17. Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Seventeen

Kade

K ade burst from his tent, the wails of distant demons no match against his own.

Evelyn was in danger. No matter what she said, he didn’t believe it.

Bound magic.

Kade clutched his stomach, rushing to the misty wall of the Void. Darkness and decay seeped between the divide of Drystan and Sorin. Yet, the air was cold, refreshing against Kade’s panicked state. His heart hammered, and he tried and tried again to reach her down the bond.

Evelyn. Evelyn. Evelyn.

His wolf hit a mental wall, different from the one he’d encountered weeks prior. Evelyn’s soul, her magic down the bond was close, but he couldn’t touch it. Some sort of shield surrounded it, and it bounced and trembled against Kade’s efforts. No amount of force cracked its dark walls.

He could no longer reach her.

Ahead, the Void stood as an unmoving wall of thick, gray mist. It ran from the coast to the mountains, miles and miles of mists and fog. It dissipated a foot above Kade’s height. Above, endless clouds created a sky of stone. The moon, half visible in Sorin, half lost beyond the clouds, cast a white light onto the Void’s wisps.

It felt different, gazing into the gray with plans to journey through it. Kade’s wolf had always bristled near it, an underlying other in the dew settling in his fur during patrols. The ooziness clotting the air shared a likeness to the White Lady.

Evelyn’s presence was gone. Gone. A hole in his heart. In his body and soul. And he could do nothing about it. Trying to grasp it was entirely futile. Attempts fell through his fingers like sand, leaving him far emptier than before.

I’m alright, she’d said.

Moons , Evelyn’s voice hadn’t shook, hadn’t wavered, and yet, through their bond he felt the lie.

I’m going to learn all I can.

Kade gritted his teeth while his heart swelled so heavily he had to palm his chest. Fear and pride warred within him. It was so like Evelyn, endeavoring what she could, taking risks. He’d admired it in Callum. The way she entered the castle ruins and the Gray Wood without a glance back. Her bravery had been one of the many reasons he’d fallen for her.

And yet now it left him spent, maddened with worry. If he wasn’t there with her, how could he protect her? Kade mustered all his strength, all his might to not rush into the Void and run to her. No matter the many miles. No matter the unknown demons. He’d reach her.

Boots crunched against the frostbitten grass. Behind Kade, Bétar approached, wrapped in a wool blanket. The others rested, their campsite still in the cold, eerie night. Tomorrow, they ventured into the Void.

“When’s the last time you slept?” Bétar asked as he joined his side. His breath floated like a lone cloud and bled into the mists, lost.

“I slept earlier.” Kade didn’t meet his second’s stare, focused ahead.

Bétar sighed. “A true sleep. One that wasn’t a mere three hours.”

Kade furrowed his brows. “Some missions that’s all we get. You know that. ”

“This isn’t any mission. You need your rest.”

Kade’s wolf rose to the surface, a growl sitting at the edge of his throat. He turned to Bétar. “You think I don’t know that?”

His second shut his eyes, the moon casting his face in a nightly gray glow. The beads weaved into his red beard glinted and shook as he exhaled.

“I know you’re worried,” he said. “About Evelyn.”

Kade nodded. He didn’t have the energy to agree out loud or bother denying it.

“I heard her through the bond again. She called my name.” He paused, trying to see through the Void as if Evelyn might emerge. He swallowed the foolish wish. “They bound her magic again. She was warning me, assuring me she was alright.”

“Do you trust her?”

“Of course,” Kade said. “Evelyn’s brave and resourceful. She can handle herself.”

“How would I know? You haven’t told us about her. You’re my best friend, and you found your mate, and it’s been dismissed like nothing ever happened.”

Kade whirled. His wolf howled, his temperament threatened. “My homecoming wasn’t exactly a celebratory moment, Bétar.”

“I know!” his second growled. “But ever since we left our village, you’ve barely slept, ate, or talked to any of us. I’ve never seen you like this.”

Three days had passed, the journey north harsher than usual as the first winter storms froze the mountain terrain. They’d rushed here and had decided to rest for a night before continuing. Kade hadn’t wanted to at first, but he’d seen reason. They needed their wits in a land they’d never explored, and a night’s rest might make a difference in his team’s awareness in a fight. They were on a mission to get Evelyn back. Kade was putting one foot in front of the other. What didn’t Bétar understand?

“I’m remaining focused.”

The edges of Bétar’s lips turned down in a frown. “You’re too focused, so much so you’re not letting yourself have a moment of peace.”

