A Wolf's Journey (Wolf Mountain Peak Book 7)

by Sarah J. Stone

  “We very nearly were,” she answered, regal as ever. “But it appears we escaped just in time. We seek sanctuary.”

  “Of course,” Nathaniel said, approaching. His hands were trembling, and he fought to keep his face neutral. As soon as he was close to her, he lowered his voice. “Are you all right?”

  “Yes,” Eliza answered. “But many of my people are dead. Nathaniel…”

  “I know,” he said softly. “I know. It's okay. You're safe now, and we'll figure it out. We will retaliate.”

  “And we will rebuild,” she replied. “Retaliation does not sound very witchlike, but we'll take it if you are offering.”

  “For you, my queen,” he said, “anything.”

  He turned then, because he knew that he would kiss her if he stared at her one moment longer. Everyone was staring at them, and it was getting obvious.

  Sienna couldn't contain herself and ran forward, throwing her arms around Eliza.

  “You're not dead!” she cried.

  “No,” Eliza managed to chuckle. “Look at you! You've grown nearly a foot. How are you, Sienna?”

  “I am well,” Sienna answered, and Nathaniel cleared his throat. “I am mostly well.”

  “That is good to hear,” Eliza smiled. “Perhaps you can tell me how you have been. Nathaniel, some room?”

  “Your grace,” he answered as he led her toward Desmond. “I'm going to get the queen settled, and then I can sort through this. Perhaps you could teach my class?”

  Desmond raised an eyebrow. “Really?” he asked, but Nathaniel's eyes were pleading. “Yes. What am I teaching?”

  “Strategy, textbook,” Nathaniel answered, not even bothering to give Desmond the full information before he swept Eliza out of the room. “Thank you.”

  “You're welcome.” Desmond rolled his eyes, glancing at Dorian. “My Tiros,” he said sarcastically.

  “I see that,” Dorian smiled. “I shall leave you to it, then. The Jurors have summoned me, and I imagine there is much to talk about.”

  “I'll catch up with you after,” Desmond called after him as he turned to Christa. He was about to say something smart when his former Tiro interrupted him.

  “When did the attack on the Jeffroian palace happen?”

  “Um, sometime in the night,” Desmond replied. “Why?”

  “It's barely morning,” Christa answered. “I've flown that route to Jeffro a thousand times. Unless our information is wrong, there is no way they made it here that fast.”

  Desmond paused. “What are you saying? Do you think they left before the attack?”

  “That is possible,” Christa answered. “We do sometimes receive news long after such attacks, or have the time stamp wrong. But if we haven't received bad news?”

  “What are you suggesting, Christa?”

  “Two things,” she said. “Either they left before the attack occurred, which is unlikely, given that there is blast damage to the ship. Or–”

  He picked up her train of thought right away. “Or they are dead and returned.”

  “We haven't figured out what's happened with the Ronan,” she answered, “but it seems similar.”

  Desmond took a deep breath. “Sienna would have sensed if her life force was different. She's so strong, Christa; there's not a thing that gets by her.”

  “I know,” Christa answered. “But we don't fully understand what's happening. So what if that is the case?”

  Desmond looked in the direction that Nathaniel and Eliza had gone off to, thinking. “Don't breathe a word of this to either of them,” he said. “Especially Nathaniel. Not until we have a better idea of what is happening and why.”

  “You don't think he has a right to know?” Christa answered.

  “What good would that do?” Desmond replied. “If this return is temporary, and their time is limited, it would only taint it. I don't want that for him. I know that what they are doing is wrong, Christa, and that I have been the catalyst for that. But we can't suggest that to him, not yet.”

  “Have you considered that it's the same possibility for Dorian then?” she answered, and he sighed.

  “I have. I don't know what magic is at play here, but it is a gift, and it may not last forever.”

  Christa was silent a long moment. “I'll teach the class,” she said, and Desmond turned to her.

