Alpha Queen (Claimed by Wolves #4) - Callie Rose Page 0,25

memory, found out anything she wanted about me. About us.” A lump has grown in my throat as I speak, clogging my voice so that I have to pause and clear it away. Then I take a deep, steadying breath and add, “Her attack was so powerful. Too powerful.”

I finally glance up to find all four of them staring at me, unblinking. Through the mate bond, I can sense them processing this new development and attempting to piece together their thoughts about it. I can’t even make sense of my own thoughts, so if they can give me some insight, some answer as to what we do next, I’m all ears.

But then Archer says the one thing I don’t want to hear.

“It’s time that you embrace your witch power fully. If you don’t, next time you might not be able to fight her off.”

9

Dare

A moment of silence hangs in the air after Archer speaks.

Next time, you might not be able to fight her off.

The thought chills me through my fucking core. When that witch bitch pulls Sable into that mystical bond between them, I can’t reach her. I can’t help her. None of us have access to magic to be able to chase after our mate and save her when she’s inside the connection she shares with the coven leader.

So Archer’s right. It’s imperative Sable learn how to defend herself.

That means fully embracing the witch.

“No way,” Sable says, her tone hard as flint. She tugs her hand free of Archer’s fingers and crosses her arms. “That’s never going to happen. I’m already in too deep as it is. I can’t just throw myself into witch magic even more.”

“We don’t have another choice,” Archer says gently. “If there was one, we’d find it.”

“I’m already trying not to panic every single damn day that I might kill you,” Sable blurts, her gaze darting between the four of us. “Every night, I worry my magic is going to rise up and attack you. Or that Cleo won’t just drag me into the bond, but she’ll take over my body and use me to massacre the entire village. Strengthening the magic inside me feels like the very last thing I should ever do.”

I can see by the stubborn set of her jaw and the way her lower lip juts out that she’s adamant on this. I get her point, really. I’d give anything to go back and protect my pack the way she so stoically protects us, even at the risk of denying an inherent aspect of herself. But I’d die if something happened to Sable, and Archer’s right. The only way to keep her safe—truly safe—is for her to master the witch and use that power to her advantage.

And I think maybe I can talk her into it.

I lift my chin, catching Archer’s gaze, then jerk my head at the door to indicate I want the others to leave. Luckily, he’s a smart guy, and he gets my sign language without me needing to explain.

He grabs Trystan’s arm as he slides off the bed, and the two of them gather their clothes off the floor.

“I’m going to make some coffee,” Archer says. “Ridge, you wanna help?”

Ridge raises an eyebrow at me, and I just give him a single, almost imperceptible nod. I know they’re all wondering what the fuck I’m doing taking point on this particular battle. I was the one who fought hardest against Sable’s transition to witch. I was the one who almost gave her up because I couldn’t handle the truth.

But that’s precisely why I’m the right man to convince her. When you almost make the worst mistake in your life, you’ve got the point of view necessary to prove how wrong you were in the first place.

Archer leans over and kisses Sable on the head, and Trystan does the same except on the lips and with more than a little passion behind it, because he’s a goddamn show off. Ridge simply touches her face and says, “I’ll have a mug waiting for you,” and then the three of them leave the room. Archer glances back once before he closes the door, his expression still worried.

No need for that, I think. I’ve got this.

If Sable thinks their sudden departure is weird or out of character, she doesn’t mention it. In fact, she doesn’t even lift her head. She’s staring down at her hands in her lap, and she’s got her fingers so intertwined they look like undoable knots. The last