whisper.
Sage tilts his head. “And what do you say to that?”
“I told him it’s not true.” I close my eyes. “But I think a part of him believes it. And if he believes it, that’s enough to make it real.”
“He refused to go to him today,” Sage says. “Maybe he’s starting to see another way.”
I cling to that, my heart aching. “Maybe.”
Silence stretches between us. The wind moves through the trees, cold and sharp. We all shiver and shift back to our wolven forms for warmth.
Sage steps forward.Tobias has been alone for so long that he’s not used to having people like us fight with him. We just need to keep showing up. He’ll get it.
I huff a bitter laugh.You sound like Red.
Yeah, well. He’s rubbing off on me.My uncle’s eyes lighten.You okay now?
I think so.
For a while, we just stand there. The scent of the earth is heavy like it’s going to rain. Somewhere far off, an owl calls.
