by G. Bailey
"Yes, I can ride normal-sized horses, not a horse like this," I say with a huff, and he only chuckles more.
"Give me a second," Tiryn says and walks off, tugging his horse with him. I silently watch the pack on the bridge and how they gather together, only moving aside as a large white wolf walks through them. "Right then, we are riding together."
"Wait, that's not—"
"I can't risk you slowing us down. Our job is to watch out at the back of the pack, and I can't do that if I'm worried about you," he interrupts me and somehow doesn’t make me feel much better.
"Still I don't think we should—"
"Stop worrying so much, Red," he says with a cheeky smile, interrupting me again. As he rests his hands on my hips, I feel like his hands are burning through my clothes, leaving marks to show he touched me. It also has the added effect of making all words disappear from my head. "That's my job." Tiryn moves me aside and jumps onto the horse, before holding an arm down for me to take.
"I can walk," I protest, crossing my arms and keeping my eyes on Tiryn and the knowing smile on his lips.
"Look, it's clear you are causing a lot of trouble in my pack, and I've wanted you gone from the first day we met. That changed when Jath explained how he is keeping you around, Red. Let me help you," he suggests.
"You won't drop me off this giant horse?" I ask because I do not trust Tiryn all that much.
"Never. I'm a bit of an asshole, but I'm not cruel. I'm not what you said I was," he replies, and for the first time since we met, Tiryn is being honest with me. Really honest. I slide my arm into his, gripping his elbow as he effortlessly pulls me, and I swing my leg around the horse. He wraps an arm around my waist, pressing my body back into his as he turns the horse, and we set off toward the pack. We pass through the tree line onto the beach, and I look back to see wooden planks being pushed into the water by the ship by a few men.
"Are they not coming with us?" I ask over the wind whipping past our ears.
"No, they are staying because their mates are pregnant, or their mates have very young children. Others are staying to protect the pack lands in our absence," he explains to me.
"Then what are they doing with the ship?" I ask.
"Putting the ship in the water and it will stay there for you. It’s yours,” he tells me.
"Why?" I ask him, looking back for a second.
"If you want to run away, then there is your exit. You are clearly good at running, Arilee, and I don't trust you won't do it again," he tells me. It almost hurts he thinks I’m going to run away, and he speaks like it’s something I always do. I don’t run ever, not unless there is nothing but death waiting for me. I couldn’t have stayed and fought for Arlen and its people, no matter how much a part of me wanted too. It wasn’t their fault they had an evil king—and it wasn’t mine
"I don't want to run," I reply.
"Not yet, you don't. You haven’t met our family yet," Tiryn says, and I rest back into his chest as he speeds up down the bridge, and a long howl fills the air, followed by the sounds of dozens of wolves howling.
The pack is leaving to go home, and I couldn’t be more nervous. Tiryn is wrong though, I’m not going to run.
I’ve finally found some peace and a home.
Chapter 12
"How long until we stop?" I ask Tiryn as I look at the setting sun in the sky, and I try not to yawn too loud. The trees all look the same at this point, and I’m clueless how anyone is finding the right way through this thick forest.
"Very soon. There is a midway point we always stop at with many camps set up," he replies to me, his gravelly voice making me shiver as he speaks so close to my ear. We have been riding for a full two days, only briefly stopping to let the older children change wolves to ride on and to have food. Jath rode with me yesterday for a change of pace, and he explained we would stop for a day rest somewhere tomorrow. I run my fingers through the dead horse’s mane, looking around at the pack running in front of us. They move swiftly through the trees, almost like shadows that can’t be seen. They follow Jath perfectly, and I only get to see him sometimes, a white flash here and there. I know he is close, though; I can feel it.
"Is that it?" I ask, pointing at the ruins of houses in a clearing through the trees. As we get closer, I see that the pack is separating and running around the ruins, some shifting back into their human forms, and I look away. That’s a whole lot of naked.