  “What? No, I–”

  “Desmond, if Diana walked through those doors right now,” she bit her lip, trying not to show her emotions, “I would not be scheduling anything else in my day. To have a Maestro back after losing them…I can't even imagine. I can't let myself imagine. Please don't take it for granted. ”

  He gently put a hand on her back. Diana's death rocked her so hard he wasn't sure that he would ever see her smile. It was only Reynolds' choice to leave their order that had created a sense of shared grief between them, and over that they bonded.

  “Thank you,” he said to her.

  “Anytime,” Christa replied. “I hope, for both of your sakes, it's all the time. “

  Chapter 13

  “I'm all right,” Devon assured Sienna when she had broken away from Nathaniel and Eliza to visit with him. He looked much better than he had the night before, sitting cross-legged on his bed. She settled onto his couch, considering whether she should magically ping him to find out if he was telling the truth. But Nathaniel had said that wasn't polite, and so she decided against it. “How are you?”

  “Good,” she said. “The Queen of Jeffro is safe.”

  “Yeah, I heard about that,” Devon answered. “Have you been to Jeffro?”

  “Oh, yes,” Sienna said. “My first mission. And many times since. I am from there.”

  “Is that where your adorable accent is from?” he asked, and she blushed. “That's cool. I don't know where I'm from. It's sort of rare, isn't it?”

  “I was…” She searched for the right word. “Late.”

  “Identified late?” he asked, and she nodded. “That makes sense. It's just the way it is with some. Laura thinks she knows where she is from, but she's always said that it doesn't really matter. This is home.”

  “Yes, home,” Sienna brushed the hair out of her eyes as she watched Devon. “Your Maestro is not with you?”

  “No,” he answered, confused. “Why would she be?”

  “When I am ill, I'm not alone,” she replied, and he shrugged.

  “Ah, well, your Maestros are a bit overprotective,” he replied. “Understandably so.”

  “Overprotective?” she furrowed her brow. “Is it not all like that?”

  “No.” He shook his head with a smile. “But of course, most of the time, there's just one Maestro, so they can't be awake and on duty 24/7. You are lucky.”

  “Lucky,” she replied. “Mostly.”

  He changed the subject, seeing that it confused her, and held up his tablet instead.

  “Are you doing this in class yet?”

  The Tiros weren't segregated by age so much as ability in their classes. As they got older, their Maestros sometimes pulled them from classes entirely, choosing to educate them on continuous quests. Sienna knew she would be in school until she was eighteen, aging out and hopefully taking the tests. Devon was a level ahead of her in some classes, and the piloting diaphragm he held up didn't look familiar.

  “No,” she shook her head. “Are you stuck?”

  “Very,” he answered with a grin. “And if I fail a class, my Maestro will reign terror on me.”

  “I know a pilot,” Sienna offered. “She can help.”

  “Can she?” Devon asked. “Who do you know?”

  “Christa,” she answered. “Desmond's old Tiro. A good pilot.”

  “Christa's an amazing pilot,” Devon answered. “I know her by reputation. She could fly through a meteor shower with her eyes closed. Mmm,” he put a hand to his stomach and Sienna tensed. “No, no pain. Hunger. Do you want to get some food?”

  “Yes,” she replied. She wasn't really hungry, but sh
e'd go just about anywhere with Devon. “Where?”

  “There's a place in town if you want,” he said, his eyes twinkling. “If you're allowed.”

  “Of course, I'm allowed,” she cried, even though she knew she should probably ask permission, especially after last time. But Nathaniel was occupied with Eliza, and Desmond with Dorian. They would be back before she was missed. “Quickly?”

  “Yes, it's not far,” Devon said, shutting down his tablet and getting up. She saw his shirt shift as he did, and was reminded that he understood her pain and her trials. The pump attached to him was keeping him alive. “Maybe we won't come back.”

  “Ha!” she said, knowing he was joking. But there was something in Devon's eyes that made her pause. “Are you…?”

  He shook his head. “Mostly joking, yes. But have you ever wondered, what if it doesn't work?”

  “What if what doesn't work?” Sienna asked, puzzled. Sometimes, the Basic words were too quick for her.

