by KC Kellersen
I left her lying in my bed and headed down the steps. It was almost midnight and there was no one awake in the castle. I quickly went to her room and gathered her meager belongings. Except the key to the training center. I couldn’t find it, anywhere. With a regretful sigh, I left her room and rushed back to her.
I put clean clothes on her that were soft and wouldn’t rub too bad against her wounds. She might be angry with me for seeing her naked. I had imagined it many times, but I couldn’t see her as the desirable woman she is. This injured woman, so close to death, tore my heart strings. I could assure her it wasn’t an enjoyable experience.
I wished she would have listened to me and left when she had the chance. It my fault she was in this condition. I should have made her leave when I did. Instead I let that selfish part of my brain let her stay. The part that wanted to see her again. Now this image of her would haunt me for the rest of my life.
I checked her wounds that had bled through the bandages once more. Cleaning them with a rag and putting new bandages on. I curled my tall body into the chair and watched as she slept. I prayed to the Moon Goddess that she would be okay. I needed her to be okay.
Chapter 17
Alina’s POV
The blackness was lifting, and the pain was getting stronger. No! I wanted to go back to the darkness. I didn’t want to feel this pain! My body was throbbing all over. Please bring the darkness back. I felt my body shift on the bed. Wait, bed. I was in a bed. Not just any bed, Oliver’s bed. His scent surrounded me like a comforting blanket. I wanted to roll towards the source of the scent, but my body was throbbing in pain. I couldn’t get my thoughts to form proper thoughts.
Hello Alina.
What? What was that?
I am Nia. Your wolf-spirit. Rest your body and I will heal you. Everything will be okay. Oliver is with you.
My wolf-spirit! I was now a wolf-shifter! I’ve waited 20 years to hear that beautiful voice, the other half of my soul. Joy permeated my body. The pain receded suddenly with a woosh and I started to itch all over. It was a very strange sensation. Nia pushed the healing force over me, and I could feel my injuries mending. I focused on keeping my breathing calm as the pain cleared enough for my mind to work. The scent finally broke all the way through the fog.
MATE! Oliver was my mate. I opened my eyes and searched for his. I was a little startled at the look in his eyes. He looked so desolate and not happy that I was his mate.
There is a complication of Sarina’s making. Fynn doesn’t recognize us yet. You will know when the time is right to tell him.
A new pain filled me. How could Sarina interfere with the mate bond? It was mine and his. Not hers to play with, like a toy. It made me both sad and angry to know that he didn’t recognize me. And I was terrified that he might never recognize me, if we didn’t stop Sarina.
“Kitten are you alright?” he asked worriedly.
“I am confused.” I wanted to reach for him, to close the distance between us. The love I felt while sitting in that dungeon had exploded, as my wolf-spirit recognized him. I felt a new sensation snaking over my skin. It must be the mating tattoo carving itself into my skin. A permanent mark showing that I belonged to him. Even if he didn’t belong to me… Yet.
Wait! How do I have the tattoo marking? Doesn’t Fynn have to recognize me for that to happen? Shouldn’t he be getting his tattoo instead?
It is part of the complication. The mating bond in Fynn has recognized us, but it is disconnected from them. They won’t receive their markings back until we mend the bond.
“What are you confused about?” he asked. Should I tell him? Or would that hurt him?
You will know when it is the right time to tell him.
I wanted to, but I took the cowards way out. “What happened?” I guess that would be a valid reason for being confused.
“Irene tortured you. For two full days. It’s over now, I have a plan to get us out of here. I will never let her hurt you again.” Pain contorted his face.
Shit. I shouldn’t have asked. I wasn’t ready to talk about Irene, and the part of myself I lost in that dungeon. But I didn’t want him blaming himself either. I had to remove the pain from his face.
“It’s not your fault. Please don’t do that to yourself.” Or me. His pain hurt me, I needed to distract him. So, I asked, “How will we get out of here? Where are you taking me?”