Peace.

Kade wouldn’t feel that until he had Evelyn back in his arms, until his lungs inhaled her cedar-and-vanilla scent.

“If it was Yennifer out there, a prisoner of your enemy, what would you do?”

It was dangerous to even challenge a mated male about his mate’s well-being. Werewolves were beasts, their powers weaved with shifting and the nature of wolves. Territorial, protective. Bétar, though wide with muscle and the scars of a protector, had practiced patience and kindness when it came to Yennifer. Over the years, Kade had witnessed the love in his second’s eyes for the archer, long before he’d ever muttered a word of it—highly motivated by the influence of blueberry ale.

Bétar searched Kade’s face. “I’d be maddened with worry, but I’d feel assured she could manage.”

“I feel the same way about Evelyn.”

Bétar scoffed. “Then why are you strung tighter than Yennifer’s bow string?”

“Because I’m on a mission.” Again, Kade turned, refusing to meet his second’s stare, focusing instead on the mass of mists and shadow.

Bétar sighed. “I’m worried about you.”

Bare without his sword and armor, Kade’s third-born instinct to protect against more than danger, surfaced. He was supposed to lead by example, put one foot in front of the other, account for every detail, every possibility for his team, and inspire hope and purpose in those around him. His actions, his focus, were not intended to make Bétar concerned.

Did others on the team see his worry for Evelyn? Did his brother? The pressure on his chest, one that pulsed every minute of every day, surged. His skin ran cold, his heart drummed in his ears. Thoughts and reason vanished.

Kade didn’t need to see to know his eyes glowed again. They reflected in Bétar’s stare and the beads of his beard, blue brightening the moon’s light on his second’s face. Again, his new power returned on its own accord. Kade tried to grasp it, but unlike his wolf, it didn’t feel a part of him.

He blinked a few times, shook his head, and the light eventually dissipated. The pressure in his chest remained, though.

“You need to get that under control.”

“It is under control,” Kade said.

“You almost blew up the Shield-maiden,” Bétar said. A tease sat in his second’s tone, the usual banter he’d expect from him. It didn’t settle the mood into a lightheartedness, not when Kade didn’t have time to hone a new ability, one that frightened him more than fueled him.

One that risked the well-being of others.

“Bétar is right,” Linx appeared to his left.

Beside him, Bétar jumped. “Haven’t we been over announcing yourself? You about stopped my heart!”

Linx giggled, biting her lip. “Where would the fun be in that?”

Bétar muttered a curse about mages.

Next to Linx, Maxie sat, tail curled around her feet like some bushy blanket. The two had actually bonded during the team’s journey north, and side by side, their shared stealthy, mysterious likeness was more apparent than ever. The sight eased a bit of tension in Kade—the fact Evelyn’s familiar was faring well enough amongst his team brought him some comfort.

“Kade, no werewolf has possessed a power like that,” Bétar said. “Not even Finton.”

He exhaled, breath pluming into the Void’s mists. “I know.”

“Then why aren’t you more worried?” Linx asked with a shake of her head.

Worried? Kade didn’t have any more worry to give. Not when every ounce was spent thinking of Evelyn.

“My attention is set on getting my mate back.” Kade studied the Void, not looking to his friends. The gray taunted him. “It is also not the time or place. Like you said, no other werewolf has possessed a power or ability like this. Its best to wait until we’re home with the help of scholars, witches even.”

Linx sighed, eyes softening. “I know you want to get Evelyn back as soon as possible, but I don’t think learning this power will stall our progress, not when we need to rest from time to time. Though I am a mage, and your ability might be different from my magik, I can try and help.”

“Aye, can’t believe I’m saying this, but that’s a fine idea,” Bétar said.

Kade wrestled with reason . Learning this new power had its benefits. But something deep inside him fought the notion. His worth, his purpose were defined by his abilities to be a protector. He’d experienced it in the wake of his mother’s death. He responded and protected his family and pack, honing his potential and setting the example others needed. This new power left him off-balance. As if he weren’t good enough to complete this mission. And the more he worried, the worse the pressure on his chest grew.

One foot in front of the other.

Kade repeated his mantra, his teachings from Carena, despite the mounting pressure. Containing it was for the best. He’d deal with this power after he rescued Evelyn.

“The mission is priority,” Kade said, allowing his commander baritone to crack the still night air.

Kade left the Void, not leaving room for Bétar or Linx to challenge his decision. Their disapproving gazes scraped across his back with each step to his tent.