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The colonel, a hard-faced old Alpha with a bushy gray moustache, looked surprised as we came alongside him. He glanced from Wyatt down to me sitting in front of him on his saddle with a disbelieving glare. My head sank down to my chest, and I couldn’t even look at the man. Behind me, I could feel Wyatt vibrating with anger.
“Colonel Martaan,” he said, his voice grim, “We need to talk.”
Chapter Six
Wyatt
I was beyond furious, beyond upset, and for the longest time, I found it hard to calm down. Midnight ran for as long and as far as I asked him to, but I could tell I’d winded him a little when I finally slowed down. I got off and led him over to the shade of a big tree by the side of the road and then fell down beside him to try and calm myself and let him rest.
It had been a ridiculous argument I’d had with Darcy and my threats had been completely hollow. I could no more leave him to face the wrath of the colonel and a court martial on his own than I could try to fly. It was hard to leave him—full stop. But I had ridden out a few minutes ago and left him with Brandon and Asher to think whatever he wanted, because I was too angry with him to stay and be reasonable.
Colonel Martaan had been disbelieving about what I had to tell him at first, and then when Darcy confirmed it was all true, he’d been practically apoplectic with shock and rage. We had urged our horses over to the side of the road and dismounted to talk. He was so angry, I had to stand between him and Darcy or he might have tried to strike him. If he had, then I’d have had to kill him, and even my long-standing relationship with Harrison might not have survived that.
The soldiers still marching by were casting wildly curious looks at us, and even the other officers, seeing their colonel so enraged, had drawn closer to overhear what was going on. I saw Brandon and Asher among them, both of them staring at me with wide eyes. I motioned for them to come closer as Martaan continued to berate Darcy, who stood silently, his face beet red and sullenly stubborn, not looking at the colonel or bothering to reply as he demanded to know what Darcy had been thinking and how this had happened and on and on and on. Not that the colonel gave him time to answer—he didn’t, and I think he just wanted to rant. To be fair, the look on Darcy’s face was infuriating. Stubborn, obstinate, and completely unrepentant—his expression made it obvious he saw nothing wrong in what he’d done.
I took one, long look at Darcy’s drooping shoulders and saw the hunted look in his eyes though and had to put a stop to the colonel’s harangue after a few minutes by “pulling rank” on him. He hadn’t been happy about that at all. But while my cousins and I didn’t have any actual standing in Harrison’s army, the officers all knew our relationship to the king. We were high-ranking nobility in our own country, which they might have discounted, seeing as how Sudfarmans were haughty and insular. But what they couldn’t discount was our closeness to their king. We were his cousins and his confidants, and we were pack mates to his younger brother. They knew exactly what that bond meant and how close it was.
I took Darcy’s arm and pulled him away from the colonel, glancing over at Brandon and Asher who immediately came over to stand by us. Brandon grabbed his arm and held onto him. Darcy was still defiant and angry—even more angry at me than he’d been before, if such a thing were possible. I ignored him, turned my back on the colonel and spoke directly to my cousins.
“It looks like the colonel is about to have a stroke,” I said, not really bothering to lower my voice. They both smiled and glanced over at him.
“What happens to your boy now?” Asher asked softly. “If you leave him here, he’ll wind up in the brig.” He glanced ruefully over at Martaan. “Or in front of a firing squad, from the way the colonel’s acting.”
Darcy gave a whole-body shudder, and I had to put an arm around him and draw him closer to me, whether it bothered either of us or not. He resisted for a moment before sagging reluctantly against me.
“Don’t joke like that, Asher,” I said, glancing back at the colonel, who had turned his back on us and was ranting at his officers. “Although I actually wouldn’t put it past him at this point either.”
Brandon shook his head. “What’s his problem, anyway? He’s acting like Darcy committed treason or something.”
“He’s in the same religious cult as the queen. Darcy has been taking a witch’s potion, and any hint of dark magic makes that entire religious sect go into a frenzy. Then too, he’s angry at me for not telling him about Darcy sooner. And since there’s nothing he can say to me, he’s taking it out on my omega.”
“Still not your omega,” Darcy muttered beside me.
“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” I said, growling at him. The little shit actually growled back at me. He even showed his teeth, making Brandon and Asher smile. “My ex-omega, then, if that makes you happy.”
He made a little humph sound, but I noticed Darcy didn’t move any farther away from me. He burrowed into my side a little closer, if anything. Gods, everything about him was such a contradiction.
“At least it’s done.”
“What can we do to help, Wyatt?” Asher asked.
“Darcy has his backpack with him, so other than what’s in his locker at the fort, he’s ready to leave. I think it’s best if we go and take him out of here today, before the colonel gets any ideas. We’ll take him straight back to Morovia to our lodge and leave him there while we go on this mission or whatever for Harrison. When we come back, I’ll deal with him then.”
“Nobody has to take me anywhere or ‘deal’ with me. I can take care of myself,” Darcy mouthed off, completely unasked. “And I’m not going anywhere with you. Maybe you didn’t hear what I just said.I can take care of myself.”
I glared down at him, and he pulled away, jumped back and put up those ridiculous little fists of his to square off at me. Brandon stepped between us, like I had any intention of fighting my own omega. I stared at him incredulously. “What are you doing?”
My cousin shrugged. “You looked like you were about to fight him.”
“I wish he’d try!” Darcy piped up from safely behind Brandon’s shoulder.
I rolled my eyes. “I would never touch him in anger—as much as he tempts me.” I glared at Darcy. “Anyway, back to what I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted—I need to get this omega back to Morovia, and I’d like to leave right away.”
Asher nodded. “They won’t dare try to stop us. We’re ready whenever you are.”
“Let Darcy ride with you, Brandon. He can take more of his potion if he needs to. Maybe it would be less oppressively burdensome for the poor baby,” I sneered.
I turned my back on him to speak to the colonel again and felt a small fist come crashing up between my shoulder blades. Taking a couple of deep breaths without turning around, I got on my horse instead and told Asher I’d catch up with them later. I rode off at a gallop, ignoring the calls from behind me.
