Chapter 15

W ulfric laced up the other leather boot over his new brown pants and felt the pressure on his chest increase. The dizziness swept over him like a tidal wave and memories faded in and out.

A wife laughing at the hearth, a baby crawling on the floor. An old woman pulling a death shroud over his wife's face.

He shook his head as the images flooded through his mind. Why now? Why were the memories coming now after ten years of being a Growler?

Sweat beaded on his lip, and he wiped it away, his head pounding. His stomach lurched, breakfast settling like a weight in his gut. He was too hot, the clothes too restrictive. He stumbled to his feet and pushed through the door.

The frigid air hit him, and he breathed deeply, eyes closed as he focused on staying upright.

"Wulfric?" Scarlet's voice was soft, grounding him in the present. "What's wrong?"

How quickly she went from cold and distant to concern for him.

He blinked in the blinding sunlight falling through the trees. The images and rushing in his ears faded as her small hand settled on his bare forearm. He looked down into green eyes so deep, he could drown in them.

His hands settled on her elbows, afraid to pull her close but needing to touch her, needing to be reminded of life. She was real, warm, and vivacious. She was more than just a beautiful woman in the right place at the right time; she was a lifeline, grounding him in his humanity and easing the ache in his chest caused by painful memories.

The past was easier to face in her presence.

He blinked as a bird flew overhead, a robin trilling softly and breaking the hold of the past. Even with the sun shining, snow began to fall softly, already forming a crown on the red hair piled high between her antlers.

"Talk to me, wolfie. What's going on in that big brain of yours?" Her voice was softer than it'd been earlier. When they'd been packing, she'd been tense and jumpy.

But now, with those green eyes staring at him with worry and tenderness… maybe there was hope for them yet.

He raked a hand through his hair. "I don't know how to talk about it."

She arched a brow but didn't say anything. So he took a deep breath. He had to trust her, talk with her, let her in. It was the only way to win her affections and convince her to complete the mate bond.

"Growlers don't remember our lives before we were turned, but I do now." His voice was harsh and deep.

"What do you mean?" she asked, shivering in her thick, fur-lined red and green hood as she reached for one of the two bags on the ground.

He licked his lips and swallowed, trying to choke out the words to explain. He wanted her to understand him, to bare his heart and soul to her, but damn if it wasn't hard to do.

Wulfric grabbed both bags and slung them over his shoulders. "Let me carry them. We need to get moving before we freeze where we stand."

She pursed her lips and nodded. "Very well. We can take the path to the Lone Road. Can you find your way from there?"

With a nod, he wiggled his toes in the boots. They were uncomfortable, but he was trying to adjust to living like a human for her sake. "The Lone Road is the boundary of our territory, so yes. I can find the way. If we push ourselves, we should reach camp by tomorrow night."

Her brows rose as she stepped back, pulling gloves out of her pocket. "So close? I thought they were several days away."

He shrugged. "Depends on the time of year. This month, we're in the most northern camp."

Adjusting the green shirt again, he led the way out of the clearing and into the woods. The grass crunched under their feet, breaking the silence around them. Each step pinched his toes in the too tight boots, and he had to consciously make sure his feet stayed shifted into human ones. They left the birds behind and even the rustling of small game grew fainter the deeper they traveled along a faint path.

"I'm here when you're ready to talk about the memory thing," she said as she led him along the path.

He scanned the woods, watching for predators and for the magic of the forest to attack. But it might be easier to talk about his feelings this way. If he wasn't facing her, he wouldn't need to analyze her expression and see how she was interpreting it.

This way, he could just talk. Freely. It had been years since he'd done this. He took a deep breath, some of the tightness on his chest easing.

"When Growlers are turned, we give up everything we were before. The magic of it erases all memories of our human lives."

Their steps crunched as the trees grew thicker and closer together.

"So you don't remember anything from before? Your life as a human?"

He shook his head and offered her a hand over a fallen log. She stared at him in fascination, uneasily taking his hand.

She stepped onto the log, but her foot went straight through the decaying wood. Beetles swarmed out of the hole, spreading over the log and up her leg.

She cried out, and Wulfric grabbed her hips and swung her away from the log. Some of them flew off her in the motion, but too many kept clinging to her, their tiny legs scurrying over her skin.

With a quick flick of her wrists, she drew out her gleaming daggers, their sharp edges glinting in the dim light. Wulfric deftly maneuvered around her as she frantically flapped her hands, narrowly avoiding her horns. He lunged forward, swiping at the crawling pests that threatened to latch onto his own legs.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," she muttered, each word a slash of her palms.

Several of them crawled on his own legs where he knelt on the ground, but he paid them no heed.

"There's more," she yelled, panicking and pointing to the log behind him.

He turned his head, and his stomach clenched. Hundreds were still pouring out of the hole in the log. He spun back around to see that she was now spider-free. Without hesitation, he leapt to his feet and scooped her up, throwing her over his shoulder and running to safety.

"Ah!" she screamed again, her tiny hands landing on his back, daggers bouncing as he jogged toward the road. "What are you doing? Put me down."

"Not until we're free from the swarm. Hold tight, bunny." He ran faster, trying to keep his gait smooth so as not to hurt her. He felt the stinging bite of beetles lessen on his legs, but he didn't stop until he got to the road.

