Chapter 17 #2
The wolf closed his mouth and exhaled through his nose loudly. He then lowered his entire body to the ground and barked at me. I imagined Torin barking his demands at me in his human form and smiling.
“I hope I’m not too heavy,” I said as I straddled the massive wolf.
I leaned my chest forward, wrapped my arms around his neck, and rested my head close to the soft spot between his ears.
“Don’t go super fast,” I said, hanging on for dear life.
The wolf lifted onto all fours, trotted, and gradually sped up as if he were giving me time to adjust to the ride.
Minutes passed, and I lifted my head to look around. The day grew brighter as the sun rose higher in the cloudless sky. My body finally relaxed against the wolf as the fear of falling left me.
I couldn’t have run as fast as the wolf did. His speed increased, and my eyes only detected a blur of colors. It was an amazing and freeing feeling. I wished I could shift, too.
“Thank you,” I whispered, and I was sure the wolf heard me.
Riding on Torin’s wolf was the closest I would ever get to feeling like one. I was grateful to the Alpha for giving me this experience.
The wolf slowed down, revealing a familiar part of the forest. The once vibrant colors of the forest had been reduced to a sea of blackened tree trunks. The trees still stood tall, but the bark was black and peeling. Layers of ash and soot covered the scorched earth.
The air hung heavy with the scent of smoke. When I inhaled, the white particles floating in the air got in my nose. They tasted bitter. I coughed as they stuck at the back of my throat, making it burn.
The absence of life was striking. A void had replaced the chirping and rustling of forest creatures. This part of the territory was scarred, and it would take a long time to recover. The possibility of a repeat attack by a scary, fire-breathing dog made my stomach churn.
Torin had announced a mourning day for the burned and beheaded warriors. The pack members would spend time with their families and visit those of the deceased people.
Torin’s wolf circled the battle area, sniffing, ears pricked. His head moved left and right, and after surveying, the wolf trotted back to the pack manor.
Torin shifted and dressed at the same spot, and we walked back to his apartment. I strolled into the kitchen in search of food, thinking about what to do for the rest of the day.
A loud knock came from the door, and muffled voices carried from the hallway, but I couldn’t make out the words.
A loud, familiar growl made my body tense. And then the front door slammed.
“Torin, who was it?” I called and peered into the living room.
Torin marched to the countertop and picked up his phone, scowling. Not at me, but at whatever thought was going through his mind.
“I have to deal with a pest,” he said through a clenched jaw.
“Another creature?”
I didn’t think it was another hellhound on the territory, but I prodded him for more information anyway.
“No,” was all he said, and then he looked at me, and his eyes softened at the edges. “I think the book is not in the safe room, Anna. We forgot to close the door before we left for the forest.”
Changing the subject wouldn’t let him off the hook from the conversation we would have after he came back, but I let it go now. He started walking toward the front door but stopped.
“Will you put it back in there?” he asked.
I raised my eyebrows at him. “What if I run away with it?”
Torin scoffed and then gave me a half smile. “Go ahead. I’ll chase you to the end of the world, mate.”
“My blow job was that good, then?” I let out a small laugh, trying to lighten up his mood.
Torin shook his head and muttered something like, “What am I going to do with you?” Then he walked out of the apartment.
If I were Torin, I wouldn’t trust myself with putting back the book on the sensors in the safe room. Did he trust me that I wouldn’t steal it and run away, or was he too confident that he’d catch me anywhere at any time?
This man confused me so much that I couldn’t tell what he truly wanted from me.
I listened intently for any noises on the other side of the front door, in case Torin was bluffing and he’d storm back in, catching me stealing my book back.
Silence.
I entered his closet and picked up my magic book off the floor. I had the perfect opportunity to steal my book. I clutched the book harder. As soon as it went back on the sensors, I wouldn’t be able to disarm the alarm since it required Torin’s fingerprint.
I stared at the faded blue cover, running my fingers over the daisy wheel symbol in the lower corner. My hands trembled as I felt the pulse of the book as if it were a living being. It was the magic inside.