"Yes," he says, his cheek brushing against mine and making me gulp as he speeds us up and rides us into the middle of the camp where Jath is shifting back. He gets his clothes out of the bag on the horse as Tiryn jumps off and reaches up, grabbing my waist and lifting me down, sliding me down his body as he does. I can’t help but notice how good it feels to be pressed against him and how soon I miss the contact when it is gone.
"I'm going to help set up," Tiryn says, stepping away from me, looking confused about something for a second.
"You alright on your own for a bit? I need to help the pack," Jath asks, coming around the horse and smiling at me as he places his hands on my shoulders.
"Yes, I'm going to find somewhere to sit for a bit," I say, and Jath kisses my forehead before walking off into the crowd. I look over at some large stone pieces that are destroyed, and green vines have grown all over it, seeing no one is sitting there. I walk over and step over a small piece of stone, pausing as I hear a little cry. I look around, seeing something white bundled up in the vines and it is crying its little heart out. I rush over, seeing the creature has pure white fur and a long face, with an even longer tail. It hisses at me as I try to move some of the vines off it and I sigh, sitting down next to the creature.
"I'm not going to hurt you, but you can't bite me because I can't help you then," I tell the fox, who seems so distressed it can't calm down anyways. Against my better instincts, I grab the vines and spend a long time undoing them and snapping the ones which are too tight to move. The fox bites into my hand, and I grit my teeth from the pain as I snap the final branch, and slowly pull the baby fox out of the vines. It lets go of my hand when I put it down, and to my surprise, it doesn't run away. The little fox sits and looks at me with its clear, white eyes. I reach into my pocket and pull out some jerky I have folded up in cloth. I break a little piece off and chuck it to the fox, who sniffs it before slowly eating the jerky. I stay very still when the fox finishes its food and comes closer to me. It climbs onto my lap and curls up, closing its eyes as I shakily lie my hand on its back, stroking it as it makes a purring noise.
"Seems you found a friend," Tiryn says, looking over the rock. He jumps over, his movement silent to my ears. The baby fox doesn't look up as it sleeps happily in my lap, and Tiryn moves to sit next to me.
"What is its name?" he asks, but I don’t have a clue.
"Why would I name a fox?" I ask.
"Because clearly it has chosen to trust you, and you are now it's family," he says, resting his head back on the stone and looking at me strangely. "You have that effect, Red. You walk into people's lives, and then they never want to let you go."
"Are you talking about Jath?" I ask as Tiryn stands back up, going to leave but my question makes him pause for a second.
"No, Red. I wasn't talking about my brother." I don't get to ask him what he means as he jumps over the stone wall and he is gone in the next moment. I look down at the white fox who is as white as snow. Sounds like a suitable name for her—Snow.
Chapter 13
"This place is big," I say, gaping at the town in the mountains we have just gotten too. The town is massive, stretching all the way up the mountain to where there is a forest at the top. A large waterfall falls down the side of the mountain, a mixture of snow and ice falling into it. The houses all have a light sprinkle of snow on them, making them blend into the snowy mountain. The town is surrounded by a tall, stone wall and several watchtowers; many guards are in the towers and walking across the wall. "Are your parents at war? Why is it so protected?"
"There's more to know?" I ask.
"A lot more," Jath tells me, rushing around the wolves and running to the front of the pack next to Tiryns’s wolf. I tuck Snow further into my cloak, making sure she is secure as the stone gates open and we head into the town. It doesn't matter any; all Snow does is sleep and eat. She also won't let Tiryn or Jath touch her, much to their annoyance.
They haven't passed the bite test like I did, I suspect.
