Artemis stood, head tipped up proudly. “I am the Elder Fae,” was all he said. “Let’s get you back to Brayden.”
Artemis grasped the portal egg in his hand and hooked our elbows. The magical light of the portal egg glowed green and then we were sucked inside.
* * *
I barely hadtime to register landing on the cold corn fields of Montana before Brayden was all up in my face.
“HOW DARE YOU LEAVE ME!” he roared, more fear than anger in his voice.
I frowned. “I’m sorry.”
He reached out and grasped my arms before yanking me forward, crushing me to his chest. I let him hold me tightly, knowing it made him feel better, and honestly I needed it too. I inhaled, breathing him in and letting him keep me pinned to him in a death-grip hug.
“Averly…?” He went very still against me.
“Yeah?” I spoke into his shoulder, suddenly worried about the tone of his voice.
“Why is Novus’ ghost wolf pack tethered to you?” he growled, and then pulled back to look at me in shock.
I gave a nervous laugh. “Surprise.”
The smallest wolf, his grandmother, approached him, head down and tail wagging.
“That’s your grandmother,” I told him. I didn’t think she could speak to his mind like she had mine. Another wolf broke away from our small pack and approached Brayden. I gasped when I read his feelings. “And that’s your grandfather.”
Brayden swallowed hard, his blue eyes examining the animals as he dropped to one knee.
“Mimi?” he said to his grandmother’s wolf.
The wolf nodded.‘Tell him I’m proud of him. That his father would be too.’
“She’s proud of you. Says your father would be too,” I told him.
Artemis had stepped back to speak to the others and give us privacy. Even so, Brayden lowered his voice. “There’s nothing to be proud of. I lost my kingdom.” He dipped his head in shame. “My family is in captivity. I’ve failed.”
My heart broke to hear him talk to his grandmother like that. I didn’t know he’d been carrying this much guilt the entire time.
She stepped closer to him, and so did his grandfather. They both laid their muzzles in his lap.‘Tell him it’s time to take everything back. We will make sure of it,’his grandfather spoke to me for the first time.
I relayed the message to Brayden and he nodded, standing and then facing me as the wolves trotted away to give us privacy. I found that I could go a great distance from them and the cords tying us just stretched to accommodate.
“You haven’t slept,” Brayden said.
I must’ve looked like hell, but there was no time for sleep. Not with Novus hellbent on revenge and his brothers and my sisters stuck in a dungeon.
I slapped my face three times. “I’m good to go.”
Concern pulled at his features, causing his lips to turn down. “Averly, I… I don’t want anything to happen to you, but I can’t wait any longer. We have to overthrow the Fae Lords now.”
I nodded. “I’m ready. Nothing is going to happen to me. I’ve got a freaking pack of ghost wolves.” I gestured to the pack, who now faced the wheat fields as if waiting for something to jump out of it and attack me.
A lopsided grin pulled at his lips. “You do in fact have that. How did that happen again?”
Nervous laughter escaped me. “Tell you later.”
He would kill me if he knew how close I was to dying.
Stepping closer, he took my face into his hands. Looking down at me for a full twenty seconds, I watched as he just studied the lines of my face before finally resting his gaze on my lips. “Of all the times I’ve loved you, I think this version is my favorite.”
