The Lost Pack (Paige) novel Chapter 165

Chapter 165

We reach the country road just as the first headlights cut through the mist. Wolves rush to load the kids and the injured. Poppy and Jax climb into the back of the lead truck, which is some kind of old military vehicle. Ryder goes next with Paige in his arms. Jake follows, securing her against the seat, tucking a blanket around her. The glow under her skin flickers again, softer this time.

“She’s stabilising,” he says quietly.

I climb in behind them, shifting back to human form, mud-streaked and panting. “Let’s get out of here. The hunters are falling back. Whatever she did out there scared the hell out of them.”

“Not for long,” Remy growls from outside, his wolf pacing beside the truck. “They’ll regroup.”

“Then we’ll be gone before they do,” Callen replies. “Let’s settle the pack at Midnight and then come back

in the morning with reinforcements.”

Most of the pack manages to fit into the trucks. The engines roar to life and the convoy lurches forward, the forest falling away behind us. Through the window, I can still see the faint shimmer of gold and silver

hovering over the trees, the last echo of her power.

The remaining wolves run with the enforcers from Midnight, including Remy. I hate to leave him after we

almost just lost him, but I know him, and I know what he needs.

A run as his wolf, giving his mind time to process what happened, will comfort him more than I ever could. As much as I want to pull him into a hug and tell him how much I love him and how scared I was that I

was going to lose him, it’s not what helps him.

Paige stirs faintly in Ryder’s arms, a small sound escaping her lips.

“Shhh,” he whispers, brushing her hair back. “You did it, Tink. You saved us.”

I lean over to wrap my hand around hers. She doesn’t wake, but her breathing evens, her head turning

slightly toward Ryder as if she heard him.

The road ahead winds through darkness, but for the first time tonight, there’s a thread of hope running

through it. Remy’s alive. So is Ryder, and Paige… whatever she’s become, she’s incredible. She was willing

to give everything for us, for our pack, and goddess help anyone who tries to take anything from her again.

I stay near the open back, watching the forest disappear behind us. The glow where Paige unleashed her power still lingers faintly through the trees, a shimmer that refuses to fade. I don’t know whether to be

grateful or terrified.

My gaze drifts back to her. She’s still lying against Ryder’s chest, wrapped in that thin blanket Jake threw over her. Every now and then, light flickers under her skin, faint threads of gold and silver pulsing like embers refusing to die. Ryder strokes her hair absently, jaw tight, staring out the back too, but clearly not

seeing the road.

“She’s stabilising,” Jake had said. But what does that even mean for her?

I run a hand over my face and exhale through my nose. Then I open the mind-link, pushing my thoughts across the shared bond between the four of us, pulling Ronnie and Jake in too.

“We need to talk.”

There’s a pause, a static hum, then Ryder’s voice answers first. “About what?”

“About what just happened,” I say, glancing between him and Callen. “What Paige did, and how the hell we’re going to explain this to anyone who asks.”

A low grunt filters through the link from Remy. “You tell me, genius. You’re the one with the brains and the

plans.”

I huff out a humourless laugh. “There’s no plan for this, Rem. Not for glowing resurrection miracles.”

“Miracle’s one word for it,” Callen cuts in. “Act of God is another. You saw what she did. That wasn’t

healing, that was power on a scale we’ve never seen before.”

Ryder shifts slightly in his seat, adjusting Paige in his arms. “It’s both. She’s both. Whatever she’s become,

it’s beyond what any of us can explain. Which means we don’t try to.”

Ronnie speaks next. “I don’t know what happened, but I saw enough. We’re going to need a cover story.

The Midnight Pack is already asking questions about the blast. Their scouts saw the light from their

southern ridge. They’re saying it lit up the whole sky.”

Jake’s thought follows, clinical and sharp. “They’ll want a debrief the moment we arrive. Especially if they

catch even a glimpse of her glow.”

I glance down at Paige again. The shimmer has faded to almost nothing now, just the faintest gleam when

her chest rises and falls. Unless you knew what to look for, you might think it was just the light playing

tricks.

“Maybe we keep it simple,” I suggest. “Say the hunters had some kind of explosive weapon, experimental

tech. It went off in the clearing. Paige was caught in the blast and hit her head. That explains the

unconsciousness and the shockwave. No one needs to know about the rest.”

