After all the plates had been cleared, everyone dispersed to get dressed in their riding gear. They had agreed to meet at the barn in half an hour. Rather than give an excuse and waste valuable time, Willow planned to simply not show up.
She had to hurry. Dutifully heading to her room, she rushed down the hallway with her heart pounding. She prayed no one—particularly Tatiana—would follow her. She needed a few minutes to change—into jeans rather than breeches—and then make her escape into the woods.
This one time, at least, she hoped her prayer was answered.
She took a deep breath. The meeting with the EastWard princes had rattled her more than she’d expected. Though Prince Chad seemed charming enough, something about him unsettled her. She suspected it was the possibility that they were a bit alike. Used to living unnoticed in the huge shadow cast by their perfect older sibling, like her, he was able to do many things unnoticed. Slipping underneath the family’s radar was a trick she’d perfected ever since she could walk. Chad most likely did the same. She had the feeling he saw way too much. For once Tatiana had been intuitive rather than self-absorbed.
A knock on her door startled her. Heart pounding, she opened it. Chad.
“I didn’t want to go riding, either,” he said, flashing an easy smile. “How about we go for a walk and get to know each other?”
Stars. Her plans not so secret anymore, she said the first thing that came to mind, which happened to be the truth. “I can’t. I’ve lost one of my mother’s earrings and I’ve got to find it. Once I do, I’ll come looking for you, all right?”
To her relief, he dipped his head in a nod and left her alone. She closed her door and locked it, willing her rapid heart rate to slow.
After changing into jeans and boots, feeling much calmer, she went to her window and, grasping the trellis that she’d had installed a few years ago as an escape route, climbed down the outside wall. She looked both to the left and the right and seeing no one, she hurried away and slipped into the woods. Her woods.
The moment the shadowy forest enveloped her, all the tension left her. The scent of damp earth and leaves, pine and oak filled her senses. The dappled sunlight felt welcoming and warm. Here, she felt at home as she did nowhere else. She rolled her shoulders, breathing deeply, her footsteps quiet on the cushion of leaves.
Nearby she sensed several of the numerous forest creatures she’d befriended, but she didn’t call them to her as she usually did. Time was of the essence today. She had to get to Teslinko, find the missing magical earring and return to SouthWard before anyone noticed she was missing.
With this in mind, she hurried toward the veil. Once she thought she had heard footsteps behind her, but when she had slipped behind a tree to listen and watch, there was no one.
Because it never hurt to be careful, she picked up her pace. Dead leaves crackled underfoot as she hurried toward the portal.
Jogging, then sprinting, she found herself breathless by the time the shimmering power of the veil made itself known. She felt it long before she finally saw it, but once she did, she leaped forward, leaving her home the same way she’d returned, as though a demon from hell was on her heels.
Only this time, one actually was.
* * *
Prince Chad of EastWard couldn’t decide whether to be amused or angry that the SouthWard royalty had thought to marry him off to their youngest daughter. Obviously, Willow wasn’t of pure royal blood, not looking like that.
Again, he grimaced. Not that Willow was ugly. Quite the opposite, in fact. She was just...different. Both her parents had the standard Bright appearance—blond hair, violet eyes and pale skin. Like all the SouthWard and EastWard people. The Bright. Boring, but the epitome of both feminine and masculine beauty, as far as he was concerned.
No, Willow looked more like the Shadows. The people of the north and west—the Shadows—were completely different in their appearance. They were the polar opposite of the Bright. With her dark hair and dusky skin, Willow easily must have come from either NorthWard or WestWard. She was the quite obvious by-blow of some Shadow lover.
Which meant the rumors were true. For years, it had been whispered that Queen Millicent had strayed with one of the Shadow princes. Willow obviously was the result of that union. Evidently King Puck hadn’t wanted to risk humiliation and had accepted her as his own.
