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I growled and he pretended not to laugh.
“I’m just stating the facts. You do want to get to my sister faster, don’t you?”
Even if he was right, the idea of a human riding me sent a wave of anger through me. My swiftness ability was faster than when I was in wolf form but couldn’t be maintained over long distances. No matter how much I loathed it, the human was right.
“We stop when I need to and that’s it.”
The human held out his hand. “Calvin.”
Shaking his hand, I replied. “Baine.”
“Okay, Baine. Let’s get moving. If we hurry, we can make it to my home in two days.”
Two days.
That wasn’t fast enough.
Noticing my apprehension, the human’s expression shifted to understanding. “She’s my twin. No one is more important than her. I wouldn’t risk going home if I didn’t believe with my every fiber the magi wouldn’t put her into battle. You need to trust me.”
“Then let’s go.”
Shifting into wolf form, I ignored the uneasiness of letting a human ride me and kept Rosalie in my thoughts. The faster I ran, the closer I came to getting her back into my arms, and I’d already been gone too long.
With the human on my back, I ran, through forest and hills and plains covered with grass too high to see where I traveled. We stopped twice to rest before quickly returning to the road.
My companion said little, seemingly lost in deep thought. His previous temperament disappeared into the long silence of our journey. When we had crossed into the North by the mountains, he patted my side.
“Follow that river, east. We’re close.”
The river snaked around the hills and through the deep wood. Patches of beige peppered the green grass. I slid to a stop when the ground morphed into a brackish mud littered with dead snakes.
Calvin jumped off and I transformed, feeling uneasy being in my wolf form this long.
He kneeled and poked one of the dead snakes. “They’re dead. Are all of them dead?”
“Are these the plague snakes Rosalie spoke about?”
He nodded, his brow knit together, and he frowned. “Yes, but what would have killed them all?”
Walking ahead, he stepped slowly, eyeing the area. The river we followed decreased in size as we made our way deeper into the forest. Stepping behind Calvin, I surveyed the area carefully, wondering what caused the odd patches of brown and black among the foliage.
This wasn’t like the barren waste caused by the darkthings. There was a sickness in this forest, a stench underneath the fresh air.
Calvin ran, making me give chase. Ahead, a wooden bridge crossed over the river leading to a dirt road that wound around large oaks. He ran across the bridge, quickening his pace as he disappeared on the road. Using my swiftness, I caught up to him instantly. His brows raised in surprise, but he continued, a desperate look in his gaze as the road led to a thatched house surrounded by a wooden fence and nestled between a barn and another larger fenced in structure.
Vaulting over the fence, he headed to the structure that resembled a chicken coop but on a larger scale. He froze, a strangled “no” slipped from his mouth as he dropped to his knees.
“What is it?” I said, peeking into the empty structure.
“They’re all gone . . .”
“Your sister mentioned a ranger. He may be here.” Using my senses, I searched for signs of life.
An acrid scent caught my attention and I headed to the house. I had no swords, no weapon except my hands. They would need to be enough. Putting my ear to the door, I listened.
Snores. Someone was sleeping inside.
Whistling low, I called Calvin to my side. Fire brimmed in his eyes, matching the intensity of his hardened expression.Slowly, I turned the doorknob and stepped in.
