"You are welcome to safe passage in my woods, whenever you find yourself in need."
"Thank you."
"I'll keep my promise, the wolves will stand with you."
Sage nodded. "With your new queen at your side, I hope the Sisters will return to you, and your people will once again be fruitful."
Adrian's gaze moved uncertainly to where Redlynn spoke to the girls. "I'm not so sure she is my queen."
"She is," Sage assured him.
He wanted to believe Sage's words. But Adrian had known a woman as stubborn as Redlynn before, and she'd never changed her mind.
"What did you mean when you said the next prophecy?" he asked.
Sage's brow furrowed. "Surely you didn't think there was just one prophecy pertaining to the whole of Fairelle?" Sage said. "The prophecy of the Sisterhood was the first to be recorded in the mage books. With that prophecy fulfilled, it opens the way for the others, beginning the reuniting of the lands. The bloodshed won't end until all have been fulfilled. When they are, then will we all finally find peace."
"I have a feeling that peace will be fought for, more than it will be found," said Adrian.
"You are most likely right." Sage stretched out his hand again. "May the blood of the vampires never soil your ground."
Adrian was surprised. Words of peace hadn't been spoken between vampires and wolves in hundreds of years. "And may the claws of the wolf never draw that blood," Adrian replied, grasping Sage's arm in a clasp of brotherhood.
The two men shook heavily, then parted. Sage disappeared with Garot's corpse into the trees.
***
The group of Redlynn, Adrian, the wolves, and girls reached the castle by sundown. The girls were as shocked to see it as she'd been the first time. There were whispers about how it had gotten there, and how long it had taken to build.
Word spread quickly that they'd returned, and the women rushed out to meet them. Females hugged their husbands, children rushed up to their fathers, still in wolf form, and clung to them. The sight stirred Redlynn's heart. Such tenderness between the werewolves and their families broke down the walls of her heart. The girls watched the scene, wide-eyed and confused.
The women and children ushered the beleaguered group of girls inside, where everyone had injuries tended to, was bathed, fed, and put to bed for the night. Lizzy had made peace with the fact that her sister was alive, and she clung to her, to the great happiness of Clara. When the girls were in bed, Adrian and the men left to bury Blain in an ancient wolf burial ground. He hadn't spoken a word to her on the return journey, leaving her more confused than ever. For an hour, she stayed up and sat silently in the dining hall, alone in her thoughts. Finally, with nowhere else to go, she retired to Adrian's room to await his return.
***
Adrian didn't come back that night. In his absence, Redlynn spent hours in his bed, breathing in his scent and replaying all that had transpired between them. He'd never, technically lied to her. He'd just not been forthcoming with the truth of who he was. His words about the wolves had been weighted, neutral. He'd tried to protect her and keep her safe, even from herself. Though she didn't agree with how he'd gone about it, she understood.
The hours dragged on and the bed grew colder. Alone, her heart ached for his comforting touch. And she wished to comfort him in return. To soothe him in his pain, and ease his burden.
At first light, she awoke and went in search of him. The other men returned, but he was nowhere to be found. She came across Angus, eating in the dining hall. She hesitated momentarily. She'd come to terms with the fact that her dream was in fact, reality, but still had a hard time with him being her real father. Pulling up a chair, she sat with him.
"Have you seen Adrian?" She poured a mug of ale and downed it quickly, not meeting his eye.
Angus smiled warmly, put down his fork, and wiped his mouth. "He should be back soon, lass. He's grieving the loss of his friend."
Redlynn nodded. When Anya died, what had she done? She'd run out into the woods in an effort to kill the pain. But with Blain, there was no one to kill, no one to blame but the dead.
"You loved my mother."
"Very much." After a thoughtful pause, Angus added, "She was my mate."
"Why didn't she stay here?" She blurted it out, and then sucked in a deep breath.
Angus was quiet for a very long time, staring at his stew. "Your mother believed in tradition, in the Sisterhood. She believed that if she stayed with them, she'd change their minds about what they'd been taught. She believed she could fulfill the prophesy so we could be together."
