lose all their intelligence once the hormones kicked in and they decided they were somehow immune to injury or death.
“What’s wrong? Did someone else die? Who died? Did the Order attack someone else? Another pack?”
“Slow down, baby,” Decebel said in his calm, deep, “don’t lose your crap” voice. It annoyed her but he was right. She was wound as tightly as a paranoid psych patient convinced the toaster was going to come to life and try to strangle her with its “Someone else did die. Many died in the battle, but that is not what we need to discuss right now.”
“How can that not be what we need to discuss?” She was shrieking, which pissed her off. Jen did not like it when her voice started shrieking, even if it was only through their bond and not out loud. “Who else died, Dec?”
His sigh was audible through their bond. “Cypher.”
“Shit, damn, shit,” she cursed, not only through their bond but out loud as well.
“Shi—” Thia began, but Jen managed to get a hand over her daughter’s mouth.
“No,” she said firmly. “You can say ‘hell’ till it freezes over, but not the S word.”
When she uncovered Thia’s mouth, the little girl looked up at her and smiled. Jen saw the wicked gleam in her eye, one she knew all too well from her own face. “Dada.” Thia giggled. It was as if she was taunting Jen with the fact that she was going to say the S word in front of her dad.
“Jennifer?”
She’d have to deal with mini-me later. Jen turned her attention back to her mate. “Is Lilly okay?”
“No. But she’s doing what she must right now, and that’s leading her people.”
“She’s strong,” Jen said. “She will get through this.” It’s not like she had a choice. She was a queen and had a daughter and a grandson.
“She will. But I need you to focus now.”
“I am focused.”
There was a pause.
“Okay, fine, I’m as scattered as a squirrel on the ground covered with endless acorns. But now I’m focused. What’s up? Hit me with it. Let’s do this.”
“Jennifer,” he growled.
“I’ve been getting my butt kicked at a Morse code game by a four-year-old while trying to keep my daughter from saying potty words because I keep saying them because said four-year-old is beating me, all while being held captive in the compound of power-hungry psychopaths. This is as focused as you’re gonna get, B.” Jen was trying really hard to reach for her calm adult self. Then she remembered that she didn’t have a calm adult self and threw that plan out the proverbial window.
“We can get you guys out.”
WTH. “Why didn’t you lead with that?” Holy rolling pixie babies! After nearly three years, did the dude not know her better than that?
“Sally’s necklace,” he continued, ignoring her question. Okay, so he did know her pretty well. “It’s blessed by the Great Luna and can bring down the wards that are keeping the fae from flashing in to get you. Nissa, Cyn, and Riven have all tried to flash, but there’s a ward up. Her necklace has the ability to take it down temporarily.”
“Okay. How?”
“We don’t know.”
“Naturally.”
“Tell her. She can figure out what to do. The Great Luna would not have intended for her to have that necklace if she wasn’t going to be able to know how to use it.”
“It’s annoying when you make good points when I’d rather you just have the actual answer,” Jen grumbled.
“I love you, too,” he said. Jen could picture his luscious lips tilted up as his chest rumbled with a deep chuckle. Gah, she missed her man.
“How will you guys know when the ward is down?” Jen asked, realizing it would be pointless to take the ward down if no one even knew it was gone.
“You can tell me.”
“How will I know the ward is down?”
“We don’t know that either.”
“So, what you’re telling me is that you know Sally’s trinket should allow Peri and her crew to flash in and get us, yet you have no idea how that is going to happen or how you will know it is happening?”
“Exactly.”
“Sounds like our kind of op. Don’t worry, B, I totally got this.” She totally didn’t have this, but she was not about to admit it because that was like giving up, and Jen did not give up. She gave hell.
“Jennifer, I need you to focus again.”
“I am focused. I’m focused on giving the Order hell.” See, hell-giver, right here, people.