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Morgan glared at me. “Yes, that most certainly doesn’t help his case.”
“Where are you taking him now?” I asked.
“He’ll be put in the holding cell on Steelwick’s territory. Who is that with you?” Beckett asked.
Steelwick. There were far worse places he could be heading. Steelwick would treat him well.
Morgan ignored the question, the way he did when outsiders questioned him in any way he didn’t see fit. “Thank you. I’m sending one of my omegas over to Steelwick, they will meet you there.”
“What? Why?” Pol exclaimed.
“Because Pol is Silas’s mate, and he has a right to see him.”
Chapter 13
Silas
The forest was quiet without my mate near me. It was lonelier and sadder somehow now that he was gone, like he had taken the sunshine and warmth with him. The light was dimmer and the greenery dulled. I understood why he needed to go. That didn’t mean I didn’t ache at the loss.
I did as he had instructed and rested. Part of me itched to go out and explore. I even considered going back into the river. As cold and uncomfortable as it was while I was in there, the benefits my healing muscles felt afterward made it worth it. But Pol was right. It was best that I got ready for my journey to his pride.
Inside the cave, I tried to stretch my leg and call forth my lion again. I knew that if I were able to, a lot of my pain would subside. It might mess up my leg a bit more in the short run, but it was a foregone conclusion that it would need to be broken again, so in the long run it didn’t matter what I did now with it. But trying and succeeding were two different things.
All I managed to accomplish was to get a bit of fur on my arms. It was something I’d never done before and a bit creepy, if I was honest. My bones just wouldn’t reshape. They were stubborn. Or my lion was. I wasn’t sure which, and it really didn’t matter.
I needed a healer to force the transition to happen or maybe a command from an Alpha. Asilo didn’t have one of those, though. I’d need to count on the kindness of Steelwick for that. It grated on my nerves that my shifting ability had been taken from me. I’d heard of cases like this, but I never expected it to happen to me. I already felt like I was less alpha than I should’ve been. This only amplified that.
Pol said that he liked me exactly as I was. And I believed him. Nothing in his actions told me he felt anything to the contrary. But years of being told you were less than had a tendency to sink in and grow roots.
Giving up, I laid down in the cave on the bedroll and soaked in Pol’s scent. It always made me feel better to be surrounded by his deliciousness. He was my home.
Having a mate was not something I’d expected to happen, possibly ever. That was why Nathan and I had a plan B. But now that I had a mate, I was happier than I’d ever been despite all that had happened.
Now that I had found him, I would fight to keep what we had started. I cherished him and always would. He was the center of my world in such a short period of time, like he was always supposed to be there. And he was. No matter what my world looked like after this ordeal was over, Pol would be the most important part of it.
After this settled out, I planned to go to Morgan, the Forerunner, and tell him my intentions. If I was given permission, I would be moving to Asilo to be with him. We had hurdles before us, but we would rise to the challenge. We belonged together, and I refused to allow anything to separate us.
Not long after Pol left, I sensed something or someone outside. Had he returned for me? Had he changed his mind about me turning myself in? I scented the air for him and didn’t detect anything new. It was probably just a wild animal who scented humans and ran off.
I still felt that turning myself in was the best solution. Pol did too, but he was wise and wanted time to talk with his Forerunner before we made any rash decisions. His Forerunner had sadly seen cases similar to ours over the years, especially Nathan’s. He also had more direct knowledge of both the council and Steelwick. His opinion was welcome.
I trusted Pol to know his pride better than I did. Steelwick too for that matter. I’d trust his decision in this matter completely. But I still wished to be by his side. It would make things easier for us in the battle we had ahead. And make no mistake about it, it would be a battle.
Once I was taken into Steelwick’s custody—which would definitely happen when I turned myself in—I wouldn’t be by my mate’s side. I wasn’t looking forward to that. But if it was the way it needed to be in order to be able to have a life where we weren’t constantly looking over our shoulder, so be it.
When the rustling in the forest didn’t go away, I knew it wasn’t an animal. But also, it wasn’t Pol. He’d have made his presence known by now if it was. Best-case scenario, there was a lost hiker. My gut said it wasn’t that.
I pushed myself up and listened intently. The more I listened, the more I was positive that it definitely wasn’t Pol. My heart started to race as I realized there were several sets of footsteps, not just one. And none of them quiet, they wanted me to know they were here.
My gut clenched, and I went perfectly still, not even letting my breathing make any noise. I was trapped inside the cave. If they came to the opening, that was it. I was found. There was no emergency escape exit. I was a sitting duck.
If I could bring forth my beast, I’d have had at least a fighting chance, but that wasn’t going to happen. Best-case scenario, it was Steelwick. I didn’t want to go into their custody in this way. I wanted to surrender on my own terms, but we didn’t always get what we wanted.
But that wasn’t the only option. It could easily have been someone coming back to finish me off. If that was the case, I was as good as dead. I had no way to run. I couldn’t even if I wanted to.
I looked around the cave, hoping for a weapon I could use. Nothing. Then I went into full-on panic mode and tried to see if there was a paper so I could at least leave Pol a note to tell him I loved him. Again, nothing.
“Check this out,” a voice I didn’t recognized called out. “I scent him in here.”
