Page 45 of Exiled Prince

“It’s a long story,” Laurel replies and touches Saylor’s shoulder with a gentle look. “I’ll explain everything later. For now, we need to go in and get Shadow. Now.”

“Salem?” Silver asks, his long hair blowing in the wind.

“I don’t know, I just know the timing is now,” Laurel replies, looking over to Astrid. “You always wanted to save me, and now is the time. Save Shadow, and him and I will disappear.”

Astrid nods, swallowing hard. “Rave, let’s go.”

Rave turns from Soren and their conversation, and comes to hold her hand.

Ready or not, Xan, here we come.

***

Soren and I help zip everyone over so they don’t land somewhere random, and we all hide around the castle perimeter.

“I’m going to go and find Salem,” I tell Saylor, words I never thought I’d be saying, and zip to the tower before she can argue with me. Standing at the door, peering through the bars, I see Salem standing there next to an enormous black wolf, fangs barred. The two of them are staring at each other, almost like they are having a conversation.Wait, can they mind link?I know that wolves can pack link when they are all in their shifter form, but Salem isn’t.

Salem glances up when I tap on the bars and walks over. “He won’t shift, and he won’t zip. He’s hurt, and he’s too heavy for any of us to carry him.”

“Where are the guards?” I ask him, glancing around.

“There were only two here, and they are dead,” he replies without remorse, nodding to the corner of the cell that I can’t see. “They unlocked the door to bring him some water, and I got them when they came in. I broke the wards, so the door should be open.”

I turn the handle and push it, but then Shadow loses it, howling aggressively. Fuck. I close it and look at Salem.

“What do you need?”

“Bring Laurel here,” he says, rubbing the back of his neck. “We have about fifteen minutes before they switch guards.”

“Fuck.”

Landing back next to Saylor, I turn to Laurel. “He’s in wolf form and won’t shift.”

“Take me to him,” she commands, raising her hand to mine.

One touch and we’re back at the cell doors, and Laurel steps inside. “Shadow,” she whispers, her voice hitching.

Shadow tilts his furry head to the side, then steps closer to her, sniffing. A pained growl comes out of his snout before he rubs himself against her legs, whining.

She reaches down and pats his head. “My love, we need to get out of here.Now. The wards are broken.”

“He can’t shift. They did something to him,” Salem snarls quietly, starting to pace around the cell. “They tattooed him.”

Laurel leans down and runs her hands over his fur, looking for something. After about a minute of searching, she finds a mark on his stomach. “Fuck!”

“What?” Salem rasps, looking on the verge of shifting himself.

“Hand me your dagger. I’m going to have to cut this rune off.”

“Will that work?” I ask, looking down the stairs to make sure no one is coming up.

“Yes, I think it will. I’m sorry, Shadow. This is going to hurt, and you need to be quiet.”

Shadow lays on his back, understanding her words. I look away as she cuts off a chunk of his skin, getting rid of the rune.

He shifts instantly, turning into a tall, thin male with long black hair and the same light-green eyes as his brothers. I notice how all four brothers have the same facial structure. Aside from clearly being malnourished, dirty, and now sporting a big cut on his stomach, he doesn’t look too injured.

“Lolly?” he whispers, his voice hoarse.

---