Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

I will wear holes through the soles of my shoes if I don't stop pacing. But this nervous energy is relentless and unbearable, and it's not as if I have anything else I can do to relieve it.

As commanded, Bardulf took me to the tent of the wolf king and bound my wrists. Then, he tied me to the center tent post. I can spiral around it, winding my leash as tight as my nerves. But even when the rope has all its slack, I can't reach anything.

Conri's wickedness might be matched by his cleverness. He knew to have Bardulf remove my cloak and set it aside on the cot—out of my reach, but close enough to mock me. I am left in my simple, linen shirt. Loose-fitting and down to my upper thigh. It nearly covers the rips in my trousers from Bardulf's claws. My clothing is still streaked with blood. I realize my hair is likely a mess, too. Mud is caked by the roots from where I smeared it across my face to try and mask my scent when I first tried to save Aurora.

What a sight I must be.

Not that I care for appearances in general. Being regarded as an oddity at best, and a freak at worst, has trained me not to concern myself with the thoughts of others. I care even less around these lykin. All that matters to me is getting my cloak, my supplies, Aurora, and then getting as far from here as we can.

If these knots weren't so damn tight—old gods, Bardulf, did you seal them with paste?

I try everything I can think of, short of breaking my wrists, to free myself from the binding. I've lain on the canvas-covered ground, stretching out my toes after pulling off my shoe to see if I could grab my cape with my foot. When all that failed, I returned to pacing.

I've taken stock of everything here, several times over, looking for what might be used as a weapon against me. Or what I might be able to use as a weapon against them. Nothing stands out. Though, given that these creatures can grow fangs larger than my fingers, and claws the size of my hands, I don't know what good seeing no weapons does me. And it's not as if I have any real practice with combat. My strengths lie in my magic and summoning those powers depends on me getting my cloak.

Deflating to the ground, I heave a sigh and stare up at the heavy canvas of the tent. It's dim in here, even in daylight. My eyes fall to one of the candles on the lone table near the bed, unlit, in its holder.

An idea strikes me like lightning. I fish into my pocket and retrieve the tiny shards of brick and clay pot. Not all of my spirit links were stitched into my cloak. How had I not thought of this earlier?

Returning the pot shard to my pocket, I hold just the piece of brick and whisper, "Folost?" Nothing. I stand, moving as close as I'm able to the candle, focusing on it intently, willing it to ignite. "Folost, please, if you can?—"

The candle sparks to flame. Two tiny eyes are barely discernible in the little flicker.

"Folost!" I keep my voice to a hush, hoping he can hear me. "Can you go find Aurora, please, and tell me if she's all right?"

One blink. I can't tell if the candle is too small a form for him to be able to speak, or if he just doesn't dare risk alerting anyone else to his presence. Either way, I choose to take it as a good sign when the candle extinguishes itself. He's going to find her. There must be some kind of candle or lantern in every tent—something for him to alight upon. And he can communicate with her wordlessly as I saw them do the first night.

I can't stop myself from pacing again as I wait. It seems to take forever, but is also only a moment. I rush to the end of my tether when the candle lights again.

"Is she…" I start my question and abandon it.

One blink.

I heave a sigh of relief. There are no shadows on the outside of the tent. I've heard movement and distant discussion this entire time, but nothing too close.

"Can you speak in this form?" I dare to whisper, keeping my voice as low as possible.

"Yes." The word is little more than the sound of candle flame flickering in the wind.

"Can you tell me where she is? Are you able to discern it from traveling to her?"

"She is—" The tent flap opens and Folost is snuffed on the breeze. Or he flees willingly. A small, thin trail of smoke is the only thing that betrays his presence, but it's gone in a blink with barely an aroma.

The wolf king doesn't seem to notice either. His eyes are solely on me. Fixed. Purposeful.

Evander is with him, hovering at the entrance with arms folded in a way that accentuates the bulge of his muscles. His stare is penetrating, filled with rage as he focuses solely on me through the shadows cast by his long bangs. The instinct to retreat nearly gets the better of me and I take a half step back. I did not think him fond of me, but given Aurora's lack of outright hostility, and after last night…I thought we had some kind of understanding. Right now, it looks as if he blames me for every ill to ever befall him.

I'm not sure who to focus on. The wolf king, who suddenly approaches me with open arms like a mother coming to console her child…or the knight, who, up until now, had been verging on decent toward me but now looks positively murderous.

"Faelyn, forgive me for this brutality." Conri begins to undo the bindings at my wrists. It's frustrating how easily he's able to unravel the knots with those strong hands of his. "You were quite the surprise following a tumultuous few weeks. First the howls of the Blood Moon, then denning down following, then Aurora…" Conri pauses; his face becomes a void, every muscle relaxing into a perfectly blank slate. His gaze softens, unfocuses. It is more unnerving than outright hate. Then, emotion and expression all comes rushing back with a smile that is too sweet for comfort. "And now you are here."

"What are you going to do with me?" I demand to know, not sure if I like his sudden fondness. No, I am sure. I don't like it at all.