  “This,” he said. “Taking the tests, becoming a full blown witch because our health is a bad luck card.”

  “Oh,” she paused. “Once, I thought I would never be trained. But my Maestros have taken me on, and they have promised to never leave.”

  “Never?” Devon asked. “Even if you can't take the tests?”

  “I will,” she said, with less certainty. “Will you?”

  “I don't know,” he answered truthfully. “I am very happy being with Laura, of course. We have a pact to go until we can't go anymore. But I've often thought whether this is how I want to spend the rest of my days.”

  “You won't die, Devon.” It was the only thing she could think about saying. Looking right into his eyes, she felt like his very soul was connected to his. She felt like their hearts were one. Their hands pulled together, and she stood up on her tip-toes to kiss him.

  How was it possible that she wasn't supposed to love; that she was too young to know what love was? Devon was her mirror image.

  “Everyone dies, Sienna,” he answered softly as he brushed her hair back. “These thoughts are too deep for today. Just don't forget them, hmm?”

  “Of course not,” she answered as she squeezed his hand. “Food?”

  “Yep,” he said as he shut out the lights. “And maybe a surprise or two.”

  She grinned as she followed him out the door. Devon was so exciting – so spontaneous; it was addictive. She loved his sense of adventure and his willingness to bend the rules. She felt like she would follow him anywhere. It was the first time in her life where she didn't mind being apart from her Maestros, where she wasn't afraid, and she trusted someone other than them.

  He was a miracle.

  ***

  Down the hallway, Nathaniel was also marveling at a miracle. He kissed Eliza's neck and her collarbone, and traced down her chest.

  “I thought you were dead,” he said. “And I think that you are dead too often. This can't keep happening.”

  “When the explosion rocked us, all I could think about was you. How I wouldn't get to say goodbye to you. I've never envied you having magic; I've never wished it for myself. But in that moment, I hoped that you would hear me.”

  “Mmm,” he lay beside her, burying his face in her golden hair. “Magic connects us all, my love. It runs through Nature, and there is Nature everywhere. We are all connected.”

  “Your beliefs are so grounding,” she said. “They're so simple and easy in a way.”

  “It's not simple or easy,” he said as he rolled onto his back. “But it is worth it, most of the time.”

  “Except for when you break the rules.” She squeezed his hand.

  “Aye, that's worth it, too,” he answered with a smile. “Desmond has always made it clear that while the Jurors have good ideas, they don't always work in practice.”

  “But love does distract you from magic,” she answered. “Obviously.”

  “When I was younger, yes,” he replied. “And, well, when we first got Sienna. But now it's different. I understand my duties and where my priorities lie. As you understand yours.”

  “I do,” she rolled her head toward him. “But it doesn't mean we can't dream once in a while.”

  “Mmm,” he stroked the side of her face. “And dream I do – of all the possibilities, of the way it could work. And should you ever say the words–”

  “I won't,” she cut him off, meeting his eyes. “I would never take you away from this. This is what you are meant to do. If you come to me, Nathaniel, it will be under the understanding that you are doing so of your own free will.”

  “And that I will never be king,” he answered. She looked down, but he touched her face.

  “It's okay,” he said. “Really. This doesn't come as a surprise to me.”

  She lay quiet for a moment, her fingertips brushing against his chest. “Sometimes, I wish it didn't. I wish you were a prince and that you could lay beside me every day. But I know that is not the fate life has set for us.”

  “Nobody gets to choose their fate,” he answered.

  She closed her eyes. “Don't I know it? If I could, my palace would still be there.”

  “You must have known there was a threat if you evacuated.”

  “Yes,” she answered. “They discovered the bomb, and we had less than three minutes. I barely made it onto the ship before it blew. Luckily, I think the blast doors were completely up, and we were just taking off before it blew. I am missing a bit of memory, but then we were sailing through space, headed to you.”

  “We're looking into it,” he assured her. “You're safe here.”

  “I will be involved with the investigation, obviously,” she said. “And we will be going back to Jeffro. Just right now, I need to collect my thoughts.”

