We arrived at the shelter and a man I vaguely recognized carried me inside and downstairs and put me in my habitual chair, wrapped in a blanket. Macy brought my jacket and shoes and helped me get into them, miniature caregiver that she was.

I could probably have managed to force myself to move, but it was faster and easier not to try. I could usually summon the willpower to fight the curse when Serge was nearby, but when he was gone it was so much harder.

It was always hard, but now that my feelings had managed to fight through the restrictions of the curse, it was that much worse. I had the curse nagging me about his well-being with prickling shivers of fear, but I really worried about him underneath as well.

The curse was terrible when it worked alone, but when reality was as bad as its misgivings there was little I could manage to do to fight it.

I had barely been able to control my own fears even before the curse.

Still, there was one small improvement. At least I was getting familiar with the shelter in Serge's territory. It's plain walls and dozens of occupants were not quite so unfamiliar as they had been the first time I had come here. It was a cold comfort, but it was a small one.

I supposed this really was my pack, now. Once I married Serge, though the position would give me no formal title, I would well and truly be linked to these people for as long as Serge remained the leader.

Fear flashed through me for his wellbeing. I hoped the fight would go well for our forces, that they would all come home safely. Whether they be Serge's, my father's or Austin's, they were all my people and I wanted to see them safe and free, just as I wanted the same for myself.

I huddled in my chair and tried to control my uneven breathing. I wondered who was in danger. Obviously Serge, although the fact the ice of the curse continued running through me was testament to the fact he was still alive.

But I did not know about the others. Dan was certainly fighting and I found myself worrying for him and his family. Then there were the warriors from my father's pack. The leaders did not always join into the defense for the other territories unless they were on call, but it was completely possible that either Sean or Matthias or the other members were right now rushing towards danger, or worse, already engaged in battle.

I spent a very long time huddled in my corner. It felt longer than other times. I gradually became aware that my sat phone was still in my jacket pocket from when we went for supper. I reached carefully into the pocket and pulled it out, the skin on my trembling hand screaming at the contact.

I held it tightly, glad for the protective casing or I would not have dared to even try. I brought the screen to life and it told me it was about quarter after nine. I punched in my passcode and went into my messages and found my dad's number.

Me: [Do you know what's happening?]

I grasped the phone tightly in my hand while I waited, feeling the burn of the smooth casing against my palm.

It felt like it took a long time for him to respond.

Dad: [Reinforcements are on their way.]

Me: [Who's coming?]

There was another long wait, which made me wonder how bad it really was. He was safe at home or more likely in the pack offices, but that did not account for my brother or Matthias or anyone else I was concerned about.

Dad: [Sean was off tonight, but he volunteered to lead the second wave Derrick is leading the first]

I wondered if I would be happier not knowing, but I pressed him for more information.

Me: [Who's in the first, dad? I want to know and I'm only imagining the worst]

My mind whirled as I read the names my dad sent. I was unsurprised to find that Matthias was amongst the numbers from my father's reluctance to be forthcoming, but there were a lot of other names that caused me real organic fear.

Todd was right there with Matthias. He was a year younger than Matthias and I, but our school was so small he had been in our class most years while we were growing up. He could be quite silly when the mood struck him, but he had always been a loyal friend. He had the same training as the rest of the warriors, but I still worried about him because he had always seemed a bit too soft to defend himself in battle. I swallowed.

Then there were Dave and Terrence. I playfully mocked my brother's best friends, but I cared about them almost like brothers. I worried for Sean if something happened to either one of them.

And Ernie, Matthias's ridiculous cousin and my irritating flirty friend. He was our age so he had always been in our class. He was not my favourite, but I still cared.

More fear. My father had mentioned a second wave of reinforcements, something I could not remember any territory ever sending before, besides when the attack was on their own land.

Me: [Is Austin also sending a second wave?]

The response was immediate.

Dad: [Yes – this is Moramay, your dad's busy and left me manning his phone. Don't worry, he's still on our territory.]

It confirmed my worst imaginings. This attack was more severe than the other ones this spring. It reminded me of the one in which Serge had lost his parents.

I shook until it felt I would come apart at the joints, my phone falling forgotten on the floor. I had no control over any of my own fears and the curse was happy to supply me with a full load of magic desperation. I huddled in the blankets and waited because there was nothing else that I could do.

