There was a beat of silence, like they couldn’t decide who was going to break the news to me. Shadow ended up being the one, since they were likely guessing I’d take it best from him.

They’d guessed wrong.

“We believe it’s best if you sat this out. Your power is too similar to Dannie’s, and she might be able to figure out how to counter it if it’s part of the fortress.”

The smile that appeared on my face was not a nice one. “You’re her actual son, Shadow, so maybe you should sit it out and I’ll take one for the team.”

If they came at me with a legitimate reason for why I’d be a negative influence on this cage they were creating, I’d listen and respond accordingly. But I just knew this was about Shadow trying to protect me.

I loved him for it, but that wouldn’t work in this sort of war. We didn’t have the manpower to leave anyone behind, especially when it was a woman. Womanpower was always the most important. Pretty sure there was a meme about that somewhere.

Shadow released a deep breath. “Okay, how about… you have no idea what you’re doing and you might get yourself or one of us killed.” This time, he was blunt and honest. “As I told you earlier, it would usually take months to perfect this sort of cage because it has to be completely secured on all angles. Even the smallest sliver of a gap between our energies and Dannie can burst through it. We’ve all studied and trained in this sort of shielding before. You have not. And your power isn’t even fully available to you as the two sides of your essence fight for dominance.”

I swallowed roughly. Dammit. There he went with that legitimate reason I’d been searching for. My wolf poked her head up as well, as if she wanted to remind me she was part of our dual nature causing this issue.

“Okay, I concede to your reasoning here,” I said stiffly. “When my involvement affects everyone else’s safety, I understand why it’s best I’m not part of it.”

I stepped away, moving out of the main space, allowing the others to fall into a natural circle, like they’d known all along where the strongest team would stand.

Angel ended up beside Reece, and I waited for someone to suggest they move apart because that was a total explosion waiting to happen. But no one did. Apparently, when the world was at stake, those two could act like the grown-up, ancient immortals they were.