"Come, I have a most exciting proclamation for all of us." Conri takes me by the hand as I am rubbing my wrists. His touch is cool and I find myself oddly aware of the placement of every finger against mine.

I dig in my heels. He tugs on my arm. I give a pointed look to my cape, still on the bed. "I won't leave without it."

"You do not need it here," he says smoothly. His voice has my shoulders relaxing despite the alarm I know I should feel. His hands run over them, as if he sees their slight slouch. Tingles shoot down my spine at the touch, making my body ease farther into him with his unspoken beckoning. "Now, relax, and come with me." His fingertips run down my arms to lace with mine once more. The hold is firm. "You will come with me, right?"

I find myself nodding, unable to break my gaze with his.

"Good." He escorts me out and, this time, my feet obey.

Evander follows in close step as we leave the tent.

I am caught off guard by the surreal nature of it all, accentuated by the blinding sun as my eyes adjust. Men halt their movements mid stir of pots. Women slowly stand, their sparring forgotten. Even children come to a dusty stop in their play, staring up at me being led with linked fingers by the king of the wolves. No, not me… him . They are all entranced by Conri. It is when their stares turn to me that the loving gaze is broken and twists into something that could be akin to mistrust, or even hate.

The only thing that I suspect keeps them from attacking me is Conri's fingers still wrapped around mine as he leads me to the center of camp. The bustling quiets to murmurs. Shuffling. We have gathered a crowd.

Behind me, Evander continues to exude a searing aura of tension. It clashes with the ease and safety I feel near Conri. There are times he takes an extra step and is so close that I can almost feel his breath down my neck. It summons sensations of last night, when he pulled me between his legs. The heat of all his muscles around me.

It has been years since I last sought out the bodily pleasure of a man. To engage in the most primal ritual of all. That is not to say I haven't had satisfaction—a woman learns how to care for herself and all her needs as she grows into independence. But my desire has always delighted in the feel of a strong body underneath me. Gripping me…

Am I really having these thoughts right now? I silently scold myself. I hadn't realized just how long it had been until I found myself in a pack of alarmingly handsome, shirtless men. Had I known this would be a problem, I would've satiated my needs during my time in town yesterday…

The lykin make a large circle in the center of the camp. I pull my focus back to what's important and scan for any indication of where Aurora might be, but I see nothing that would give her presence away. What if they've removed her from this camp? The thought is intrusive, but it is in line with what Evander mentioned last night: If Aurora and I are together, we can escape. But separated and we will always be stuck waiting for the other.

Aurora can't be freed without me and I won't abandon her.

Conri comes to a stop in the center of the circle formed by the wolves, still holding my hand. A hush falls over them. Without warning, the wolf king tips back his head and lets out a noise that is somewhere between a howl and a scream—a raw and primal sound that seems to call back to the first days when time was counted.

The other lykin join, letting out screams. Some change into their wolf forms, tipping up their chins to join the chorus.

They end abruptly and all eyes are back on me. I shift my weight from foot to foot, wishing I had my cape to draw around me. Or that I knew how I could use Aurora's magic within me to better protect myself, if that's even possible.

"Long ago, Bewulf the Uniter fell in love with the spirit of the moon. With her power, he brought together the squabbling packs for an era of peace. A time of triumph and domination by our ancestors in these misty plains. This time of unity and prosperity is what I have aspired to return us to as your king. One moon. One wolf."

Howling follows the statement. Some thump their fists against their chests. Others gnash their teeth with excitement.

"We have had our time of peace. Of living under one banner. But there has been something calling me. Drawing me toward a greatness yet unknown. I would see it in the stars and hear it in the whispers of the wind. But I did not know what it was…until she stood before me." Conri gestures toward me, still holding my hand.

I realize his grip has tightened some. He's preventing me from running. Not that I have anywhere to go. Surely he knows the threat Evander and Bardulf have both made to me.

"Like Bewulf the Uniter, I have been taken by a creature of astounding beauty. Whose meeting is one of unexpected serendipity and, now that she is before me, can only be described as my destiny. For hers is a kind vanishing from this world faster than our own. In her is the blood of a rare breed of human—those who had begun to master the dormant magic buried within them, gifted by the old gods but untapped."

Murmuring now. Women and men exchange confused and worried glances. Children are growing restless from the length of Conri's speech. Though no more restless than I am.

A creature of astounding beauty? Serendipity? What in the old gods' forgotten names is he talking about?

"In her is part of the moon spirit's power. I have little doubt it flowed into her because she is my destined mate. And, once I formalize our bond, we shall use our union to push our borders back into our ancestral lands. We shall have the ability to reclaim that which the humans have taken from us and, once more, our feet will run through the distant grasses across the Fade."

My ears are ringing. My heart is fluttering so fast that I can't seem to catch a full breath. One word… mate . Surely I cannot be comprehending it correctly. There is some meaning lost in culture of the lykin, or translation to the common tongue that I know.

"We shall return, far beyond the thickest mists of the plains, to the deep woods of Den. Come with me, my pack, my blood. Behold as I stand before the great wolf and forever bind us. For, once I make this human my bride and bind our bloodlines forevermore—we shall use her power to conquer the world beyond the Fade."