Page 144 of Wrath

“You should’ve heard something, Lupe!”

“Get your finger out of my face before I bite it off.”

And when my minute ended, I shoved all of my emotions aside—locking the box up tight and throwing away the key—and blinked to clear the tears from my eyes. I straightened in Ryland’s embrace, then twisted to face my other mates, who were all huddled around me, worry etched across their faces.

The time for mourning was over.

I needed to be a leader now.

A Liberator.

A queen.

“Aaliyah’s here,” I said stiffly, rising to my feet.

Devlin lunged for me as if he meant to help me stand, but I cast him a warning look. He, smartly, stepped back.

“She must’ve snuck in somehow. She probably has help.”

“She’s going to free the kings,” Jax breathed, his red irises widening.

“And if she’s here, then that probably means her army isn’t far behind,” I added.

No wonder Davia and her team hadn’t noticed any movement at Aaliyah’s fortress. They already had left by the time our army arrived.

“Bash, contact Davia. Tell her to send the army to the capital. Maybe we can use this to our advantage—attack her from every direction.”

“On it,” Bash said, already stepping away.

“Ryland, find Seth. Lupe, find Atta. Then I need you guys to assemble the troops. I want them stationed at every entrance and exit. If Aaliyah’s here, she’s not getting out alive.” I spun to face my other mates. “Dair, who do we have guarding the kings?”

“Axel,” Dair said simply.

Fuck.

“We need to get to the dungeons now. Before Aaliyah can free them.” If she hadn’t already.

Dair wheeled himself closer to me. “I’m going to head to the medical center. They’re going to need help and protection, and we all know there’s not a lot I can do in a big battle.”

“Dair—” I immediately began to protest, but he cut me off with a small smile.

There was no anger on his face. No self-hatred or self-deprecation. Only grim understanding.

“It’s okay,” Dair assured me softly. “I know where I’m needed. Now go. Quickly.”

This was it.

The final battle.

I knew it in my bones. Tonight, I would be fighting my sister, and only one of us would come out alive.

Terror shot through me, along with a healthy dose of resolve.

I would survive this. We all would.

“I love you. I love you all. So, so much,” I told my mates.

“This isn’t goodbye,” Bash snapped.

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