Chapter 19
Ezra woke to the door banging against the wall. He flew up into a sitting position and looked around, disoriented. He couldn't see anything, but he believed the shadows were moving.
"Rourke!" Ulric spoke with a growl, and the bedside lamp clicked on.
Ulric was in his underwear, and Ezra had some strange déjà vu as he held up his arm to show the goosebumps. "I think it's the section farthest away from the house."
Rourke and Ulric exchanged a look, and ice curled around Ezra's heart. "Should I come with you?"
"No." Both spoke at the same time. Rourke continued, "But it might be a trap. Get us to go over there and leave the main house unguarded."
Rourke looked at Ezra. "The kitten. They know we have wards now, right?"
Ezra shrugged. "They might believe you were patrolling your land.
I don't think the cat noticed me, and without me there, it could have been part of your normal routine.
" He tried to remember what he'd picked up on over the years.
No one included him in any planning, but it didn't mean information didn't slip out while they were eating and Ezra was nearby.
"They don't know what your routine is."
Rourke nodded. "You'll stay with Farkas."
Farkas? He liked Farkas well enough. He came, ate something, and fell asleep, so he couldn't say he knew him, but he didn't have anything against Farkas.
"His hut is next to the main house. If they plan an attack on the house, I don't want you in it." Rourke turned to Ulric. "Wake Geri and Tala." Then he frowned. "Wake everyone, but Geri and Tala are going with us. Do you prefer to be in wolf form or human form?"
Ulric shrugged. "Doesn't matter."
"Tell Geri and Tala to shift, and we'll go in human. It might be best if you can communicate if they're leaving the territory."
Ezra was stunned. His brain wasn't working, but as Ulric left the room and Rourke moved at a rapid pace, he forced himself to get out of bed.
Rourke tossed him the same jeans he'd worn earlier. "Get dressed."
Ezra did as he was told. A little unsteady on his feet as he got underwear and jeans on. Then he grabbed one of the new shirts and tore off the price tag.
"I got you a belt." Rourke tossed a black leather belt with chains hanging on one side.
It clinked as Ezra caught it, and he stared at Rourke, who grinned at him.
The next second, he was wrapping his arms around Ezra and nuzzled his cheek.
"Don't think I haven't noticed you were a crow shifter in a former life. "
Ezra huffed.
"Everything shiny calls to you." Rourke gave him a quick peck. "Ready to go?"
Ezra put the belt on and joy swelled in his chest. Rourke huffed in amusement. "Very fetching, love. Come on now."
Rourke walked so fast, Ezra had to jog to keep up with him. "What about Harold?"
Rourke stopped abruptly in the middle of the corridor, and Ezra almost tumbled into him. "Don't you think he's better off staying in the room than us trying to catch him and taking him to Farkas?"
"But what if they attack?"
Rourke's eyes narrowed. "How likely do you think it is they'll attack?"
Before Ezra could reply, Ulric rushed out of his room. "I think there is only one left now. I'm not entirely sure, but I think three entered and two left."
Rourke focused on Ezra again. "How likely?"
"Not likely. They're more inclined to lure you into a trap.
Throwing spells inside a crowded building--" He gestured around them in a circle.
"--makes it way more likely someone will make a mistake and catch the wrong person than if a battle is fought out in the open.
They'll want you on a field where nothing is shielding their view. "
Nodding, Rourke started walking again. "We leave Harold. He has the good sense of hiding."
Ezra hoped he was right.
Farkas was awake when they arrived at his hut, but Ezra got the feeling it was more due to him not having fallen asleep than anyone waking him.
Rourke explained the situation in clipped words and with an air of dominance.
It was the first time Ezra had seen him in full alpha mode.
People always listened to him, but now it was like they didn't have a choice.
Ezra didn't think they feared him, not like back home where everyone feared Shixyll. They respected him.
Rourke gave him a quick kiss before ushering him into Farkas' home.
"Stay safe." Fear curled around Ezra's heart.
Rourke squeezed his hand. "Always. Don't worry. Farkas will keep you safe."
Ezra didn't care about himself, he worried about Rourke.