If I ran away with it now, Torin would catch me before I could board a plane. Unless I hid somewhere but not in the kingdom.
If I figured out how to enter Torin’s dream realm, I could apologize for leaving without talking to him and without him knowing my physical location.
Wait a second… Why would I apologize? He was the one who took away my book without my permission.
I took two steps to exit the room, still holding the book, but my chest grew tight. It was as if an invisible power pulled on the strings of my heart, making it clench.
Torin had shown me a gentle, compassionate side that had to count for something. I had abandoned my idea of running away with the book because I wasn’t a coward. Because I had nowhere else to go. And because…
I let out a frustrated groan and placed the book on top of some documents in case I changed my mind later.
Torin kept valuable things in his safe room. I turned my head left and right, searching for something which would lead me to believe it could be Torin’s access point to his dream realm.
Remembering the rabbit hole from my favorite childhood fairy tale, I expected Torin’s access point to his dream realm to be something he was attached to and valued. But it could also be a place of importance to him.
I opened every drawer and touched all the paperwork on every shelf, my movements frantic. Torin could be back at any minute. I found money, jewelry, golden coins, title documents, and invoices.
Finally, a manila folder caught my eye in the corner of the bottom shelf. When I opened it, I stared at beautifully drawn pictures. There were pages after pages sketched with the same pencil but drawn from different angles.
A small cottage stretched before a line of trees, but not the type you’d want to vacation in. But what caught my eye was that the wooden building that looked like it would fall apart at any moment was on fire.
Could this be Torin’s access point to his dream realm? The asymmetrical front door of the cottage was in flames. The wooden frame of the cottage seemed to have been made in a hurry by someone not handy, perhaps.
How would one even hold the doorknob when it was scorching and in flames?
But my instinct told me I had found what I was searching for. Torin wouldn’t place any sketch of an old burning cottage in his safe room if it wasn’t important to him.
I didn’t know how much time had passed, but all I did was flip the pages over and over again until I memorized each line and curve of the sketch.
The rest of the day passed slowly as I waited for Torin’s return. I had left the book and the sketch in the safe room. Pacing around the couch in the living room, my spiraling thoughts consumed me. I felt restless, and I wanted to get fresh air.
This was the second time Torin had left me to deal with business.
I didn’t like it, and I planned on letting him know about it when he returned.
What was he dealing with? The town alarm didn’t sound, and no one alerted me about another terrifying creature on the premises.
So what was this pest he had to leave for in a rush?
He seemed to trust me with the magic book but didn’t trust me with whatever issue he was dealing with.
Sighing, I walked to my bed. Torin and I danced between danger and desire, but as we made a step forward, we took two steps back.
At night, I dozed off, sinking into the softness of the mattress, and the next time I opened my eyes, it was after midnight. I crept to Torin’s bedroom and peeked inside.
I let out a sigh. He slept in his bed, restless, fidgeting, panting. I walked closer as his chest rose and fell too quickly.
He must have been having another nightmare. A sheen of sweat covered his bare shoulders and chest, his head twisted to the sides, and his legs kept bending and moving. For a moment, my body stilled as I remembered his tight grip around my neck while he had a nightmare.
I brought my shaky hand to his forehead, but right before I touched Torin, I thought better of it. I turned around, heading for my bed.
Tonight, I would enter Torin’s dream realm and find out answers and secrets he had kept away from me. That was the only way to learn more about him. How bad could his secrets be for him to ignore his mate for years? Or not telling what business he dealt with when he left me behind in his apartment?
Torin and I shared a mate bond, but still, was he my fated mate? If he were, why wouldn’t he want to share himself with me? I showed him that I was ready to accept him, while he showed me he desired me but withheld information from me.
No matter how angry the Alpha would get at me, I would access his dream realm and find answers tonight. But even if I could put up a brave front before a furious Torin, I wasn’t sure if I could leave his dream realm unscathed.
My death in his nightmarish dream realm meant my real end in the human realm.