Page 13 of The Blue Path

"That's a fucking understatement," I snapped.

Tzidal smacked my pec, hitting a bit too close to my cut. I grunted, then smiled at her scowl. Unable to hold onto her anger, she smiled at me.Fuck, her smile was gorgeous.

"Haxa, my friend," Byriel bowed his head, "what do I owe you for your kindness?"

"Tell me what you're going to do?" There was a lot of sympathy in the older woman's eyes. "I want nothing from you. I just want to know," she squeezed her fingers, "how will you stop your father from this madness?"

"There's nothing I can do." Byriel stood like a soldier, tall and straight. The top of his head brushed the beams along the ceiling. "While I am not convinced guards are storming the cities on the King's orders, I am eager to get home and find out what is happening. My father is careful in his plans, and waging war on his own people makes no sense."

Haxa gave him a pained groan, closing the space between them. She was so tiny, tipping her head back to look the alpha in the eye. "I can feel it, Byriel. I may be a green witch. Prophecies and such are beyond me, but change is thick in the air these days. It's cold and cutting, and it will take a powerful wolf to fix this."

Something like sadness cut through Byriel's eyes, and he leaned down to the woman, whispering, "I have no power here." Swallowing hard, he stood back up, his eyes not quite meeting hers.

Feeling stronger, I stretched, eager to leave. My skin tingled, and soft energy flowed from my chest. Even though I was still a little unsteady, I felt really fucking good all of a sudden.

The wound on my chest was no longer puffy and had stopped bleeding. I could also feel my fever was gone. At this rate, I would be completely healed by sunset, if not sooner; nothing but a scar left to warn other wolves what I was capable of surviving.

"We should go," I said, wrapping an arm around Tzidal's waist and pulling her to my side. Even in sleep, I had missed her, and my wolf demanded I keep her as close as possible.

Byriel paused in the doorway, turning back to the witch. "How long until the tea wears off?"

"Not long. Hour at most." She pointed to a small yellow door. "I hope to see you soon, Byriel." There was clearly a lot she left unsaid, but the alpha simply bowed low to her, then left.

Lex quickly followed, pausing to take Haxa's hand. "It was so lovely to meet you, Haxa. I look forward to our paths crossing again. I just adore the hospitality of witches."

"Of course," she patted his cheek. "Be careful out there, siren. There are many that would love to make a trophy of your head."

"There always are," he smiled brightly before flitting out the door.

* * *

We walked in utter silence,not speaking about the prophecy or what was to come next. We simply looked for somewhere decent to make camp. Honestly, I didn't care what came next as long as I was with my omega.

As evening fell into night, Byriel decided to let his wolf run and hunt. His injury looked good. Only twin scars and a fading bruise remained. My wolf was happy my wound would leave a much more impressive mark. Suffering came with bragging rights, and scars were the best way to prove your battles.

Tzidal prepared a small circle of rocks for a fire pit. With autumn settling in, the grass around us was dry. She pulled at the tufts, setting the clumps in the center of the rocks. She was insistent on boiling water to clean our wounds. There was no need, but I was happy to do whatever her heart desired.

"Are you going to shift too?" Tzidal asked.

"I'm not shifting today," I said, pulling her away from her task and into my arms. "I want to be with you." My wolf was restless and begged me to let him run, but the thought of leaving my omega was unacceptable. I had no intention of letting her go until I absolutely had to.

Tzidal moved to straddle my lap, snuggling into my arms. Her long, dark hair moved softly in the breeze, and her eyes...those perfect, golden eyes…they looked at me with so much love. It was a look that gave me life and purpose and a raging hard-on. Fuck, I missed her.

"Please don't ever scare me like that again," she whispered, her fingertips brushing down the side of my face.

"Promise." I ran my nose over her old mating bite and the edge of her jaw. Inhaling deeply, I moved to her perfect, pink lips, ghosting mine over them. "I promise, my omega. Never again."

Gripping her hips, I pulled her to me as I claimed her mouth, moving slowly at first. She let out a delicate, little gasp against my tongue, and I growled long and deep.

Pulling her tighter to my body, I kissed the breath out of her, tasting every surface of her sweet mouth. I wanted to pour every emotion that pulsed within me into her soft body, fill her up with my lust and love, and consume her from the inside out.

Tzidal rolled her hips into my rock-hard cock, and I let out a deep rumble. I was alive with an electric energy that could power all of Vaesen, and I wanted to use all of it to pull more soft moans from her throat.

"Alpha," she whispered, her eyes hooded with a lust that made my fangs tingle. I grabbed her ass and squeezed, moving her small body against my straining cock. "We shouldn't," she moaned, tilting her head back to expose the perfect column of her throat. "You're not well."

"I am very well," I growled, pushing the vibrations from my chest into her soft body. She shivered, and my wolf leaned in possessively.

"You're not fucking out here," Lex yelled as he walked up to the camp.

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