Her hand covered her mouth as a gasp was pulled from her lungs. "No," she breathed out from behind her hand.

Cypher took her other hand in his and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Peri is prepared to wipe out the entire race. She's angrier than I've ever seen her."

"Good," Lilly said, practically growling as she finally dropped her hand. "How many? How many have died, Cypher?"

This was the part he was dreading even more than telling her that they'd been killing children. The sheer number of deaths was beyond fathomable. "Too many, let's just leave it at that."

"So the wolves are going to deal with the problem?"

He nodded. "We're meeting tomorrow and we will probably be leaving. I know you aren't one to be left behind and I wouldn't normally ask it of you, but I need you to do this for me. Vampires are powerful, cunning, and dangerous. And if you are with me…"

"I'll just be a distraction," she finished for him.

They were both silent for a few minutes before she stood and crawled into his lap. Cypher wrapped his arms around her and pulled her tightly against him.

"Please be careful," she told him as she laid her head on his shoulder. "And keep an eye on my son-in-law."

"I can do both of those things. I love you," Cypher told her as he pressed a kiss to her forehead and then tilted her head up to look at him. He pressed his lips to hers and loved the way she responded to him. There was never any hesitation on her part, as though she craved him as much as he did her.

"I'm glad," she said as she pulled back. "It would suck to love you and be stuck in the friend zone, as Jacque and her friends call it."

"What's the friend zone?"

"The one place no one wants to be when it comes to their crush."

"So I'm your crush?" he asked smiling down at her.

"You're my something," Lilly laughed.

"Perhaps, tonight I can be your something that definitely proves you are very far from the friend zone." His hand wandered up her back and he buried his fingers in her hair, tugging her head back, and exposing her throat. She gasped and he smiled. Cypher pressed small kisses to the sensitive skin and treasured the little sounds she made.

"Who says we have to wait until tonight," she said breathlessly.

Cypher chuckled as he picked her up into his arms and then stood. "As my lady wishes," he whispered and carried her to their room to show her exactly which zone she was firmly planted in.

Chapter 6

"It seems our enemies are popping up as quickly as we can dispatch them. When one falls, more take their place. I wonder if there will come a time when we are too weary to fight. If that day should ever come, I pray that there are others who would stand and fight. I pray that there are others that would see that when they come together united in a cause, they are stronger than they could have ever realized on their own." ~Vasile

Vasile stood in his office staring out the window into the winter sky. The snow that covered the ground had taken on a bluish hue as the moon took her place in the deep blue night. He could feel the cold pressing in at him from the glass and the ominous feeling it brought with it made his chest feel heavy.

"It's late. Are you coming to bed?" Alina asked from behind him.

Vasile nodded.

"Have you made a decision about the females?"

He let out a long breath and turned to face her. His eyes softened the minute they found her face. His mate had a gentleness about her that brought him peace no other could, and yet she was as fierce as any warrior. "It doesn't matter what I decide, Mina. It will truly come down to what they and their mates want."

Alina crossed her arms in front of her as she considered him. "What about Jacque?"

He let out a low growl. "I would prefer that my daughter in-law stay here where she can more effectively protect my grandchild, but the minute I tell her that, she will be packing her bags and planning the damn mission herself."

His mate laughed. "You're learning, my love."

He grunted as she wrapped her arm through his. As they left his office and walked toward their suite, he pulled her closer and leaned over to press a kiss to her hair.

Alina looked up at him. "What was that for?"

"For being patient with me all these years."

She smiled. "I wasn't always patient, if you remember."

He chuckled. "I remember, and I wouldn't have had you any other way."

"You know how much I love you, Alpha. You know what that love feels like coming from me through our bond. Just remember that is how the females, your daughter in-law included, feel about their mates. Consider that when they tell you to jump off a bridge tomorrow if you advise them not to come along."

"I will do my best to remember that, Luna," Vasile told her as he led her into their room. "But I reserve the right to give them a good nip on the heels for their impertinence."

She laughed. "I'm sure they will only nip you back."

Vasile growled and grumbled under his breath as he shut their door. "Mated pairs are going to be the death of me."

It was very late when Decebel decided to leave the training room and head back to his room. The Serbia pack mansion was quiet, with the few that chose to live there already in their suites. For the first time in his mated life, he found himself dragging his feet to get back to his mate. She’d kept her end of the bond closed up tightly, but even so, he could feel the pain and shame radiating from her. He didn’t enjoy or take any pleasure in the fact that she was feeling those emotions, but his own hurt was still too intense for him to know how to handle hers.

When he finally reached their bedroom door, Decebel once again found himself staring at it, unable to reach out and turn the knob. His muscles seemed frozen as his mind tried to work through what he should say—if he should say anything at all. Maybe it would be better if they just went to bed and tried to hash things out in the morning. He stood there a few minutes more until the door opened without his assistance. He took a step back as he was met with Jennifer’s tear-stained face.

Decebel felt all of his own hurt, anger, and frustration melt away at the sight of her. He opened his arms and she walked into them without hesitation. His large frame folded around her smaller one, cocooning her in. He felt her body begin to shake with new sobs as he pulled her tighter. Decebel felt her release her hold on the bond and all of her emotions came flooding through.