"But she never did."
"No," Angus smiled sadly. "But you will." He stared at her. "You look so much like her. She'd be so proud of you."
Redlynn's throat tightened. "I don't know about that." Redlynn fixed her gaze on her intertwined hands. She filled her mug again. "I don't even understand what to tell them."
"Adrian's mother, Irina, was the High Sister of the Sisterhood of Red. When his father broke their mating vows and laid with another, she took all the females and left our woods. She vowed that never again would a Sister of Red be mated to a wolf, that wolves could not be trusted. From that day forward, all wolves were to be hunted and killed.
"But he was magicked into sleeping with someone else."
"Aye. But the queen didn't care. The king, overcome with grief, vowed that for his penance, we wolves would be bound to protect the Sisterhood from the vampires. Your mother betrayed the Sisterhood when she mated with me. Your grandmother forced her to marry a human, your step-father, to hide the shame."
"Did my grandmother know the truth?"
"I don't know. But she did know about your step-father's hobby of hitting women."
Redlynn's thoughts turned to Lillith. The way she'd always treated Redlynn and her mother, and the fact that she'd insisted Redlynn stay out of the woods. Something wasn't right. "Do wolves only mate with members of The Sisterhood?"
"The Sisters are the only ones able to bear wolf young. It goes back to the beginning. When Prince Garth made his wish with the djinn, Garth's wife, Princess Redlynn, was the first in the Sisterhood of Red, which is why it was so named. She was a priestess of the Order of Mages at the time. She and the mages cast a spell on all of the mates of wolves, so that they'd be able to live longer and bear our young."
"So there were she-wolves, then?"
"No. The magick of the mages has been carried through the Sisterhood bloodlines, passing from mother to daughter. But in all this time, our daughters have never turned, just our sons. You're the first female Were. The first ever."
Redlynn studied the wooden table's surface for a long time without speaking. Angus sat silently, waiting, letting her think. Her thoughts were lost in the history of her people. How could they have been led so astray?
"There haven't been Sisters in Wolvenglen for close to a hundred years."
"No, there haven't. Not until recent years. Your mother was the first to come into the woods."
"And Hanna, Clara and the others? I'd been told that they'd moved south."
"Each of them came into the woods, just as you did. They ventured too far from the path and were led here."
Her mind tried to understand what Angus told her. "So, how is it possible that the wolves have survived? With no females and no young?" Angus stayed quiet till Redlynn worked it out. "How old are you?"
"Too old. We wolves can live to be two hundred, if the conditions are right."
Two hundred? Redlynn remembered the stories of Sisters in times past that would live to be a hundred and beyond. "The Sisters don't live past seventy."
Angus shook his head. "They don't anymore, but they used to. The magick that allows Sisters to carry our young, also connects our life forces, strengthening them to live longer."
Would she live to be two hundred? If she had daughters, would they? "Why me?" she finally asked.
"Why not you? It was bound to happen at some point, given the
prophecy."
"But I don't want to be the one," she said, almost to herself.
"That is something, daughter, that you will need to decide," said Angus.
Redlynn's heart clenched. No one but her mother had called her 'daughter' before.
"What?"
"Nothing." She stood.
Redlynn looked at the doorway. Adrian was out there, somewhere in the woods, grieving and in pain. Maybe she could let it all go, be who they all wanted and needed her to be. She could track him, find him.
A cry broke through her reverie. A girl ran into the dining hall, straight to Redlynn. The girl looked around wildly, apparently delirious. Redlynn pulled her close. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she clung to Redlynn.
Hanna and Lizzy rushed into the hall after her.
"I'm sorry," Hanna said. "She's dehydrated terribly. I went to feed the baby and when I returned, she'd gone from her bed."
"It's alright." Redlynn stroked the girl's hair.
"Ilsa." Lizzy walked to Redlynn's side and laid her hands gently on the girl's shoulders. "Ilsa, it's Lizzy."