Remy’s voice is low, conflicted. “You think you can pull off a lie like that to the Midnight Pack?”

“If it keeps her safe, yes,” I snap before I can stop myself. “You saw what she did, Rem. You saw what it

cost her. If this gets out, every pack and hunter across the world will want her. Some to study, some to

control, some to destroy. She doesn’t need that. We can’t risk it.”

Ryder hums in agreement, the sound more of a growl than I think he meant. “He’s right. No one outside this truck needs to know what happened tonight if we can help it. I don’t think anyone saw clearly what happened.”

“And what if someone did? What if they find out anyway?” Callen asks. “You can’t hide a blast like that forever. The hunters sure as hell will be talking about it.”

Ronnie cuts in again. “Then we stay ahead of the story. We lean on confusion. The hunter’s weapons misfired, causing a chain reaction. I’ll handle the reports once we reach Midnight’s command. They’ll believe me; they know I’ve been fighting hunters longer than anyone alive.”

“And the glow?” Jake asks. “Because I can guarantee someone’s going to notice eventually.”

There’s a heavy silence. I can almost hear everyone thinking, weighing possibilities, trying to find a path that doesn’t end with Paige on a lab table somewhere.

Then Ryder speaks, low and certain. “We cover her. Keep her under a blanket. Say she’s unstable from the

head injury. If they try to question us, Jake, you’re the one in charge of her treatment. Say she’s sedated to

prevent shock.”

Jake nods. “That’ll hold up, at least for a while. Let’s just hope she wakes soon.”

“Fine. But if anyone even looks at her wrong, I’ll rip their throat out,” Remy growls.

“You’ll get no argument from me,” I reply, and I mean it. I’ll go to war with the entire world for her.

The link goes quiet for a moment. The only sounds are the rumble of the engine and Jaxon’s soft

breathing from the far seat where Poppy cradles him awkwardly, his growing body getting too big for her

small frame. He’s finally fallen asleep, his small hand clutching her sleeve.

“She really did it,” Callen whispers suddenly, unable to keep the grin from his face. “She saved us all.”

Ryder’s gaze flicks down to Paige, his hand still on her hair. “Yeah,” he says, voice heavy with awe and grief. “She did.”

I feel it too, that mixture of pride and fear. The sheer wonder of her power, and the terror of what it means.

The Lunarae. The word echoes in my mind. Our Lunarae.

If she’s what Ronnie suspects, the bridge between the sun and the moon, then tonight was only the

beginning.

The truck jolts suddenly, hitting a rut. The movement pulls me back to the present. Paige stirs again, mumbling something too soft to make out. I squeeze her hand gently, and the glow beneath her skin flares just once, bright enough to catch Jake’s attention.

He glances up sharply. “Her energy levels are still fluctuating. It’s like she’s bleeding light.”

“Can you stop it?” Ryder asks, his voice tense.

Jake shakes his head, “No. But it’s weakening. Give it time, maybe once she’s rested, it’ll fade completely.”

“Let’s hope so,” I mutter. “The last thing we need is her glowing like a lantern when we pull into their territory.”

Ryder shoots me a grim smile. “She’d still be the most beautiful thing they’ve ever seen.”

Despite everything, that earns a small laugh from me. “Yeah. She always is.”

120 Points

“Do you think it will always do this to her? Drain her to the point of unconsciousness?” I ask, looking at

Jake.

He looks at Paige, studying her for a moment before he shakes his head. “I think she just needs time to adjust. You remember what it was like when we first shifted. We were exhausted afterwards, but eventually we built up stamina, learned how to manage our energies. She expelled an enormous amount of energy tonight; this could be a turning point for her.”

The road begins to level out, and through the back hatch, I catch the first glimpse of Midnight Pack’s territory. The treeline thins into open fields. We pass a few homes, their warm lights lighting up their windows. I feel it then, the safety of another pack, another Alpha’s protection as we cross into their

territory, but that safety doesn’t come without questions.

The trucks slow to a stop, and Midnight wolves rush forward to greet us; others gather near a large brick building, waiting for orders. Here we go.