I reined Poison in just beside the door to the cells and dropped the reins, ground tying him. Then I tied my backpack to the saddle before I steeled my spine with false confidence and yanked open the cellar door. I forced myself to storm down the creaky stairs before a guard could even think of questioning me and when I hit the last step I found the closest guard to me and barked for him to get the cells keys in royal tone.
A second later I was unlocking the cell door of the first prisoner. He was standing up but watching me warily for the distance.
“Are you his beta?” I demanded.
I was almost surprised by how much I sounded like my mother. I felt like I had this emotionless mask on and I was in complete control of the situation at hand despite the fact that I was practically a whirlwind of anxiety and fear.
“Yes,” the man answered, still staying back.
“Good, you’re going to go back to your pack and run it in his absence,” I said.
“Princess!” one of the guards protested.
“You will let him through!” I ordered.
All of the guards in the prison snapped their mouths shut, unable to fight my commands. Once I was satisfied that they would do as they were told, I moved to the next cell. I tried not to gasp when I saw my mate huddled up in the blanket I had given him, looking ill, but at least he looked like he had healed significantly since last night.
“I won’t leave my alpha,” the beta murmured, finally coming out of his cell.
I watched his eyes flicker towards the guards who all seemed to be frozen. He was desperately afraid of being down here, which made it all that much more courageous that he wouldn’t leave.
I yanked Ryan’s cell door open with a grunt, “That’s awfully nice of you, and I’m sure Ryan appreciates it, but you can’t come with us and someone is going to need to run that pack in your alpha’s absence so, please, go and don’t make me order you around.”
The beta looked like he was about to say something else, maybe protest again or thank me for letting him go. I couldn’t tell and I really didn’t care either. I was just grateful when he thought better of it, and bolted out of the underground prison without saying another word. Now that he was dealt with, I turned back to my mate who was staring at me intently with an expression I couldn’t read.
“Ever ridden a horse before?” I asked.
He shook his head.
“Today is a good day to learn then,” I dropped the keys for the cell locks and turned to the guards. “You will not tell my father that I was here or that I took my mate out of his cell and that is final,” I barked. Then, without looking back to see if Ryan was following me, I walked to and up the stairs, leaving those disgusting cells behind me.
Chapter 23
When Ryan and I exited the underground prison and the light hit my mate’s battered face, I had to hold back a gasp of horror. There was heavy bruising on his left cheek that ranged from dark purple to an ugly yellow and was severely swollen. There was also dried blood in his hair, but I couldn’t easily find if the wound that had caused it, and he was just plain filthy. This man was hardly the rogue alpha that I had first met. He was nearly broken, even after a day of accelerated healing.
“Come on, we have to go,” I whispered, my voice shaking slightly.
I guess the tough façade was gone already. I just shut my mouth and jerked my head towards Poison who was watching us intently.
“I’ve never ridden a horse,” Ryan repeated. His voice was scratchy and dry. “If you want to kill me it would be much faster to just let the royal guards after me again.”
“Come on, it’s not that hard,” I pressed. While I spoke I began peeling off my clothes. Where we were going, I wouldn’t have unlimited access to clothing like I did now, I couldn’t just shift and destroy them like I normally would. When I looked up I noticed that Ryan was gawking at me and I had to duck my head down to hide the blush, “Hey, focus, I need you on that horse because I don’t think you’re healthy enough to run the whole way.”
“How far are we going?”
“You don’t need to worry about that right now, just get on Poison and let me take care of everything else,” I demanded.
“How do you know the guards won’t tell your dad where we went?”
I rolled my eyes; we definitely didn’t have time for this right now.
“Ever heard of a command tone? Or a royal tone?” I asked. I pointedly grabbed his arm and dragged him over to Poison, pointing to a stirrup.
“That’s a real thing?” he asked, jamming his foot in there.
I quickly fastened my clothes in the backpack and helped him mount the big beast.
“Yes, now shut up and hold on,” I commanded.
The second the words were out of my mouth I shifted into my wolf. For the first time in years it felt natural to be in my wolf form and I gave my thick coat a healthy shake while Poison snorted and watched me with uncertainty. For a horse he was quite used to wolves, and thankfully, he didn’t kick me when I neared him and pretended to nip at his hocks. He did jump away from me and jostle Ryan before he set off away from me in a quick trot.
I stayed a decent distance away from Poison, loping behind just to keep up with the big animal. I needed Poison to stay on track and keep a steady pace, but I was also concerned about Ryan. He didn’t look like he was in the best of shape, but he was holding on and we didn’t exactly have a plethora of options right now. As long as he could handle the ride to the river we were home free.
Poison trotted along through the forest, hardly bothered by the fact that the trees were getting bigger and the foliage growing denser with each stride he took. The great beast was tackling terrain that no car could reasonably get through. He seemed delighted to be out of the arena which made me happy, but a few times I had to dart around him to make him change directions so he wouldn’t attempt to leap over fallen logs. I needed to get Ryan transported in one relatively content piece, and I don’t think he was really ready to try his hand at jumping just yet.
