I followed her past the candles to the back of the stage where there was a door. She opened it and descended down a row of creaky stairs. Stepping after her and down into the basement, we passed flame sconces that lit up the walls and I wondered if it was normal fire or that magic fire she’d made with her hands. Could she snap her fingers and make them blow out?
Probably…
When we reached the bottom steps, I took in the large space. To the right was a bedroom with the door ajar and a simple four-poster bed. On the back wall was a fireplace with crackling logs inside. There was a little kitchen off to the left and a sitting area in front of the fire. In the farthest corner of the room was a small floor pillow facing a low table or altar. One single thick blue candle burned on the alter with a vibrant purple flame.
She pointed to the purple flickering glow. “That’s a blessing candle. For you. I’ve prayed for you every night since you saved me from the dark fey and brought me home.”
I swallowed hard, feeling slightly uncomfortable at her kind gesture. Why? I had no idea. This girl had so much faith in me. I didn’t want to let her down.
I was about to respond, when she spoke again.
“When Running Spirit was killed…” She shook her head. “No, I need to go back further. Let me start over.” She rubbed her hands together nervously. “My mother, Faye, was a priestess too. Blessed with healing like me.”
She gestured for me to sit down on the couch and I did, facing her as she snuggled in across from me. Being with Astra felt so… easy. Which was weird considering I literally knew nothing about her.
‘Pack,’ my wolf told me, and I nodded. Astra was pack, that’s why we felt like sisters. It was similar to my imprint with Sawyer, the closeness, the reading of her energy but in a familial way. She was nervous now but also excited.
“Was?” I asked, wondering if her mother was…
“Dead.” She nodded, and then pointed to the ceiling. “With the Father now.”
Right…
“I’m sorry.”
She swallowed hard. “She died shortly after Red Moon, your grandfather, passed.”
I frowned. “That was recent. How did she die, if you don’t mind my asking?”
She looked around the home as if still expecting to see her mother walk out of the kitchen. When she met my gaze, I wasn’t prepared for the fear I saw in her eyes.
“Don’t run off or anything, okay? Just hear me out first.” She inched closer to me as if she were preparing to jump out and grab me when I inevitably tried to bolt.
My heart picked up speed then, thumping wildly against my chest. “Why would I run?” I swallowed hard.
“My mom died shortly after Red Moon because… we as priestesses cannot live long without being tethered to an alpha.” She raised her wrist to show the marks I’d made there when I’d claimed her and now it all made sense.
My heart rate slowed a little. I’d been expecting so much worse. Like, I don’t know… for her to tell me she needed my skin or kidney or something for a spell.
“Okay, well, are we tethered now? I mean, you’re okay, right?” It dawned on me that she might be about to drop a bomb and tell me that she was about to die.
She nodded. “I’m good now that you’ve claimed me and we are tethered.”
Whew. “Cool.”
She chewed her lip. “But the rest of the pack will lose their magic if you don’t claim them as well. Their wolves will slowly die until they become weak humans. Our land has already started dying.”
I squirmed. This was nothing she hadn’t basically told me before, and I’d accepted when I said I would stay and help that I’d have to become alpha of these people. Claiming them all? It was a bit insane, but if it would save their magic…
“I’ll do it,” I said, waiting for the relief to show on her face.
The look never came. Instead her mouth twisted into a grimace.
“What’s wrong?”
She reached out and grasped my hands. “In order to become our alpha, you have to prove yourself to the land, the magic, the people, the Father.”
I could actually feel the frown pulling my face into a scowl. Is that why Rab called me a trial alpha? He didn’t think I could pass the test or whatever.
Oh fuck that. The best way to make sure I did something was to tell me I wasn’t capable.
“Bring it,” I told her. “I’ll prove myself.”
She squeezed my hands, giving me a small smile. “You are so brave, Alpha. I knew the second I met you that you and your lineage would be the one to lead us for generations. I believe in you.”
Nervousness crawled through me and I wondered if it was me or her. “So what do I need to do to prove this? A fight?”
I didn’t want to kill Rab. He was Arrow’s brother, and although he was a bit of a douchebag, I knew he was just protecting his people.
She sighed. “You will have to journey through the Dark Woods alone, to the Cave of Magic.”
I gulped. Alone? Dark Woods? Cave of Magic? Okay, shit just got a little scarier than I was expecting. “What’s in the cave?”
Astra shrugged. “I don’t know. The only people to make it back alive are dead now.”
My eyes widened. “Red Moon?”
