Chapter 4

~Raphael

Nox was uncharacteristically agitated. It was unlike my wolf to want to burst out of my skin without my command. We were always in tandem with one another but ever since, my informant had let me know that she was in trouble, my wolf and I had been out of sync.

I gripped the reins of my horse harder when I caught sight of claws protruding from my fingers and they retracted.

I had ensured that she was out of sight as we travelled with a small company so as not to draw attention.

There were spies everywhere and I would not put it past the bastard to know we had Lucas' daughter. The bastard had already slaughtered Lucas' wife, he would have loved to get Rielle who Lucas had fought so hard to protect.

My mind wandered to Rielle who was being sheltered in one of the carriages. The less exposed she was the better. It had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that her presence was an unwelcome distraction.

The stench of blood and haze of death still hovered over me like a thick raincloud. It sometimes dissipated but seeing her like that. In agony, betrayed and heartbroken had ignited something in me. Something that I had fought for so long to keep under control. It pulled me back into the past. The moment I watched the blade tear into my mother's chest.

My ears twitched at a suspicious sound in the distance, then footfall. The smell of burnt wood. 'We are not alone,' Nox told me but I had already leapt off my horse.

My beta, Reiner took his position behind me, his dagger already drawn. The others took positions around Rielle's carriage.

Masked men leapt out of the shadows of the woods. Before one could land, I had my hand around his windpipe, crushing it instantly. Another came for me but I grabbed his face and crushed his head against a tree.

My beta fought behind me, with not too many being able to get to the carriage.

One by one they fell until none were left. The threat was neutralised and we caught our breaths.

I heard the carriage door open and she came running out.

What the hell was she doing?

"It's not safe, get back inside!" I said it more harshly than intended.

She froze at my tone before she continued to proceed towards me. She looked around as she did. "Is everyone okay?" She asked.

Someone chose that exact moment to groan. She whipped her head towards the sound. Bryan, one of my second ranks, had a deep bleeding gash on his shoulder. She walked briskly to him and examined his shoulder.

"It's not broken but it's torn badly. You'll need to get it bandaged and avoid using it so it'll heal properly."

She placed both hands on his shoulder and her brows furrowed in concentration. Tension left Bryan's shoulders at her touch.

Something green and ugly pulled at me. Nox growled under my skin at the sight.

"It will ease the pain for now as long as you do not stress it further,"

Bryan was in for one and with the nervous glance he cast me, he knew it too.

*****

I rode with her in the carriage. The tense silence seemed to go on forever. She looked away from me, staring out the carriage through the open window.

"What were you thinking?" I tried to keep my voice levelled.

She turned slowly to me, "What are you talking about?"

She was so frustrating when she was not sleeping. "You should have stayed inside."

I still saw fear in her eyes but despite that she took a deep breath. "Alpha, I am grateful to you for saving me."

She spoke like she had rehearsed every word. I raised a brow.

"I am made to eat, sleep and sit. I do not know where we are going but I am not some silly princess who will just watch. I was raised to always do my part."

If only she knew. I stared at her long and hard and to my surprise despite her obvious trembling, she returned the stare.

"You speak like that to an Alpha? I watched as she blanched and I flashed her a cold grin. She was not at all what I expected.

She squirmed under my gaze.

"What's your wolf's name?" I asked.

She blinked at the change in topic and a shadow fell over her face. She avoided my eyes.

It was no wonder that I could not detect her wolf's aura. She had not found it.

"I have tried," she started to say, her tone solemn. "She always feels far out of reach. It's like she does not want to be found."

"Yet, you heal." It did not make any sense. Only when one finds their wolf, does the wolf bestow their gift. Some get strength, others get speed. On rare occasions, people got more than one. People like me.

"I can't heal, not like I am supposed to." She said, "I can ease pain or speed up natural healing."

"What awakened it?" I asked.

She seemed to fold into herself. "When my father was dying." Her green eyes glazed over with unshed tears. "I wanted nothing more than to ease his pain." She grimaced like the memory was being replayed. "And I did." Only then did she manage a wry smile. "He died without pain."

"A death orchestrated by the man you would have married." I said it matter-of-factly but she reacted like I had struck her.

Her bottom lip quivered. "He is my mate and yet…"

"Was," I corrected. "He was your mate." With what he had done to her, he had rejected her without having to pronounce it. She was quiet.

"Don't tell me that you are waiting for a rejection, princess."

She turned to face me, her moist eyes filled with fire. "I am not a fool. He has done more than just to reject me. He killed my father. He attempted killing me too. He played me."

All she said was true but the unsaid truths shone in her eyes. She still felt for the conniving snake. She was still connected to him as a mate just as the goddess had willed. Fuck the goddess.

I got up and she immediately startled. My voice was rough when I spoke.

"I'll break the mating-bond."

She stared at me, wide eyed. "That is not possible…" her words fell flat when she saw my blood red eyes begin to glow.

"I can and I will," If she was to be useful in what was to come, she would have to break all ties to her old life. Fated or not.