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"This is healing nicely," I said, gently applying pressure around the edges. "And there doesn't appear to be any more pus."
"Thank you," Byriel smiled. "You've been very kind to me even though you have no reason to."
"I'm making sure you're healthy enough to help me find Hida," I said flatly, dabbing at the still tender flesh with a rag. "I don't know if that makes me kind."
"It does," he said simply, leaning in to catch my eyes. "It makes you very kind."
Joon growled low in his throat, baring his teeth. Byriel glanced up at the seething Alpha, then slowly sat up and leaned away from me.
I looked at Joon out of the corner of my eye. He looked ready to kill, his eyes glowing red. "You said the prophecy demanded you kill eight wolves?" I asked, turning my attention back to the wound.
"Yes," Byriel whispered, shifting his gaze to the ground.
"Did you get all eight?"
"No." He shook his head slightly. "We were still looking for one. We checked all the were-villages on the mainland. Next, we were traveling to the shared cities, elvish colonies, and the witches' settlements. Stone City is the only one we'd been to so far.
"Whoever bears that last mark has never shown it to anyone. Or at least no one is willing to admit to seeing it," he said, looking a little defeated.
"So you have no idea who it is?" I asked.
"No."
"Is the King's life still at risk even with justonewolf alive? Would one even matter?"
"Yes," Byriel said cautiously, glancing at me out of the corner of his eye. "Even just one matters."
"So if Hida and you both die before the last wolf is found, will the King send new guards to find whoever it is?"
"What are you getting at?" Joon asked.
I kept my eyes on Byriel, but my body pulled hard to answer the Alpha. To obey his every word. "Will the eighth wolf be killed no matter what happens to you and Hida?" I asked again.
Byriel looked down at the fire pit and sighed heavily. "The last wolf will be found no matter what. The King will make sure of it," he frowned. "As long as that wolf lives, my father is doomed to die. There's no changing fate."
I nodded, finishing with his wound and moving to start the fire. I could feel Byriel's tense breathing behind me, but I kept my eyes down, working to spark the rocks in my hands.
"Tzidal," Joon said softly. He paused, waiting for me to respond.
My heart pounded in my chest as I tried hard not to answer him, my wolf and body begging me to respond. I hated him so much for forcing me into submission, my mind feeling as if it belonged to someone else. I shifted some dried grass and sparked a flame, making myself ignore him.
"Tzidal," he said more firmly.
My hands shook, and my jaw clenched, but I remained silent. I held my breath and stared hard at the tiny flame that flickered before me.
"Omega!" he yelled, and my head automatically snapped up to him, making me wince. He looked angry but also ashamed at my reaction. I didn't know why. This was what he wanted. My mindless obedience.
"Okaaay," Lex said, his voice laced with apprehension as he walked out of the trees. He was wearing the face and body of a lovely young boy with blue eyes and a tiny, pointed nose. He looked like a child. It was disturbing, and it made me happy he killed whoever craved the young boy in front of me.
"I've had enough with the weirdness between you two lately," Lex huffed, his hands on his narrow hips.
"You already ate?" I asked. "That was fast."
"So was he," Lex frowned as he shook off his appearance and melted back into his familiar form. "Why is Joon yelling at you?"
"She won't talk to me," Joon huffed. I suppressed the urge to roll my eyes.Such an Alpha, whining like a petulant pup.
"What are you up to, little wolf?" Lex asked.
