Chapter 497

Nina

My breaths came out in short puffs of humid air as we trudged through the thick forest. All around us, the vibrant sounds of the night life seemed to come alive; frogs, insects, nocturnal birds. Now that the hyenas had quieted down, the other creatures had come back out to play.

“My feet are killing me,” I muttered under my breath as I stepped over another fallen tree. I clutched my belly with one hand as I moved, as if that would somehow protect my baby if anything were to happen.

“Mine too. We’ll stop soon.” Enzo placed his hand on my lower back while we walked.

A couple paces ahead of us, Daphne watched the forest with her head on a swivel. She was our lookout, our guide. But neither of us knew exactly where she was taking us.

“Hey, Daphne,” I called out. “How much longer?”

“Not much.”

Another vague answer, as usual. Enzo and I exchanged glances with each other.

“Daphne, don’t forget Nina is pregnant,” Enzo said. “We can’t keep going all night like this.”

Daphne stopped and turned to look at us, her green eyes flashing in the light of the waxing moon overhead. “Would you rather get caught by the dragon queen’s hyenas?” she asked. “The veil doesn’t thin out for a long, long time. We’ll be traveling for two days, maybe three. We can’t afford to waste time.”

Two to three days. God, it seemed like forever, but Enzo and I didn’t complain again after that. Although, as we walked, I could help but wonder how Daphne knew so much about this place.

“Daphne, where are you from?” I found myself asking. “You seem to know a good amount about this place.”

Daphne paused, then let out a soft sigh. “Isn’t it obvious?” she said. “You’ve seen all of the different shifters here. How often do you see them around the Alpha King’s territory?”

“So you hail from here, then,” Enzo said quietly. “How did you wind up in werewolf territory?”

“Shit happens.” Yet another vague answer.

This time, though, as I was about to open my mouth to ask another question, I suddenly felt a surge of pain in my abdomen. I groaned, stopping in my tracks and clutching my stomach as the world seemed to tilt beneath my feet.

“Nina?” Enzo stopped beside me and stooped to meet my pained gaze. “Are you alright?”

I swallowed a knot that had begun to form in my throat. “I don’t… I don’t feel so good,” I muttered. “I’m having…” I winced, sucking in a sharp breath of air. “...Cramps.”

“Shit.” Enzo straightened, running a hand through his hair. “Daphne, we’ve gotta—”

“We can’t.” She frowned and shot me a sympathetic look, but there was no backing down. “The location where we need to open the portal is still a few miles from here, at least. We can’t stop until we’re out of this realm.”

I groaned again as another wave of pain came over me. I glanced up at Enzo. “I can walk…”

But I couldn’t. Because as soon as I took one step, my legs nearly gave out beneath me from the pain. I would have collapsed, if it weren’t for Enzo’s strong arms suddenly catching me.

“Shit, Nina,” he muttered. “You can’t walk. I’ll have to carry you.”

“No, I can do it myself,” I muttered through grit teeth.

“Nope. I’m carrying you. Get on my back.”

I glanced up at Enzo, prepared to refuse such coddling, but his expression brooked no argument. And Daphne was right; we needed to keep moving. I had no choice. So, as he crouched in front of me, I climbed onto his back with what little strength I had left and let him carry me through the humid forest.

“Just a few more miles,” Daphne said. “We can stop for a break at sunrise.”

…

I must have fallen asleep at some point on Enzo’s back, soothed by his scent and the gentle feeling of being held.

But I was awoken by two things: one, a fresh wave of pain. And two…

Music.

I jerked my head up to find that we had stopped somewhere amongst the fronds and ferns. Daphne and Enzo were whispering in hushed tones.

“I say we go,” he whispered. “Maybe they can help.”

“Or they’re loyal to their queen and they’ll send you both straight back to her lair. Is that really a chance you want to take?” Daphne retorted.

“Where are we?”

My sudden voice caused both Enzo and Daphne to jump. Realizing that I had just awoken, Enzo gently set me down. My legs were shaking, and the pain was still almost unbearable, but at least I could stand on my own two feet.

“Looks like there’s a village up there,” Enzo explained. He pulled aside some thick fronds to reveal what looked like a bonfire flickering in the distance. The music sounded soothing, and the sounds of laughter and singing carried through the forest.

I furrowed my brow, leaning in. A village… Luke and I had encountered one before we were taken by Mila. Could it be?

Suddenly, another cramp overtook me. This time, I really did fall to my knees before Enzo could catch me. A yelp of pain escaped my lips no matter how hard I tried to quell it, and both Daphne and Enzo cursed.

I felt strong arms loop around me, and then weightlessness as Enzo scooped me up.

“That’s it,” he said, marching through the ferns. “I’m taking her to that village. We can’t keep going on, not with her like this.”

“But Enzo—” Daphne cried out, only to be silenced by him once more.

“If you want to stay here and hide, then fine. But I’m not traipsing my pregnant wife through the forest when she’s sick, exhausted, and in pain.”

“Very well. But it’ll be your funeral, not mine.”

With that, Daphne fluttered up into the branches in a flurry of red feathers. Out of sight, but always watching. The last thing I saw before another intense cramp stole my consciousness from me was a single red feather floating down to the ground.

…

“Show me the girl.”

I was awoken by the sound of a somewhat familiar voice and warm hands on my belly. When I cracked my eyes open, I could just barely make out three faces in the flickering candlelight: Daphne, Enzo, and…

“You!”

I suddenly shot up, my eyes widening as I took in the face of the older man who sat in front of me. But no sooner was I up than I was back down, pressed into the soft mattress by his firm hands.

“You must lay still,” he said. “Let the medicine work.”

I writhed beneath his grip, a growl escaping my lips. Off to the side, Daphne stood biting her nails while Enzo curled his hands into fists, prepared to attack if need be.

“You know this man?” Enzo asked.

“He’s the one who took Luke and I straight to Mila and then left us there,” I growled. “Jerk! You almost got us killed.”

The man narrowed his eyes at me, but his hands never left my belly. I suddenly became acutely aware of a strange taste on my tongue; something sweet yet bitter at the same time. Some sort of medicine, maybe.

“I am sorry,” he said after a beat of silence. “But I did what had to be done.”

“You led us to the slaughter.”

The man paused. His eyes seemed to flash in the candlelight as he glared at me. “Why should I protect two strangers?” he snarled. “It was either you, or let my entire village be burned to the ground.”

His words made my throat knot up. I glanced over at Enzo, who seemed just as baffled as I was. Daphne, however, took a step forward.

“The Dragon Queen,” she murmured, “is a fearsome tyrant, Nina. It’s not as simple as you would think. She’s not at all like the Alpha King.”

“It’s still no excuse to lead us to a fate like that,” I muttered. “We barely made it out alive. Our friend is still in there—”

“You think I would have left you in there knowing that you would die?” the man hissed. “I know who you are. All of you. I know the prophecies. But I cannot meddle in fate.”

My eyes widened. “You—”

“I will tell you no more.” The man returned his attention to my belly, which was now devoid of any pain at all. “I will heal you, and you will leave my village at the break of dawn.”

He paused then, and his eyes seemed to flash once more as he looked up at me.

“And if you return to my village, I will have no choice but to kill you.”