Chapter 218: Grace
I stared my mate with a longing and fear that I didn’t know I had. He was here with me because I begged the Moon Goddess for a chance to talk to him. To tell him not to come. That it was a trap. But being here held its own dangers. The Moon Goddess had warned me not to stay here too long. Bad things would happen if we did, but she didn’t know the exacts. She had said she would try and keep us safe for as long as she could, which really didn’t seem that promising.
Rhys was staring at me too. His dark eyes drinking me in, filled with worry and outright fear. There was no hiding his feelings. Not here, not now. Right now, everything was laid out, right in front of me, and I was just grateful he was here.
“How do you know this place is safe?” He asked finally, taking my hand in his, and gently rubbing circles on the small part that didn’t have ugly bruises or burns.
“The Moon Goddess told me,” I answered. “I begged for her to allow us to meet, and she made it happen.”
“Can you come home with me?” He asked hopefully.
I shook my head sadly. As much as I wanted to, as bad as I missed him, I couldn’t.
“Why not?” He asked with a frown.
“I can’t leave them.” I answered quietly.
“Who?” He asked, narrowing his eyes at me.
“They need me, Rhys. Please try to understand. The plan doesn’t work without me.”
“What plan?” Rhys’ eyes narrowing even more.
“The plan of how we break me, Leon, Caleb, and all the other prisoners out.” I answered, feeling a little uncomfortable under the intensity of his stare.
“Grace...” He warned. “Tell me your kidding.”
I shook my head again.
“No. I’m serious.”
“But we have a plan to rescue you!” He argued. “If you can just hang in there.”
“And it’s a trap to take you out!” I shot back. “I need you to trust me that I have a plan. I can’t lose you Rhys, and I won’t have to if for once you can just trust me.”
“It isn’t that I don’t trust you, Grace,” He ran his hand through his hair in frustration. “It’s that you shouldn’t have to get yourself out of this mess.”
“Rhys, I know that you’re trying to help. And that you are used to being a knight in shining armor, but I need you safe. And I do have a role for you, if you want to hear it?” I asked hesitantly.
He looked up at me with hurt and sadness in his eyes, but also curiosity. I knew that he only wanted to help, and I understood that, but this time, he was going to have to help in a different way.
“Can’t Leon and Caleb follow the plan without you?” He pleaded. “You’re already hurt... You could just come back with me...”
I shook my head slowly. “They need me, love,” I told him.
“We can find a different way to rescue them. Can’t we pull them here too?”
“And leave all the others to suffer? No. Plus the Moon Goddess only agreed to allow you and me to meet. She didn’t want to mess too much with fate.”
“Grace... With every word you are saying, I’m more worried.” He confided.
“I know.” I whispered. “I’m scared too, Rhys. But it has to be like this. We have a responsibility to those who can’t fight for themselves.”
“And can you fight?” He questioned uneasily.
“I feel better than I look.” I told him honestly. “I won’t lie; I hurt. But my Lycan is healing me, as much as she can... She’s just leaving marks still, so they don’t know I’m healing or connected to my Lycan.”
The worry on Rhys’ face didn’t ease, but I knew him well enough to know that he wasn’t going to fight me on it anymore. He was going to let me do what I wanted, and I was grateful for that, even if he was reluctant to do so.
“Okay, theoretically, if I was to let you do this, and not force you home, what exactly is your plan?” He asked.
“How bad is our relationship with the Golden Pack?” It was my turn to ask a question.
“I met with the Alpha last night actually,” He answered in surprise. “Why?”
“You met with him?” I frowned. “Isn’t he dead?”
“Yea, that’s a whole complicated matter,” He stated uneasily. “I met with the real Alpha this time, and depending on what you’re asking, it might benefit us both.”
“I need you to station there.” I blurted out before I could truly question my plan.
“What?” He frowned.
“I need you to station at the Golden pack border, closest to Red Blood pack.”
His frown deepened, his dark eyes searching for something, but what exactly it was, I wasn’t sure.
“Why would I station there?”
“Because I’m going to need your help to save everyone. I can’t do it without you, but I also can’t get them all the way to the Alpha King pack. It’s too far, and we’re all too weak. The Golden Pack is the closest pack to where their prison system is. I can get us there, I’m sure of it. I just... I can’t finish it. I’ll need help.” My voice breaking on my last word.
Goddess. I told myself I wasn’t going to cry.
“Hey, hey,” He soothed, pulling me out of my chair and into his lap. “I’ll be there, alright? Wherever you need me, Gracie, I’m there.”
I swiped at my tears and straddled his lap so I could face him. I could cry when I was home. Right now, I needed to be brave. We had some things to iron out. There couldn’t be much time left, but our plan had to be perfect. We would not fail.