Furious, Chad clenched his jaw. As second son, he was always given second best. Once again, as eldest, Eric would get the most beautiful daughter. The bastard one, who was rumored to have weak magic as well, would be foisted off on Chad.
Like that would ever happen. Though he grudgingly admitted Willow had her own exotic beauty, he could never marry a woman who looked like that. There were his future offspring to consider. His children. Mating with her would risk tainting his bloodline.
Acknowledging this, he realized something else. She intrigued him. Something about her innocent sensuality appealed to his bloodthirsty nature.
While he couldn’t marry her, he still wanted her. He’d freely admit that Willow of the SouthWard fascinated him, unlike her sister who—like his brother, Eric—had absolutely no secrets. Willow moved with an unconsciously sensual grace, and the slight tilt of her almond eyes was alluring. Her lush mouth gave her an earthy sexual appeal.
Though he knew she wasn’t aware of it, Willow had passion simmering underneath her complacent, dusky beauty. Chad thought he might just be the one to awaken that in her, even if he had to use honeyed lies and false caresses.
He wouldn’t marry her, but he would have her. Of that he was determined. His brother Prince Eric might be showy, but Chad always got what he wanted, no matter how underhanded the methods he had to use to obtain it.
Always.
His initial fury subsided. This entire situation had actually surprised him, not an easy feat these days. When the marriage between Eric and the spectacularly lovely Tatiana had been arranged, the SouthWard royal couple had wanted to throw their youngest daughter into the bargain. Chad had thought it a bit odd, but what the hell. Eric was expected to marry and produce an heir. It would be to Chad’s advantage to do the same, just in case something happened to his elder brother. And you never know, he thought wickedly. Something just might.
An earring, eh? Even better, a magical earring belonging to Queen Millicent. Who knew what impressive powers the piece of jewelry might contain? Willow might have lost it, but if he could find it before her...
Whistling under his breath, he’d rounded the back corner of the palace just in time to see the Princess Willow climbing down a trellis and taking off into the woods. Alone, acting as if she had feared being caught.
Chad hadn’t even stopped to think. Intrigued, he’d followed her, intent on learning her destination without her discovering his pursuit. No doubt she went in search of the earring.
Adrenaline fueled him as he rushed through the forest, taking care not to let his quarry catch a glimpse of him. Amazed that he’d discovered a new way to get his heart pumping without drawing blood and causing pain, he grinned.
He pushed the thought away, continued his pursuit, going from tree to tree, using the underbrush as cover. She was easy to track as she took no care to hide her presence, clearly believing no one would ever attempt to follow her.
Even as she hurried through the forest, there was something sensual about her. As if this was where she belonged, he thought with a startling flash of clarity.
The idea nearly made him stumble. More than any of the other Brights, he’d studied many of the types of beings in the human realm. There were the Shape-shifters that called themselves Pack, and then Vampires, Mer-people, Warlocks, Wizards, Witches, Tearlachs and those that were a various combination of these.
Many had their own powers, but none of them had the inherent magical abilities that his people, the Bright, and the others of his kind, the Shadows, had. Each form of magic was different. The Brights controlled the elements of air and of fire, while the Shadows had
earth and water.
Except for Willow, who was rumored to have no magic at all.
When she had stopped, he had ducked behind a tree. He felt the shift in the air, raising the fine hair on his arms, and frowned. What the...? The feel of magic crawled along his skin. Magic. What was she doing? Peering out at her, he realized the magic wasn’t emanating from her slight figure. Then where?
Now he concentrated. Using his inherent magical ability, he sensed the gate long before he realized what it was, slipping out from behind a tree just long enough to see Willow hurl herself into the shimmering space and vanish.
His heartbeat kicked into overdrive. A portal. Shades of fire, could things get any more interesting? He thought not. Now to see what lay on the other side.
Striding forward, he stepped into the veil and let the magic take him where it may.
Chapter 5
After watching his father hold the press conference, Ruben had given his statement to the police. When he’d finished, King Leo was waiting for him.
