Page 47 of Cursed
He clears his throat and lowers his fork to his plate. He now understands that the years of abuse have made her an excellent fighter. “Yes, Nori.”
He raises one eyebrow and looks at Adele. “We should train her to fight properly. It sounds like she already has excellent defensive skills. I bet it wouldn’t take long for her to be proficient at offense.”
“That’s a fine idea, Garek, but we’ll need to run it by Ryland first.” Adele then turns to Nori, frowning. “Starfall is a wealthy Pack, Nori. I see the financials from all the Packs every year. How is it that you didn’t have enough to eat?”
Nori eyebrows knit together, and she clears her throat. “I worked twelve-hour days doing whatever the Pack Leaders told me to do. Mostly, it was cleaning, but I was only allowed two small meals a day.”
“And there was no one who remembered your parents? No one who would help you?”
“I’m sure there were pack members who remembered my parents, but none of them would go against the Leaders.” A bitter laugh escapes from Nori. “Draven’s bad, but the Luna is a raving lunatic. Pack members were terrified of her. She sternly warned the kitchen staff not to give me extra food.”
Nori takes a drink of water and clears her throat. “If I got really hungry, I would sneak down to the kitchen and steal whatever was lying around. But that was incredibly dangerous. Not to mention, their main form of punishment was to lock me up for a few days without food.”
“Are there other slaves at Starfall, and are they mistreated like you were?” Garek asks.
“Yes, there are other slaves. I have witnessed pack members being beaten over the years, but honestly, I’m not sure what their situation is. I was not supposed to speak to any of the other pack members.”
Garek rubs his jaw, starting to appreciate how awful her situation was and why she would choose death rather than return.
Nori resumes eating, and after a few minutes of silence, she looks up and smiles. “My turn. I’ve been reading Ryland’s books about the history of shifters. Originally, it was just for fun, but now, I am actively looking for descriptions of shifter powers. Have either of you ever heard of or seen anything like what happened to me last night? You know, with the golden, flashing light?”
Both Adele and Garek say they have not. “It was kind of freaky though,” Garek says around a mouthful of food.
“Do you have a Seer or an Empath at the castle?” Nori asks. “Two of the books said that they are able to sense wolf shifter powers.”
Adele grimaces and shivers. “We have a Seer here.”
“What’s the problem, Adele?”
“Well, being around her aggravates our wolves. Seers are a combination of wolf and witch with some strange magic thrown in the mix. That’s what makes them Seers,” Adele says. “None of the wolves want anything to do with her. I can take you to see her, but I can’t guarantee you’ll be able to talk to her. Aylin may not allow it.”
Nori smiles, excited by the possibility of learning what her power is. “I would very much like to speak with her if she can tell me anything about this power—what it is and what I’m supposed to do with it.”
“OK, we’ll go tomorrow after lunch. It’s a short walk; you can get out of the castle for a bit.”
chapter thirty
Ryland and his troops gallop along a dirt road that runs between the castle and the forest. After two hours, they slow their horses and turn into the dense forests toward the small town of Silver Pine. Riding through the trees is more challenging, but they have a trail they can follow for a few more hours, keeping their pace at a brisk walk.
By late afternoon, the trail has run out, and the air pressure starts to drop. The men grumble as they sense a storm coming. They won’t make it to Silver Pine tonight.
Just before dusk, Ryland calls a halt to their progress to give them time to make camp before the storm arrives.Finding a decent area to spend the night, everyone gets busy with their jobs.
Five men clear the underbrush, while the rest work on the shelter for the horses, building a basic lean-to covered in the newly cleared underbrush. After that, two of the men light fires around the campsite to warm the area until the snow falls, while Ryland and two other men feed and water the horses. Their regular cook, Erik, heats up a roast and some potatoes he brought.
Each man pitches his own tent, grouping them together. They strap the tents securely to each other and to the ground in order to brace against the winds that will soon arrive. Since there are only eleven of them, it doesn’t take long before their encampment is completely set up and ready to weather the storm.
Once the food is prepared, they set camp chairs around the central fire and take a break to eat together. One of the larger males, Chief Enforcer Kane, teases Ryland. “So, Prince Ryland, you’ve finally found a woman who can gaze upon that wretched face of yours?”
The men erupt into raucous laughter, and even Ryland's lips twitch into a smile.
“Yes, Kane,” Ryland says. “I have finally found a Mate.”
“Well, go on. Tell us how it happened, man! We’ve waited years for you to find someone to break that curse of yours,” Kane says, shoving a potato into his mouth.
Ryland gives the men a brief recount of his story, including the details of Nori’s arrival at the castle and the Mate Bond flaring to life. He also tells them that she’s from Starfall.
Ash, a blond Enforcer, sitting across the fire from Ryland, chimes in, “I was there the day she ran onto our lands, covered in mud and grime, being chased by a Rogue. She looks a whole helluva lot better now than she did that day.”
