Page 66 of Heir of the Autumn Queen

I think through how they both described my aunt and uncle; if the Summer Kingdom has been complacent as the North and Westlands have committed atrocities to so many innocent people, maybe they won’t be as willing to march on Selena as I had hoped.

“Are there many indentured servants here?” I ask, wondering if what Felix said is true about it being less common in the Summer and Spring Kingdoms.

“Not that I know of,” Shepherd answers, considering.“Maybe amongst the wealthier families, but it’s rare.”

I breathe a sigh of relief, thankful my uncle isn't actively encouraging his wealthier subjects to pursue contracts of servitude with the poor.“And do the king and queen have a strong relationship with any of the other kingdoms? Any alliances?”

Shepherd watches me closely, no doubt trying to figure out why I’m asking so many questions about the Southlands.“I suppose the Spring Kingdom would be our closest ally. King Cadogan seems to keep to himself, and no one wants to get close to Queen Selena, powers or not.”

I scrunch my nose in distaste at the mention of the Spring Kingdom as I recall my unwanted interaction with Xavier, but I never actually spoke with his parents, so I’m not too put off by the idea of allying with them as well if they’ll hear me out.“Do the Four Kingdoms ever get together?”

“There’s a summit that takes place in the Blest Quarter once a year, ” Shepherd says.

“They mostly argue about their petty problems, air out any grievances they have with each other,” Rowan adds with an eye roll, making me stifle a laugh. I’m slowly learning there’s not much he’s afraid to say. If it’s on his mind, it comes out of his mouth. It’s refreshing, honestly.

“Good to know,” I say from atop Shadow, when Rowan slows his steps and comes to a stop, chin turned up slightly as he sniffs the air. Shepherd mirrors him, and they exchange a look. I pull back on the reins and halt Shadow, stretching out my senses and listening. I don’t hear anything unusual, and apparently neither do my companions, because they both start walking again. I nudge Shadow forward, but the heavy silence remains between us as if they’re still on high alert for an unseen threat.

We remain silent as I hold back the questions burning on my tongue, and keep on down the road until we stop for lunch around midday, although I’m the only one actually eating anything. We sit among the trees, several yards from the dirt path that serves as the road between the smaller towns.“Aren’t you hungry?” I ask them.

“We’ll eat later.” Shepherd shrugs casually.

I raise my eyebrows.“So youdoeat while in wolf form?”

Rowan answers for them both.“A wolf stomach can handle more diverse foods; it makes traveling easier when you don’t have to take time to cook things or scavenge.” I shudder slightly at the idea of eating raw meat like I’m sure they do.“It’s not so bad,” Rowan says, noticing my repulsed face.“Things are different when we’re shifted. We still have our self-awareness, but for all intents and purposes, we are wolves. Our senses, our instincts, our mentality, all wolf.”

“Does it take a while to adjust, once you shift?” I ask.

“When we first start shifting, definitely. But after a while, it just becomes second nature. A second skin, you could say.”

“When can you start shifting?”

“Technically, we could shift as soon as we’re born, but we wouldn’t know how. Most of us usually start shifting around our fifth birthday, but we’re still pups at that point.” Rowan tells me.

“Do you ever interact with regular wolves?” I ask, unable to stop the questions from popping into my head.

“Sometimes,” Shepherd answers me this time.“But we can’t communicate with them like we do with each other, so tensions can run high with non-shifter packs.”

I finish my food and start to stand up to get back on the road, but before I’m all the way up, Shepherd reaches out and grabs my arm, stopping me. I’m half-crouched as Shepherd’s hand remains on my arm, and he quickly removes it.“Sorry.” He clears his throat.“I was just wondering if you might want to try to thought-speak again.”

I sit back down next to him and resist the urge to touch the spot where his hand was on my arm. I didn’t feel a jolt of energy like when Finn touches me, but my arm tingles warmly, as if he’s several degrees hotter than I am.“I could try.”

He gives me a curt nod and then watches me unwaveringly with his amber eyes. I exhale and let my eyelids drift shut, if only to find a way out from under Shepherd’s intense gaze. I center myself and breathe deeply, focusing on the noises around me. I find Shepherd’s sound next to me quickly, but I can also hear Rowan breathing a few feet away. I try to block out Rowan’s sounds and focus solely on Shepherd, tuning in to his heartbeat, his blood rushing through his veins, his lungs filling and emptying. This time, I consciously try to focus on his mind, and a thought occurs to me. Maybe hearing one’s mind is just like hearing the other parts of the body, but the mind just happens to have consciousness, while other parts don’t. I feel ridiculous, but I try to speak into Shepherd’s mind;Can you hear me?

Yes. Can you hear me?His voice says back to me, and I snap my eyes open and our gazes lock.

Holy shit.I clap my hand over my mouth to hide my smile.

You must be Psylaryn. There’s no other explanation.Shepherd says, but his mouth doesn’t move. It’s the most bizarre, yet fascinating thing I’ve ever experienced.

Before I can speak back to him, Rowan cuts in.“Feeling a little left out here, guys.”

“Sorry,” I say out loud, heat rising in my cheeks.“Let me try with you, too.”

“Do I need to do anything?” Rowan asks, and I shake my head no.

I repeat the same process as I did with Shepherd, finding Rowan’s mind much quicker. It seems like the more I practice, the easier it becomes.Rowan?

The copper-haired male’s eyes go wide with shock.Aeron’s cock, Amberheart.

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