The Wolf Prince (19 page)

He did not. Instead, he clasped Ruben on the shoulder before turning to Willow. “I’ll miss you, daughter,” he said, before enveloping her in a quick hug.

Releasing her, he walked away without saying anything else, though Willow thought she saw tears in his eyes.

Subdued now, Tatiana sank back down into her chair. Eric, who hadn’t moved the entire time, pushed his chair back so hard it crashed to the floor. He stalked off without another word.

“This is going to be a long journey,” Ruben said, glancing toward the departing EastWard prince.

“I know,” Willow sighed. “You know they’re going to try to hatch some other plan that doesn’t involve magic.”

“True.” His smile felt as tender as a caress. “We’ll be all right. King Drem is sending an armed escort, remember?”

Flushing even more, she nodded. “True, but you know his guards will not be able to travel into our kingdom. Once we reach Bright lands, they’ll have to turn around.”

“I’m sure we can manage. Now,” he said, glancing at the huge clock near the unused fireplace. “Are you ready to ride?”

She nodded, taking his hand when he offered it. Again that feeling of warmth, of completeness, brought on by the simple act of skin touching skin. When he pulled her to him, she went willingly, burying her face in the hollow of his throat. He smelled of wood smoke and pine, a masculine scent that made her ache deep inside.

In silence they stood, holding on to each other as if neither ever wanted to let go. Refusing to allow herself to worry about the future and what would happen once they got back to SouthWard, Willow took pleasure in the moment. She drew strength from his quiet embrace and she fancied she lent him some of her own.

When he finally pulled away, his mouth curved into a warm smile which she felt all the way to her toes. “Let’s head down to the courtyard. Our horses should be saddled and ready.”

He held out his arm and she took it. Together, they left to begin the final part of their journey.

* * *

Though Ruben had known instinctively that King Drem had designed something to contain Chad, he wasn’t prepared for the rolling prison that waited for them in the courtyard: a brightly painted wagon, so colorful it might have belonged to gypsies. Six huge draft horses were hitched to it, which might have been overkill had not the inside been entirely encased in iron, forming a cage. Inside, Chad sat quietly, head in his hands. Ruben almost felt sorry for the other man. Almost.

Eric and Tatiana, already mounted, alternated between glaring at Ruben and Willow and staring at Chad.

Astride a magnificent black horse, King Drem waited to lead them from his castle.

First Ruben helped Willow on her horse. Though she smiled bravely at him, sadness darkened her caramel-brown eyes to the color of chocolate as she gazed at King Drem. He knew she was going to miss him.

Though he definitely understood how she felt—he hadn’t seen his parents in what seemed like forever—she’d be fine, he knew. Especially if she followed through on her promise to visit often.

King Drem blew Willow a kiss. Finally smiling, she blew one back. And then, at Ruben’s signal, they turned their mounts to go.

They rode out without pomp or circumstance, the clip clop of the horses’ hooves on the cobblestones the only sound. When they reached the path that led into the forest, King Drem reined in.

“I leave you here,” he announced, his dark gaze settling on Willow. When she acknowledged his look with a smile, he turned to eye Ruben. “Take care of her,” he ordered. “Or I’ll find you.”

Then, without giving Ruben a chance to answer, he signaled to his men and they rode away, leaving four behind plus the coachman who controlled the wagon. Throughout all of this, Chad never once looked up.

Riding alongside him, Eric and Tatiana exchanged a meaningful glance, as though they had something planned, but Ruben didn’t worry. Their magical ability had been contained. If they planned to try something else, something physical, they’d be easily overcome.

The guards, stern-faced men clad all in black, each with blank expressions, the magic pulsing off them palpable, even to Ruben. He was glad to feel it, well aware of how deadly it could be.

They rode hard that entire day, communication limited by the brutal pace they set. As dusk prepared to fall, Ruben began to scout a place where they could make camp.

Finally, he located a clearing large enough to accommodate them all. Signaling to the leader of the guard, they stopped. It didn’t take long for the tents to go up. Unusually quiet, Tatiana immediately disappeared into hers. Instead of joining her, Eric went to attempt to speak with his brother.

Ruben watched them and noticed Chad kept his head lowered, apparently in an attempt to appear nonresponsive. The two brothers conversed, no doubt trying to come up with some last-ditch scheme before they reached SouthWard.

Looking up, he noticed one of the guards regarding them, as well. Good. Though he seriously doubted they’d be able to accomplish much, the fact that they were up to no good was disruptive enough.

“Ruben.” Still standing next to her horse, Willow waved him over. “The animals are worried.”

“About Eric and Tatiana?”

She nodded.

“With their magic bound, I don’t think they’ll be too big of a threat,” he said.

She cast him a troubled glance. “They can still stir things up, even without magic.”

Unable to resist touching her, even if only for a moment, he squeezed her shoulder. “I’ll have a word with the guards.”

With a ghost of a smile, she nodded. Then, standing up on tiptoe, she kissed his cheek, whisper soft. “I’m going to bunk down with the horses. There’s no way I’m sharing a tent with my sister tonight.”