Ilsa lifted her head, "Lizzy? Where are we?"
"We're safe, Ilsa. Come on, let's find you something to drink, and get you into bed."
Isla let go of Redlynn and clung to Lizzy instead. The girls needed another day to rest. None of them would truly recover until they were in the arms of their loving parents, though. She was going to have to take them home. And face the Sisterhood.
Chapter Eighteen
Adrian stood outside his bedroom, knowing what was on the other side. The pain of Blain's betrayal had crippled him at the burial. Not wanting to see anyone, or allow Redlynn to see him so weak, he'd spent two nights in the solitude of his woods.
Emotionally and physically drained, he'd returned an hour ago and found the girls preparing to return to Volkzene. He'd spent thirty minutes working up the courage to face her, but now he stood, afraid to open the door. His heart couldn't handle hearing her say that she wouldn't be returning to him.
He'd seen how the girls needed her on the trek from the ruins. The way they looked to her for guidance, and protection. The prophecy was being fulfilled before his very eyes. She'd succeed with the Sisterhood, and they'd return to his wolves. His people would thrive again. He reminded himself that was what he'd always wanted. But for them... He'd betrayed her, lied to her. He'd done to her what he'd never wanted to do. And now she was leaving.
Taking a deep breath, he raised his hand to knock, and the door opened from within. Redlynn looked out at him, her eyes widened.
"Hi," he said.
She cleared her throat. "Hello."
She had her bow, quiver and bag already loaded.
"I'm taking the girls home today." She fidgeted with her bow string.
"I heard," he nodded. He wanted nothing more than to rush to her and hold her in his arms, to feel that she was alright and unmarred by the vampires, to have her console him in his grief over his friend. But he didn't. He wondered if it would have turned out differently if he'd been honest with her from the beginning.
He grasped for something to say. "Did you have any problems with anything, these last few days?"
She moved out of the doorway, and looked about the room. Finally she walked to the bed and straightened the already perfect duvet. "No. No problems."
His heart ached as he watched her, sure that he wouldn't see her for a long time, if ever. He couldn't stand the uncomfortable silence and unspoken words between them. Taking several strides toward her, he closed the distance between them. She turned and let out a small gasp at his nearness. He touched her cheek and breathed her fresh scent into his lungs.
He'd been a fool. He should've come to her instead of staying out in the woods for the last two days. He should have taken her into his arms and claimed her. He should have spoken words of endearment and love, telling her what he felt.
Adrian leaned in and pressed a light kiss on her mouth. She responded to his touch, pulling him closer to her. He wrapped her in his arms, allowing her to lead. Stroke for stroke her mouth heated on his, but just as soon as it started, she pulled away.
"Redlynn." He held her close. "Don't do this. Don't go." She was silent as she held onto him. He leaned away and tilted her chin, forcing her to meet his gaze.
"I need to finish what my mother began. I need to make the Sisterhood understand."
Adrian's heart sank as he took in her beautiful golden eyes. He nodded. "Do you want me to come with you?"
"Angus is going to see us to the village border."
At least his time away seemed to have helped her relationship with her father. "I understand." He backed away.
"Adrian." She reached for him.
"No. I understand, really, I do," he assured her. "You take them back safely. I'll be here if you need me."
Redlynn's brows knit in confusion, but then her face went blank. "We'll talk when I return."
Adrian nodded, but said nothing. Redlynn kissed him softly on the cheek and then stepped toward the door.
"Wait." He grabbed her hand and then quickly let go. "I found this for you. I thought you'd want it." He reached into his tunic and pulled her locket off his neck, holding it out to her.
"Thank you." She slipped it on and clutched the locket, pressing it to her breast.
At least I could bring her that piece of happiness. Adrian nodded, and then turned to the fireplace. He couldn't watch her leave. His wolf whimpered and cried out for her with longing. It had to be her decision. She had to decide her destiny; he couldn't decide it for her.
