43. Juste moi?

Ember

After convincing my dad to join the pack members who were watching television in the living room- and promising him a proper conversation later- I rushed up the stairs at top speed...and ran into everyone else. They were coming down slowly, grim like a funeral procession.

"Rina couldn't kill Light," I guessed, fingers clenching on the wooden banister.

"She did kill him," Tyra replied, my question snapping her out of it. She stomped the rest of the way down with a scowl. "But then someone else shot her too and we lost the connection."

Someone shot Rina?

I stood frozen in place, mind flipping through a list of potential culprits even as they descended the stairs without me. But it was no use wondering who could've shot Rina, all I kept seeing was Rina's beautiful aquamarine eyes and the hostility she wore as a second skin. She'd been so certain she could get the job done, but instead we'd thrown another innocent person to the wolves in order to keep ourselves safe.

"Ember."

Kane removed my hand from the banister and I glimpsed the dents my fingers had unintentionally made in the wood before Kane led me towards the others. "Whoever shot Rina won't get away with it," he promised.

"You don't think Arius could've done it?" Tyra asked, tapping her foot irritably.

Ian shook his head vehemently. "I know the guy- sort of," he amended at my raised brow. "He wouldn't stab us in the back like this, I mean, what would he have to gain by shooting Rita? We already agreed to give him the stupid crown, what else does he want?"

Tyra pointed at Kane. "Arius seemed like he really wanted to kill Kane."

Kane pursed his lips. "He did."

Tyra scoffed. "You should stop making a habit of pissing off people."

"He can't help himself," Ian replied absently. "I can't count the number of times I've wanted to reach out and just-"

Jett cut in, "If Arius did it with the intention of humiliating and murdering Kane then where would his next destination be?"

"Here," I guessed.

Kane's hands landed on my shoulders, pulling me back towards the stairs. "If he's coming for me, I want all of you out of the way."

I spun out from his grip, turned so his back was to me and I was the one urging him towards the stairs. "If he's coming for you, you should be the one getting out of the way."

The withering look he gave me might've given me pause a few years ago. Now I just reached upwards and patted his cheek. "If you want to stay downstairs and address the bad guy coming to kill you, you'll behave. Otherwise you're going upstairs."

"I'm not going to carry him up there," Ian said.

I rolled my eyes. "No one asked you to."

Ian threw an arm around me, flicking me on the nose. "Fortunately for you though, I love a good fight and I'm willing to tell you all the dirty ways to win."

Maybe he was the one who belonged upstairs. I almost suggested it too, but just like he'd known I wouldn't run away if our plans went sideways, I knew he wouldn't sit this one out either.

We were all in on this together, for better or worse.

There was nothing left to do but prepare for whatever- or whoever- was coming.

***

Aside from Donna, Sue and Nina, there were six other werewolves in the house when Kane informed them about our situation and asked them to leave. They refused to go.

"We're pack, we were enjoying food at your table last weekend and now you want us to flee with our tails tucked between our legs at the first sign of danger?" Bluebell scoffed. "Don't even think about using an alpha's command on us, if you make us leave now we won't come back again. Ever."

Kane ran a hand over his face, exhaling deeply. "This is why I never told you guys anything before," he muttered.

"I'm reporting that comment to the Undoing Douchebag Tendencies Club," Ian said, handing out t-shirts and headbands that were supposed to be bulletproof. "I'm going to tell them your douchebag tendencies aren't going away."

"Old habits die hard," Kane replied dryly.

"Just kill it, dude." Ian gave Kane a gray shirt. "Just kill it."

The front door burst open and Tyra stood in the doorway, a lollipop peeking out from between her glossy lips. (Jett had infected her with his sweet tooth, she was always eating something tasty these days.) When she spoke she didn't bother taking the candy out of her mouth, "What kind of weapons do you have available?"

"Swords," Jett replied, hauling the weapons in question forward where they were stored in a bag like golf clubs.

Tyra nodded. "Bring those out with you, a door just showed up on your lawn."

***

I couldn't remember what kind of fae he was, but I clearly recalled Arius saying his magic revolved around buildings. His magic was what had gotten us out of Light's heinous office that night- it couldn't be a coincidence that there was a door standing upright in the middle of Kane's lawn like a movie prop someone forgot to take away. It didn't look medieval like the castle doors, in fact, its very appearance made it easy to guess where it led to. The red and blue stripes and unicorns practically shouted amusement park. Where Rina and Light could be lying dead this very moment.

"Left hand."

I looked up at Kane, "What?"

"Give me your left hand," he repeated.

I gave him a dubious look. "Are you going to try taking me back inside?"

"No," he replied.

I still couldn't shake my suspicion. "You're not planning on giving me something like a bracelet and spouting some romantic shit are you?"

"I'd like to witness this spewing of romantic shit," Tyra said, leaning against the ominous door while Jett tried not to look horrified beside her. I felt like jerking her away from it as well, but refrained from doing so for the same reasons Jett didn't. It would only annoy her, plus if anyone came through the door and tried to drag her inside they'd likely end up with that lollipop in their eye.

"I was going to give Ember a sword," Kane told Tyra. Then, contradicting his words, he held the sword out for Tyra to take instead, patiently waiting until she walked over to take it before retrieving another one which he gave me. I shot him an envious look, he'd lured Tyra away from potential danger without a fuss. I don't think any of us could've done it so easily.

