Chapter Fifty-Five
S omething tugs inside my chest. There’s a familiar press of attention on my skin, a whisper of air on my cheek. My pulse kicks up, as if my body senses a threat before my mind has caught it. I open my eyes.
The night is thick. I must have turned onto my side, because pine needles dig into my cheek. The fire burns low, and the orange embers glow in the darkness. The trees sway overhead. Philip snores gently, long legs stretched out, though one hand rests on the dagger at his belt. Everything seems normal, yet my blood thrums.
I blink a couple of times, then warily push myself upright. I breathe in sharply.
Blake watches me from the edge of the clearing. He sits against one of the tree trunks with his knees raised, his hands dangling between them. “Hello, little rabbit.”
My stomach plummets. “What are you...?” My question dies in my throat as my eyes adjust.
He is not sitting in the forest a few feet away. He’s on a cot, the mattress thin, and there’s a dark stone wall behind him. There are books scattered on the bed around him, and his wrists are bound in shackles. His dark hair is messy, as if he’s been dragging his fingers through it, and the top buttons of his shirt are undone.
Both the forest and the cell have a shimmer to them. It’s like I’m seeing everything underwater. The sound of the stream nearby echoes in my ears, and everything feels far away. This is a dream, yet I’ve no doubt that the wolf before me is really Blake. Panic twinges inside me. It’s not just because of the aftermath of our shared dream. I don’t want him to know where I am. I believe Callum. Blake will come for me, when he gets free. I can’t face him.
He tilts his head to one side. “Weren’t you going to say goodbye?”
“I thought it best that I did not.”
“I waited for you. I thought you would come.”
I shake my head. “We’re not friends, Blake.”
“Perhaps not. Did you figure out the nature of the bond?”
“Yes.”
“And?”
“It changes nothing. You may not have created it, but you manipulated me.”
He tips his head back against the wall, exposing his throat. A laughs escapes him—cold and hollow. It echoes around his prison cell. “You still believe that?”
“It’s true, is it not?” I sit straighter, twigs crunching beneath me. Stones dig into my palm. “Mrs. McDonald told me it needed to be accepted to come into effect. That’s what happened that night, when James bit me, isn’t it?” I think of the light I saw in the depths of my subconscious, and I remember Blake coaxing me to take it. “You tricked me into accepting it so you could use it against Callum, and my father, too, I imagine. Then you hid its true nature from me.”
“Perhaps.” He shrugs. “Or perhaps I merely used the bond to save your life, because I was the only one who could. Perhaps I’ve suffered the consequences of that decision every day since.”
Anger stains my cheeks. “You ruined my life.”
“Do you think you have not destroyed me?”
I shake my head. “You’re playing a game, Blake. You said as much.”
“Yes. But it’s not the game that you think.”
“And my part in it? Is it over?”
He clasps his hands together, and the chains binding him rattle. Regret flickers across his features. “No. I don’t think so.”
“It doesn’t matter. You will not find me.”
“Darling, I will always find you.” His gaze flicks from me to my surroundings. “Your master let you go, then. Fool.”
“He’s not my master.”
“Where are you?”
My laugh is as cold as Blake’s. “I’m not going to tell you, am I?”
“Come back to me.” A dimple punctures his cheek. “We can figure this out together.”
“No.”
“The trees don’t grow that tall in the Southlands. Whatever your destination, he would have sent you north first, to avoid Alexander’s army.” Panic tightens my chest, yet I assure myself that Callum won’t free him until a few days have passed, at least. “He shouldn’t have done that. Alexander will come.”
“We’ve taken precautions.”
Blake shakes his head. “I know things about Alexander that you and Callum do not. He wants you more than anything, Aurora. He wishes to gain Night’s favor, and he thinks your soul will help him do so.”
“Why?”
“Does it matter? He’s a zealot. A fanatic. He will come for you. He will track you down.”
My heart beats faster as the trees rustle. “We’re in the middle of nowhere. Alexander doesn’t know these lands. He has an army of humans, and they’re distracted by Callum. We’ll be fine.” I’m not sure if I’m trying to persuade Blake or myself.
His gaze moves to my brother. “You’re with Philip. Did he tell you how we met?”
“Yes.”
“Ask him who else was in that dungeon with me. Ask him what happened to Alexander when you told your father of his treason.” His tone is pointed and my breath catches in my throat. I recall something Alexander said to Blake when he chased us to the chapel.
If it isn’t the king’s favorite pup. I missed you, Blake. I missed the sound of your screams. I dream of them, sometimes. Do you dream of me?
My mouth dries. “Alexander is a wolf.”
Blake leans forward. “Listen to me, Aurora. Your life, and mine, may depend on it. I tried to use the àithne on Philip. It did not—”
The wind changes, and my skin pebbles. I catch a scent, seawater and steel. I straighten, and look sharply over my shoulder.
Blake stiffens. “What is it?”
“I... I don’t know. I thought I sensed something.”
Blake looks over my shoulder, and his nostrils flare. He jumps to his feet, uncharacteristic panic etched upon his face. “Aurora, you need to wake up. Get away from—”
Male voices echo in the distance. I stumble to my feet. “Blake!”
He moves toward me, holds out his hands, bound in chains. I reach for him. My fingers slip through his and grasp only air. “ Run. ”
My eyes jolt open.
Philip is already on his feet, one hand on his sword, the other held out toward me. I grab it and let him pull me upright. The crunching of twigs surrounds us on all sides; the whispers of men twist with the rustling of leaves. Sweat and steel taint the forest-scented air.
“The horses are by the stream,” Philip whispers, voice urgent. “Ride west. I’ll kill—”
The air slices in two behind him. He shoves me back as his eyes widen. A thunk reverberates through the clearing as he staggers forward. He turns and flings one of his daggers between the trees. There’s a cry, then a thud, as he hits his target.
My heart plummets. There’s an arrow protruding from Philip’s calf. He pulls it out. “Go. I’ll follow.”
“Together. Come on.”
I grab his arm. He limps toward me just as something slices through the air once more. Philip takes me down with him as an arrow sinks into his side. His sword flies across the clearing. “ Fuck. ”
I try to drag him to his feet. Footsteps crunch toward us, and our gazes flick up.
A figure emerges from the shadow-drenched trees. Packed with muscle and dressed in a finely embroidered black coat with the Borderlands symbol—a star—etched upon its breast, Alexander smiles.
“Hello, love,” he says. My heart stills. Philip starts to push himself up, hand curling around his other dagger. “ Down, pup. ” Alexander’s eyes transform, blazing with the wolf he hides within.
Philip sinks to his knees and drops the dagger. A crease forms between his eyebrows, then his nostrils flare. “Aurora. Run —”
“Philip! What are you doing?” I demand.
“ Quiet ,” says Alexander.
Philip shuts his mouth. Panic writhes inside me.
I shake my head. “Philip. . . what. . .”
“I’m sorry.” His skin is pale. “I didn’t know. I swear it. I didn’t know. They had shifted. I thought it was Jack.”
My throat is tight as more men emerge from between the trees. “Alexander is your alpha,” I breathe in horror.
“You were pissed out of your mind, pup,” says Alexander. “I’m surprised you even remember getting bitten. We both sank our teeth into you. It seems I won the claim. Lucky me.” He throws shackles onto the floor before us, and his eyes shift. “ Put these on your sister. We’re going to the Grey Keep. ”