She nodded. “And Run, your father. Only alphas can enter the Dark Woods and go searching for the cave.”
“Biological father,” I corrected her, not wanting to discount the man who raised me, the man I considered to be my dad.
She bobbed her head up and down. “It’s supposed to be a three-day journey in and out… if you don’t get lost.” She paused and I raised an eyebrow.
“Get lost? Has anyone ever… gotten lost?” Her hands clamped down on mine as if willing me to stay on this couch with her. Then her eyes seared into my soul with an astonishing flaming gold as her wolf came to the surface.
“Run got lost… and came back three years later. Some say the Dark Woods will hide the cave from you, only revealing it when you are ready. You could be gone years.”
What. The. Fuck. Did she just say?
I yanked my hands out of hers and stood, backing up to the wall. “Whoa, you never said anything about being gone years.”
She shook her head. “It’s just a possibility.”
Hah! I barked out a laugh. “I could just possibly get lost for three years? No way.” I pointed to the ring on my finger. “I am marrying the love of my life and if I am gone for three years his entire family will die, including him, because of a curse your people put on him!” I yelled and she bowed her head in submission, which made me immediately feel guilty.
“Shit, I’m sorry.” I stepped closer to her, then rubbed my face, trying not to have a panic attack. Dark Woods for three years to save thousands of people? Pass. HARD PASS. “I just … I can’t, Astra. It’s asking too much. If you could guarantee me I would be in and out in three days, I would totally do it, but the thought of getting lost for years … I can’t.”
A single tear slipped from her eye and she wiped it away with the back of her palm. Turning back to face me, she walked over to the little wooden alter she had set up and kneeled before the purple flickering candle, clasping her hands and muttering unintelligible words under her breath.
I sat there awkwardly, unsure what to do when she stood, a smile back on her face. “I understand, Demi, and I respect your choice. Let me give you a tour? See if you can help in another way?”
I frowned.
She called me Demi, not Alpha, and it felt like a slap in the face, but I ignored it.
“Absolutely. I can totally help in other ways. Food, goods, I mean whatever you need I can get them when the war dies down.”
She nodded and we stepped out of the room and back up the stairs.
Two hours later, I knew exactly what she’d done. She didn’t “give me a tour,” she threw my heart into a blender and hit pulse. I’d been through the dying wheat fields, the rotten corn crops, the completely foul fruit orchard, all black with disease, all screaming: You are a piece of shit if you don’t go into the Dark Woods and heal this land.
“The land is dying from the loss of the alpha’s magic that is tied to it. That can only happen when the trial alpha reaches the Cave of Magic,” Astra had told me as we’d walked through the putrid corn field.
I’d just nodded at first, ignoring her apparent sales pitch. But then she brought me to the birthing center. There were over two hundred women currently pregnant, and when Astra set one of the brand new babies in my arms, I frowned when I noticed something was off with the child. He seemed happy enough but … I couldn’t put my finger on it.
I stared down at him, so small and innocent, while I tried to figure out what was nagging at my brain. Weeping came from the room down the hall as Astra leaned in close to me. “Born without a wolf. It will happen until our new alpha goes through the rite of passage, finds the cave, and shows they are worthy and claims the land and people.”
I stared at her in horror, and then back at the baby. The eyes. It was the eyes! They were… brown. Beautiful brown baby eyes, but… not the magical blue of the Paladin people. I inhaled, smelling the baby.
Human.
“Are you telling me that two Paladins just gave birth to a human?” I whisper-screamed to her. How the hell was that possible? Even a Paladin and a human would have a child that could shift into wolf form.
Astra nodded, stroking the boy’s forehead lovingly as I held him. “Not enough magic to go around now that Red is gone.”
The guilt of her words hit me like a ton of bricks. I quickly handed her the baby before the sob ripped from my throat. Then I ran down the hall and burst out of the door. The cool breeze hit my face as I thought of what that poor mother must be going through. What that child would live with. Was being human awful? No, but to grow up different, among wolves and not being able to shift or heal, he’d be a freak. Because of me. He was a beautiful healthy baby boy, but he wasn’t a wolf, not like he should be. My breath came in and out in ragged gasps as I surveyed the dying land before me. What I’d seen today was a good people, a hardworking people who didn’t deserve to lose their magic, their wolves, all because I was scared of being gone too long.
‘I need to see you. I have to talk to you about something in person. It’s important,’ I told Sawyer as the panic threatened to fully take hold of me.
His reply was immediate. ‘Are you okay?’
