A knot tied up my throat. I wasn’t, not really. Knowing the hell I’d been through, I wouldn’t consign anyone to that fate. Not for anything. But I forced myself to nod. “I think I can. But neither one of us will get close enough if we have…wolves attached to us.”
Since Henry’s arms had tightened around me and he didn’t seem inclined to let me go. I also had serious doubts that Evershaw would let Deirdre anywhere near that empty lot, regardless of how scary she looked. The witch’s lips twitched. “He already thinks you have a relationship with wolves. Why not take advantage of that?”
“I’ll go with you,” a strong voice said, and I turned to find Nola standing behind her brother. She had her arms folded over her chest and her certainty was unwavering.
“You don’t have to,” Henry said. “Fran is already helping to track, and—”
“This is a pack matter,” she said. Her flinty eyes glinted in the light as she glanced at me and took a deep breath. “And my brother’s mate will not face danger without one of our pack beside her.”
A knot tied up my throat, but I didn’t know precisely why. Did that mean she accepted me as Henry’s mate? That she wouldn’t put any other wolves in front of him as better options? I didn’t wait for Henry to jump in but inclined my head toward Nola, trying to stand in my own strength. “Thank you. We’ll make Rocko regret underestimating us.”
“This all assumes that we’re going to allow this nonsense,” Miles said, a hard edge to his voice. “I’m not about to stand by while my mate and two females take on all the risk of this.”
“Allow?” I arched an eyebrow as I faced him, despite my guts clenching. I needed to practice standing up to someone terrifying if I had to face Rocko in a matter of minutes. At least I knew Henry wouldn’t let Miles browbeat me into hiding. “I’m not sure you have much of a choice. We’re not sworn to you, Mr. Evershaw. Not one of us. And Rocko is here for me, so if anyone but me shows up, you’ll never find Silas.”
His eyes narrowed and his face turned red as a loud “Ha!” escaped from Deirdre. I refused to budge or look away from Evershaw, even though Henry tensed next to me and waited.
It was stupid to challenge an alpha; even someone who hadn’t spent any time in a pack knew that just by the past few days. But I knew I was right—Rocko would see the wolves coming from miles away and he would disappear. We’d never find Silas, or we’d find pieces of him at a time as Rocko sent a message to me about what happened when I tried to make friends.
Henry cleared his throat and eased his hand around my arm. “Babe...”
“It’s true,” Nola said. She folded her arms over her chest and tilted her head at me. “And we’re running out of time to debate this. We need to get moving.”
“You’re going to have to look less like a raging bull,” Deirdre said as she eyed the female wolf. “Because right now I’d wager you look more intimidating than me.”
“You’re all out of your minds,” Mercy said in a whisper from the edge of the room, though she bounced forward. “Can I come too?”
“No,” Henry and Miles said at the same time.
The alpha looked around the room. “What the fuck is happening to this pack? Do I need to start kicking asses again?”
I got to my feet and took a deep breath. There wasn’t any more time to waste. “You brought witches into your house. Well, you moved into a witch’s house. I don’t know. We need to get moving or Rocko will assume I’ve run again.”
Deirdre headed for the door without another word to her mate, and I could practically see the steam still escaping from her ears. I had to bite my lip to keep from smiling at the way Miles scowled in her direction; his irritation lasted just a few seconds, then he chased after her, arguing and cajoling. Nola nodded to Henry and started out. I squeezed Henry’s hand and tried to look confident. “It’ll be fine. They’re both way strong enough to handle this. I’ll just hide behind them.”
His expression grew serious as he squeezed my hand back, and leaned down to kiss me. “I don’t like this. I don’t