Page 82 of Shifting Fate
Arias
I sat on the porch steps of the Amber Run pack-house with my head in my hands, praying with everything I was that Dallon was okay. He had to be. I couldn’t lose him too.
I felt numb, like none of this was real. Like my dad didn’t just bleed out in my arms, apologizing for his wrongs with his last few ounces of energy. Shouldn’t I be sad? Shouldn’t a son mourn his father? But all there was was a tingling buzz that settled in my extremities, and a deep ache in my chest that I felt to my very soul.
I lifted my hand to wipe my teary eyes.Please. Bring Dallon back to me.
The last couple of hours had been a blur. A somber mood settled over the packs. Merrick, Van, Kaeger and Rory quietly tended to the wounded, and there were many. Some with only minor gashes and bruises, and some, like Colby, with broken bones and gaping lacerations.
That wasn’t counting the ones we didn’t get to in time.
Pain shot a dagger through my heart, followed by a shockwave of grief. We’d combed every inch of these woods to gather the bodies of our dead. Those who fought valiantly for our cause, who gave their lives to protect their packs.
I swallowed the glass shards in my throat and stared straight ahead.
We’d lost two from Foxgrove. My father, as well as a young Omnus named Logan, who was barely more than a pup. Too young.
Two more had fallen from Amber Run, both of them wolves I didn’t know well, and a total of four from Westwind, including one of my brother’s guards. Eight lives lost.
It gutted me to think that Dallon might add to that body count.
It wasn’t long before my brother joined me. He plopped down beside me ungracefully, knocked his knee into mine, then heaved a heavy sigh that perfectly matched the weight on my heart.
I swallowed hard. “How’s Mom taking it?”
Espen made a noncommittal sound at the back of his throat. “You know. Probably the same way we’d take it if we’d lost our mates today. She’s in shock. Merrick offered to stay with her. I needed to get out of there before I flipped my shit. God, my head hurts.” He paused. “Are you okay, Ari?”
I barked out a hoarse laugh. “Not really, no. Dad died in my arms, Espen. I watched the light in his eyes die out, and I don’t even know if Dallon is alive or if—” I cut myself off and wrapped both arms around my torso, suddenly cold. “I hate this.”
“I know,” he murmured. “I do too.”
Tristram slowly made his way over to us, favoring one leg. His stab-wounds had been stitched and wrapped in gauze, and bandages swathed his torso and left shoulder. He came to a stop just in front of me. I glanced up to meet his tired brown eyes.
He closed them and, without a word, sat down next to me on the wooden steps. I scrubbed both hands over my face, feeling as exhausted as Tristram looked. He sighed heavily, then bumped his shoulder against mine.
“He’s okay, you know,” he murmured. “Dallon.”
My head snapped up. “How do you—”
“My vision…” There was no denying the guilt that laced those words, like he blamed himself for my father’s death. He bowed his head, his chin falling to his chest.
I touched the back of his hand. “It’s not your fault, Tristram.”
“I know,” he managed to whisper, his voice thick. “Doesn’t help, though. You almost died—Jaegerdied—and I couldn’t do a goddamn thing about it. Fucking useless.”
“Stop,” I said. “You’re not.”
He exhaled slowly. “I feel like I failed you, as your Alpha.”
“You didn’t fail me. You didn’t fail anyone. I was the idiot who jumped in front of you, to save your life,” I argued. “I heard you cry out and didn’t even think about the consequences. If anyone should be sorry, it’s me. Dad saved my life, Tris.” I swallowed hard. “He… He apologized to me. He spoke the words I’ve waited my whole life to hear, and then he died.”
Beside me, my brother sighed.
Tristram gingerly wrapped an arm around my shoulders. “I’m sorry, guys.”
“Me too,” I said with a sad smile. “I’ll be okay, I just… I need Dallon. I know my father just died, but Dallon is the only person I can think about. I’m driving myself crazy wondering if he’s okay, or if—”
“Arias!” cried a voice, and my head snapped up.
