Page 96 of Craved By a Wolf

The nymph king had his bride and intended to wed her as soon as possible.

He held himself back, denying his need to tear the world apart, because not everything was in place yet. People were still arriving, meaning there was still time for him to find Hella and save her.

Another coach rolled along the road, the driver looking impatient. A blond male, clearly a nymph, poked his head out of the window in the door and glared at his servant, and then at the route ahead of them. Whatever angry words he had been about to let fly at the people responsible for holding him up died on his lips and he slunk back into his carriage.

Kin couldn’t blame him.

The hold-up was an elegant couple on foot, accompanied by a dozen guards dressed in white armour that covered them from head to toe, leaving only a slit across their eyes open. Several of the guards flexed talons around the staffs of their white and silver spears as the horses behind them whinnied.

They weren’t nymphs.

The guards’ armour concealed their appearances, but the couple wore fine clothing—a silver-edged white robe for the male and a white dress with a delicate silver scrollwork corset for the female.

Both of them had pointed ears.

Fae.

Their white hair and alabaster skin made him think of the ones his mother had told him about as a pup—the benevolent faeries.

The seelie.

It would explain why the driver of the carriage was so reluctant to force them to move faster. Here in Lucia, the seelie were one of the two great powers. The other was their dark cousins, the unseelie.

Kin noted there were none of those dark fae present.

The nymph king probably didn’t want a war breaking out during his wedding.

The seelie and their entourage entered the walls and Kin looked over his left shoulder, gazing up at the castle that towered beyond them. He needed to get in there, and to do that, he needed to blend in with the attendees.

Rather than heading further along the wall, he backtracked, moving from tree to tree, placing some distance between him and the gatehouse. He studied everyone who passed him, cataloguing their size compared with his, and was beginning to think he might have to attempt to slip in unnoticed as he was when he finally spotted a male close to his six-ten and build.

The male’s dark blue knee-length tunic and trousers were going to be a bit of a squeeze, but he would manage it.

Kin tracked the male, tailing him and waiting for an opening. When none presented itself and the male was dangerously close to the gate, he lunged from cover, slapped his hand over the male’s mouth and dragged him back into the trees. He viciously twisted the fae’s neck, snapping his spine, and lowered him to the ground.

And waited.

Sure someone would have spotted him.

When a few painful minutes had ticked past and no guard came to fight him, he stripped the male down to his underwear and shirked his own clothing. As predicted, the trousers were a tight fit, but the material was stretchy enough that they weren’t too uncomfortable. The tunic had a little more room in it than he had thought. He finished fastening the silver buttons and picked up the sword belt. An added bonus.

It had been some time since he had fought using a sword, but he was sure he would remember how if he was forced to use it. He tightened the belt around his waist so it cinched in his tunic and the weapon sat snug against his left hip, smoothed his appearance and neatened his hair, and then blew out his breath.

“This is such a stupid idea,” he muttered as he approached the road, his nerves rising.

But apparently love made wolves do crazy things.

He held his nerve and stepped out onto the road, quickly moving to blend with a mixed group of immortals who were moving at pace towards the gatehouse. None of the males seemed bothered by his presence as they continued to talk about the honour of being invited to the wedding.

He glanced behind him and frowned as he saw the road was empty, and then looked ahead of him at the castle. The guards had already closed one half of the tall golden arched doors.

Kin stared at the open side, feeling twitchy now as he battled the urge to make a break for it and run through before the guards could shut him out. He pulled down a steadying breath and focused on the castle, on scenting the air and seeking a sign of Hella.

He caught the faintest note of heather.

His heart steadied, his mind calming, and he settled his left hand on the hilt of his sword as he willed her to be strong, to be the same stubborn and wily witch he had come to love.

He was coming for her.

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