Page 75 of Tangled Threads Of Fate

Mist inclined her head, like that was as good of a reason as any to follow me. That made me even more fearful of fucking this up and losing the true love of my life. “Two of my Valkyrie are going to scout how long we have, but I would imagine less than an hour. Do you have a plan?”

Fuck no.I didn’t know the enemy. The terrain. I didn’t know anyone’s fighting experience, or if I could actually trust half of these people to keep Wren safe. Still, they were right. Thiswasmy area of expertise.

I rattled off a rough plan, including where Wren would be, who we were working with, what to do with the townspeople. The whole time, Wren’s pale face haunted me.

A mournful howl from outside had us all tensing. I looked at Wren, at the fear on her face. I wished I could skip this part for her. I wished it had never come to this moment. But it was pointless to wish for something that could never be.

Standing, I went over and kissed her softly. “It’s time to go, Wren. That was Cy. They’ve sighted them.” I stroked her stomach, making a silent vow to the babies that I would protect them and their mother with my very life if needed. I didn’t say it out loud, though, because Wren was already crying. “Go with Griff. We’ll come for you as soon as possible.”

“Nate,” she sobbed, and I kissed the tears from her cheeks.

“It will all work out how it is supposed to,mo stóirín.Have faith.”

The guys each kissed her and whispered in her ear. I walked over to the Gryphon, whose face looked solemn. “Her protection is on you. Do what is necessary to protect her, even from herself, no matter how she protests. Protect your mate. Save her young. Trust in Teron.” The Gryphon bowed his head low in response.

A chorus of howls went up around the compound. Hundreds of dogs giving a war cry.

I pushed the big bird-lion in front of me. “Go. If a single hair is harmed on her head, I’m plucking you completely to feather that damn nest,” I grunted, and Griff chirped a pissed noise, before he began herding her away and up to the roof cavity, where they could hide but also escape if needed.

When she was gone, I turned to the solemn faces in the room. “Tonight, we protect the future. We fight for a new age. We fight for Wren.”

The guys nodded, and the Valkyrie pulled their swords. Mist slapped my arm. “Tonight, we bathe in the blood of the unworthy.”

With that, we moved to our positions. This was the first battle, but it wasn’t the war.

I couldn’t protect Wren from her fate, any more than I could protect my heart from her.

Chapter 40

WREN

My stomach churned, anxiety burning through my chest like acid. I felt sick. I was so scared, not for me, but for my babies. For my bonded mates. For the innocent lives in the town.

Griff was wrapped entirely around me, his eyes on the door, his head cocked as he listened to the noise of fighting below. I could hear the screams in the darkness, none of them human-sounding at all. It was a terrifying, dark opus, and like the coward I was, I lifted my hands to my ears, blocking it out.

My heart felt like it was being shredded. Was this sensation in my chest the feel of the guys dying? Were they in pain?

And where was Demke?

A shrill cry had me jumping to my feet, moving toward the window just in time to see a huge batlike creature swooping through the sky. The Valkyries rode winged horses in what looked like hard leather armor, and two of them struck at the huge demon in the sky. It fell to the earth, where a writhing mass overtook it.

No, not a mass. An army of dogs.Holy shit.The numbers of them were huge, much larger than even yesterday. I watched them tear apart that bat thing, like ants dismembering a bird.

Griff got between me and the window, herding me back into a corner where he could protect me. “I can’t just sit here, Griff. Not when they could need help. Not when they could be dying for me.”

He chirped at me, and I felt like he was trying to tell me something. His features looked almost frustrated. I understood the feeling.

“Teron says if you bond with me, we can talk in our minds?”

Griff nodded, his face stroking over mine comfortingly.

“You should do it.Weshould bond. I’d be honored to be your mate.”

Making another anxious noise, he stood and paced around once more. He was chirping at himself, and I wondered if he was trying to talk himself into it or out of it. Finally, he came back and sat in front of me, his head dipping down until we were eye to eye. The intelligence there would have been terrifying in any other situation. Right now, though, there was something reassuring about the fact that he knew exactly what I was saying.

I lifted my hand to the side of his face. “I swear, this is the right thing to do. I’m not just saying that because I’m stressed and worried. I wish it was a different time, but life has other plans. Please, Griff.”

He clacked his beak again, then nudged my arm, lifting it up. I held it out to him, and he used a sharp claw to cut my wrist. I hissed in pain, while Griff’s tail whipped in a frenzy, a show of anxiousness he didn’t usually possess, based on the few times I’d met him. Using his beak, he picked up the dagger that Milo had pressed into my hand before he left. Gently, Griff placed the dagger into my lap.

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