Total pages in book: 148
Estimated words: 140412 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 702(@200wpm)___ 562(@250wpm)___ 468(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 140412 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 702(@200wpm)___ 562(@250wpm)___ 468(@300wpm)
“You don’t have to cede the throne while you’re away,” Hannah goes on. “We just don’t let anyone know where you are, you continue to preside over pack matters from there, and we make it clear that this is being done to protect the future of the pack by protecting your progeny. No one needs to know anything about the thralls or the spell or the fact that the two of you might be key to, you know. Ending our entire species?”
“One problem at a time,” Nathan says wryly.
“What about the thralls?” I ask.
“As long as you’re still a part of their plan, they can’t kill you, right?” Hannah says, and I do hope that she’s right. “We can use that. They continue to protect you while we continue to investigate in secret.”
“And when we don’t need them anymore…” Tara raises her eyebrows.
I can’t do it. I can’t face another mass execution. I can’t have more blood on my metaphorical hands. No more deaths on my conscience.
Nathan, however, doesn’t seem to have that same view. “They should pray that such a time never comes.”
That’s what I’m going to pray, too.
CHAPTER 70
We plan furiously, and fast. Xiao secures a location, a tiny cabin that’s way off the grid in Manitoba. We’ll be isolated from the world, but most importantly, from the pack; they don’t know that our thralls have hideouts all over Canada.
Even though she only has to make a few calls, we decide not to chance letting anyone know that we’re leaving. Yet again, we’re bugging out. We’re leaving our kingdom because our subjects want us dead.
It’s almost midnight when Nathan and I go to my bedroom, and I start hauling out all my luggage.
“You don’t have to pack tonight,” he says gently.
I don’t look at him. “I don’t have to. But I’m going to.”
“You’ll tire yourself out. We’ll have a long drive tomorrow.”
I shake my head. “Then I can sleep on the drive.”
Nathan comes to my side and puts his hand on my arm. “Bailey… don’t do this to yourself.”
“Don’t do what?” I snap. “Take anything with me to fucking Manitoba? Just resign myself to dying in the wilderness, ripped apart by polar bears?”
He doesn’t get angry at my tone, which pisses me off more. I’m angry. Not at him, but at this whole situation, and situations can’t fight. I want to fight someone. Why won’t he cooperate?
What he does is gently stroke my hair back from my face and whisper, “This isn’t a failure.”
My heart crumples in on itself. How did he know that was my primary concern?
I turn to him, tears in my eyes. “You said that leaving the seat of power during a coup is basically giving up.”
“As it turns out, this is much bigger than a coup.” He sits on the bed, elbows on his knees, hands hanging. “This is something I’m completely unprepared for. I’m out of my depth here. It was one thing when we thought we were fighting a potential takeover from another pack. But we’re at the center of a conflict between thralls and werewolves.”
“And the only way our side can win is if we die.” I can’t handle any of this. “We were supposed to sit down with all of Hannah’s office supplies and solve this tonight.”
“I think your expectations might have been a bit high,” Nathan says with a gentle sigh. “We will not die for the pack, or for any other werewolf. If we have to stay in hiding for the rest of our lives, we will. And we can. Because we have each other.”
“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but we’re not exactly a dream couple with a dream marriage.” The words are bitter on my tongue. “We only just started getting along and not hating each other.”
“I’ve never hated you,” he says, sounding hurt by the suggestion. “I’ve never resented you or felt burdened by you in any way.”
“I guess I didn’t hate you,” I admit, though I’m tired of admitting it. “But we’re strong together. I don’t see why we have to run.”
“We are strong,” he agrees. “But we need to know when to retreat from a fight.”
“The thralls put this spell on us.” My voice quivers with fear. “And now we’re going to their secret location.”
“But the thralls haven’t been trying to kill us. Our own kind has,” he reminds me. As if I needed reminding of that fact. When I came back from my five years away, I expected some people might dislike me. I never anticipated murder attempts.
Being away from the pack, I can handle. I’ve done it before. It’s the total isolation from civilization that frightens me. “No one will know where we are.”
“Hannah, Ryan, Tara, Xiao.” Nathan counts them off on his fingers. “Do you think they’re going to abandon us?”