“Do not, come this way again.” I growled. “And remember, not everyone in my dekes believes in the goddess. Now go!”
I used one clawed finger and released Voroso from my web. Once free, he took off like a coward, and Sefar hobbled after him, clutching his side.
Once they were far enough away, I returned to my mate.
“Are you alright? Did they hurt you?” I checked every inch of her and sighed with relief when there were no wounds to be found.
“I’m alright. Axon,” her eyes met mine. “What are they going to do now that they know there are more of us?”
“I don’t know.” I shook my head. “It is something we should bring up to Tarak. He’ll know what to do.” Tarak might be the same age as the rest of us, but he was wise beyond his years and he had a way of understanding people that made him a good leader.
I picked Ashley up, and she squeaked.
“I said I’m alright. You don’t have to carry me.”
“I just saw you be carried off by two of the cruelest males I’ve ever known. It’ll be a full moon cycle before I can let you out of my sight. Holding you against me is the only thing keeping me calm enough to not finish what I started.”
I longed to attack them again, to witness their final breaths for what they dared to do, but holdingmy mate against me was keeping me grounded.
“Okay.” Ashley sighed and leaned her head against my chest.
“It won’t be long now.” I promised. “We’ll be within the safety of the mountain soon.”
I walked as fast as I could without jostling my mate and, just as I predicted, we made it to the entrance before the sun set. Already I could smell meat cooking on the fire. My mouth watered to taste Orsu and Julie’s cooking again, but most of all, I simply longed to be home.
I set Ashley down and moved the boulder blocking the entrance out of the way. Once she was inside, I moved it back and let out a breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding. We made it. We were safe. We were home.
Chapter 32
Ashley
The warmth from the cookfire greeted us as we walked through the tunnels to the main cavern. I had expected to hear a cacophony of voices as we drew closer, but it was quiet, too quiet.
“Axon, what’s going on?”
My mate stiffened beside me. He sensed that things weren’t right at the same moment I did.
“I hear pacing and whispers and,” a loud wail cut off his sentence and we both ran as we rounded the corner to the community space we all shared.
Nearly everyone was either sitting at a table, on a cousin or aimlessly walking around the room. No one looked hurt from what I could tell, but everyone looked incredibly tense.
“Ashley!” Beatrice shouted and ran toward me with open arms.
I happily accepted her hug and squeezed her back.
“What’s going on? Who’s screaming?”
I scanned the room again, and everyone was here, everyone except Gabby, Tarak, Neelu andDrondia.
“Gabby.” Beatrice worried her bottom lip and looked in the direction of our leader’s cave. “She’s in labor. Has been all day.”
Ooohhhhh shit. “Is she doing alright? Have there been any complications?”
“Everything is progressing fine according to Drondia, who is the closest thing we have to a midwife, and Sozu keeps checking on her periodically and says everything is fine, but this is the first hybrid baby so we’re all nervous.”
Another pained groan echoed throughout the cavern and I winced. We really needed to find a pain killer herb or plant before the next person had their baby.
I looked over at Orsu, who rubbed Julie’s rounded belly. His tail thumped the floor with each sound that came from the cave Gabby was in.
