Mated to the Alpha and His Beta

Zane

Instantly, I stepped forward. “Yes. Get Lanie out of here.”

“I’m not running,” our Luna retorted fiercely.

“Brightsky is in danger because of us.”

“This enclave is in danger because of your grandfather’s arrogance,” I told her firmly.

Stella nodded. “That’s true, in part. Because Malachi kept everything under his own control without truly letting anyone else have any power to control things here, yes. But it’s also true that the four of you, me, and the twins, all are the reason why Brightsky is now in danger.”

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Lanie gave her head a stubborn shake. “Which is why I’m not abandoning them! We stay and fight!”

Xander wrapped his arms around her and kissed her temple. “You leave the fighting to us, love.”

Our Luna struggled out of his grip. “Don’t you pull that Alpha card with me. I’m in this as much as you all

huh?”

Mason stepped up to put a hand on her shoulder. “We need to listen to Stella.”

“Oh, so now you’re ready to do whatever she says?”

Lanie snapped at him. “When it comes to sending me away, I guess she’s making all kinds of sense now,

She whirled on the two Alphas who were standing together in a united front. She poked each of them in the chest. Hard. I had to hold back a laugh. None of this was funny, but even so, watching our Luna stand up to Xander and Mason was like watching a mouse face off with a pair of very pi ssed-off- looking lions.

“Think about it,” Mason told her without flinching away from her touch, even when she poked him again.

He stared Lanie down without looking away. “If we leave the enclave, the High Council will be drawn away. They’ll have no reason to do anything to the people here. It’s us they want.”

Stella raised her hands again to let those swirling, glittery orbs float up from her palms. I had no idea what they were, only that a sense of relief came along with them. I was able to understand the situation from multiple viewpoints all at once. It wasn’t quite like being able to see every timeline and outcome, but I felt how hard it must be for our little girl to have to sift through everything to find the truth.

“And what if they’re not?” Lanie asked in a small voice. It trembled, not with weakness, but with the force of her emotions. They poured out of her in slow, pulsing waves that I found hard to keep at bay. She turned toward Stella. “What if we run off and make it to safety, and everyone left behind here is destroyed the way they intend to kill the spiders?”

“You’re forgetting something, love.” I stepped forward. “That hasn’t happened yet. The High Council made the decision to do it, which is what has let Stella figure out what steps we should take. Right?”

I looked at Stella, who nodded. I could tell that she was doing her best to let her mother figure it out on

her own. It was the only way Lanie would agree. If she believed it was the right choice.

“So you mean we could stop them? Before they hurt the spiders, before they cut the power to the

enclave?”

Lanie asked.

Stella nodded and put an arm around her mother’s shoulders. “I think so, Mother. That’s what I’m seeing.

Of course, every decision we make also changes the path ahead. But this is the one that leads to the best

outcome, at least for now.”

Lanie’s struggle was still clear on her face. She shrugged off Mason and Xander and hugged Stella.

Then she buzzed back and forth again, moving fast with her vampire speed. I felt a breeze as she passed.

I wanted to reach out and stop her, but I didn’t dare get in her way. She’d have bowled me over.

And I didn’t want to feel like I was forcing her into any decision.

The Alphas weren’t as generous. Both of them stepped in front of her at the same time. She ran straight

into them, almost knocking them out of the way. They were only able to stop her with sheer, brute strength.

Each of them grabbed her by an arm and held her in place as her feet kept moving for a few seconds until

she stopped.

They set her down.

There was a moment when it looked like she was going to fight them, or at least yell at them for getting in her way, but once more, Stella created those shimmering, soft orbs. We all stopped, paused, centered ourselves in our daughter’s sphere of serenity. Earlier in the bedroom as we were falling asleep, I’d felt a sens of deep connection with my mates. Like we were all aligned and in tune.

That sensation was even stronger now, and this time, it included our daughter. We were more than a pack a family, a team. We were all joined in a way I couldn’t truly describe…I just knew it was because of Stella.

“I’ve seen us prevail,” she said now to us all. She grinned. “They’re still tapping into Gabriela’s third eye. Which means we can manipulate what she sees to our advantage. We can totally set up the High Council to

fail.”