Page 90 of When Ashes Fall

“It’s a very comfortable spot,” I told him. “I like being surrounded by the flowers and bees. They make me happy.”

He looked past me toward the tree and… no… it couldn’t be… was that a smile tugging at his lips? Maybe miracles did happen after all.

“I do enjoy both of those things,” he said.

I almost asked if he’d hit his head or if the sprites had slipped something into his food, but I bit the questions back. It might chase away his good mood.

“Do you know what the stones stand for around the tree?” he inquired.

“I assumed they represented the three different shifter species—feline, canine, and dragon.”

When he tucked my arm into his, I almost pulled it back. The last time we had any real interaction, we’d clashed—of course—and I bit his thigh. I couldn’t quite place how that led to this.

But nothing was domineering about the way he clasped my arm against his side. His touch was tender as he turned me to face the different stones circling the tree.

Carved onto each stone was a different animal representing a different species. There was a wolf, lion, dragon, fox, panther, another dragon, and then a W, which I assumed stood for Wildwood. The pattern continued around the tree; there were four W’s in total.

“You’re correct; the stones are a representation of the different shifter species, with the W’s representing Wildwood. Each W is placed at one of the main compass points.” He pointed to the one in front of us. “That’s north.”

I followed the W toward the hallway leading to the main dining room.

“There was a time when the three different species of shifters battled each other for control of the kingdom,” he continued. “They burned this castle many times over the years of shifting power and infighting before the great alpha Acor seized control. He knew that if the fighting continued, the shifters would soon destroy each other because by then our numbers had plummeted.

“The other eternals, having stood by while the shifters destroyed themselves, were starting to eye Wildwood as an easy kingdom to gain control over. They wanted the lush land of Wildwood for themselves. If the shifters didn’t join to keep Wildwood, they’d either destroy each other or the other eternals would conquer them.”

I loved the way his face relaxed as he spoke proudly of his heritage. His thumb caressed my arm; I wasn’t sure if he was aware of it or not.

“Amongst the different species, various groups had different leaders, and they all attacked each other. The panthers battled the tigers and the tigers and jaguars ganged up on the lions while the wolves fought the jackals and so on and so on. Even the dragons split into groups, each following a different leader who sought to rule all.”

“It must have been horrible,” I murmured.

“I’m sure it was. It’s written as a time of great distress and much death as the shifters nearly eradicated themselves. Acor gathered the leaders of the various factions and suggested only one should rule all the shifters and that we should all unite.

“At first, as I’m sure you can imagine, there was a lot of disagreement about his suggestion, but when the cyclops nearly succeeded in taking Wildwood from us, the shifters banded together to keep them out.

“It was the first time they’d united in centuries, and not only did it make them stronger, but they realized if they didn’t merge, they would all fall. So they returned to Acor and agreed with his idea of having only one rule all. It took some time to decide how they would choose the first king, but they came up with a plan for the deathmatch.”

“The what?” I blurted.

There was that small, sweet smile again. It relaxed his face and lessened the severity of the scars slicing across his right eye.

“The deathmatch,” he said. “Each separate species could send anyone into the fray, but whoever entered was aware it could result in their death. That first deathmatch was the biggest, as each alpha believed they were strong enough to rule the kingdom. Thirteen entered, and only one exited.”

“Acor,” I said.

“Acor.”

“And does the alpha rule until they die?”

“Every ten years, there’s a new deathmatch to ensure the ruling alpha remains the strongest in the land. My father has been uncontested for twenty years, but before then, he fought a few battles against those foolish enough to oppose him.”

“Does the dragon always rule Wildwood?” Knox’s father was the last dragon shifter.

“No, they’re not always the strongest. There have been many different ruling species throughout our history. Acor was a wolf.”

“How interesting,” I murmured. “And brutal.”

Knox chuckled. “That is our way.”