My one cruel and bitter comfort was that I knew Serge was alive, because the curse swallowed me whole.

* * *  *  *  *  * * *

I do not know how long I floated in a quaking wave of terror with little knowledge of my surroundings, but when I was finally brought out I was exhausted.

"Elise," Karen said. She was crouched down beside me and I did not have the energy to try to look at her. "They beat back the attackers."

I already knew and her tone confirmed that it had been bad. I wanted to ask how bad, but my frozen tongue would not move to form the words.

"Serge will be here in a few minutes to get you."

I nodded slightly, but it was enough that she could understand my response. I was glad he was coming back and not just because he would offer me relief from the worst ravages of the curse. I already knew he was still alive, but there was comfort for me in seeing him with my own eyes.

And I could find out just what had happened. My heart was filled to overflowing with my worry for Matthias and my brother, not to mention the many others.

The few minutes it took Serge to arrive felt like hours to me. He was near, because my shaking lessoned slightly, but the prickling on the back of my neck increased. I could not meet his eyes when he leaned down beside me, nor answer as he apologized to me as he picked me up. The solid heat of one arm was beneath my knees and the other beneath my back, felt even through the wrappings of the blanket.

I did not need his apologies, I only needed his heat. I let the warmth of his body start to fill the empty chill of the curse.

He carried me out to his truck, which he must have picked up from Karen and Dan's house on the way back to fetch me.

He was going to put me in the passenger side, but I wanted contact so I whispered, "Can I stay beside y-you?"

"If you want," he responded.

"If you don't mind," I returned. I did not just want him to do whatever I wanted.

"Of course, I don't mind. I don't think you understand the lengths I would go for you," he said as he helped me into the middle seat and did up my seatbelt before fastening his own.

I thought I was rather starting to understand. I appreciated it, but I hoped he would take care of himself as well.

"I want you to be happy, but I'll be content with at least the absence of your suffering," he continued as he put the vehicle into gear.

I swallowed and forced out a question. "Did I curse y-you when I chose you, S-Ser...?"

"No, Elise. If anything, I cursed myself when I cursed you. I only hope that we can break it together."

* * *  *  *  *  * * *

I waited until we got home and Serge helped me into the house and I was sitting with him before I began to ask more questions of him. "What happened in the fight today, S-Serge?"

He paused, as if considering whether or not to tell me.

"I could tell it was bad, because of how K-Karen sounded. I know things are getting worse," I explained.

He wrapped his arm around me. "We had casualties, Elise."

Real fear wrapped around me, more visceral and painful than even the curse could manage. "Who?" I asked.

"We lost one from my pack, I don't think you've met him... And one from your father's."

It seemed like I was choking from the constriction of my throat as I waited while Serge inhaled.

"His name was Dave Bauer."

"Dave? Are you sure," I asked. My head was instantly filled with a million memories of my brother with his two friends. Dave with his bleached hair and his ability to push Sean's buttons. I fumbled for my phone in the pouch of my hoodie and texted my father. I could feel my heart pounding frantically against my rib cage.

Me: [I heard about Dave, is it true?]

Before I got a response there was a knock at the door.

"Just come in," Serge called.

The door opened and my glance revealed Doctor Fischer. His uneven steps cross the floor.

"What can I do for you, Doctor?"

"Brock mentioned you were injured," Doctor Fischer said.

I glanced at Serge's face, wondering if it were true.

"Barely," he said dismissively.

Doctor Fischer frowned. "You must take care of yourself, Serge, if you want to be good to anyone else."

"I aware. It's just my shoulder, barely a scratch," Serge protested.

Doctor Fischer stopped in front of us and was looking between Serge and I quizzically. I supposed we were sitting rather closer together than one would expect.

I inhaled, "It helps and we're engaged," I blurted out before the curse had a chance to punish me proactively.

I glanced at the Doctor's face and nothing in his expression gave away his thoughts. "Be that as it may, I still want to treat Serge's wounds."

"Very well," Serge consented, releasing me and moving to the other couch so that the doctor could access his wound.

My phone pinged and I looked at the screen.

Dad: [It's true]