Dimitri caught my words and turned curiously, watching me.
A pause stretched between us until I wondered if the call had dropped. I wasn’t sure how reliable cell service was out here in the middle of the freaking mountains.
“Skye, Remy is the Alpha now,” Mom finally said softly.
It was like someone punched me in the stomach. Air whooshed out of me so fast I felt sick. “What?”
“Gabe was hurt in the explosion,” Mallory added quietly, her voice breaking. “He’s … he’s in a coma. Remy and Dante brought him home.”
I rubbed my forehead.
“What about Luke?”
Another pause, but this time I knew the answer.
“No,” I moaned, shaking my head.
“He passed early this morning,” Mom told me.
“How am I going to tell Tate?” I wondered as tears kept rolling down my cheeks.
“Tate’s with you?”
I nodded, and then realized she couldn’t see me. “Yeah.” My gaze moved to Dimitri again.
“Skye, where are you? I’ll come and get you tonight,” Mom swore. “Are you safe?”
“Yeah, I’m safe, but … it’s a long story, Mom.” I sighed and looked at Nikolai. His metal eyes stared back at me. “I’m with Nikolai, Mom.”
Her breathing hitched. When she found her voice, it was hushed and strained. “What did you just say?”
“I’m in Russia. With my … father,” I finished slowly.
Nikolai’s mouth twitched.
“Russia?” Mallory exclaimed, stunned.
“But you’re with Nik?” Mom pressed, her tone deceptively calm. She was trying not to freak out.
“Yeah. He’s right here. This is his phone.”
“He took you?” Her voice vibrated with building anger.
“It’s a little more complicated than that, Mom,” I answered uneasily. “I promise I’ll tell you everything, but I need to talk to Remy.”
“There’s no telling how long the challenge will last,” Mallory murmured.
My heart sank. Remy was on his own, now in charge of our pack, and already dealing with challenges. And I was here. Completely, totally, uselessly here.
“Okay,” Mom said, determination lacing that single word. I could hear things shuffling. “I’m going to drive up to the house and take my phone to Remy. He can talk to her as soon as he’s done. It should only take me ten minutes to get there, tops.”
My heart soared, relief sweeping through me. “Thanks, Mom.”
“I’ll talk to you soon, Skye,” Mallory called over the speakerphone. “Stay safe, sweetheart. Call if you need anything.”
I could hear Mom moving, her breaths deepening as she hurried.
“Mom, how is Gabe really?” I asked softly.
“He’s stable right now,” she replied. The noise levels changed and a second later I heard the engine of her car start.
“But he’s in a coma? Like me?” I pressed.
She sighed. “It’s not looking good, honey. It’s why Remy had to step up and become the Alpha. With Norwood on the warpath—”
“What do you mean?” I cut her off, my eyes narrowed into slits. “What is Norwood doing?”
Dimitri and Nikolai both looked at me, their expressions fierce.
“What about Norwood?” Dimitri asked me.
I gave him a shrug and lowered the phone. “Mom, I’m putting the phone on speaker. Nikolai and Dimitri are here, too.”
“Who’s Dimitri?” she asked, part-curious and part-Mama Bear.
I looked at him. “The guy who saved me. And he’s kind of my … brother, I think.”
Dimitri grinned at me.
“Your brother?” she echoed in surprise.
Clearly Nikolai hadn’t told her he had a son when they bonded. Then again, I wasn’t sure how much time they had spent having conversations since they knew each other for hours before Mom broke their bond.
I snuck a look at Nikolai. His expression had turned glacial when he heard Mom’s voice.
“Oh,” she murmured. “I didn’t … I didn’t know Nik had any other children.”
“You didn’t give me much time to tell you about my family,” Nikolai replied coldly, glaring at the phone.
Mom seemed to hesitate before finding her voice. “Hi, Nik.”
“Adalynne,” he answered brusquely. “What do you know about Norwood?”
Mom sighed deeply. “We know that they’re responsible for the bombing at the Summit. Without Alphas leading most of the packs, they’re going in and taking them over. They’re spread across most of the east coast now.”
Nikolai and Dimitri exchanged a glance that sent shivers down my spine.
“How’s Remy?” I asked her.
“He’s worried as hell about you. It wouldn’t surprise me if he was on the first plane out tonight to bring you home. I might come with him just to see you with my own eyes.”
“You won’t make it,” Nikolai informed her, his tone clipped. “A storm came in just after Dimitri and Skye made it here. It will take days before we can get an aircraft