“I don’t blame you,” he said.

Moistening her lips, she looked down. “Anyway, if you’re not too tired, I wouldn’t mind your company later.”

The rush of heat her words brought made his pulse quicken, though he managed a casual nod. “I just might do that,” he told her, before walking away to have a word with the captain of the guard.

Of course, over the next several hours, he could scarcely think of anything else.

Dusk had fallen, with darkness not too far behind. Almost everyone had retired to their tents, with the exception of the two men who were on guard duty and, of course, Chad.

As Ruben walked up to the jail-wagon, he gazed at the other man and waited for him to look up and acknowledge him. But Chad still sat cross-legged, his head down, as though lost in a deep meditation.

Finally, Ruben shrugged and moved away. Casually, he strolled to where the hobbled horses clustered. He went to his mount, scratching behind the animal’s ears, smiling as the horse rubbed its massive head against him for more.

He stepped around the cluster of horses, and his heart stuttered when he saw her, fast asleep on a pallet she’d made of horse blankets and a saddle. A sense of completeness filled him as he gazed down at her. Shocked at the depth of his feelings, he realized he could no longer run from the truth. Willow was his mate. Whether or not she came from his world was immaterial.

Once he’d worked through the remainder of his problems, he wanted to claim her as his.

He turned away, his chest tight. While he had finally faced the truth, he had a long way to go before he’d be worthy of her. He couldn’t exactly blame her if she wanted to take another path.

Returning to his tent, he debated going inside, but turned around, deciding to sleep by the fire instead. Though Eric and Tatiana’s magic had been contained, he wouldn’t put it past the other man to try something physical. If Ruben were in his tent, he’d have no way to see an attack coming.

And his intuition told him, Eric would try something soon. He just didn’t know what.

In the morning as they broke camp, the leader of King Drem’s guards came to Ruben. “Our border lies not more than a few paces south of here. We dare not ride onto Bright land. To do so could start a war. So at that point, we will return back to our own land.”

“I understand.” Turning to eye Chad who still slept inside his iron cage, he shook his head. “What about the coachman?”

“He can stay,” the captain said. “He’s human, so he’ll be safe.”

Human? Eyeing the man perched up on the odd wagon, he wondered why the man hadn’t spoken to him. Still, he was glad for the coachman’s assistance.

“He can’t speak,” the captain grimaced. “We found him as an infant, abandoned in the woods. Oftentimes he does work for us, traveling between our lands and into the human realm.”

Interesting. Ruben inclined his head in a nod to acknowledge the coachman. A moment later the other man did the same.

Shaking the captain’s hand, he thanked him for all his help.

As the man walked back to join his men, Tatiana emerged from her tent. Barely clothed, her lush figure on display for all to see, she sauntered over to Ruben, ignoring the lustful looks from the other men.

“I understand we have a few minutes before we ride,” she purred, running her finger down his chest. “My back is stiff and sore from the long ride yesterday and I have need of a massage. Would you mind helping me out?”

Ruben couldn’t help but laugh. “Get your fiancé to assist you. But you’d better be ready to leave when we ride out. And by that I mean fully dressed. Do you understand?”

Though she pouted at his harsh tone, he saw from her calculating expression that she really hadn’t expected him to capitulate so easily. “Of course I do.” Fluttering her eyelashes, she moved away.

She was up to something. But what?

Ruben watched as she strolled slowly past the guards on her way back to her tent. Being men, they all stared wistfully and when she crooked her little finger, he knew if they hadn’t been on duty, they’d have trampled each other on the way to her tent.

Instead, they stood with their feet planted in place, as she disappeared.

A moment later Eric came out. When Ruben saw what the other man was wearing—or, to be more accurate, what he
wasn’t
wearing—Ruben laughed out loud. This time, Eric approached Willow, who had her back to him as she checked her horse’s cinch.

Ruben’s jaw tightened. The half-naked man tapped Willow on the shoulder. She turned and as she realized he had on almost nothing, she blanched. Sidestepping him neatly, she moved to the other side of her horse, her face flaming.

“Enough,” Ruben roared. “Eric, get dressed and then help take down the tent. We leave in ten minutes.”

Eric waved, smiling broadly. As he strolled past the soldiers, one man eyed him in exactly the same way as his buddies had eyed Tatiana.

Scratching his head, Ruben went back to taking down his tent. Had the two of them really thought he and Willow were so foolish to fall for that? And even if they had, then what? Had Tatiana planned to knock him out in the middle of lovemaking, with Eric doing the same to Willow?

His stomach churned as he realized he hated the idea of Willow with anyone but him. He felt possessive, like a wolf would toward his mate.

Hellhounds. There it was again, that disturbing truth. Yet while he couldn’t deny the fact, what about her? Did she feel the same way? Did her people—the Sidhe—even believe in mating for life?

Her parents had sought a match with Chad. This brought another stomach-churning thought. Being royal, he knew how many intricacies were involved in a match. Of course, his own family was no obstacle. They’d be happy with any woman he chose.

