Accidental Surrogate, Chapter 369: Deeper In

"We have to get to them," Roger snarled, moving toward a window, intending to smash it. I grabbed his arm, pulling him back.

"The priests aren't that stupid, Roger," I said through clenched teeth. "If they can make the door disappear, they can make the windows solid."

"So what do we do?" Roger growled, frantic, as our remaining healthy men tended to the wounded. I glanced around; about eight men were down. I grimaced, noticing two weren't moving or making a sound, but quickly looked away, needing to stay focused.

"We retreat," I said, meeting Roger's gaze, "or we move further in. They're letting us remain relatively peaceful because they want us to stay here. This means they don't want us to leave, and they don't want us to go further."

"What?" Roger asked, frantic and baffled, looking around. "Why don't they just kill us?"

"Because they can't," I said, nodding as I pieced it together. If they had enough priests to overwhelm us, they would. Their inaction means we're a strong enough force that they can't risk an attack. My wolf bared his fangs, eager, now that we understood the situation.

"What?" Roger asked, his brows furrowed, still frantically searching for an escape route, for Cora, his mate. "Roger!" I shouted, shaking his arm, forcing him to face me. "If you think I care any less about Ella than you do about Cora, then you need to check yourself," I hissed, leaning close so only he could hear. "But you need to pull yourself together. You won't help them by acting on impulse. We need a plan."

Roger glanced away briefly, his jaw clenched, then turned back and nodded. I released his arm.

"Which way?" I asked, crossing my arms and glancing toward the staircase and the second level where I suspected more were waiting, guarding something—perhaps their master, or perhaps something else. "They want us to stay here, but they can't hold us forever. So, do we fight to leave, or to go further in?"

I saw the word "leave" on Roger's lips, Cora on his mind. Frankly, I was tempted too. The fact that they wanted us to stay meant they knew we were coming. And if they knew we were coming… they knew far more about us than we thought, including that the girls were alone and the location of the bunker. I groaned inwardly, forcing myself to refocus on my brother.

To my surprise, Roger hesitated, glancing up the stairs with me, connecting the dots. "If they aren't sending more," he murmured, meeting my eyes, "it means we're close."

"Push?" I asked, bracing myself for his answer.

Slowly, Roger nodded. "We push."

I ordered my men to assemble. Those able again lined up; two healthy men fell back to tend to the wounded. I gave brisk orders to press forward. The men nodded, prepared for what was to come. Then, together, Roger and I turned toward the stairs, determined to continue the attack.

The problem was immediately apparent: a blank wall topped the stairs. Reaching the top, I pressed my hand against the barrier; it felt as real as any wall.

Roger leaned close, sniffing it. "It's off," he murmured. "Something…wrong here."

"Magic," I said, crossing my arms and studying it. "Conjured."

Roger leaned back, thinking. "Our research shows the priests' power comes from binding their wolves. This means…whatever they accessed to create this illusion…we have access to it too, Dominic."

"What do you mean?" I asked, confused.

"Our wolves are gifts from the goddess, magic, even if we don't usually describe them that way," he said. "The priests can do this because they've denied that gift, darkened it."

I nodded, considering the wall. "So, we have the tools to fight this."

"I think so," Roger said, turning his head. He reached out and took my hand.

"What?" I snapped, yanking my hand away.

"Don't be an idiot, Dominic," Roger grumbled, rolling his eyes and grabbing my hand again. "I'm trying to…do something."

I watched Roger begin to meditate, or something like it—similar to Ella accessing her gift. Then, I felt a tug inside me, where my wolf resided. He cocked his head, curious, and I urged him forward.

Suddenly, I felt Roger's wolf beside mine. Acting on impulse, I closed my eyes, calming myself. I couldn't see it, but I felt our wolves' magic joining, pressing forward. I touched the wall, and pressed.

At first, my fingers pushed against solid wall, but as our wolves moved together, the wall seemed to move inward, until I almost stumbled forward as it vanished. My eyes snapped open to see nothing before us. I turned to Roger in shock, then back forward as I saw the priest, his fists wrapped in flames, standing before us.

"Clever wolves," he sneered. "Calling my bluff."

Roger didn't reply, instantly transforming into his wolf and leaping forward, fangs bared. I roared, signaling my men to charge. We all moved directly toward the lone priest.