Page 86 of Through the Wicked Wood

“I can’t do this!” I’m not sure who I’m shouting at, but I scream it again and again until finally my voice is hoarse and I have no energy left to speak.

Wiping my arm across my eyes, I pull myself to my feet. Wincing at the sharp pain in my knee, I continue to work my way down the mountain. My pace is slow but I’m moving. At least I’m moving.

As I reach the familiar dirt and mossy floor of the forest, I allow myself to sit. Only for a moment, I tell myself. Only for a moment. But as my head rests against the trunk of the tree, my eyes drift shut. My body is fading.

I’m drowning.

But it doesn’t last long before a warm wet tongue laps against my hands. I jolt upright and let out a yelp of joy.

“Alaric!” The giant wolf is covered in blood, but there’s no time to get hung up on whose blood and what has happened. “Are they all right?”

No response.

I wrap my arms around his thick neck in relief but he doesn’t linger. His familiar low growl rumbles in his throat, telling me we aren’t safe. I pull myself up, but the gash from my knee and the residual pain from my foot coming back has me toppling back to the ground. The tonic from earlier surely starting to wear. Alaric whimpers and bends his head to lick my knee again. A snap from the woods draws our attention. Resting my head back against the tree, I know what I have to do. I reach into my pocket, pulling out the black ribbon from Sorin’s gift in Loxley. The memory feels as if it’s from a different lifetime. Biting my bottom lip to stifle a sob, I carefully wrap each Stone inside before gently placing it between Alaric’s teeth.

“You need to go. Find Samaria and the others,” I whisper, stroking the top of his head.

Not without you.

His voice returns in my mind, hazy and muddled but it’s there. Excitedly, I call upon my magick. Still nothing. My magick is trapped, I don’t know how, but it’s trapped. Locked in a cage, just as I was in the Wicked Wood.

I’ll be fine. You’re hurt. I tell him through our bond, but even then it’s as if there’s a wall between us. I’m not even certain he can hear me. I notice the weight he refuses to carry on his paw, the blood coated between his paws. You need to find them and get to Ruse.

The guards won’t stop searching until they have me captive, and I can’t risk the others being taken as well. Alaric doesn’t want to leave me, but he doesn’t have a choice.

Another snap behind me.

“You need to go, now,” I grit through my teeth at the stubborn wolf. I can’t risk him getting any more hurt. I can’t lose him like I almost lost Ruse. I won’t allow anymore bloodshed tonight. I narrow my eyes at him until he finally bows in submission. With a final kiss to his head, I whisper, “Go, find Sam.” His whimper is long and drawn out but reluctantly he turns and limps into the darkness, taking the Stones with him.

Tears streak my cheeks as I watch the flash of gray and white in an otherwise dark forest disappear. Using both my hands, I wipe my eyes of tears and clear my throat.

“Get on your feet,” Cade sneers, pressing a blade between my shoulder blades.

Laughing, I struggle to stand, but eventually do. Turning, I face Cade. His face is cold, distant, but in his eyes I see the boy I loved and my heart sinks. What has he gotten himself into?

“And what now, Cade?” My voice is hoarse from the events of the night. My body is limp as I lean against the tree, but my heart settles into a regular rhythm as relief replaces fear. The Stones will be safe. Sorin and the others will be safe. They have to have gotten away.

“Now, I deliver you to King Roman and my indenture is complete,” he whispers.

Laughing through another sob, I don’t fight as he slings me onto his horse, tightening shackles around my wrists like a coward. “And what will you do with your new found freedom?” I ask as he settles behind me on the horse. He doesn’t answer me as we take off through the woods. The horse picks up its pace as we dart in the opposite direction Alaric ran. My head hangs limply as I fight to keep my eyes open. They’re safe. They must be safe.

“Go ahead and sleep.” Cade’s whispers are like daggers against my skin. “You’re going to want to be well rested for what’s to come.”

Chapter 43

Sorin

The inside of the caravan is dark and smells of piss. I can make out the shape of two figures next to me, and my heart races as I distinguish one of them is Sam and the other, Jarek. Attempting to move, I’m quickly reminded that I’m bound to my seat. The rope around my waist is heavy and pushes against me as I try to lean forward.

“Sam, wake up,” I whisper through gritted teeth. My boot reaches her leg to nudge it but I’m left without a response. Jarek groans as his eyes peel open.

“What the bloody hell happened?” Jarek croaks as he struggles against the ropes as I did moments before.

“Roman is what happened.” Resting my head back against the wall of the caravan, I note the pace in which it’s moving. Not fast enough to where I’m pulled side to side, but not slow enough to miss being jolted by each bump. “We were led straight into a trap,” I say, closing my eyes. “Hunters, no doubt. But someone took it upon themselves to lure the wolves.” I wince thinking of Elora and Ruse trapped in the belly of the ditch. Maybe they got out. Maybe they’re okay.

My emotions dance together as I shift from worry to confusion to rage.

The officer. There was something about him…

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