him an exasperated look. “Just remember our deal. Both of you stay in North America, and we won’t have any problems.”
I sighed but decided this wasn’t the time for another argument. Vayu and the other gods opened gateways to leave the throne room, probably to gather up what was left of their warriors.
I could linger here and argue with Drake and Froston, but it was more important to clean out the dungeons and rescue those trapped down below.
Now that the Morrigan’s magical barriers were no longer in effect, I easily opened a gateway into the dungeon corridor that I had run through earlier today. A scream drifted through, and I cringed. I shouldn’t have delayed as much as I had already.
“Let’s go rescue our people,” I told the others.
Just this one time, I let James be the first to go through the gateway. He needed it after being unconscious for our previous battle. Plus, the rest of the guys needed to finish the fight that we started, but this time end up on the winning side.
Chapter 34
Anna
I leaned my head on Jason after letting out a large wolf yawn. I’d taken my guys back to Froston’s hidden island once we’d rescued all the survivors and brought them home. I was happy that the Morrigan was gone, but devastated at the losses we’d suffered. Not everyone had made it through the battle, and the lamia and witches had suffered heavy casualties as well.
Arminius was disgruntled to realize that we hadn’t permanently locked the gate to Winter. It wasn’t until after we explained the outcome of my fight with the Morrigan that I realized Drake had never shared the secret to locking the gate as he promised. I had plans to track him down once I was well-rested enough to deal with him. Not only was I still angry at being tricked, but I needed to make sure he wasn’t going to be just as much of a threat as the Morrigan was.
Mason let out a loud snore from beside me, and I would have laughed if I were in my human form. After almost thirty-six hours of fighting and dealing with the aftermath, all of us had been too exhausted to talk, but no one wanted to be alone tonight.
We were lying here under a cloudless sky, with the stars and the moon shining down on us. The weather was warm, and the cool night breeze was just enough to be refreshing, but that didn’t stop us from all sleeping together as a pack. Allowing myself to just be a wolf, free to enjoy the night, and the warmth of my packmates was exactly what I needed.
“Can’t sleep?” Austin asked through the bond.
“I’m exhausted,” I admitted. “But I’m savoring this moment in time.”
“As much as I enjoy hearing the snores of my packmates,” Austin said with a mental smirk. “I also want to make sure my mate is well-cared for.”
A warm gooey feeling filled me. “I am,” I assured him.
I twisted around, accidentally hitting Mason with a paw to his ribs. He grunted but didn’t wake up as I maneuvered into place. Now that I could see Austin’s eyes, I rested my head back down.
“I love you,” I said simply. “And I’m incredibly grateful for all of us to be here together.”
“I love you, too,” Austin murmured back to me.
“I love both of you,” Cody added.
“I love all three of you,” Caleb said solemnly.
James let out a low growl that probably meant we should all shut up and stop talking through our bonds, but he could shut us out if he genuinely wanted to.
“I love you, too, James,” I said sweetly.
Laughter echoed through our bonds, and it was enough to startle the twins awake.
“What did we miss?” Jason asked sleepily.
“We haven’t celebrated our victory properly,” I informed him. Even though I was tired, I still had enough energy to get to my feet. “And we need to give our well-wishes to those who passed.”
Looking up at the moon, I let out a mournful howl. The others followed suit, making a beautiful chorus that floated up to the heavens, or maybe to Valhalla.
A shiver went down my spine as I felt eyes on us.
“Drake’s here,” I said through our bond. “Be on your guard.”
I shifted into my human form, but as I changed, I willed clothes into being. The dragons had given me some ideas that I planned on experimenting with. But for now, this would work.