Tears streamed down my face. I couldn’t imagine losing my wolf, not now that I knew she was the one reason I was left living, that she was my protector when Vicon and his buddies took my virginity against my will.
‘No. I’m not. I need to see you, Sawyer.’
‘Alright, I’ll have Eugene escort you back to me when he gets there, but can you bring some protection? Maybe twenty Paladins? The Wild Lands are crawling with Ithaki and vampires right now.’
Ask more people to risk their life for me? Sure thing.
‘Okay,’ I said.
‘Okay … see you tonight.’
“You okay?” a familiar voice called behind me, and I quickly wiped my tears and spun on my heel.
Rab. I sighed when I saw him. “Come to gloat at my emotional weakness?”
He shrugged. “I came to see if you were hungry. My mate just made lunch. She wants to meet you.”
I internally groaned, looking to the door of the birthing center, where Astra waved me off.
“I’ll meet up with you later!” she said, as if she’d overheard us.
“Sure,” I told him, wondering why he would invite me to lunch after he was such a dick to me before. Why would his mate want to meet me? Hopefully, she was nothing like him. I wasn’t in the mood to dine with two assholes.
We walked across the burned blades of grass. It looked like a recent fire had scorched the land, but Astra had explained it was just the sudden loss of alpha magic when Red died.
Rab gave me a long side-glance and I growled. “What?”
He chuckled. “I can’t believe our last remaining alpha is a city wolf.”
I rolled my eyes. “I can’t believe you’re related to sweet and charming Arrow.”
His lips twitched into a half grin and then fell. “I can’t believe Red died so that you could live…”
I stopped walking, my throat tightening as his words. “Hey, that was a low blow.”
He shook his head. “No, what I meant was… I can’t believe that Red crossed over Ithaki land to save a city wolf who happened to be his long-lost granddaughter.”
Oh.
“Yes it was … synchronistic.”
He shook his head. “I don’t think so,” he sighed, looking deeply into my eyes before inhaling through his nose, as if smelling me. “I think he knew. I think on some level he knew who you were.”
I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from crying. I wished I had gotten to meet the old man, to know him. I tried to think back to our conversation, and any indication that he knew we were related.
“Rab! Food’s getting cold. Get your butt in here!” a female yelled down the street, and I grinned at the sassy way she spoke to him.
“Oh, I’m going to like her.” I let the amusement play out on my features as he scowled at me. He stalked off toward the beautiful woman standing in the red doorway who was waving us over, and I followed him.
As we approached, I examined her closer. She looked to be about mid-twenties with her brown hair in a long silky braid over one shoulder. She had those intense almond shaped turquoise eyes, and a smattering of freckles across her nose that made her look young and innocent. I swallowed hard when my gaze went to her abdomen and I noticed her belly was swollen with pregnancy.
“Hello, Demi. I’m Willow.” She smiled at me and bowed her head slightly in greeting.
“You’re pregnant,” I said stupidly, instead of actually greeting her like a normal person. That’s why she invited me; she didn’t want her baby to be born human. This was all a part of their plan.
Oh Lord.
The guilt trip was being laid so thick I could barely breathe.
She nodded. “Only four months along, but yeah.” She grinned at Rab. He reached over and rubbed her belly as the smells of something savory filtered out to us on the porch.
“Come on in.” She stepped back and ushered me inside.
I gingerly crossed the threshold, the guilt of her unborn baby weighing on me with each step. If I didn’t go into the Dark Woods and find that damn cave, then her baby would be born human… without a wolf.
I swallowed hard, looking around her home. It was similar to my guest cottage but seemed more lived in. She had the table set with some type of bean stew and a fresh bowl of rice. The tablecloth was a deep red, and there were some dried husks of wheat for decoration in the centerpiece. “Sorry there is nothing fresh. As you know, the crops have been failing since we lost Red.”
I paled.
“Dry rice and beans, courtesy of Wolf City,” Rab grumbled.
Willow reached out and smacked him on the back of the head. “What’s gotten into you, mate? Where is your gratitude? Would you rather your pregnant mate starve?”
Rab’s cheeks pinked and he cleared his throat. “Thank you for the food,” he half growled and sat down.
I liked her, but I frowned at Rab as we both sat down at the table. “You’re welcome, Rab.” I said his name like it was made of poison as Willow served me a plate of steaming hot beans and rice. There was also a spicy looking relish on the side.
Willow barked out a laugh. “You know his name is Rabid Wolf for a reason, right?” She bared her teeth in a mock growl and he playfully smacked her butt.
I chortled, my mouth going slack. “Rab is short for Rabid!”