Then he put her down on her feet, turning her to inspect every inch of her legs. "All gone?" he panted.

She scowled and nodded, patting her thighs and stepping away from him. "I could've managed on my own."

He sighed in relief and took her hand again. "I know, but you don't have to do it alone now, Scarlet."

He didn't release her hand. She scowled, but tipped her head up as he tugged her to follow the road. "This doesn't mean we're done with the conversation. Keep talking, wolfie."

He looked up over his shoulder, ever vigilant. "The river is this way. We'll meet it and follow it South. The Growler camp is just off the river."

"If you want to talk about your human life, I'd be alright with that."

His lips twitched at her attempt to appear nonchalant. He wanted her to trust him, which meant opening up to her about his former life. The knot in his stomach made him nervous, but he had to push past it.

He squeezed her hand and sighed. "When I was ambushed, the leader, Brody, said that he remembered his past. I didn't believe him. But the past few days of being with you–"

Vines stirred above, reaching for them. He spun her with their joined hands as it stabbed down, narrowly avoiding them. He tucked her behind him, but her hand reached up toward the vine, palm out.

It receded back into the canopy as the rest of the vines slowed their movements to a crawl. His brows rose, and he looked back at her. "Did you do that? Is that druid magic?"

She grinned and shook her head, revealing a brand on the inside of her left wrist. "It's dragon magic. My adopted brother, Knox, the dragon you saw yesterday? Grandma raised him from a hatchling. I was five when my mother died, and Knox hatched. When we were kids, he had a dream and burned this onto my wrist. We figured out it bypassed the magic of the forest."

"The magic that tries to kill trespassers?" Wulfric asked as they walked West on the only road that went through the forest.

She nodded. "Yeah, when I became a Hunter, he apparently formed the Robins and escorted people safely through the forest on this very road. For a fee, of course."

"Of course," he grinned. He rather admired the dragon for creating a business while also protecting the forest. Although the Robins had been a pain in the Growlers' side the entire time, he wished he'd thought to offer escort services through the forest.

She nodded at the bags still slung over his shoulder. "Want me to take a bag now?"

He shook his head. "No, I'm good."

They walked in silence until they came close to the river, then he led her South, far enough away from the river that they could still have a conversation while keeping it within sight.

He took her hand again, and this time she didn't tug it away. "Tell me more about the dragon. We've heard the rumors of what happened this summer, and why there's so many humans in the Robins' camp."

She grew quiet and nodded, then said, "It all started when the king of Busparia hired me to kill Eirwyn."

Wulfric's brows rose. "The princess? His own sister?"

Even the Growlers knew of the major players at the courts of both neighboring countries. But they hadn't heard this side of the story.

Scarlet nodded and continued. How they'd fled through the woods with Growlers on their heels. How they'd sought shelter at the cottage, and Eirwyn and Knox had gone to find a hidden magic manor in the forest.

How Scarlet had gone back to the king with a stag's heart and told him the deed was done.

"But he knew," Scarlet said softly, her steps slowing to a stop as she stared through the trees with unseeing eyes.

He squeezed her hand, and she looked up at him. The growing shadows made the angles on her face grow sharper. A sense of dread filled him at the darkness in her eyes.

"What happened?" His voice was soft in the stillness as snow fell through the thick trees.

She looked up at the sky and blinked rapidly. His strong warrior woman would hate the tears pooling in her eyes.

"He threw me in the dungeon for a few days. Normal torture, darkness, the stink of decay, and death everywhere."

She said it so flippantly, but Wulfric's heart ached for her. He wanted to wrap her into his arms, but she stepped away, tugging his hand to keep walking.

He waited a few steps to reply but didn't push her. "Well, it's a good thing the fucker is dead already. Otherwise, I'd have to kill him for hurting you."

Her lips twitched, but didn't quite form a smile. He bumped his shoulder with hers. "How did you get away?"

"Knox rescued me," she said softly. "He and the Robins. They rescued all of us. The king had arrested dozens of people to flush the Robins out of hiding."

"Let me guess. The dragon saved everyone?" Wulfric asked softly. He wasn't sure he could ever measure up to her brother. The way she spoke about him with a little irony and awe? He wanted her to talk about him like that too.

She nodded. "Yeah. Knox distracted the king while we escaped. Then the Robins and I went back to the palace and started the rebellion."

Wulfric nodded, impressed with the strength she'd revealed in just that explanation. She'd gone from a broken prisoner to fighting. His warrior goddess was unlike anyone he'd ever known.

The Growlers had heard of the rebellion, how the people had stormed the castle and set it on fire. He wondered how much of that had been her responsibility.

"The king was killed by a Robin, but the queen blamed us all. It was… life-changing for everyone, I guess. So many people were cursed, and they fled to the forest for safety."

She laughed suddenly. "I never thought the Feral Forest would be a haven for anyone but the druids, Knox, and I. But crazier things have happened, I guess."

"Like being mated to a Growler?" he asked.

Her back stiffened, and she nodded, but didn't say anything for several steps. Wulfric was afraid she was going to close herself off again, get angry and distant. He desperately did not want her to withdraw from him.

But she didn't let go of his hand, and that gave him hope. They walked side by side, and he kept the the river to his right.