"We need to move. Now."
Kade's voice cut through the ringing in my ears. Sirens were getting closer, their wails piercing the night.
I tried to stand. My legs buckled. Everything hurt. Using the gift that intensely had drained me completely.
Kade caught me before I hit the ground. "I've got you."
"I can walk."
"You can barely stand." He lifted me effortlessly. "Declan, get everyone out. Clean up what you can."
"On it." Declan was already barking orders. "You two get out before the cops arrive."
Through the shattered windows, I could see red and blue lights reflecting off the trees.
"What about Elena?" I looked at her body, still breathing but empty.
"Leave her," Kade said. "Let the humans find her."
"That's cruel."
"She helped kill your mother. She was going to drain you and leave you the same way." His voice was hard. "This is mercy."
He carried me into the forest. His pack melted into shadows around us. Within minutes, we were deep in the trees.
The safe house appeared after twenty minutes. Smaller than Kade's main house. Hidden so well I wouldn't have seen it without him.
Inside was sparse but functional. One main room. Bedroom. Bathroom.
Kade set me on the couch. "Stay here. I need to check the perimeter."
"Kade—"
"Please." He cupped my face. "Just let me make sure we're safe. Then we'll talk."
I nodded. Too tired to argue.
He disappeared. I sat there, trying to process everything.
Elena was one of them. Had been all along. Everything she'd told me was manipulation. Setting me up to be harvested.
Except she'd made one mistake. She'd taught me enough to be dangerous. And she'd underestimated the bond.
The door opened. Morris stood there, gun drawn.
"Don't move."
I froze. "Morris, what are you doing here?"
"Followed the alpha's truck." Morris stepped inside. "What the hell is going on, Blackwood? And don't lie to me this time."
"It's complicated."
"Uncomplicate it." He didn't lower the gun. "I just watched Kade Thorne's house explode. Found a woman inside completely catatonic. And you're here, covered in blood."
The bond flared. Kade was coming back. Fast.
I had seconds to decide. Keep lying or tell him everything.
"Put the gun down and I'll explain."
"Not happening."
"Then shoot me. Because I'm too tired to keep lying." I met his eyes. "Werewolves are real. I'm one. So is Kade. So is half this town. And the people who attacked us were trying to steal my abilities."
Morris stared. "You're insane."
"Am I? You've worked with me for four years. Have you ever seen me get sick? Seriously injured?" I pulled up my sleeve, showing where the scratches were already healed. "Explain that."
He looked at the smooth skin. His gun wavered.
"The woman you found is Elena. She's over a hundred years old. She helped murder my family. Tonight, I trapped her in visions. Her mind is gone."
"That's not possible."
"Neither is healing from deep gashes in three hours." I stood slowly. "You knew something was different. You just didn't want to admit it."
The door burst open. Kade stood there, eyes blazing gold. "Step away from her."
Morris spun, gun on Kade. "Stay back!"
"Morris, don't." I moved between them. "He's not going to hurt you."
"He's not human!"
"Neither am I. But we're not the bad guys."
Morris's hand shook. Slowly, he lowered the gun.
"I need to sit down before I pass out."
Morris collapsed into a chair. I sat across from him. Kade stayed by the door.
"Start from the beginning. All of it."
So I did. Told him about my pack dying. About hiding for twelve years. About being forced to Wolfridge and meeting Kade. About the mate bond. About Elena's betrayal.
He listened without interrupting. When I finished, he was quiet.
"The symbols carved into the trees. They were warnings?"
"Breadcrumbs. The Collector was drawing me here."
"And the alpha? You're what, soulmates?"
"Mates," Kade corrected. "And yes."
"Even though his father killed your family?"
"I killed him when I found out what he'd done," Kade said quietly.
Morris processed that. "What happens now?"
"The Collector knows I exist. They'll regroup. Come back stronger." I looked at Kade. "We need to be ready."
"We?"
"You know the truth now." I held Morris's gaze. "You can walk away. Or you can help us stop them."
"Help you how? I'm human."
"You have a badge. Access to databases. Connections." Kade moved closer. "The Collector operates in shadows. Someone with official authority investigating them would make them vulnerable."
Morris laughed. It sounded hysterical. "This is insane."
"Is that a yes?" I asked.
He looked at me for a long moment. "You're my partner. If you're fighting monsters, I guess I am too." He stood. "But no more lies. About anything."
"Deal."
"Good." He headed for the door, paused. "The woman. Elena. What happens to her?"
"She'll be taken to a hospital. Eventually moved to a psychiatric facility." Kade's voice was matter-of-fact. "She'll spend the rest of her life trapped in visions. A fate worse than death."
"Good." Morris's voice was cold. "She deserves worse."
He left.
I sagged against the couch. "That went better than expected."
"He could still report everything."
"He won't. Morris is loyal." I looked at Kade. "We need human allies. The Collector won't expect that."
Kade sat beside me. "You should rest. You used a lot of power tonight."
"So did you. When we were in Elena's head together." I turned to face him. "The bond really does work both ways."
"It does." He smiled slightly. "You pulled me into the vision. I didn't think that was possible."
"I needed you. Needed your strength. And the bond gave it to me."
"Together, we're stronger than either of us alone." Kade took my hand. "Most mates don't have one partner who's a Seer."
We sat in comfortable silence. Outside, I could hear the forest settling. Pack members on patrol.
"What happens now?" I asked quietly.
"Now we rebuild. Plan. Prepare for when the Collector comes back." Kade's voice was grim. "Because they will."
"So will we." I leaned against him. "We have time. We have allies. And we have each other."
"Is that your way of saying you're staying?"
"I'm saying I'm tired of running." I looked up at him. "Maybe the bond isn't a chain. Maybe it's a choice. And I choose you."
Kade's expression softened. "You have no idea how long I've waited to hear that."
"Probably since the second we met and I rejected you."
"Actually, yes."
I laughed despite everything. Because somehow, in the middle of all this chaos, I'd found something I'd thought I'd lost forever.
I'd found home.
My phone buzzed. Mira.
Okay seriously, you've been radio silent for three days. If you don't call me by tomorrow, I'm driving up there.
I stared at the message. My old life felt impossibly far away.
"You okay?" Kade asked.
"Yeah. Just saying goodbye to something." I put the phone away. "I'll need to call my captain. Tell her I'm extending my stay. Maybe permanently."
"Permanently?"
"Shadowpine needs a Seer. And I need a pack." I met his eyes. "Unless you don't want me to stay?"
"I want you to stay more than I've wanted anything in eight years." He pulled me closer. "But I want you to stay because you want to."
"I want to stay. Not because of the bond. Because for the first time since I was twelve, I don't feel alone." I kissed him, slow and deliberate. "Because you make me believe I can have more than just survival."
When I pulled back, Kade was smiling. "Then welcome home,
Sera Blackwood."
Outside, the sun was starting to rise. Day three. The blood moon was over.
We'd survived.
And for the first time, I was ready to do more than just survive.
I was ready to live.