“We are taking you home Alina. We will have a two-horse carriage waiting for us. I figured you wouldn’t be ready for anything more strenuous than that.”
“What about the alphas? We still need to save them!”
“They will be following us and are under orders with a small army of sentries. Don’t worry Kitten, I have it all planned out. I am sorry about this, but we need to move. I will have to carry you down to the carriage and I will take it as easy as possible on the trip to… wherever it is you will lead me.”
The thought of him carrying sent my mind away from the darkness and towards the safe place in my mind, towards a future with him. The many different ways he would hold me, touch me, kiss me… I cut the thoughts off, now was not the time.
Oliver filled me in on the plan, carried me out of the castle and down to the market. He was trying to keep out of sight of the guards, but I knew this was because the alphas were following us. We had a double-crossing charade to keep up. I could smell and hear them, so I knew it was working so far.
When we reached the market there was a wagon waiting and he laid me gently inside the bed. There was a layer of blanketing down and it was quite comfortable. He quickly looked over my bandages to make sure I wasn’t bleeding, but I could feel most of the cuts and whip lashes closing. Some were healed completely.
“Take the road towards Stillforest,” I whispered to him and he set us on our way. I knew he had questions for me, but he didn’t say anything. He just let me rest. I needed it, I had only a few hours before we would need to leave the carriage and go on horseback. I knew the sentries were letting us go but my anxiety climbed as we neared the market entrance from Stillforest. I would not go back to that dungeon. Ever again! When we passed through without incident, I let out a heavy breath of relief.
“Are you doing okay Kitten?” he asked quietly in front of me.
“Yes, I am okay. My wolf is healing me. I should be mobile before we reach Stillforest.”
“Why can’t I smell your wolf unless I am touching you? And how is she healing you? I thought we weren’t supposed to get our wolves until we shifted on the moon of our 20th year?”
I smiled; I knew he had questions. Strange…I get that the mate bond was an issue but for him not to smell me at all was peculiar. “I don’t know… Maybe because I am of royal blood.”
“Tell me how you are really doing,” he pleaded, the hurt and regret in his voice tore through me.
“I have very little energy; I feel like I left part of me behind in those dungeons and I am itchy all over, but I will be okay. Nia is doing a great job of healing me, maybe we have some super healing or something. I thought it would take at least a full day to heal my injuries. But I can already feel the skin reconnecting over the largest slashes on my back.” My voice was a no-nonsense tone, but the memory of terror and pain threatened to choke me.
“I am so sorry Alina. I wish I never sent that letter to my contact. If I hadn’t, you wouldn’t have suffered like you did.” Oh no he didn’t! He was not going to blame himself for Irene’s fucked up love for pain.
“Not a chance in hell Oliver. You are not going to blame yourself for this. We both know it wasn’t your fault. If I hear one more word about you taking blame, I will kick your ass. You saved me and that is what matters!” I exploded with feeling, but I kept my voice quiet. I didn’t want anyone to overhear us.
“Shhh... alright Kitten. Calm down. Just get some rest, I will wake you when we get to Stillforest.” He was quiet for a long while as we made the trip towards Stillforest.
I felt the mate bond between us
with both, a terrible sadness and overwhelming love. Would he ever recognize me? If not, would he accept my love without it? I tried not to think about it, but it was there. The constant draw towards him a reminder that my future was not guaranteed. I remembered the dream that I had with hope, maybe I could have that. I just needed to walk the line carefully. My future really was hanging by some thread I couldn’t see.
I was weak and very tired. But if it weren’t for Oliver, I wouldn’t even feel safe enough to close my eyes. I let his scent calm me and I fell asleep, frail from two days of pure hell and all the energy Nia used to heal my body.
He woke me when we neared the village. I directed him to the small path that led towards the backside of the village. It would take us a little farther away from the First Village, but we had to leave the carriage somewhere inconspicuous.
