into being, Drake stepped on the beach from the shadows.
“Anna,” he said in a greeting that was oddly subdued for Drake.
“Drake,” I said with a nod. “What brings you here?”
Another thought ran through me. How was Drake here? This island was supposed to be warded from everything and everyone. He shouldn’t even know this place existed. I froze when I realized that the bond that Drake had forged with me might have more consequences than I’d previously considered.
Drake smiled at me. “Our bond will slowly fade, but it’ll never disappear completely.”
Growls surrounded me as my mates heard his words.
“Is there a way to get rid of it?” I asked bluntly.
Drake cocked his head to one side. “Why would you want to do that?” he teased.
I narrowed my eyes at him. In Drake speak, that meant: yes, but I don’t want to tell you how to do it.
“Now that the Morrigan is gone,” I said coolly. “What are your plans?”
Drake gave a dark chuckle. “No need to recharge your magical staff so soon, my darling. I have no plans for world domination. I’m perfectly content to rule my court from the shadows.”
“I doubt that,” I said sarcastically.
Drake gave an elegant shrug. “I came to inform you that my brother, the king of Winter, has signed an agreement with me. No fae from Winter will be allowed to step foot in this world without my permission.”
I raised an eyebrow at him. “Is that supposed to make me feel safe?”
“Not safe, just less murderous,” Drake said with a grin.
“And Summer?” I asked.
Drake looked even more pleased with himself. “They’re going to be afraid to step foot in this world for some time.”
I sighed. “You and I have a lot to work out if we’re both going to be sharing this world.”
“North America,” Drake corrected.
I rolled my eyes. “If you’re staying, I expect you to help put things back together. The blind hatred and violence need to stop.”
“Agreed,” Drake said seriously. “This world used to be a lot more fun.”
I stopped Cody from prowling back and forth in front of me by sinking a hand into his thick coat.
“I’ll be in touch,” I informed Drake, essentially dismissing him.
Drake bowed. “Of course. I’ll let you get back to your victory celebration.”
With one last wave, Drake disappeared back into the shadows. I shifted back into my wolf form, needing some more time with my mates. Tomorrow would be soon enough to get back to work on cleaning up our world.
Chapter 35
Anna
I stepped back onto our territory with a sigh of relief and let my gateway close behind Austin and I. We’d just returned from another meeting with Arminius. It turned out that fighting the Morrigan wasn’t the most difficult part of putting the world back together. The politics and bargaining were.
“Anna!” Lori called as she ran toward us. “Thank god you’re back! Jessica just went into labor!”
Her face was red with a thin sheen of sweat, and her breath was too fast as she skidded to a stop in front of me.
I rested my hand on her shoulder. “Take a deep breath and don’t panic. We need to be calm and confident when we go into the delivery room. If we’re frantic, it’s going to make things more difficult for Jessica.”
Lori let out a shaky breath. “Sorry,” she mumbled. “I just didn’t know what to do, and you weren’t here.”
“Hey,” I said softly. “We’re a team, and we have everything under control. Let’s go see what we need to do next.”
Lori nodded, and her shoulders straightened, getting her confidence back.
“Is there anything I can do?” Austin asked with concern.
“I don’t expect to be using a large amount of magic,” I told him. “And Jessica would be more comfortable without you there.”
Austin looked almost relieved at my words, but there was no time to linger here. Jessica needed me now.
“We’ll be fine,” I told Austin with a wave.
Despite my reassuring words, I was just as worried as Lori. The lives of Jessica and her pups were in my hands. There was no team of Labor and Delivery doctors standing by and no experienced nurses with their calm and practical demeanors to guide Jessica through this. It was just me.
I jogged to the clinic with Lori at my side, hoping that my newfound power as a goddess and the human medical knowledge I’d acquired would be enough.
“Where the fuck have you been?” Jessica screeched at me as I opened the door to the clinic. “My water broke hours