People line the streets, cheering and throwing rose petals onto us as we walk up the pathway, straight toward the top of the mountain. It reminds me of home, where the people would throw glowing leaves onto the pathway anytime the royal family came out. The last time they did that was when my king wanted to show the people how he had claimed me. It was all a lie. I may have been wife by marriage, but we were never truly mated. Vampires can only mate when they love the one they choose. It's something that does not work with fear; the magic words have no effect. My king made sure to test that rumor many a time, and he made me lie that we had mated. The air gets thicker the higher we ride up the mountain, distracting me from my memories and making it easier to remember I'm safer here than I am looking into my past. We get to another pair of gates, which again are opened for us as we get to them, and we head through them to a pathway through a forest. I look back to see only Tiryn comes through the gates, the rest of the pack has gone into the town. Tiryns’s black wolf runs by our side as we head through the long pathway through the trees until we come up to a castle in the mountain. It's huge with tall pillars that stretch into the sky and big open balconies. It reminds me so much of my home that it hurts my chest a little.
"Don't be nervous," Jath gently tells me as we get into the courtyard in front of the castle, and I look at the very imposing people standing on near the doors. A woman is in the middle, who I believe is Elodie, the alpha of the packs. Her long, brown hair blows around in the wind, her blue dress is extremely beautiful, flowing out around her legs and tight at the top, with lacy sleeves. I briefly glance at the four men standing at her side, who are all just as handsome as Jath and Tiryn, but they are nothing but scary at this moment. The tallest one has hair just like Jath and braided in a similar way, but he is too frightening to look at for long. I turn my gaze to the more playful two men who are smiling in a friendly way, looking like brothers. The other guy who holds Elodie's hand, and only looks at her is a little different than the three others who must be the alpha brothers Jath told me about, so that makes him River. Jath stops the horse right in front of them and climbs off before helping me down. As soon as my feet meet the ground, Tiryn rubs against my side as he walks to Elodie, who kneels and hugs the wolf tightly.
"I missed you," Elodie says, and Tiryn bows his head, stepping back. He growls at the brothers, who laugh. The biggest of the brothers shifts into a white wolf very similar to Jath, and they growl at each other before running off into the trees.
"Letric, Alaric, you should shift and go with Alpha and Tiryn for a run," Elodie suggests, and they each kiss her before shifting into wolves and heading into the trees.
"Nothing ever changes. We will see you later, Jath, and whoever your friend is," River comments, patting Jath on the shoulder as he passes us, and he shifts before running into the forest.
"Doesn't your mother get a hug?" Elodie asks, opening her arms for Jath, who happily hugs his mother and swings her around as she laughs. "You look different somehow. I can't quite place why that is."
"I have better company for one," Jath says, letting his mother go, and he holds his hand out to me. I take his hand as I nervously walk to his side and Elodie clearly tracks the movement without saying anything. "Mother, this is Arilee. Arilee, this is my mother."
"Hello, Jath has told me so much about you," I say, holding out a hand, and Elodie pauses before taking it.
"What are you?" she asks, dropping my hand like it’s on fire.
"Mother—"
"No, it's okay to be curious," I stop Jath, placing my hand on his chest, and he looks down at me before letting me speak. "I'm a vampire from a land called Arlen, which is across the sea."
"Arlen? Vampire?" Elodie says, placing her hands on her hips. "Strange words I've not heard before. I am going to need more details before I let you in my home."
"The only thing you need to know is that I trust Arilee," Jath says before I can say anything to explain myself. I look up at Jath, feeling warm from his words and the trust behind them. He loves his family, and he trusts me around them. I don’t even know if I deserve his trust. Elodie keeps her eyes fixed on me before she takes a deep breath.
"My Jatheod doesn't trust easy, and neither would Tiryn leave me alone with you if he thought you were a threat," Elodie says and crosses her arms just as a girl comes running down the stairs. She looks about thirteen, with long, blond hair and big eyes that look almost black. She throws herself into Jath's arms, and he laughs as he hugs her back.
"Faye, do you have to be late for everything? And covered in mud? What have you been doing?" Elodie asks with a huff.