He squared his shoulders, shoving a mouthful of beans into his mouth. “It’s a strong name.”
Yeah, for a psycho asshole, which he was, but there was a playfulness to our banter and I relaxed into that.
“Demi needs a Paladin name.” Willow mixed her rice and beans as I started to take a bite.
“She needs to earn it. It’s not given out for free,” Rab said through gritted teeth.
Willow rolled her eyes at her mate. “I’m aware of that. Who says she can’t earn it?”
I tipped my chin to her in thanks but Rab laughed. “Astra and Arrow both risked their lives to sneak into Wolf City and plead with her to help us and she gave them canned food and turned them away. That’s not the trait of an alpha.”
“Hey!” I slammed my fist down on the table and the glasses clanked, causing everyone to jump. “I’m sorry.” I looked at Willow, but she seemed unbothered by my outburst.
Then I glared at Rab: “I only found out I was half Paladin a few months ago, and an alpha a few weeks ago. Excuse me for having to think things through before throwing away my entire life to help people who have been nothing but assholes to me and my mate.” I shoved my engagement ring in his face. “The mate that I need to rush and marry so he doesn’t die from the curse your people put on his family!”
The table went silent, and I didn’t realize how loud I’d gotten, but I’d definitely screamed the last part. Rab sighed, looking down at his food in an apparent act of submission. Willow’s gaze flicked over to my ring and she grinned. “I love her. She’ll be a perfect alpha.”
I yanked my hand back and rubbed my face. “I’m sorry I lost my temper—”
Willow snort-laughed. “You’re a Paladin female. We would expect nothing less.”
I gave her a small smile, grateful to feel so accepted but still annoyed Rab and everyone expected me to just ride in and save the day the second they told me they needed help.
“The curse on the Hudson family was a mistake,” Rab finally said. “A mistake our entire people have lived with for as long as I can remember.”
Fair enough. We all made mistakes, but the curse was still there and a huge problem in Sawyer’s life. “Well, you can’t expect someone to just easily get over that mistake when it impacts their entire life. In Wolf City, they have contests to win the alpha’s heart, where you compete with dozens of other women. He dates them all at the same time because of your curse. It’s messed up.”
Willow shook her head. “I would kill them all.”
I grinned. This chick was going to be a good friend, I could tell.
Rab dropped his fork on the plate. “Okay, I get it, we messed up forever ago and there is a good reason city wolves hate us. Can we move on?”
I nodded, shoving a mouthful of yummy spiced beans into my mouth as a flavor explosion of cumin burst across my tongue. “Yes. Let’s move on. I know you don’t like me, but I’m all that you have left, so I’m just going to have to do.” I shrugged.
Willow stilled. “Does that mean … you’ll go to the Dark Woods and prove yourself as alpha?”
Her hand went to her belly and I sighed.
“Yes. You think I’m going to let your baby be born a human and eat dried beans and rice for the rest of their life? I told you, I’m here to help.” Dammit, their entrapment had worked. I was going all in.
Rab looked me up and down then, scanning my body with the gaze of a predator as if looking for weak spots or wounds to exploit. “Run was the greatest alpha of our time, and it took him three years to find his way through the Dark Woods to the Cave of Magic. Do you really think you can even make it out of there alive?”
My wolf surged to the surface then and I glared at him. “Have you ever had an alpha who was a split shifter?”
Willow lifted a finger. “Angel wolf, and no, we haven’t,” she agreed, and Rab shot her a glare.
“You’re not trained,” Rab said. “The first cold night, you’ll lose your fingers to frostbite.” He took a bite of rice and beans, chewing it slowly.
Okay frostbite sounded bad, but after my time with Marmal and running through Dark Fey Territory, I was no longer scared of being alone in the wild. “Then teach me as much as you can in the next twenty-four hours, because I’m going and I’m coming back in three days with magic that will fix this land and save your people.”
He looked at me like I was a puzzle he couldn’t figure out. “Our.”
I frowned. “Huh?”
“Our people, and if positive mental attitude could help you out there, I wouldn’t worry so much.”
I smiled, taking another bite of food.
“But it can’t,” he growled. “So be ready for a master class in woodland survival.”
I gulped.
Was I really doing this? Going out alone into a place called the Dark Woods in order to find some magical cave and possibly get lost for years?
No, I couldn’t think like that.
Seeing Willow stroke her pregnant belly longingly though, I knew I had to try, and I could leave nothing to chance. Nothing.
“Willow, do you have a fancy dress I could borrow?” I asked.