Together, they’d walked the perimeter of the ruined ballroom, inspecting the damage and dictating their report to the attending scribe. Now that the damage to the castle had been noted and repairs scheduled, Ruben knew he should rest. Beyond exhaustion, he wondered how he had kept from doing a face-plant into the rubble.
As he turned to ask his father’s leave so he might grab a few hours of sleep, the wolf inside him protested. Lunging at an invisible barrier, the animal wanted out. As did his father’s beast.
Clearly equally exhausted, King Leo gave him a rueful grin. “Your wolf is restless. Mine is responding in kind. Since they won’t let us sleep, are you up for a quick change and run?”
Fighting to hold back his inner beast, Ruben nodded. “When?”
“How about now?”
As his father clapped his hand on his shoulder, Ruben finished corralling his wolf into temporary submission. He grinned up at the older man. “That’s one of the reasons I love you, Dad. The ability to make quick decisions.”
This compliment made the king laugh. “Quick and good, I hope,” he said.
“Do you mind if I bring York?” Ruben asked. “He’d love a good run. He’s been cooped up since the ball last night.” His German shepherd dog had been brought up with the Pack and often accompanied him on trips into the woods. When Ruben changed, the dog eagerly ran at his wolf self’s side.
“Sure.” King Leo loved the large dog almost as much as Ruben did.
Rather than go all the way back into the castle and locate the kennel master who was looking after York, Ruben dialed him up on his cell phone. A moment later, he whistled and the huge dog came flying around the corner toward them.
“Settle, boy.” Ruben calmed him with a few words and a light touch. King Leo stroked York’s silky head also.
“Let’s go.” Ruben waved the dog ahead of them. Tongue lolling, York gladly led the way.
King Leo chuckled. “Too bad that’s a dog, not a wolf. If anyone ever sees us all together, there will be talk in the village about the giant shepherd who runs with a pack of wolves.”
Ruben chuckled, knowing his father’s words were true. “Are you ready?”
“I am,” the king answered. Side by side, they strolled out of the castle, both in relatively good humor despite their weariness.
Walking down the path past the bench where Ruben had rested with Willow, Ruben again wondered where she’d gone. To all outward appearances, she’d disappeared into the same forest they were going to in order to shape-shift into wolves. Maybe as wolf, he could find a clue.
He didn’t want anything to interfere with this moment so he pushed the thought from his mind and bumped his father with his shoulder. His father bumped him back.
Both wearing identical faint smiles, they continued, companionably silent, along a well-trod path that wove through the dense woods in a seemingly random pattern. Centuries ago their ancestors had cleared this path and built the small stone temple at the end of it. All for the sole purpose of enabling the royal family to have a private—and beautiful—place to shape-shift from human form to wolf.
When they rounded the last turn and the ancient temple was no longer hidden, King Leo shook his head and let out a long breath. “I need this, my boy!”
Then, as Ruben was about to agree, the older man took off running. “Last one to change is a rotten rabbit!”
After a moment of shock—they both had been up all night, after all—Ruben leaped forward. Taking up the challenge, he tore after his father. They reached the old building roughly at the same time, though the king won by mere inches.
“Not bad for a man my age,” he huffed.
Ruben had to agree.
Still chuckling and slightly out of breath, they stepped inside, shedding their clothes as they went.
King Leo was the first to change. Ruben had barely gotten undressed when the air around his father began to shimmer, heralding the beginnings of the change. With his own wolf raging to be free, Ruben dropped to the ground and counted to three. Then he let the change rip through him as his wolf rejoiced to be free.
A moment later, two wolves stood in the spot where before there’d been two men. King Leo was a huge graying beast, while Ruben’s pelt was close to the same sable color of his human hair.
Muzzle to muzzle, they inhaled each other’s scent. Then, with a glad bark, Ruben took off, aware of his father racing at his side.
