Page 51 of A Warrior's Fate

The query was met by silence. Kai hadn’t even bothered to turn around.

As she got closer, Isla could sense the faintest pull again, but she didn’t need it to feel the simmering rage and bitter worry that emanated from him.

But—there was nothing. Nothing obvious here that should’ve sent him running, that should’ve elicited such a vehement reaction.

The chill up her spine was a potent concoction, brewed by the weather and the ominous silence. Her teeth chattered, and she wrapped her arms around herself. “What is—”

“Quiet.”

Isla jutted her head back, the word holding like a block between them as Kai returned to his observation. A sense of quiet urgency seemed to power every breath of his, the twinge of each solid muscle as he remained on high alert.

“Stay here.” Kai finally spoke, taking a step forward. “Be ready to shift.”

The contents of Isla’s stomach turned to lead. “Shift?”

“Yes.” Kai’s voice was unwavering like a general commanding a soldier, an alpha over his armies. “Have your wolf ready.”

Isla blinked, finding it suddenly difficult to swallow. The statement had hit her two-fold.

No one besides her own father and physicians knew of her inability to tap into that all-important piece of herself—not even Adrien and Sebastian—but the realization that this was yet another way she could be viewed as broken wasn’t the worst.

Shifting itself required a great deal of strength, and to maintain the state, an ample amount of energy. It was the pinnacle of all they could be and why so much training went into preparing for the often days-long Hunt. For that reason, taking on one’s wolf for any type of fight or battle was typically reserved for the greatest of threats, and for lesser cases, warriors had learned other forms of combat to fall back on—hand-to-hand, weaponry. But for whatever was out here…that wasn’t enough.

Finally, she confessed, “I—I can’t.”

Kai raked a hand over his hair, slicking it out of his face, though some stubborn pieces curled back to his forehead. He turned to glance at her sideways. Though it shouldn’t have, given his tone, the darkness and seriousness of his eyes startled her. “What do you mean?”

Isla frowned, the words like cement in her throat. “I can’t shift. I haven’t been able to since I was hurt.”

Kai’s face flashed, not with anger but with concern, and Isla felt not a tug, but a twist. He spun fully, moving quickly in a way that had his body looming over her, blocking her view of the forest…or blocking the forest’s vantage of her.

His eyes traveled over her features in earnest as if searching for some levity over a twisted joke she’d been playing.

“Why didn’t you say something?” That aura of urgency and desperation had seeped into his voice. Before she even had a chance to answer, he pinched the bridge of his nose, shaking his head. “Why do you do this?”

“Me?” She stood her ground, pointing a finger, though she felt like a fraud. “You’re the one that ran this time.”

“You shouldn’t have followed me.”

Isla slowly dropped her hand. “Well, I didn’t have much of a choice.” Kai’s features softened in understanding, but the moment was brief. She countered his displeased look with one of her own, while inside, she battled to feel confident and in control. “What’s going on? And if you say ‘pack business’, Goddess help you.”

Kai growled, but it almost didn’t feel like it was directed at her, before looking off to the side. A slew of emotions ran over his face so fast she couldn’t clock them, but it was enough to give her hope that he may open up. It was a dance they’d found themselves engaging in a few times already, and she wondered if there would ever be a point when he’d be ready to throw caution to the wind and completely give in.

Thunder rumbled again. The boom and its accompaniment of crashing lightning were so loud that it seemed to shake the earth around them.

At the rush of noise, Kai stepped back with an aggravated sigh and angled his head. He scanned the trees closest to them before nodding upwards. “Can you climb?” Isla’s face twisted in confusion, but once again, before she had a chance to question, Kai added, “Go up into that tree and don’t move until I come back.”

“Excuse me?” Was he insane? “Come back from where? Why? What is going on?”

“I need you to trust me.” Kai met her eyes again, and she swore she almost found some sympathy in them. “If this is what I think, I don’t want you anywhere near it, especially when you can’t defend yourself.”

Trust him?

“I’ve been trained just as long to be able to fight without my wolf as with it.” The counter was unsteady off her lips, not assured in the statement herself.

“It’s not enough,” Kai echoed the sentiments.

Isla took note of the rippling timber around them. What was she supposed to do? Just go up into a tree and—wait? “I’ll just go back to the infirmary.”

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