Page 108 of Mortal Shift
“And you can’t marry some other shifter?”
It was the wrong thing to say. I knew it the moment the words slipped out of my mouth. I just didn’t realize how wrong. Thessalia whirled on her heel, the moonlight giving her eyes a manic, red-tinted glint.
“I am not a whore.”
“I never said—”
“I would have married Cole for the good of my kind because we share a vision. Do you know how many other shifters share that vision?”
“Not many?” I hazarded.
“Notany. Years of work ruined, because fate knows best.” She gave a small, bitter laugh. “Just a few more years and Cole would have challenged for control of his father’s pack. We would have sealed our marriage, and as alpha, Cole’s pack would have followed him. Now that will never happen.”
I wasn’t sure what to say, and I really didn’t want her to lose her temper and accidentally—or purposely—kill me, so I ducked my head. I heard her draw in a steadying breath.
“None of that matters right now,” she said. “I may no longer be engaged to Cole, but he remains my friend and ally. We must prove his innocence, and his pack remains our best chance of doing so.”
A howl tore through the night air, and we both froze.
“The hunt is close,” Thessalia said, staring off into the darkness. “And coming this way. If they continue, they will catch your scent.”
“That would be bad.”
“Very. I will distract them. Get over the wall, and go straight to Cole’s pack.”
“I will.”
She caught my wrist as I made to hurry off, and I turned back.
“You cannot tell Cole’s pack any of what I have told you. If they learn of his allegiance before he takes control of the pack, they will cast him out.”
I nodded. “I understand.”
“Good. Then go.”
She released my arm and raced across the grounds so quickly my eyes couldn’t process her movements. I might not have been her biggest fan, but watching her sprint in silence through the shadows, I had to admit that if anyone could throw confusion amongst the moon hunt, it was her.
Even so, I wouldn’t have long. I needed to get over the wall before any members of the hunt got too curious. And I had to get out and back before anyone asked questions. If I was quick, I’d make it back before dawn. If I was slow, trouble might find me before I found the pack.
I scurried along, clinging to the shadows at the base of the wall, moving as quietly as I could and as quickly as I dared. And not for the first time, I wished I had some of the vampires’ supernatural speed or the shifters’ strength and heightened senses—all of which seemed like they’d come in handy right now.
Somehow, I made it to the gap in the wall undetected—thanks, Thessalia. And thanks to Garrett’s brutal fitness regime, the wall itself didn’t give me too much trouble. One deep breath, a jump, and a scramble later, I was on the far side.
I was outside Darkveil Academy. On my own. And running away was the last thing on my mind.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
On two legs rather than four, it took me a long time to make it to the Wandering Willow. The night was fading rapidly when I finally came upon the quaint, thatched building. Immediately I turned my head slightly away, squinting and looking at it through the corner of my eye. The last thing I needed was to get taken in by the glamor and spend the next decade inside.
“Greetings, wary traveler,” a familiar voice greeted me cheerfully as I crossed the threshold. “Come in from the cold, we have a warm fire, and— Oh, it’s you. Is your…mate here?”
He peered past me into the night, and I shook my head.
“No. I’m on my own.”
The door swung shut behind me and his smile widened.
“Then come. Try the mead.”
