Page 95 of Oath of Revenge

He sank to the ground behind her, spooning his big wolf’s body around hers. “Sh, I’ve got you, love. I’ll keep watch.”

She shivered, leaning into him as his warmth slowly spread through her.

Chapter 30

A log split in the fire, and Scarlet rolled over on the bed. She was finally warm, and didn’t want to wake up. She moved her cheek back and forth on the pillow, but her antler caught. She sighed, reaching up to dislodge it and rolling onto her back, a large loose shirt twisting around her.

Her eyes flew open. Antlers. She felt the small tips, her small rabbit ears, and her eyes watered as she traced her nose and jaw. She was back to the way she’d been after drinking the glocken berry tea, back to what she’d been before mating.

“Ah, I see you are awake,” a soft voice said from the corner of the tent. Scarlet blinked away her tears and lifted her head. Elva sat in the rocking chair, slowly pushing herself. Her eyes glowed softly in the firelight, but the wisdom and understanding made Scarlet tear up more. She laid her head back on the pillow.

“Are you alright, Luna?” It was the hesitancy and pity that made her jolt into action.

She sat up, her fist hitting the bed as she glared across the room. “Am I alright? No, I’m not alright. Look at me! I’m back to whatever freak this is. I thought the mate bond had fixed it, had made me a Growler. Or did I imagine all of last night?”

She wiped furiously at her cheek to remove the offending tear as the Elder tilted her head.

“The entire tribe is singing your praises right now.”

She frowned. “Why?”

“You took down a full-grown boar and an ice monster on your first shift. No one else in the history of our people has done anything like that before.”

With a heavy heart, Scarlet sucked in a sharp breath. The pain in her chest was a constant reminder of her cursed nature. She yearned to be like the other humans—or hells, she’d be alright being like all the other Growlers. It was a never-ending internal struggle for acceptance and belonging within any species that she’d finally achieved… only to have it all melt away like snow.

Her throat was tight as she asked, “Will I be able to shift again? Why don’t I look mostly human like all the other Growlers? Why do I still have these fucking antlers and ears and nose?”

Elva stood and walked slowly around the fire to the small kitchenette area. She riffled through another chest and turned with a plank of smooth wood in her hands, a scattering of dried meats and a mug of something on top.

She brought the tray to Scarlet and placed it on her lap before sitting beside her on the bed. “Who knows why the goddess blesses as she does?”

The Elder patted Scarlet on the knee, but Scarlet swallowed hard at the pitying action. That look was almost as bad as the mean comments from villagers back in Vidrland. Scarlet took another bite of the meat and chewed while she thought.

She took a drink, then said, “It’s not a blessing. It’s a curse.”

“A curse is in the eye of the beholder. One man’s curse is another’s blessing. It’s been said of the Growlers for hundreds of years. Don’t the people in Busparia talk about us like we’re cursed? And yet, to the man dying on the side of the road, we’re a blessing.”

Scarlet looked away, her chest tight as she shook her head and continued to eat. “This is different. It wasn’t a choice of salvation when I was twice cursed.”

“And you cannot live like this? Take what you see as a curse and turn it to your advantage?” Elva asked.

Scarlet frowned, swallowing more of the tea. “Before the glocken berry tea, my antlers were a fourteen-point spread and my ears hung to my shoulders. Everything was so loud and my head and shoulders hurt every day. I couldn’t sleep.”

Elva waited while she took another bite. She couldn’t deny that these two small antlers and tiny ears made life much easier. “To knowingly live like this? I can’t do it. I’d constantly be wondering if I tried every option, exhausted every avenue to fix it. When I shifted into a Growler last night, I was finally free. I was a normal Growler just like everyone else. I was accepted and welcomed on the run. I—I can’t go back to this.”

Elva’s eyes glowed brighter and the fire flashed higher. “You’re a Growler now, and the tribes will accept you as the amazing Luna you are. You’ll learn how to control the shift. Just be patient.”

Scarlet tried to run her hands through her hair, but grabbed her horns instead, scratching the skin around each. “Ugh, I’ve been patient for six fucking months. I’ve tried everything to get rid of these cursed antlers, and I finally felt what it was like to be normal and accepted for once in my fucking life. Can’t you—yes, you can do the Growler spell!”

Elva’s brows rose. “What?”

Scarlet took her hand. “Yes, you can turn me into a Growler.”

Elva frowned and shook her head. “No, I don’t think it works like that. The mate bond already made you a Growler. You just need to develop the skill.”

“But not enough of one, or I wouldn’t have these fucking antlers back. The goddess can do it, you know she can.”

Elva jerked back and crossed her arms with a scowl. “The goddess frowns on turning those who don’t need it. The spell is only supposed to save someone from death. Anyone who turns into a Growler outside of the spell is the work of the goddess. To perform the spell when she’s already blessed you? It’s sacrilege.”

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