Page 178
“And that is making me fade?”
“I think your body is trying to move beyond the old bond while the curse keeps pulling you back into it. You’re stuck in the middle.”
Ezra looks at the ritual instructions. “Like a walker who never reaches the end.”
“Yes.” I take another breath. “In order to escape the part of the curse holding you, we have to complete the ritual the right way.” The sentence settles through the room. “That means we prepare the route before the Saints can reach it.”
Theo locks the records cabinet. “They’re coming for you because you understand.”
He says it like a fact, and I’m grateful he doesn’t make it an argument.
“Maybe. Or because they think they understand what I am.”
“We’re not running.” Theo crosses his arms. “I’ll protect you and our home. Whatever you need.”
I cross to him and scratch beneath his beard. “Thank you for trusting me, alpha.”
The shotgun remains within reach. Every lock is reinforced. Wes is closing in from the east road. Theo has turned his home into the safest place he can make it. But beneath his composure, I scent his fear and grief.
I kiss his chest over his heart. “You forgot one thing.”
His hand settles at my waist. “What?”
“We know they’re coming.”
His eyes meet mine.
“And knowing gives us something to plan around.”
“Pepper,” Ezra says my name like a plea.
I go to him.
He has lost the doctor he thought might save him. The Saints are threatening his life and mine. The only path I can offer may require him to walk beyond both people he loves without knowing whether he returns. I crawl into Ezra’s lap and hold his face.
“What’s going to happen to me?” he whispers.
“I don’t know. I know the old bond should release when you reach the open circle. I know Theo has to stay and I cannot call you back. I don’t know what the road does with you once the bond opens.”
His fingers tighten around my waist.
“I believe the ritual gives you room to move. You carry the witness stone. Theo stays behind when alpha instinct tells him to follow. I witness, but I don’t call you back.”
Ezra’s hands settle over mine. “And if we get it right?”
“The old bond releases you.”
“And I come back solid?”
My throat closes. “I think so.”
“That isn’t a promise.”
“No.”
His eyes shut.
I press my forehead to his. “I cannot promise what happens after you reach the open circle.”
