Chapter 260 260
Damien POV
“Maurice… Damien… we don’t have time for this.”
Aurélie’s voice cuts through the tension, sharp and commanding. “Settle your spat later or take your anger out on Stéphane and Geneviève. I’m sure they’re already planning something.”
I ignore Maurice completely. His outburst has only fueled my temper, leaving me wound tight, like a bomb waiting for the slightest spark. My eye is already healing the slit sealing shut, my vision sharpening back into clarity. Prick.
It doesn’t take long for us to settle on a strategy. My men at the Bloodnight Pack will stay put, on full lockdown, the territory sealed as tightly as possible. But we all know the truth Geneviève expects Aurélie to be at Darkvale. That’s where she’ll strike. Which means that’s where most of the warriors need to go… all but a few.
I have no intention of letting Aurélie set foot in Darkvale.
I won’t put her life at risk not when I know Geneviève would see her as the ultimate prize.
“Damien,” Aurélie’s voice slips into my mind again, softer now, ever the peacemaker. “I think you should go make peace with Sabine.”
“I don’t want to discuss her anymore.”
“Damien, she acted out. She’s young, sheltered. She didn’t understand what would happen. She saw a man in pain and wanted to help him. If anything, it shows her Luna side how caring she’ll be. She isn’t your father. She didn’t do this deliberately to hurt you.”
“Not now, sweetheart.”
I lift her chin with my thumb, forcing her eyes to meet mine before I kiss her. Those full, intoxicating lips soften beneath mine, grounding me even as everything else threatens to unravel.
“She needs to stay,” my wolf murmurs inside my head, his agreement echoing my own resolve. Not that I need it.
“I need you to do something for me,” I say as I pull back barely. My lips still brush hers as I speak, tingles dancing where they touch.
“Yes?”
She sounds dazed, intoxicated by the bond, by me. I love how deeply it affects her. How deeply I affect her.
“I need you to stay here.”
“Damien… no.”
“Aurélie, this isn’t about your ability to fight you’ve proven that more than once. You need to be here for the children. They won’t survive losing you.”
“And they would you?” she snaps, clicking her tongue in irritation at my choice of words.
She can protest all she wants. The truth doesn’t change.
“You’ve been there for every moment of their lives. Every year. Every breath.” My voice softens. “I swear I’ll come back. I’ll always be there for them. But right now… they need you more than they need me.”
“I can’t abandon my pack.”
“That’s exactly what she’ll think,” I counter. “She’ll go straight for the alpha house, searching for you.”
“Damien, I am an alpha with a pack to command.”
“I know, sweetheart. And I’m asking you to trust me with them. Let me command your warriors in battle. I’ll treat them as my own.”
“Damien”
“I can’t lose you,” I interrupt, my hands rising to cup her face, my desperation impossible to hide. “Not again. Please… do this for me.”
I understand her hesitation. It isn’t a choice I could make myself. Alphas are forged to lead from the front or at least I was. Aurélie is the same. She doesn’t fear battle.
But I fear losing her.
I fear the children growing up without her.
Protecting them is as vital as protecting her.
“Aurélie,” Maurice interjects, cutting off a mind-link with his warriors. “My men have found rogues southwest of your lands.”
“How many?” she asks, eyes closing, already bracing herself.
“Enough,” he replies grimly, “to cause a fucking bloodbath.”