"I was with the horses, and then I fell over. Sorry," she sheepishly says, and Jath laughs as Faye looks to me. "Who is she?"
"I'm Arilee. It's lovely to meet you," I say with a smile.
"You speak like a queen or something," Faye says, and I know she is only being playful, but it shocks me either way. I can only nod and look away, making the situation more than a little awkward.
"You okay?" Jath quietly asks, resting his hands on my upper arms. He leans down and kisses me softly before resting back. The simple movement soothes me for a long moment.
"Why don't we show you to your rooms, Arilee. Faye, as you already are covered in mud, you can take Jath's horse to the stables. Jath, you can go and find your brother. I want you both in the throne room for a long talk. Now," Elodie states, before walking up the steps. It's very clear who is in charge here.
"I will catch up with you later. Enjoy my home," Jath says, smiling tensely before running off into the forest, shifting with a long jump.
"Arilee, are you coming?" Elodie asks, and I'm quick to walk up the steps, knowing she will not ask again. I get the feeling I've not made the best impression, and I doubt I ever could have done.
Chapter 14
I walk silently at Elodie’s side, well aware of the glances she gives me every so often as we head around corridor after corridor and up a pair of steps. I pause, looking out of the window on the stairs, seeing the snow-covered town. It is really stunning from this height, and the waterfall is my favorite part, and the river that flows off it out of the town. It’s sheltered well from the mountain here and so inbuilt into the mountain that it must look like nothing but dots from a distance.
“Do you have snow where you are from?” Elodie asks me, and I watch the tiny flecks of snow falling from the cloudy sky as I answer.
“Arlen, and yes. It is unusual, though. Arlen is warm, though hotter in the summer months most of the time,” I explain to her. I don’t want to explain that snow only fell from the sky since the royal family was killed and I was taken.
“Interesting. I’m sure you liked it on the island then,” she muses. “A home away from home.”
“Yes, I did. Jath told me you and your mates once lived there,” I reply, remembering the conversation.
“A long time ago, yes, we did. I miss the warmer months,” she explains to me. “But my home is here.”
“I understand,” I say, and she steps down to look at me, and I have no choice but to stay still as she runs her eyes over me. She is difficult to read, which I’m starting to realize most of her family is. They keep their emotions hidden well, and they do not show many them at all.
“Are you a threat to my sons?” she asks, turning her head to the side but keeping her eyes firmly fixed onto my mine, waiting to see t
he answer.
“No, I’m not,” I tell her, and she watches me, silently, for a long pause.
“Okay then,” she replies and straightens up. We both pause when we hear a little noise, and I pull Snow out of my cloak, smiling at as she wakes.
“A snow fox, where did you find her, and how are you holding her?” Elodie asks, stepping back. “They grow as big as dogs and like to attack wolves, but they are so rare.”
“I found her tangled up in vines and now she seems to trust me,” I answer.
“We should go to the kitchens and find her some food. I bet she hasn’t eaten well yet,” Elodie says, carefully walking past me, and I follow her down a few more corridors until we go down a long turning staircase which leads into a large kitchen
“Alpha Elodie!” A woman shouts in happiness and comes over.
“Arabella, this is Arilee, and she has a little friend who needs something suitable to eat,” Elodie introduces me. “Arilee, this is Arabella, my sons’ aunt and head cook with her mate.”
“Hello!”
“I’m afraid fox food is something I’m clueless on, but I will make something. We can test different foods until we find what she likes. What’s her name?”
“Snow,” I answer and Arabella smiles at me. Snow wriggles in my arms, and I put her down. She runs over to the counter and sits under it before licking her paws. Arabella bows her head at Elodie and smiles at me before going to a man near the stove and kissing his cheek before talking to him.
“Tell me about yourself, Arilee,” Elodie asks, waving a hand at the table in the room. I sit down and open my mouth to say anything, but stumble. I don’t know what to tell her about me. “I can see you like animals, but I can’t see much else.”