* * * *
Rourke ran next to Ulric through the forest. Geri and Tala weren't visible, but they were there. "Are we getting closer?"
He rubbed his chest, sensing Ezra's worry. Would he pick up on Rourke's feelings too?
"A few more minutes." Ulric watched him. "Why are you rubbing your chest?"
"I feel Ezra. He's worried."
"Huh, so the mate bond has finally snapped into place."
Rourke nodded. "It's grown stronger over the last few days, but it hasn't been like this before."
Ulric snorted. "And it has nothing to do with your room smelling of sex, does it?"
"Classy." One unspoken rule among shifters was to not point out when you could scent people had fucked each other.
Ulric chuckled. "I only meant, maybe you didn't do it right the first time."
Rourke flipped him off, but he was correct.
He hadn't done it right. The mate bond had been crippled, and he could only guess it was because Ezra hadn't been.
..open to it. It didn't matter. They'd gotten there now, and Rourke would make it his life-mission to have Ezra sweating and moaning as often as possible.
"Here." Ulric slowed, then stopped, and looked around.
On the ground some distance away was a...form. Rourke scented the air and growled. Tala and Geri appeared between the tree trunks and took a few careful steps closer.
It smelled of blood and magic, the rotten kind of magic, not Ezra's kind.
Ulric walked closer, and the form made a pained sound. What the fuck? When nothing happened, Rourke stepped closer too.
Jiprix. He was almost sure it was Jiprix, except he was covered in...flesh. Blood and something resembling mincemeat pushed through where the skin was torn on half his face.
Nausea rose at the back of Rourke's throat.
He was no stranger to blood and gore, but this.
..It was as if someone had drawn a line in the middle of Jiprix's face, and judging by how the bloody fabric of his clothes clung to him, he believed the line went all the way down. One side was unmarred, one had...burst.
"Fuck." Ulric's voice shook.
"Jiprix?" Rourke moved closer still. Fuck, was this punishment for the cookies? Rourke never should've told Shixyll.
He believed the sound coming from Jiprix was affirmative.
Rourke met Ulric's gaze, then Tala's and Geri's. What the fuck did they do now?
"Take him to a hut?" Ulric didn't sound as if he liked the idea, but what options did they have? They couldn't leave him. He might be a filthy witch, but Ezra wouldn't like it if Rourke left him to die here. Fuck.
He crouched next to Jiprix, praying he wasn't misjudging the situation and ended up dead for his actions. "Are you still bleeding?"
He made a minuscule shake of his head. "Nataz stopped it."
They had someone who could stop bleeding? "Can you stand?" Would he be lying on the ground if he could?
Jiprix tried to get up only to wheeze out a breath and drop to the forest floor again.
He rolled over to his back and panted at the sky.
Rourke moved so his good side would be against his chest, then he pushed an arm in under Jiprix's knees and one underneath his back.
With little to no effort, he got to his feet.
Jiprix was a little bigger than Ezra, but not by much. Tiny witches.
They walked toward the pack house without speaking. What the hell should they do with an injured witch? Rourke caught Ulric's gaze. He shrugged in reply to the unspoken question.
* * * *
Ezra was pacing Farkas' tiny hut. He believed he could sense Rourke coming closer, but something had shocked him. What could've shocked him? He didn't think he was injured, but something wasn't right.
"I think they're coming." He didn't look at Farkas, instead, he kept pacing.
"Okay." He sounded calm. How could he be calm?
A few minutes later, there were voices outside, and Ezra rushed toward the door. Farkas blocked his way before he could reach it, having moved so fast, Ezra took a stumbling step back.
"Let me check first."
Ezra almost growled but stood back as Farkas opened the door and looked out. For a few seconds, nothing happened, then Farkas stepped aside to allow Ezra to exit.
Rourke was carrying someone. Ezra stepped out into the night and gasped as he saw Jiprix. "Oh no." He rushed closer and hovered with his hands over him.
"Do you know what happened?" Rourke studied him.
"It's Shixyll's skin-shrinking."
"On half the body?"
Ezra shrugged. "She decides how much to do. This is a lot."
"Will he heal?" Outwardly, Rourke gave nothing away, but Ezra could feel guilt stir in his chest.