We stopped around halfway down the small path and took the horses bareback into the forest, opposite of Stillforest. I was still really weak, even with my injuries healing, so we moved slowly through the trees. Which worked to our advantage, because the alphas couldn’t track us very well without their wolves. We could lose them here without even meaning to. And that would defeat the entire purpose of Oliver’s plan.
The dark forest was cool, but I didn’t feel the chill. I just enjoyed the fresh, free air as we made our way home. The air was filled with all the critters in the forest, it was almost peaceful. Until I heard the sounds of wolves. Lots of wolves running up fast, from somewhere behind us... Fuck!
“Oliver stop! Wolves incoming and fast!” I exclaimed as I reigned my horse in.
“What? Where, I don’t hear them?”
“From behind us. Trust me and this is not my group. It’s too large. Probably all the warriors of Stillforest. We need to go back and protect the alphas. They won’t understand!”
“Shit, I hear them.”
We turned and raced back towards the alphas and the sentries. Oliver dismounted and drew his sword. The alphas and sentries followed suit. They were looking at Oliver like he was the threat. With trembling legs, I slowly got off the horse. Not two seconds later, the wolves of Stillforest moved in around us, the horses bolted, and I was knocked to the ground with a thud. Fresh pain flowed over me. Oliver exploded out of his clothes and into wolf form, his sword going flying. He towered over my body protectively.
I was mesmerized by his wolf’s beauty! His icy blue eyes stood out against his pitch-black fur. His paws were large, and his body was tensed to spring. His wolf was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Beautiful and terrifying. Absolutely terrifying. The growling around me brought me out of my stupor. I stood with a groan and watched as the alphas shifted their attention from us.
I could see where Cord got his beastly size. The wolves of Stillforest were huge, but not quite as large as Oliver. Most of them were a mixture of grey and brown, Oliver was the only black wolf in the group. No matter the color each were snarling and snapping, ready to fight for what they believed was right. It was only a matter of time before they attacked.
I needed to get up, do something. I couldn’t just sit by and wait for the future of Ayorlyn to be destroyed from some misguided alpha, no matter how brave this attempt was. I had to protect Oliver, Dale, Ryan and Cord if it was the last thing I did.
I put both my hands up and shouted, “Wait! Before you attack, Alpha, I need to speak with you!”
“What could you possibly say that would stop us from doing the right thing. These monsters need to be killed; they only make Lillian more powerful.” I could see the regret in his eyes at his own words though. One of these “monsters” was his own son. His own flesh and blood. “They cannot be forgiven for killing an entire territory of people, no matter who they are! And if you stand with them, you should be killed as well.”
Oliver stayed in front of me growling low in his throat, his big wolf body a shield. I could barely see over his back. He didn’t take too kindly to the threat on my life. Especially considering what I had just been through and I was injured; swaying on my feet. I would be an easy target. The alpha ignored my words and shifted to his wolf form, causing everyone to explode into motion.
I could hear screaming all around me, it brought back memories of my own screams and I felt like I was being dragged back to hell. I fought to keep Irene from dominating my thoughts. It was a losing battle. I could hear the whip snapping behind me and my heart began to race in fear.
When Oliver’s growls turned even more menacing, I snapped out of my personal hell. I knew men were dying but once I saw the wolf stalking towards us, I couldn’t force my eyes away from Alpha Marcus. He was eyeing Oliver, starting to circle. Trying to find a weakness he could exploit. And he had one; Me. In that moment, I knew that Oliver would die trying to protect me. The thought made me absolutely livid! He was my mate, and I would NOT let him die before he even knew about it.
Mate!
At Nia’s desperate call to our mate, the anger inside me built. As my anger grew in intensity, I could feel power rising within me. On instinct I pushed the power out of me with a burst. The wolves, and what was left of the sentries, staggered and dropped to their bellies or knees. Whimpers and wines filled the air as my power settled over them. It continued flowing out of me, like an endless river of water pushing them further into the ground. The alphas were struggling on their knees, trying to get back to their feet to continue their attack.