She walked out without another word, and Adrian stared up at the portrait of his mother. Hate soured his stomach, and bile rose in his throat at the sight of her. His father had betrayed her, but with her choice, to take the women and leave, she'd betrayed them all.
***
Redlynn trudged through the woods with Angus and the rescued girls, confused by Adrian's actions. The last days without him as he mourned his friend in solitude had been agonizing. She understood his need to be alone, but his having let her go so easily was less well understood. She'd come to terms with what he'd done and why. And unlike with Blain, she'd forgiven him. But it seemed almost as if he'd been telling her goodbye. Like he didn't want her to return, though she was sure he did. At least, she thought he did. Redlynn stopped walking. What if he'd changed his mind? Had her running from him turned his heart from her?
A hollowness filled her with dread. Agonizingly, she forced her feet to keep trudging forward, away from the castle and toward Volkzene, though every part of her wanted to fly to him and feel his strong arms around her. Something stirred inside of her, and she stopped moving and clutching her heart. Something moved inside, a being that was not herself. The being squirmed, itching to be let out.
"What's wrong?" Yanti stopped.
Redlynn couldn't articulate it in words. Her chest burned and her skin prickled as a tremor skittered over her body. She sucked in air, becoming overwhelmed with the need to get to Adrian.
"What's the matter, lass?" Angus moved to her side.
"I don't know," Yanti answered. "I think she's sick."
The blood pumped in her ears. A gut-wrenching pain twisted inside her, and she cried out.
"Redlynn!" Angus' voice was sharp as a knife.
All around, murmurs of the frightened girls floated around her.
"Lizzy!" Angus called. "Keep the girls moving. Redlynn just has a cramp. We'll catch up in a minute."
"Is she okay?" Yanti's voice trembled.
"Och, aye. She's fine. She just needs to relax for a moment. Redlynn, look at me, daughter." Angus' voice held a gentle but firm quality.
She tried to concentrate on Angus, as another tremor wracked her. Something inside fought to get loose.
"You feel her, don't you, your she-wolf? She's trying to get out, lass. You can't allow that. We have to get the girls to safety. I need you to find your she-wolf, dominate her, and cage her."
She tried to understand Angus' words, but they made no sense as her body writhed in agony.
"Redlynn, you must do it. Find her. Cage her."
Redlynn pushed past the tremors to locate the center of her pain. She inhaled deeply, focusing on her belly. The spot where Adrian had laid his hand the night they lay on the riverbank together. Then she heard it inside. The yowl of a wolf. The being inside her, trying to break free, was her she-wolf. Redlynn saw her in her mind. The she-wolf snarled and snapped, trying to tear free from a small tether that bound her in place. The wolf wanted out. She wanted to run. She wanted Adrian's wolf.
Redlynn tried reasoning with the wolf, tried soothing her. But it didn't work. Another tremor ran through her and her finger bones cracked. She was close to shifting. She was losing control. Her thoughts turned to Adrian, and how she wished he was there with her. At the thought of him, her she-wolf calmed a bit. Redlynn envisioned Adrian's eyes, his face, his body. The touch of his lips to hers, the taste of his breath on her skin. Little by little, the she-wolf backed away. Her cries died down until at last she slumbered, safe and serene.
Redlynn's eye popped open, and she looked down to find her fingers normal. Angus watched her with great intent. When she nodded to him, a broad smile crossed his heavily lined face.
"Well done, lass. Well done." He beamed from ear-to-ear.
"What was that?" asked Yanti, wide-eyed.
"Redlynn is a she-wolf," said Angus. "The first of our kind."
"A wolf?" The young girl processed the information. A small smile crept over her face. "I wish I was a wolf. Then I'd be a great vampire hunter, like you."
Warmth spread through Redlynn, a self-acceptance she'd never experienced before. For the first time in her life, she knew who she was, and she was proud.
"Let's keep this our little secret for now, okay?" Redlynn said.
"I can keep a secret." Yanti took her hand.
Beyond The Veil: A Paranormal & Magical Romance Boxed Set Page 330