Page 38 of Capricorn Blessed

He shushes me gently. “I don’t want to worry, Beorn,” he says, “but the space I can normally sense him is empty. It’s like there’s a hollow pit where he used to live.”

“But how?” I ask, tearing up at the pain this must be causing him.

“I don’t know,” he answers. “He forced the shift when we were attacked. It was like I was in the passenger’s seat watching what he was doing. When we made it across the bridge, he let me take back over, but he didn’t go back to his spot. He just vanished.” He shrugs sadly. “I wanted you to know, in case it changes the way you feel.”

I squeeze his hand. “Of course not. You are my mate, with or without your wolf.”

We finish walking to the car in silence. Dennis helps Beorn into the back, and Beorn promptly falls asleep. Hopefully, his tiger can help him heal before we face the last step on this journey.

“Where to?” Dennis asks starting the engine.

“East,” I say. “Let’s go East.” He nods and pulls the van back onto the road.

When the silence stretches too long, I reach up, turning on the radio and scanning through the channels. The trip passes slowly. Dennis and I take turns behind the wheel, continuing east and sometimes turning south.

We drive through the night and into the next morning. I’m exhausted, and my eyes burn. Beorn’s bruises have mostly healed, and Kenric has sat silently in the back, sometimes sleeping, sometimes staring out the window.

Dennis encourages me to sleep when it’s his turn behind the wheel, but I fight the need. I’d hate to sleep so deeply I miss needing to switch directions. The window to fulfill the prophecy is quickly closing, and I still have no idea where to go.

My stomach lets out a loud rumble.

“We should stop,” Dennis says. “We need to find food, and you need to rest.”

“We don’t have time,” I say. “We need to keep going.”

“You won’t be any good to anyone if you are running on empty,” Dennis answers, steering the car off the highway.

We pull into a large city that is holding onto its small town roots. Picket fences line the front yards. Sidewalks bustle with people walking up and down the road.

“Well, isn’t this cute,” Beorn says, blinking his eyes open and stretching his arms. “What did I miss?”

“Nothing,” Kenric grunts.

“We are stopping for food and rest,” Dennis answers.

He finds a spot and parks the van. We walk up the street until we find a take away restaurant. Dennis and Beorn look for a table while Kenric and I wait in line. We order sandwiches and chips for all of us, then find the other two.

“This place seems nice,” Beorn says. “It’s called ‘The Forest City’. Too bad we don’t have time to hike.”

I tip my head to the side. “What was that?”

“‘The Forest City’” Beorn answers. “They are well-known for their hiking trails and outdoor adventures.”

“Maybe we should check them out,” I say, standing up.

“Can we at least get our food first?” asks Dennis.

“Only if we take it go,” I answer.

The guys agree, and when our food arrives, we grab the boxes and head out onto the streets.

“What do you remember about the location of the dream?” I ask.

“Trees,” answers Kenric listlessly.

“And a river,” says Beorn. “And wasn’t there a clearing just before the river?”

“That’s right! That’s where Kenric found me, in the clearing.”

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