Chapter 74

Atwood

The weekend passes quietly. Ruby seems to have enjoyed our outing, although it also seems that something has been on her mind since we split up in Greenwood. I won’t press for information, though; if there’s one thing I’ve learned recently, it’s to let Ruby figure certain things out on her own time.

I spend most of the weekend working, although I do make an effort to spend a little bit of time with Ruby each day. I want to be near her and make her feel comfortable, so I try to dine with her at least once a day. If there wasn’t a blizzard outside, I would ask her to go on walks through the woods, perhaps even in our wolf forms; but it’s too dangerous, since the Bears are far more powerful during the harsh winter. Still, it seems that she is growing more comfortable with me, since she’s been spending more time reading by the fireplace in my study while I work.

It’s Monday now, and Ruby is at school.

I’m in my study, finally nearly caught up on all of the paperwork that I fell behind on when my condition was at its worst. I’ve hardly seen my mother, Paine, or Edith since I confronted my mother about the aphrodisiac, which is a welcome bit of peace. I can only hope that they are planning to leave soon; otherwise, I’ll have to work up the nerve to send them away soon.

My door is open. Noah steps in with an envelope in his hand and a somewhat pained expression on his face.

“My Lord,” he says, greeting me with a slight bow.

“Good morning, Noah,” I say, setting down my pen and gesturing for him to approach my desk.

He approaches and hands the envelope to me. I open it and quickly scan the document inside while Noah speaks.

“Our scouts have returned with information that may give us a bit of an advantage,” he says. “The Bear leader’s location has been discovered, thanks to our hostage. According to the Bear hostage, the leader is holed up in an underground bunker just on the northern border of our territory, near Mount Cygnus. It’s where he’s been plotting his attacks from.”

“This is excellent news,” I say, standing from my desk. “If we can take out the Bear leader, the rest of their plans will surely crumble; the Bears have never been the best when it comes to organizing without a leader.”

Noah nods, but a frown is still drawn across his face. “He’s heavily guarded, sir,” he says. “There are sentries posted all around. There is only one entrance, according to the scouts who trekked there: it leads out into the forest, and is guarded by at least three sentries at all times. But it also seems that the Bears are tunneling upwards…”

He pauses. I know what he’s going to say. “To the summit of Mount Cygnus,” I say.

Noah nods again.

“The scouts believe that he plans to fortify the entire mountain,” he says. “It’s the highest peak in the kingdom, with an incredibly treacherous journey to reach it. If the Bears take Mount Cygnus, they will certainly have the upper hand for the remainder of the war.”

I let out a sigh and sink back down into my chair. Noah is right. If the Bear leader -- Bjorn -- takes Mount Cygnus, the war will certainly fall in their favor.

I feel stupid for not considering this earlier; I guess I just assumed that the Bears would avoid Mount Cygnus just as much as the Lycans and the Swans after the horrible events that took place there during the final summit.

After the events of the final summit, both the Swans and the Lycans have since regarded Mount Cygnus as a place of bad energy, of bad omens. No Swan, Lycan, or Bear -- to the best of my knowledge -- has set foot on the peak of Mount Cygnus since that fateful day. The sacred meeting house that once stood there is surely nothing but rubble now, destroyed by the harsh, cold winds that blow across the snowy peak.

I guess I shouldn’t have assumed that the Bears would ever do what’s noble.

“How is he?” I ask. “The hostage.”

Noah shrugs. “He’s alright. Cooperative. He’s… very young.”

“How young?”

“Only fourteen,” Noah replies. “As are many of the recruits in the Bear army. The vast majority of them are under the age of eighteen.”

I let out another sigh. “Where is the hostage right now?”

“He’s in the dungeon, sir,” Noah replies.

“Bring him upstairs,” I say. “Set him up in one of the empty bedrooms in the east wing of the castle. Keep him under a close, but subtle, watch at all times. But allow him free roam of the castle, so long as he is being supervised.”

“Sir?” Noah says, looking confused.

“I won’t have a child in the dungeon,” I respond firmly. “Bjorn may be a brute with no limit for his cruelty, but I am not.”

Admittedly, I also feel as though my kindness toward the hostage could play in my favor. If it’s true that the majority of the Bear recruits are teenagers, then there’s no doubt in my mind that many of them are fighting against their will. Perhaps if word gets out that the hostage was treated fairly and with respect, at least some of the recruits might leave and come here for safety. Turning Bjorn’s own army against him would be a surefire way to reduce his chances of taking the upper hand in this war.

“I’ll see to it that your requests are met,” Noah says. He clears his throat to speak again, this time looking somewhat nervous. “There’s one more thing, sir,” he says.

“What is it?” I ask.

“The Bears raided a few more hybrid villages leading up to and during the attack on the castle. The last one… The last one was the village that Miss Ruby came from,” he says.

My heart breaks a little at Noah’s words.

“How bad is it?” I ask, my voice shaking a bit.

Noah looks down at the floor.

“There were no survivors.”

The rest of the afternoon passes in a blur. I find it difficult to work after the news of Ruby’s village being destroyed, so I spend the next few hours pacing back and forth in my study as I consider how I’m going to tell her.

As I watch the car pull up in the driveway after school and see Nancy and Ruby get out, with Edith trailing miserably behind, my face grows hot with pain and anger at what I will have to tell Ruby. I can’t leave her in the dark about this; she deserves to know.

I leave my study and head down the hall. I can hear Ruby and Nancy talking and laughing about their school day. For a moment I pause, just wanting to turn back and not wipe the smile from my mate’s face, but I know that it has to be done.

When I step out onto the landing, Ruby looks up at me with a smile. Her red eyes are shining and her cheeks and nose are all rosy from the cold. There are little flecks of snow on her coat and in her hair.

Before I say anything, her smile fades as she looks at me. She whispers something to Nancy, who nods and walks off toward the dining room. I know that Ruby can tell that something is wrong.

“Keep your coat on, Ruby,” I say as I solemnly descend the stairs. “We have to go somewhere.”