Parker dips his head, then pushes the door open and carries Jaxon up the stairs with careful, even steps. I follow him in with Ryder at my back, and when the door clicks shut behind us, I let out a breath that I feel like I’ve been holding for hours. I stand there for a moment, listening to the soft creak of the boards overhead, until the faint sound of the bedroom door closing reaches me.
** Paige’s POV **
When I turn, Ryder is already crouched naked on the floor. He reaches for the pair of shorts draped over a chair and pulls them on, then pushes to his feet, rolling his shoulders as if they ache.
His eyes meet mine, still alert even through the exhaustion I can feel coming from him. “Sit,” he says simply, nodding toward the chair at the kitchen island.
My legs feel unsteady, but I obey. Ryder drags a chair out and drops into it, his posture still rigid with tension that tells me the fight hasn’t fully left his body. A few seconds later, Parker reappears, sliding into the seat beside me. His thigh presses against mine under the table.
The three of us sit in silence for a long moment. The fridge hums softly, and my pulse thuds in my ears.
Finally, Ryder speaks. “The hunters knew what they were doing tonight. They came in coordinated waves, tried to pull our enforcers beyond the tree line where they’d set traps, but we didn’t give chase. They underestimated us again.”
“So you… won?” The word feels wrong, like I’m discussing a game on the Xbox.
Ryder exhales. “We held them back. They didn’t breach our borders. That’s what matters.”
“But?” Parker pushes.
Ryder’s jaw tightens. “But I don’t think they were here to win tonight. They were testing us, measuring our strength, counting numbers. Seeing how fast we respond.”
“Casualties?” I whisper, even though I almost don’t want to hear the answer.
His eyes darken. “Three injured, but stable.”
I squeeze my eyes shut, guilt pressing down like a weight. I brought them here; they followed me. I feel Parker’s hand slip over mine under the table, his thumb brushing slow circles against my skin. It doesn’t erase the guilt, but it keeps me from drowning in it.
Ryder continues. “We fought them off, but there weren’t enough of them. Not for what they wanted us to believe. They pulled back too soon and left their wounded behind.”
“They’ll come back,” Parker says.
Ryder nods. “And next time, they’ll hit harder. They’ve learned how close they can get before we react.”
“So what now?”
“Now, we tighten our defences. No one goes anywhere alone. Enforcers triple patrol, shifts rotate every two hours, and we push our trail cams further out. We are also contacting neighbouring packs. They’re usually reluctant to get involved, but we need to approach them differently. We need to let them know that if the hunters take us out, they’ll come after them next. We need to unite on this to end the hunters for good. It’s that or we need to pack up and move the whole pack.” Ryder explains.
“Pack up and move?” The words leave me before I can stop them, and my chest tightens at the thought of Jaxon being uprooted again, at all of us scattering to some new hiding place.
Ryder’s gaze flicks to me. “It’s a huge operation, which makes it the last option, but it’s on the table.”
My throat feels dry. I straighten a little in the chair, ignoring the way my hands tremble in my lap. “What about me? What can I do?”
Two sets of eyes land on me, and the weight of them makes my pulse race.
“You don’t need to…” Ryder starts, but I cut him off.
“No,” I say firmly. “I don’t want to just sit here while everyone else fights and bleeds to keep us safe. I need to do something. Train me, give me a role, anything. I can help.”
The silence that follows is heavy. Ryder looks like he wants to argue, but Parker’s fingers squeeze mine beneath the table.
“You’re already helping,” Parker says quietly. “You give us even more of a reason to make it home and fight to keep this place safe. We know we can face anything if it means we get to come home to you and Jaxon. We will die to protect this pack, but we will fight to survive for you.”
The words hit me like a punch, knocking the breath from my lungs. In an instant, I’m back to being that 18-year-old girl again, helplessly whispering prayers into the dark and begging my parents to survive, to come back to me, even when some part of me already knew they wouldn’t. Grief had been tearing me apart from the inside, and anger was the only thing that kept me standing. I’d blamed them for leaving, for not fighting harder to stay. And now here I am, sitting in a kitchen, covered in blood, with my mate telling me I’m worth surviving for. I wish it were that simple.
My chest aches with the grief I never allowed myself to fully process. I couldn’t back then, not when I had a newborn baby and a sister to carry. I bottled everything up and poured everything I had into them.
Now though… A part of me wants to believe Parker so badly it hurts, to let that promise sink in. But another part, hardened by loss, keeps whispering that promises like that are fragile, that people still die, no matter how fiercely they swear to stay.
I blink, swallowing around the lump in my throat. My fingers curl tight around Parker’s hand, wishing I could hold him and never let go.
I don’t tell them any of this, though. After tonight, hope feels like a dangerous thing. Yet, I let myself picture a future where they come back to me every time. Where I’m not left behind.
As usual, Ryder doesn’t miss much. The bond giving him enough clues to work out where my mind had gone.
“Paige,” he says quietly. “Don’t carry that grief alone. Not anymore. You don’t have to be the one holding everything together all the time.”
The old scar inside of me burns, the one that never healed properly, and for a second, I can’t breathe.
Ryder reaches across the table, his big hand covering mine while Parker still holds the other. “I know what it feels like to lose, to carry guilt for things you couldn’t stop. But you will not lose us the same way. I made you a promise that I’d never leave you again. I intend to keep it.
“
His certainty is almost unbearable. My throat burns with emotion, and all I can do is nod, because if I try to speak, I’ll shatter.
Parker shifts closer, pressing a kiss to my temple, his hand never leaving mine. Between the two of them, I feel love and safety. They might not be able to keep their promise forever, but that just means I have to love them harder now. I need to love everyone I care about harder; Jaxon, my mates, my sister.
“Does Leo have a twin?” I ask, needing something else to focus on.
“No,” Ryder shakes his head. “I heard what happened. How are you feeling about it all?”
I shrug, wondering how much to tell them. Would they judge me for feeling relieved that I get to keep my sister close?
“I’m not sure. A part of me is happy to know she is entering this new world with me, and I’m pleased she will have someone to love her as fiercely as she deserves if she accepts the bond. But another part is terrified of bringing her into this mess. There’s just a lot to process.” I admit.
“Paige,” Parker murmurs. “Your sister is stronger than you give her credit for. She’s smart, careful, and now she’s got a whole pack watching her back.”
“If it eases your mind, I’ll have her brought here. We’ll make space for her, keep her under our protection until the hunters are dealt with,” Ryder offers.
I want to say yes, to demand he makes that happen, but I know Poppy won’t like it. She is so determined to finish university, to become a vet and one day open her own clinic. I hate to take that dream away from her, but the thought of her out there without the pack’s shield is worse.
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