Poison wasn’t the only one who was enjoying the time in the woods. This was the first time in years I had actually enjoyed being shifted. Most of the time when I shifted it was because my wolf was nearly jumping out of my skin. On one particular occasion I dropped to my knees in the foyer, unable to make it out the front door in time, and I shifted right there in front of all the housing staff.
This was significantly more pleasant though. My wolf felt tremendously at home with the wind whistling through the trees, the scents wafting through the air, and the brisk pace that accelerated her heart rate slightly. It was easy to forget that I was part wolf because my human side had so much control all the time, but in moments like these, I got to remember the beauty of allowing myself to be what I truly was: Half human and half wolf.
Sadly, one of the travellers wasn’t enjoying the excursion so much. When I looked over to see if my horse was losing speed, I noticed that the rider was starting to look a little ill. His bruised face was turning a little green and he clung to the horn tightly, seeing as it was the only thing keeping him steady. Though he didn’t know how to ride horses, when we had started our excursion, he was able to hold himself up with his leg and back muscles. Now he looked like a ragdoll that was about to vomit all over my freshly groomed steed.
I knew that we didn’t have much time; once my parents noticed I wasn’t actually coming to lunch they would become annoyed and send someone to go looking for me. When that person returned with no knowledge of where I was hiding, my parents would become panicked and send a search party out immediately. It had been about ten in the morning when I entered the barn to pick up Poison so it must’ve been at least eleven by now. We only had an hour and a half left before a search party would be dispatched.
Still, I couldn’t bear to see my mate looking so awful.
I carefully looped around Poison, circling him until he slowed to a stop through his confusion. Ryan looked a little startled too, unsure of what was goi
ng on, but I just sat down beside Poison, watching my mate as I panted slightly.
“Oh, you have to catch your breath, that’s fine.” Ryan wheezed, nodding a little.
I decided there was no use in correcting him and laid down on my tummy, letting him relax for a bit. No, we didn’t have a whole lot of time, I knew that much, but we could spare a couple minutes if it meant Ryan was going to be able to ride longer. My plan relied on him staying on Poison for as long as possible because I didn’t think his exhausted body could carry him very far.
When Ryan’s face turned to a slightly normal shade, I let out a little yip and got back on my feet. Poison didn’t hesitate, he started off on a trot again, but I didn’t think Ryan could handle the bouncy gait for much longer so I darted behind my beloved horse and nipped at his hind legs until he started to canter. Yes, a canter was harder to sit through, but it was much faster and Poison was healthy enough to keep the pace for several minutes.
Ryan looked terribly displeased with the change of pace, though his legs were supporting him again, instead of just letting his body flop all over the place. I knew he wouldn’t be able to handle the canter for more than five minutes and I prayed that five minutes would be enough. I had a rough idea of where I was going, but it had been years since I had actually gone this far.
Unfortunately, about two minutes later Ryan looked like he was about to pass out. I almost let out a frustrated and panicked snarl, ready to tell him to suck it up, but I just made Poison stop once more. As I slowed down the big beast, I realized that this could actually play in our favour for once.
After Poison had stopped, I shifted into my human form while Ryan struggled to collect himself. Seeing as my mate was so close to being violently ill I had no problem pulling out a tee shirt and some underwear from the bag attached to the saddle. I knew I should’ve pulled on pants too to reduce saddle rash, but I didn’t care, they would just be a nuisance later.
“Move forward,” I instructed.
“What are you doing?” Ryan asked, but he scooted up the saddle anyway.
I awkwardly mounted, scrambling into the back end of the saddle without the use of a stirrup or a mounting block.. Poison side stepped in confusion, almost making me tumble back off of him but I somehow managed to stay on and gather the reins out of Ryan’s sweaty hands.
“We need to move faster, but you don’t look so hot. This way I can control the horse and I’ll be able to help hold you up when your body starts to feel weak,” I answered, giving Poison a swift kick.
Poison did as he was trained to do and jumped into a swift trot, then a canter when I pressed his sides a little harder. Ryan let out a low groan at this, but I ignored him and just used one hand to pull him into me. I was hoping he would use my body for balance and support, and he seemed quite fond of the idea too, melting into me after only a minute of steady cantering. I was half-blind, looking around his broad shoulders, but Poison confidently moved forward.
After about ten minutes of hard riding I finally heard the sound I had been waiting for. Water. I slowed Poison to a trot then pulled him up to a walk when we could see the water. The gelding tossed his head, seeming uncertain of what he was supposed to do and I allowed him to take his time ambling over the large river rocks until all four of his legs were submerged in water.
“Come on,” I murmured to Ryan, “You need to get off.”
Ryan gave out a weak grunt and toppled off the horse, seemingly thankful that the ride was over as I carefully slipped off afterwards. I quickly untied my bag from the saddle, swinging it over my shoulder before pulling off Poison’s expensive tack. I hesitated for a moment, holding on to the pricey bridle as I looked at the raging rapids. Though I could easily get ten more when I return home, I still felt awful for tossing it into the swift moving water.
