Page 146 of Oath of Revenge

Scarlet took the potted rose to the very window the silver dragon had stepped through. Scarlet placed it on a small table and strode back to the door. “I’ll leave you two to talk. I need to check on Wulfric.”

Bella sank onto a couch, wondering if the silver dragon’s battle one from the past or something that would be in the future? Was it something she could help prevent? She shook her head and focused on her friend. “He’s fine? Da?”

Eirwyn nodded. “Yes, once we sent Ashur to help, he’s been resting and healing. Slept for almost a full twenty-four hours after the druid and the old medicine woman worked on him.”

Bella jumped up. “They’re both here? Maybe they can help break the spell. Or at least help me get my body back.”

Eirwyn reached for her hand, but it went through air. “Relax, they’re in the garden arguing. You do not want to get between them when they’re like that. Sit and tell me everything that’s happened in the past six months. I’ve missed you.”

Bella sat back down, her chest tight with emotion at the warm welcome. She hadn’t ruined her one friend or turned her against her. Thank the gods, there was still hope.

Chapter 49

Scarlet glanced down the hallway as Leopol came down the stairs.

“Wulfric?” she asked.

He pointed up. “I put him in your room. He’s fine. No need to worry. I’m just off to ask the cook to make him another beefsteak now.”

Scarlet grinned and raced past him up the stairs, but Knox came down from the west tower where he’d probably been visiting his egg. She paused on the landing to ask, “Any movement?”

Knox shook his head. “No, but Lailant and Grandma say it’s to be expected. It’s just as well that we need to wait, since I have my hands full trying to convince the Feral Forest people to approve the treaty with the Growlers.”

“Still giving you problems?”

He shrugged and glanced out the window, searching the skies for eagles. “No more than expected. Change takes time. I suspect it’ll be a few months for the nation to approve it, but hopefully by the time we go into Glathen to finally get that economic treaty in place, both halves of the Feral Forest will present a united front.”

Scarlet played with her dagger hilts and hummed. “Growlers and dragons going on a diplomatic mission into Glathen? You’d better take as many Robins and Hunters as possible too. They can be tricky.”

Knox sighed and raked a hand over the scales on his head. “That’s what everyone keeps telling me. I really do not want Eirwyn to go, but she’s still insisting she’ll be the best chance we have of convincing them to recognize us as a nation.”

Scarlet turned to the steps that would take her up to Wulfric. “Well, she’s usually right, so you might as well listen to her.”

Knox groaned and continued down the stairs. “Don’t say that too loud, or it’ll go to her head. Oh and Scarlet, the Hunter’s Guild Master is here. He said you asked to see him?”

Scarlet paused with her foot on stair. “Ah yes, so I did. We need to discuss how the Hunters, Robins, and Growlers can work together. Tell him I’ll meet with him later.”

Knox called out, “I’m proud of you, sis, for working with all of these people. I know it’s not easy or what you want, but I appreciate it. Sometimes all this responsibility gets a bit much to handle by myself.”

She looked back at him and smiled. “It’s alright, I’ll always have your back, little brother. But if you don’t mind, all the responsibility can fuck off for a few hours. I need to see my mate.”

Knox’s laughter followed her up the stairs, but her mind had already turned toward seeing Wulfric. Her chest was tight with anticipation and nerves. She’d been separated from him for less than two days, but it was too much. She’d not told him how much she loved him or that she’d decided to stay with him when this was all over.

When she pushed the door to her room open, Wulfric sat up on the bed. Shaggy black and silver hair, big wolf ears and nose, the heat in her chest spread at the unfamiliar sight of him so domesticated, reading and—

She paused, then stumbled on a rug in shock. He wore glasses and held a book in one hand, the other tucked up behind his head. That bicep made her mouth water. His expression when he looked up and smiled at her? Her core clenched, and she shut the door behind her quickly.

“You wear glasses?“ Her voice was high in incredulity.

He chuckled and put the book down beside him on the bed. “The better to see you with, my dear.”

She shook her head and sat on the settee to pull off her boots. She didn’t want any barriers between them. “There are so many things I don’t know about you,” she muttered.

He threw back the coverlet and patted the bed. “Come closer, and I’ll tell you all you want to know.”

The confession she’d practice during the past two days of riding fled right out of her mind. She just lived in the moment and met his golden, glowing eyes. She laughed and shook her head. “First, are you healed? How are your wounds?”

He swung his feet to the side of the bed and began to unwrap his bandages. “I’m fine. I was waiting on you to take these off. I know how you love to play doctor.”

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