Later, much later, with the hunt completed and their wolves sated happy, and pleasantly worn out, they headed back toward the changing temple, luxuriating in their heightened wolf senses. As a human, Ruben relied primarily on sight. As a wolf, he used his nose. He missed that super sense of smell when he existed as man. He felt its absence with a sort of sharp sorrow.
It was good to have this experience with his father. These days they didn’t get to spend enough time together.
As they neared the path that would take them back to the old temple, Ruben felt a disturbance in the air. A shift, a slight breeze, a shiver up his spine. Nothing tangible, at least not by scent or by sight. A quick glance at his father revealed the older wolf felt it, too.
Instantly, they went low to the ground, seeking cover under vegetation. His sharp lupine hearing picked up a sound and he went still. Footsteps. Human. Uttering a low growl in the back of his throat, he glanced at his father. The other wolf dropped to his belly, well hidden. Ruben did the same.
He smelled her before he saw her. The scent, tantalizingly familiar. And the instant the woman’s dark head came into view, he knew why.
Willow.
His father growled, making Ruben realize he’d moved forward. A foolish and futile move. She wouldn’t know him now, not as wolf. And where had she come from? He’d swear she’d simply appeared from thin air. Whatever she was, she wasn’t Pack, wasn’t Shifter. But she wasn’t human, either. Her scent was off.
She’d appeared in the middle of the royal ancestral woods. Nothing that way but forest and mountains. Where on earth had she come from? Maybe, he found himself thinking cynically, she hadn’t come from anywhere on this earth.
The instant the thought occurred to him, he shook his head. Fanciful and ridiculous, even for a man who shape-shifted from human to wolf.
Then again, there was something different about her. Once more he wondered if she had somehow been involved in the explosion. But if so, why was she alone? She would have needed help to pull off a blast on the scale of the one that had taken down part of the castle.
Still hidden, the wolves let her pass. And remained hidden, as they were about to rise when their keen ears had picked up more footsteps. This time, Ruben did not recognize the scent. He only knew it, too, was not human.
And when the unfamiliar man wearing odd clothing appeared a few moments later, they let him pass, as well.
Though this time, Ruben wanted to trail him. A quick glance at his father showed he concurred. They set off together, easily able to stay out of s
ight.
* * *
Willow arrived at the castle right before the noon meal, which was perfect. If everyone was occupied with either preparing a meal or eating, that gave her a better chance of slipping in and out of the place unnoticed.
Though she’d been there when the bomb had gone off, how the destruction looked in broad daylight still shocked her. The section of the castle where, only hours before, there’d been music and dancing had been reduced to rubble. And, she saw as she drew closer, she realized the royal family of Teslinko had placed guards over the entire area.
Not good, especially since that’s where she suspected she’d lost the earring.
So much for moving around unnoticed. Now what?
Though initially she’d planned to skirt around the damaged area and enter through the kitchen, trying to pass herself off as kitchen staff, there was no way to get near the castle without getting past the guards. And, since she didn’t have a legitimate reason to enter, she knew she wouldn’t get far.
She glanced down at her jeans and faded T-shirt; she didn’t look like royalty. Even though, on the other side of the veil, she actually was.
Backtracking, she slid into the shadows before anyone noticed her. Heart pounding like a trapped bird, she weighed her options. There was one other place she could try. When she and Prince Ruben had stood on the balcony off the main ballroom, she’d noticed another couple balconies farther down the castle wall. Several of them were near large trees. It was a long shot, but at the moment, her only option.
Going around the perimeter didn’t take as long as she’d expected. Still keeping to the cover of the forest, she passed up the first two balconies as too close to the wrecked part of the castle and far too visible. And, while the second and third had some tree cover, neither was close enough to any limbs.
Finally, on the fourth balcony, she thought she had a winner. Three large trees formed a triangle and two of them had branches that extended out nearly to the balcony’s edge. Even better, one of the trees looked easily climbable.
The Wolf Prince Page 6