“What the hell are you doing?” Ryan demanded as I pulled off the saddle and tossed it as far as I could.
“I don’t want him to get his tack stuck on something and get hurt,” I explained blankly.
“What do you mean? We aren’t taking him?”
“No,” I whispered, my heart clenching slightly.
“Why not?”
“He won’t make it across the river, at least not without slowing us down considerably. We need to leave him here and he might get tangled up in branches or his legs might get caught in the reins when he’s on his own. Besides, it’ll confuse the people tracking us.”
“You aren’t making any sense,” Ryan barked.
“Alright, then let me explain it to you. People are going to come looking for us, and wolves will easily be able to follow my scent and Poison’s. However, since I got on Poison with you my scent trail is significantly weaker. Now here, in the water our smell won’t be able to cling to anything. So, as far as the trackers know, we are riding the horse because they can’t smell where we got off. They will spend time tracking Poison through the forest, eventually finding him and taking him back home while you and I are getting further and further away with no scent trail on this side of the river.”
Chapter 24
“This wasn’t what I expected of you,” Ryan said, breaking the silence as we both wrung our clothes.
“No?” I grunted, desperately trying to get the last drop out of my shirt.
I still peered around the trees, trying to see if anyone was following us even though we were almost a mile away from the river already. My thighs had chaffed together so badly that I had gotten a rash, but I refused to stop until I was certain we were out of sight and smelling distance.
“Not even a little bit. No offense but you don’t seem like the heroic type at all. More of a talk than action person,” Ryan explained.
When my eyes followed the sound of his voice, I saw some of his naked torso as he slid back into his soaking shirt. I quickly averted my eyes and made sure my naked body was completely concealed by the big tree between us.
“Well, I didn’t really have a lot of options,” I muttered, “and what the hell were you thinking, barging onto royal land like that? Did you think you were going to be invited in for tea and supper?” I said, suddenly feeling angry.
He had started this whole mess and now I was kilometers away from my home; wet, miserable and terrified of what would happen if we were caught. If he had just given me time to tell my parents this whole crisis could’ve been averted. Instead of facing the community together in a refined way, with class and grace, we were running away like cowards because it was the only option we had left.
“What was I supposed to do?” Ryan snapped back. “You were having a fucking party for single alphas so that you could have your pick because I wasn’t good enough for you apparently. I figured I would give it one last try before I lost you to some asshole who just wanted your title. What the hell were you thinking? Did you really think any of those men gave a shit about you? Did you really think they could make you happy like I could? Yeah, I get it, I’m not exactly what you wanted, but it’s not like I wanted a fucking princess either!” he barked.
I blinked, completely taken aback. I stood still, frozen for a moment before I was able to collect myself and pull my damp shirt back on. After that, I dug through my bag to find sweatpants and a dry pair of underwear as I thought about my response. His last comment had hurt me, but it wasn’t unwarranted, I had screamed at him then told him I couldn’t stand to be the luna of a pack.
Still, it stung more than I thought it would.
“I didn’t want the gala to happen, and it had nothing to do with you,” I whispered, coming out from behind the trees.
“Yeah, I know, it was about every other alpha in the world,”
“No, I mean it was planned before I even met you. Actually, we met because I was so furious at my parents for trying to set me up with random guys that I went for a midnight ride. Long story short, my horse spooked and I ended up on your pack lands.”
Ryan sighed loudly as he walked towards me, “But you still had the party, even though you kn
ew you had a mate.”
“I know it sounds silly, but I needed my parents to think that I hadn’t found my mate yet. I think we can both assume that my father would’ve had any of those other alphas be my mate over you and I don’t think his opinion would’ve been any different if he found out about us any other way. I knew I would have to tell them about you eventually, I found out pretty quickly that staying away from you wasn’t in my best interest. I just hoped that I could figure out a plan to make the introductions go smoother.” I explained.
“Well, it doesn’t matter anymore, but we should keep moving,” Ryan muttered.
I did as Ryan suggested and we continued to move, walking further and further away from the river. As we continued deeper through the forest, I went through a large spectrum of emotions. First, I would feel panicked and worried when I felt like I didn’t know where I was because it had been years since I had travelled to our destination, then I would feel joy when we past familiar landmarks like shallow ponds, massive boulders, or small fields filled with wildflowers. I would also feel guilt because I would only ever go this way with my parents and it feels like I was tainting the memories of sweet family time with betrayal. After that I began to think that my mother had fought for her mate and that there was a chance that she would respect my decision to do the same. That made me feel a fraction better about what I was doing.
We hiked through the woods for another two hours. My feet were starting to ache despite the reasonable runners I was wearing and when I peered over at my ever so silent mate I noticed that he must have been feeling ten times worse. Not only was his body slouching with exhaustion, unable to maintain the steady pace and heal the damage inflicted by royal guards plus he was also wearing all the wrong clothes. I had a baggy, breathable shirt and stretchy sweat pants while he had a torn up dress shirt, black pants, and muddy dress shoes on. It was the first time during our excursion that I had actually noticed the clothes he had on.
The Princess and the Alpha: A Shifter Romance Page 10