  “Of course,” he said. “Desmond is teaching my class, so we can relax.”

  His com-link buzzed then, and he groaned, glancing at it. “Speaking of the devil,” he said as he pulled the com-link toward him. “Aren't you supposed to be teaching my class?”

  “Christa is teaching your class,” Desmond answered. “And she'll probably do a better job at it than me. Your Tiro, by the way, was just seen escaping to the city center, arm-in-arm with a certain other Tiro we know.”

  “What?” Nathaniel sat up, glancing at the clock. “So it's almost noon. Why are you calling me?”

  “Seniority?” Desmond answered. “Unless you don't mind that she's there.” Nathaniel, oddly enough, was the stricter of the two. Desmond suspected it was because he was trying to prove himself, setting out a strategy as a Maestro that was almost impossible to follow.

  “I mind,” Nathaniel glanced at Eliza's half-naked body beside him. “Is it Devon who's with her?”

  “It is,” Desmond answered. “You should get her. The two of them together are a ticking time bomb.”

  “Argh,” Nathaniel answered. “Please don't make me.”

  Eliza snorted, sitting beside him, and Desmond overheard. Nathaniel could almost hear him raising an eyebrow over the link.

  “One time,” Desmond said.

  “Thank you,” Nathaniel answered, disconnecting the link. He sank back down beside Eliza, kissing her face.

  “You sounded like you did when we were teenagers,” Eliza said. “Always disobeying him; always fighting him.”

  “And look where we ended up,” Nathaniel answered.

  “Mmm.” Eliza snuggled up beside him. “I know I'm supposed to be thinking of my people, of my crown, of my planet, but all I can think about right now is this. And you.”

  “So take a moment,” Nathaniel answered. “Creator knows you deserve it. You work too hard, Eliza.”

  “Or not hard enough,” she answered. She never thought she'd be one of those royals seeking asylum with the safety of the witches. She had heard of how they sheltered so many, but she always secretly judged them. They were weak, they weren't prepared, and they weren't ready for action. She wasn't going to be one of those royals who abandoned her people and
her palace and ran for cover.

  Except, she was.

  She closed her eyes, trying to see the incident, trying to see what happened and how she could retaliate. But it was as if she couldn't remember past the moment she saw Nathaniel an hour ago. She couldn't remember the trip or anything past the explosion.

  “I love you,” she muttered to Nathaniel, who pulled her closer.

  “I love you, too,” he said, vowing to protect her. Eliza would never be in such danger again. He wasn't sure how he would do it, but he was sure that he would keep her safe as if his life depended on it.

  Chapter 14

  Sienna wasn't brave enough to take Devon's hand as they walked down the street, but he took hers. She glanced at him, surprised.

  “What if people see?”

  “So?” He raised an eyebrow. “Your Maestro takes Mariah's arm all the time. No one says anything.”

  “That's because she's blind,” Sienna pointed out. “He's helping her. Everyone knows that.”

  “Sure,” Devon answered with a smile. “And everyone knows that you're sick. That's not a secret.”

  “So are you,” she said quietly.

  “But not everyone knows that. Or anyone, mostly,” he answered. “So, to everyone who knows us, I'm just being a big, strong man by helping you.”

  She giggled and squeezed his hand.

  She felt so normal walking down the street with him. Those who didn't know they were witches would never guess they were anything but a normal couple spending the afternoon together.

  “Where are you taking me?” she asked, and he pointed ahead.

  “Just there. See the yellow sign?”

  “Yes,” she said, squinting into the distance. “What kind of place is it?”

  “It's just a diner,” he said. “Don't worry. I'm not taking you anywhere questionable.”

  “I…Duck!” Sienna suddenly yanked Devon to the side as a few droids barreled toward them at high speed. They startled a flock of birds, and she screamed as she saw two get run over. She and Devon had moved at just the right time, barely an inch from the heavy droids.

  It was nothing to be concerned with as a group of kids their age ran after them in alarm. Clearly, playtime had turned dangerous, and by the look of those droids, they weren't toys.