CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Trevor
The howl sends the horses into a panic. It takes a moment to process that we’ve been spotted already. That moment is costly for my squad, their faces turning as pale as the moon.
Looking up at the waxing moon, I reassure myself of this small blessing. The beats’ strength dwindles towards the New Moon. And while they are still strong from the Full Moon, a Waxing Moon is headed towards the right direction when it comes to fighting monsters.
“What was that?” Floki’s voice trembles.
“We’ve been spotted. We don’t have much time. Grab what you can carry and send the horses away. We need to head towards the creek and hide in the water.”
“Are you trying to freeze us to death?” Phil protests. His ignorance quickly becoming a pet peeve of mine.
“Clearly, you don’t understand why Count Artur put me in charge. Follow orders, or I’ll deal with you myself,” James’s words are a rare show of respect that I appreciate. Ignoring the others, I gather my belongings. I pause, glancing at the baby blue silk ribbon I had cut from Ophelia’s dress. Carefully, I untie the precious fabric and wrap it around my hand. I bring the fabric to my face and take a deep breath in-trying to fill my senses with her scent.
I smack the horses hind corners and watch as it takes off in a full gallop-grateful to be headed the opposite direction of the howl.
My men follow my lead, but their noise is a liability. Water will mask our scent and cover our sounds better.
As I run towards the river, I silently thank the gods for the drawbridge. We wade into the icy water, gripping the ropes beneath. The cold and weight of our gear strain my strength, but I let the current sway me, trusting the ropes to keep me from being swept away. My arms are holding me steady as the cold seeps into my clothing and gear-further weighing me down. I move my body so that I am in the middle of the bridge, leaving room for the other’s to take refuge. James, Floki, and Phil follow suit. The moonlight reveals the swaying trees, and my stomach tightens. If Phil gets caught, we’re all dead.
“Fall in lie before you die!” Floki’s command is nearly drowned by the river’s roar. Phil scrambles into line, clearly accustomed to taking orders.
My mind drifts to Ophelia and the last moments we shared. The memory of her touch, her kisses, fuels my rage. But the cold makes it hard to focus on whom this anger should be directed at. My arms start to feel strained and my eyes become glued to the blue ribbon.
Ophelia. My dear sweet Ophelia. I will do anything to get to hold you again.
Draven
I lean backwards to pull Ophelia over into my lap as the horse continues to gallop away from camp. I’d recognize that scent anywhere and I had been a fool to believe it was just the Duke’s men who were after us.
Ophelia’s hair is blowing in the wind and she wraps her arms around my torso and her legs around my waist. She’s shivering in my thin tunic and I curse myself for allowing her to be in such a skimpy outfit with danger all around.
“What is going on?” Ophelia’s voice is meek. I dared look down at my beloved. Her face is puffy with tears. Her voice must be gone from crying so hard.
I will my defenses to remain-unable to allow myself to be weakened in this moment by her overwhelming feelings.
“We were discovered. It was no longer safe to continue traveling as we were.”
“What will happen to Oxford?”
I drop a reign and hold Ophelia close to my body as I feel her start to pull away from me.
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“Dr. Xochil will protect him with her life,” I assure my sweet mate, holding her close. I can feel her exhaustion overcoming her. I can feel her fighting herself. I continue pushing until I sense the horse struggling to keep up. I slow down to a steady trot, prepared to attack anything that could have followed.
I can feel her nodding against my chest. Exhaustion has crept into my beloved and I slow the horse even more, hopeful she will stop fighting me and fall into a slumber until I can find a small town for us to freshen up at.
“Why didn’t you….?” Her voice trails off as she murmurs into my chest.
“What?” I lean closer, trying to hear her over the horse’s steady trot.
“Why me?”
“It doesn’t matter who’s after us, whether it be a rival Clan or the Duke himself. Their target is you.”
She shakes her head no and I can feel her body convulsing as she sobs into me. It’s torture feeling her crying. I so desperately want to connect but I am shamed by my behavior a few moments before. Allowing Marlo to get that close to her. Falling into my desire and tasting her. Not being more aware of our surroundings.
Maybe Ugor did make a mistake naming me Alpha after all.
—-----------------------
I follow the night until I catch the scent of a village. A village means there’s a nearby trade station which will have an Inn for traders.I stop the horse and keep both Ophelia and the horse hidden in the shadows. I notice Ophelia beginning to nod off and quickly take her off the horse and set her on the ground; her eyes barely open.
“I will be right back. Stay here.” I instruct firmly, not looking back as I slip into the night, seaking a house. I find the warm glow from a health and quickly sneak instead to steal a dress and boots for Ophelia.
King of the Monsters? More like Master of Theives. I couldn’t help but smile at my own sense of skill.
Approaching Ophelia, my heart aches to see her sitting there against a tree, soft snoring escaping her lips.
I take a quick look around before waking her gently.
Ophelia
My eyes see Draven as they open. My mind rushes to recall what has happened tonight. My body sore from so much travel and now what felt like hours of horseback riding. He tosses me a simple dress and some boots.
“You need to change before we find the tavern,” his tone is softer than usual.
I just stared at him, confusion clouding my mind and judgment.
“Get up and change,” he urges, his tone laced with something that I wasn’t quite processing. The cold had made my hands numb.
I looked down at myself. I was wearing only a tunic. And one that is covered in blood stains. Memories flooded as I watch myself smashing the candle stick down onto his face–crushing his skull.
“We don’t have time for mourning or regrets. Change and I will find you a proper bed to sleep in. We need to blend in.”
“How?” my words surprised us both. My head rolled onto my shoulder and I had to use the tree trunk to stand back on my feet.
“Well…first you need to get dressed. Then we can continue onward a few clicks and then the next Inn. I have some money on me. No one will ask us questions.” Draven looked down at me and the numbness from the cold disappeared as my body began to heat up. I slip the dress on under his careful gaze. My dirty feet slid into the boots that were much too big for me. Draven got onto his knees and tied the laces as best as he could to keep them from falling off my feet.
I allowed myself to be hoisted up onto the horse, even surprising myself as I leaned back into Draven’s body as the horse began to trott forward.
“What’s their name?” I whispered into the night, trying to stay awake against the lullaby of the horse’s feet clanking against a dirt path.
“I call him Mateo.”
“Good boy Mateo.,” I whisper, petting his mane. His gentle noises comfort me despite my uneasiness around such strong creatures. I fall back into Draven’s embrace.
He chuckled at me, “not much interaction with horses huh?”
“No. Father said it was bad enough that I could read,” my answer too honest for proper conversation but fuck being proper.
“Why is that a problem?”
I chewed the inside of my cheek as I recalled father throwing me out of the stables and into the mud. How he yelled at me. The cage he put me in for punishment.
Fear gripped my body.
Draven’s touch jolts me from the memory. “He thought if I could ride, or if I was comfortable with horses, I might run away.”
I flinch when Draven grabs my hand, rubbing his thumb over the surface of my fists. He says nothing to my response. But instead of feeling awkward with oversharing–I am left with an illogical sense that Draven fully comprehended the weight of my words.
I lean into his warm embrace. His strength and determination are clear. According to Draven, I’m his.
And he will protect what’s his with his life.