"Ember and I will go through the door first, the rest of you will follow behind. Stay on your guard," Kane said. "Understood?"

There were affirmations from all around and then Kane was twisting the doorknob and pushing the door open. Unsurprisingly, the landscape beyond the threshold was familiar, it was the same place Rina had been with Light.

I felt my stomach churn with unease. Could Arius really be behind this?

We walked through the doorway.

I squinted my eyes against the brief glare of sunlight and looked around. "Oh, it's just you," I said, the crushing weight of all my worries lifting and flying away the moment I spotted Wendy.

"Juste moi?" Wendy snarled. "I think you should re-evaluate your situation here, little wolf."

My situation?

That's when I noticed that Kane and the rest weren't here with me- I was the only one who had walked through the now missing doorway.

"Where are they?" I demanded.

"The doorway led them into Kane's garden," Arius said apologetically.

Which meant I was on my own here. Things went further downhill from there: I noticed Arius stood with the tips of five different swords at his throat, Rina and Light were lying on the ground, both unmoving in a pool of blood and worst of all: Wendy Cathleen was wearing the dead Autumn Lord's antler crown. Light's guards now stood behind Wendy, swords ready and expressions empty. Awaiting her orders.

"It is over for you," Wendy said, smiling prettily even as ugly words came out of her mouth. "I don't even want that traitorous mate of mine anymore, all I want is your head mounted on the wall of my new palace."

"It's a castle," Arius corrected, earning himself a glower.

"If you don't hurt him I'll do anything you want," I told Wendy, silently hoping Kane and the rest were hurrying over here right now. I was outnumbered so the least I could do was stall for time and try to outsmart Wendy into letting Arius go. "I don't want any more innocent bystanders getting hurt."

Wendy rolled her gray eyes. "Stop pretending like he doesn't particularly mean anything to you, I already questioned him. He's the brother of your beloved late friend, you'll do what I want and more to keep him safe." She waved me over with an impatient hand. "Now come here."

"Do not listen to her, Ember," Arius protested.

"Come here now," Wendy snapped, but her irritation was unnecessary. I was already moving towards her.

She snatched up my wrist as soon as I was close enough, grin keen and dripping a bit of saliva on her blue blouse. Her fingers applied pressure and I winced but clenched my teeth back against a scream when her hand crushed the bones in my wrist. The tears still came though, hot and angry.

"Ember!" Arius shouted. "Forget me and fight back!"

"Does that hurt, little alpha?" Wendy cooed over my twisted hand, ignoring the roaring fae behind her. "Want me to give your friend back there one to match?"

Her voice, sickly sweet and smug was too much, stirring the beast beneath my human skin. It shook its head, growling for rebellion and the blood of the inferior alpha who was playing dirty.

How quickly could I dispose of Wendy, get to Arius and disarm those knights?

Not very fast with one arm and with pain making my head pound, but it was worth a try.

Wendy must've noticed the calculating shift in me because she stopped her taunting and turned to hiss at her fae knights, "I have no further use for him. Kill him."

"Wait!" I shouted, stumbling forwards while trying to draw my own sword with my good hand.

Too late. The five blades were already withdrawing, raising to cut him down. Wendy's insufferable giggling was a morbid soundtrack as the other fae blocked my way.

But her giggling stopped short as sudden as it had begun.

The knights had put their swords back into their scabbards rather than skewering Arius with them. The ones who had been blocking me stepped back as well, prompting the growing fury twisting Wendy's face to erupt like a volcano until her face was red as lava. "Why aren't you doing what I ordered you to do?!" she screeched.

"You're a werewolf," came the monotonous response from the knight closest to her. "Simply stealing a crown you did not bleed for does not give you power over us. We will not kill one of ours for you."

"That sort of discrimination is precisely what I hate most about you guys."

I twisted around in time to watch Rina stagger to her feet, wringing the blood from her shirt angrily.

Alarmed, I glanced at Light, expecting him to get up as well.

"He's dead," Rina assured me.

"Why aren't you?" Arius asked, then, "not that I'm not delighted to see you up and healthy."

Rina raised her shirt, revealing a bulletproof vest. "What kind of assassin would I be if I didn't have one of these?"

"Why were you playing dead this whole time?" Arius asked, a note of irritation in his voice which I related to wholly.

"You wanted me to get up in the middle of things and get killed trying to help people I don't know or care about?" Rina asked.

"Valid point," Arius conceded, but still looked displeased.

Wendy stomped her foot, letting loose a screech that made me wince. "That's cheating!"

"Ember," Arius said, "can you please send our esteemed evil villain to the land of the unconscious where she is incapable of damaging our eardrums?"

I grinned. "With pleasure."

"This won't be the same as last time," Wendy growled. "You won't catch me off guard."

I shook my head. "Don't need to. Come get it, lunatic."

"Don't order me around-"

I lunged at her, my unwounded hand curling into a fist and slamming into the middle of her face, the crunch of bones breaking loud and clear before Wendy moaned and went down.

I shook my hands, grimacing down at her. "That was too easy."

Arius stepped beside me and plucked the crown off Wendy's prone form. He placed it on his head. "Let's do it again sometime then?"

I shook my head. "I've already got one crazy friend putting me up to no good, if you want my company then we'll have to limit it to drinking tea."

He smiled. A real, radiant smile that showed a glimpse of Aster at the edges. "You have yourself a deal, Alpha Ember."