"You didn't do this."
"Didn't I?"
Ezra shook his head. "No, this is Shixyll. This is how she rules."
"By hurting and sacrificing her people?"
Ulric opened the door to the hut next to Farkas'. "I'll get a fire going. It's pretty cold in here." Then he disappeared.
Rourke took a step toward the hut, then turned to look at Farkas. "Meeting in...forty-five?"
Farkas nodded.
"Is there anything you can do for him, Ezra?"
Ezra nodded. It wouldn't help much, but he'd fix some soup or something.
"I'll make something." Then he rushed toward the main building.
What to make? He had nothing but ingredients for lacy oatmeal cookies in Rourke's room.
Jiprix most likely wouldn't want cookies in the middle of the night. Soup, perhaps.
He hurried into the dining hall where two men he had yet to learn the names of were sitting. "Hi." He nodded to them, then slipped into the kitchen. Everything without a name on was free to use, Rourke had said so.
He grabbed a big pot and rummaged around in the pantry.
There were potatoes, carrots, and leeks.
The refrigerator was mostly empty, but he found some chicken breasts in the freezer without a name on them, so he grabbed them and threw them in a bowl with warm water.
He only needed them to thaw enough to be able to cut them.
He chopped the vegetables while he waited. The magic woke up inside, and he slipped into a familiar flow. It didn't keep the worry at bay, but it was calming.
The water was boiling, and he added spices he found in the cupboard next to the stove.
"Smells good." One of the men who'd been by the table was balancing on the threshold.
"Oh...I haven't started yet." But maybe he should make more. He glanced at the carrots and potatoes he'd chopped and walked over to the pantry and grabbed more. People most likely wouldn't want chicken soup for breakfast, but maybe everyone awake now wanted a bowl before going back to bed.
Time passed, though he was only distantly aware of it. As always when his magic flowed, he disappeared into a sort of trance. He was aware of his surroundings, but he was...floating. Warm and relaxed.
He stirred the pot and breathed in the scent. It smelled good. Fishing out a piece of potatoes and a carrot coin, he tasted them both.
Perfect.
He turned off the stove, grabbed a bowl, ladled soup into it, and grabbed a spoon.
As he stepped out of the kitchen, the men looked up from where they were seated by the table. Ezra was surprised to see them there. He'd believed they'd gone to bed. "If you're hungry, there is chicken soup. I didn't bake any bread." Damn, he should've baked bread.
The men rose as one and hurried into the kitchen. Ezra ignored them and headed toward the door. He needed to get the soup to Jiprix. He couldn't believe Shixyll had done that to him. Jiprix was one of her most loyal followers. He'd never be the same.
Since he wasn't bleeding out, Nataz must have stopped it, but there was still a risk of infection, and he would be scarred for the rest of his life.
When Shixyll shrank his skin, she always stopped before it burst. It still hurt like hell, but the only time he'd seen her allow it to rip was when she'd killed his cat.
He shuddered and wanted to run back to his room and cuddle Harold.
The night air was cold and the steam from the bowl raced toward the sky. When he neared the door to the hut Rourke had taken Jiprix to, it opened and Rourke stepped out.
"Do you know where the office is?"
Ezra believed he did. He hadn't gone there, but he was sure he'd be able to find the right door.
"Come there when you're done. We'll be there." He bent and kissed Ezra's cheek.
"There is chicken soup in the kitchen. There were two men there, I said they could eat, so if you want some, you better hurry."
Rourke chuckled. "I'll let people know, and they can take a bowl to the office if they're hungry."
Ezra surprised himself by tilting his head in a silent request for another kiss. Never had he believed he'd do something like that, but Rourke brushed his lips over Ezra's as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
"See you in a bit."
Ezra nodded and walked into the hut. There was a fire crackling in a wood-burning stove in the corner, and Jiprix was resting on a single bed.
"Hey."
Jiprix opened his eyes.
"Can you sit? I have chicken soup. No time to bake any bread, but hopefully, it'll help some."
Jiprix gave him a small nod, but it was a struggle to get him into a sitting position.
* * * *