Page 86 of Echoes From the Void
We have less than twenty-four hours to prevent another sacrifice.
To prevent my pack from becoming just another redacted file in the Council’s archives.
To finally finish what my father started.
No pressure.
Chapter 30
Frankie
I feelBishop’s turmoil through our bond before he enters the pack house. His usually controlled energy roils with barely contained fury, making my shadows writhe beneath my skin. Next to me, Finn tenses, our twin bond amplifying the sense of approaching danger. His light flickers anxiously against my darkness.
“Something’s wrong.” Matteo moves closer, his new fangs flashing in the dim light. Through our recently sealed bond, his protective instincts pulse stronger than ever, his shadows reaching instinctively for mine.
“When isn’t something wrong?” Leo attempts his usual lighthearted tone, but I catch how his hand seeks Matteo’s, how his shadows curl with lingering weakness from the corruption. The purple traces may be gone, but the experience has left its mark.
The front door opens with that precise click that’s uniquely Bishop—even in crisis, he maintains perfect control over small details. But when he enters, his Guardian marks pulse with an intensity that makes my wolves stir beneath my skin, responding to the raw power bleeding through his usually impeccable composure.
“They want to sacrifice you.” He looks directly at me and Finn, no preamble, no careful explanations. Just brutal truth crackling with suppressed rage. “The Council has given us twenty-four hours to... to say goodbye.”
The room erupts in reaction. Matteo’s snarl mingles with Leo’s sharp inhale. Dorian’s frost spreads across windows while Tori’s shadows writhe with unexpected fury. My wolves materialize without conscious thought, responding to the pack’s collective distress.
But Finn and I? We stay quiet, our twin bond humming with shared understanding.
Because deep down, we’ve always known it might come to this.
“Like hell,” Matteo growls, his arms tightening around me as his shadows rise defensively. “They can’t just?—”
“They can,” I say softly, making everyone fall silent. Through our twin bond, I feel Finn’s grim acceptance mirror my own. “They have before. Haven’t they, Bishop?”
He nods, something like grief darkening his Guardian marks. “My father... he tried to stop them last time. With another set of twins. It’s why they killed him.”
The revelation settles over us like a shroud. It should probably shock me more. Should probably make me angry or scared or something other than this strange calm acceptance. But all I feel is tired. Tired of running, tired of fighting, tired of watching people die to protect us.
My wolves pace restlessly, feeding off the pack’s mounting tension. Through our various bonds, I feel their emotions crash against mine—Matteo’s protective rage, Leo’s desperate denial, Dorian’s cold fury, Tori’s unexpected protectiveness toward Finn.
“Well,” Leo announces into the heavy silence, his voice carrying forced cheer though his shadows betray his fear, “guesswe better make these twenty-four hours count then. Who’s up for breaking into the cafeteria?”
“Leo,” Bishop starts, exasperation warring with fondness as his marks pulse.
“No, hear me out.” Leo pushes himself up straighter, sunshine determination breaking through his shadows despite his lingering weakness. “If these might be our last hours together—which they won’t be, because we’re definitely going to figure something out—but IF they are, I refuse to spend them moping in the pack house. Let’s have one last family dinner. In that ridiculous cafeteria where I first watched Matteo nearly choke on his protein shake when Frankie walked in.”
“I did not choke—” Matteo starts automatically, though his shadows curl with remembered embarrassment.
“You absolutely did,” Leo cuts in, his lips twitching despite the darkness threading through our bonds. “Went completely silent mid-sentence and just stared.”
“Speaking of staring,” Bishop adds dryly, his Guardian marks settling slightly, “shall we discuss your tactical walking into doors whenever she passed by?”
“That was a calculated maneuver,” Leo insists, though his shadows dance with nervous energy. “Part of my master plan.”
I look at Finn, feeling his quiet longing pulse through our twin bond. His light flickers with a different kind of pain. “You never got to experience any of that, did you? The normal college stuff?”
“Never even been to a dance,” he admits softly. Beside him, Tori’s shadows reach automatically for his light, twining together in an unconscious display of comfort.
“That settles it.” Leo claps his hands decisively, though I catch how his fingers tremble slightly. “Family dinner in the abandoned cafeteria. Followed by dancing. No arguments.”
“Family dinner in an abandoned cafeteria that’s probably crawling with shadow beasts?” Dorian raises an eyebrow as frost patterns spread beneath his feet. “That seems ill-advised.”