They had to stop fighting this, I had to help them. Desperation filled me once more. I couldn’t let them be harmed; they wouldn’t die because of me! I needed to reach them!
“EVERYONE STOP!” I shouted.
Everything stopped around me. The only sound to be heard was heavy breathing. Even the alphas were frozen, they could not ignore my command and power. The confliction with the Queens instruction was raging inside their minds.
I stood tall, all the wolves still on their bellies, just watching me. Only Oliver remained unaffected from the power burning within me I turned towards him and rubbed my hand over his fur. Oliver was radiating joy, but I could also feel the confusion, anger, irritation, love, and pride rolling off him. It was a potent mixture.
Mine!
I could feel the bond pulsing between us like a beacon of light. My mate. We would have plenty of time after this. I would explain everything, and we could explore the bond, together. I left my hand on his fur and focused on the problems at hand. I needed his help, so I focused on the mate bond linking me to him. Once I found it, I spoke through it.
Oliver, Fynn, I need to explain what is going on, but I am not sure how long I can keep the alphas at bay, I am weak.
Oliver’s wolf growled in disapproval. Clearly, he didn’t like the situation any more than I did. Especially with all these shifters still scattered in a circle around us. I was powerful, even in my weakened state and made myself a huge target.
I spoke aloud to everyone once more, “Wolves of Stillforest, return to your alpha. Future Alpha’s, move in front of Oliver!” I commanded.
The shifters moved around and behind the Alpha of Stillforest without protest. The three alphas moved to the front of me and Oliver, I could feel them fighting every step. Once there, my power weighed them down, and they were on their knees once more. The orders from Lillian were clashing with mine in their minds. I could feel their pain and confusion in my mind. It was heartbreaking.
What now?
Fynn’s words in my head echoed. Oliver and Fynn both had wonderful voices. Both of his voices sent shivers down my spine but also had a calming effect on me. He was a magnificent specimen for a mate as wolf and man. The Moon Goddess picked well for us.
Yes, she did.
Oliver growled a warning towards all the wolves in front of us. Even without recognizing I was his mate; he was protective of me. That and the love I felt within him, gave me hope that was so overwhelming I wanted to scream with joy. Though that does mean once he figures it out, he is going to be very defensive, borderline possessive.
I rolled my eyes and rubbed the fur on his back. The contact calmed him and sent electricity sparking up my arm. I spoke over his back, from my tip toes. “The people of Ironridge are not dead! Iona Black escorted them to safety before they could be harmed. Now, tell your wolves to go home before I make them... The future alphas have not killed anyone and are NOT to be harmed!”
“How are you controlling everyone?” Confusion, anger and guilt warred in his eyes.
“It is a complicated story. What is important here is that these men are innocent. They are not in control of their own actions. Look at your son! You can clearly see the confusion in his face and the pain from disobeying his orders. They are under a spell from a witch named Sarina.”
“So why are they listening to you?”
“My power is strong enough to battle the royal power and the spell.”
“Who are you?”
“That is a story for another time. I must get these alphas to the First Village of Ayorlyn. Iona Black has restored the village and has taken refuge there. I have hopes to break this spell from the alphas, leaving their minds free of Lillian and her control.”
“What will happen to my son?”
“You will have your son back in due time. Thank you for taking a stand against Queen Lillian. No matter how misguided it was, this was a brave thing to do. It is nice to see the wolves finally taking a stand against her. Now please, take your people home.”
“Kell, take the men. I will accompany this girl to the First Village. I wish to see my son, my real son, for the first time in 12 years.” I could taste his power flowing and his words were harsh. I thought he would be happier about this situation. Alpha Marcus’ men went home without hesitation. Only two men stayed beside the Alpha.
“Now that the alphas know I am a threat to their mission, it will be dangerous for me. I cannot continue to hold my power over them like this. It is too far a journey and takes great effort, that I do not have.”
