Chapter 35
Theodore
I didn’t have to turn around to know that the leader of this merry band of rogues was probably perched on top of the carriage. I turned around before she could throw her dagger before the rogue could leap and let out a snarl that shook the air, filled with magic, and pulled out my chained dagger. Time seemed to slow as the wolf started to leap away, back toward the incline to escape– afraid, but not afraid enough. I hurled the dagger in my hand, aiming to ensnare him. The blade sliced through the air, looping around his neck and catching. I pulled the chain tight, cinching the loop. The hook in the dagger dug into his fur. The wolf howled in pain and thrashed in the air before hitting the ground. It pulled and clamped down on the chain but howled as the chain burned it.
I pulled, yanking it down, wrestling it closer, and retracting the chain. A howl went up around us. More rogues,, it seemed, but it sounded like a call for a retreat, a disbanding.
The rogue I’d captured snarled at me, glaring between me and Violet, who approached on my left, aiming her own daggers at him. The wolf lay on the ground, his body tense but breathing heavily from the fight. He glared up at us, still not resigned or surrendering. My guards encircled him, all tense and ready to take him out if necessary. Slowly, the anger in his eyes started to soften. The magic I sent along the chain was working to calm him. He blinked. I got close enough to smell the filth clinging to his fur, the scent of an infected wound probably, or at least a sickness.
I knelt beside him. “If you shift, we can help you.”
He snarled and snapped his jaws at me. I tightened my grip on the chain.
“You’ll die if you don’t, and I don’t want to force it. Just… try…”
His eyes twitched, a low rumbling rattled through him, but slowly, he started to shift until a naked, thin man lay there in his place. The chain around his neck resized with him. I held out my hand, and someone placed a roll of bandages and antiseptic in it. My guards knew what I was planning to do they'd seen me do it often enough.
I offered my hand. He placed his arm in my hand, and Violet must have looked pretty fierce because he didn't even look like he was considering trying to attack me. I started to treat the injury that had been festering.
“Why did you attack us?.”
His lips peeled back in a snarl, but he kept silent, eyes darting between me, Violet, and my warriors. The rogue’s silence irritated me, usually, if they could shift back, they could speak, but maybe this guy was too far gone.
“You didn't attack us for no reason. Who sent you after us?”
Still, nothing. Just a smug smile. One of my guards growled, but I held up a hand.
“Do you know who I am?”
He grinned, and his eyes sparkled. That was probably all the answer I was ever going to get.
I tilted my head towards Violet. “Do you know who she is?”
He glanced at Violet, and his lips twitched.
One of the guards snarled as I finished the bandage. Then, I removed the dagger and chain from around his neck.
“I'm letting you go this time, but next time…”
He turned on the spot, shifted, and bounded off into the trees and down into the mist that obscured how deep the incline was. I wanted to believe that it was just a test and that maybe he and his followers had heard about Midnight and were just seeking to figure out if they could be safe there, too, but the look in his eyes told a different story.
I glanced back at Violet. She met my gaze with a cool, assessing look.
“You're not going to ask?”
She narrowed her eyes. “I often don’t.” She sheathed her daggers. “It's not my territory… though I find it hard to believe a pack of rogues just happened to be waiting here. This stretch of road isn’t exactly prime territory for travelers, is it?”
She turned back toward where the carriage and the injured were and crouched down.
“Only someone who knew you were leaving Midnight and headed to the capital, knew enough about the terrain, would have arranged this. So either they were tipped off by someone in Midnight or the palace.”
“Or you,” one of the guards said, glaring at Violet. “How could you possibly know that this isn’t a frequently traveled road?”
A jolt of unease shot through me. She cocked an eyebrow as the sky began to darken with storm clouds.
“Last I checked, this side of Midnight's border was shared with the Dark Forest pack, which isn’t exactly a friend of yours.”
I winced. Violet’s gaze lingered on the path the rogue took away from us.
“So how likely is it that you’ve got traitors in Midnight?”
I bristled, folding my arms across my chest. “Not likely at all,” I said firmly. “My men are loyal.”
She tilted her head, studying me with those sharp, piercing eyes. “You’re that confident?”
I glared at her. “Yes.”
“Then It must be your brother who wants you dead.” her eyes narrowed. “ you don't seem very surprised about that.”
I said nothing. Her words sank like stones in my stomach, hitting the truth I hadn’t wanted to ever think about. Owen and I had never gotten along, but I had never thought he might have the gall, or the recklessness, to set an ambush like this.
“How are the wounded? The carriage?”
“Alive. And in need of repair.” I looked over and winced, noticing the broken axles and wheels. The attack had left it barely able to stand, let alone carry us. The steam engine hissed as it continued to cool.
“We're definitely not going to make it to the palace, but I thought we would.”
And if Violet was right, Owen wouldn't give a damn. He’d be halfway to celebrating probably.
“We’ll have to make it to the next town on foot,” Violet said. “And hope that Dark Forest is hospitable. How far to the nearest town?”
I winced. “It’s the capital… Alpha Tyron Hayward’s city.”
She smirked. “He doesn’t like you, does he?”
“‘Dislike’ might be a gentle way to put it.”
The Hayward line wasn’t noble like the Donovans, but they had always been loyal to the crown. The alpha of Dark Forest would rather spit on me than help me, and I knew this. He and his brother had made it very clear what they thought of me ages ago. The current alpha of Dark Forest was a middle child of the six brothers who actually ran the territory, each of them presiding over their own city.
But we didn’t have a choice. I turned to the guards.
“If we can get his cooperation, we’ll have supplies and repairs within hours. If not, we’re looking at a delay of days.”
Violet chuckled, shaking her head. With the few remaining guards, we started down the narrow path toward Hayward’s town, leaving the luggage and the carriage where it was. By the time we reached the town gates, dusk had settled, casting long shadows over the worn stones of the wall surrounding it.
We walked through the town toward the main hall, where people were heading to the warm, glowing lights of the large fireplace I knew was there.
No sooner had we entered that I saw him, and he saw me.
Tyron Hayward was an older, grizzled man sitting on his throne-like chair carved with images of the forests and mountains, glaring at me with a wry smirk on his face.
“Well, well, what brings the wayward prince to Dark Forest?” His eyes narrowed. “Where he knows he is not welcome.”
“I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t need to be. We were attacked on your roads.”
He scoffed. “Not by my me and not on my order.” Tyron grinned and lifted his mug. “ You’d be dead.”
A laugh rippled through the hall. The bitter edge in his tone made me clench my jaw.
“We’re seeking help. Of course, I wouldn’t ask for it for free.”
He laughed. “And I would not offer it for pay. You should have spared yourself the walk.”
I snarled. “You would turn away injured men for what? You—”
A peel of laughter cut through the air, feminine and warm.
“Oh, you must give him the benefit of the doubt! They can’t help themselves.”
Tyron turned stiffly toward the sound. His entire demeanor had changed. Shock, awe, hope, and something else. The whole room turned toward the sound as did I. Violet was seated with an older woman in a long, flowing dress and a toddler on her lap. The woman’s eyes were bright as she leaned toward Violet, who had her phone between them, showing her something.
Who was she?