Willow’s parents were another matter entirely. King Puck didn’t seem like a bad sort. He appeared relatively easygoing. Queen Millicent was not.

Ruben closed his eyes. Was he seriously considering asking for Willow’s hand in marriage? Of course he would, provided she was willing. The attraction between them was powerful and she’d demonstrated numerous times her uncanny ability to read his thoughts. He ached for her constantly, and being with her briefly only made him want her more.

He hoped—no, he prayed—she felt the same way.

Chapter 19

P
ushing the thought from his mind for now, Ruben finished packing and mounted his horse. Already seated on hers, Willow waved, her dark hair looking almost blue in the morning sunlight.

Again, yearning swept through him. He supposed he should be glad she appeared to be trying to keep distance between them. He sighed. He couldn’t exactly blame her. She probably thought he’d stood her up last night. In fact, he’d simply been a coward, unable to deal with all the emotions she aroused in him.

He’d tell her later that he hadn’t stood her up, but he didn’t need the distraction right now. Not with both Eric and Tatiana proving they were completely loose cannons.

Finally, with the camp disassembled, they rode again. At the designated place, King Drem’s guards took their leave. As they rode off, their black-clad backs straight, Ruben didn’t miss the way Tatiana and Eric exchanged covert glances. He nearly groaned out loud. They rode their horses alongside each other, speaking in voices too low to carry.

“Well, there’s one good thing about all this,” Willow said drily, riding up alongside him. “Maybe the two of them will finally get close enough to marry.”

Ignoring the way his heart skipped a beat, he allowed himself a moment to drown in her smile.

“Maybe.” He smiled and glanced back at the others. “But have you noticed the way your sister looks at Chad? I really think she fancies herself in love with him.”

“She does,” Willow sighed. “Even when they first arrived in SouthWard, she decided she wanted him instead of Eric. I’m not sure why. She and Eric are exactly alike.”

“Maybe that’s the reason. They’re so similar, they’d despise each other in a matter of months.”

“That’s one possibility,” she said. “But I’d like to think they’d learn from seeing their own flaws mirrored so clearly.”

“Those kind of people rarely do.” Shaking his head, he tightened his hands on the reins to keep from touching her. “You were asleep when I came last night,” he murmured. “I didn’t want to disturb your rest, so I left.”

As she opened her mouth to speak, one of the horses whinnied, then screamed, a blood-curdling sound. Willow’s mount reared up, as Tatiana’s horse went down, pinning her under it. Blood pooled scarlet into the dirt.

Once Willow had her horse under control, she jumped down. Ruben also vaulted to the ground, handing her his reins. He rushed over, arriving at the same time as Eric.

One look at the Bright prince’s face and Ruben knew this hadn’t been staged. Appearing truly panicked, Eric tried frantically to free his fiancée from underneath the thrashing horse. An arrow protruded ominously from the animal’s neck.

Unfortunately, his efforts only succeeded in terrifying the wounded animal, which flayed about in a futile effort to climb to its feet.

“Stand back.” Attempting to grab Eric’s arm, Ruben slipped in the blood and staggered, just as the other man swung at him.

Eric glared at Ruben with murder in his eyes and resumed his efforts to free Tatiana. The horse’s stomach heaved as he struggled. Still Eric tried to lift the beast, all the while attempting to dodge flailing hooves.

Meanwhile, Tatiana lay ominously still.

“Hold.” The note of command rang unmistakable in Ruben’s voice.

An instant later, Willow seconded his order. “Move away from the horse.”

About to argue, Eric saw something in her face that had him jumping back. “You! How can you help? You have no magic,” he spat the words. “Everyone knows that. And now you’re going to let your sister die in the dirt just for spite.”

She ignored him, running her hands down the horse’s flank. Instantly, the animal went still. When she finally raised her head to look at Ruben, tears ran down her cheeks.

“My sister is grievously wounded and the horse has been shot,” she said. “First, we need to move him off Tatiana. The arrow nicked his artery, so I can’t help him. But I can ease his passage, very quickly, or at least try so he won’t suffer, before I help you and Eric tend to my sister.”

Shot
. Glancing around them and realizing they were completely exposed, Ruben knew they’d have to find the shooter.

“Yes,” Willow agreed, once again apparently reading his thoughts. “But first, we must free Tatiana. Then you can find the shooter.”

Intuition clamoring a warning, nonetheless Ruben nodded. “What would you have me do?”

“You and Eric,” she said, including the other man in her gesture. “Each grab a pair of legs. Ruben, you take the front and Eric the back. I’ve sedated the horse so he will remain still, as long as you are gentle. Slide him this way, and we’ll free Tatiana.”

Though Ruben seriously doubted he could move even half of a one-ton horse, he was willing to give it a try.

“Ready?” Willow asked, crossing around to the other side to push while they pulled. She stood as near to Tatiana’s prone form as she could. “One, two, three, pull!”

Ruben pulled. Next to him, Eric did the same, grunting loudly while Willow pushed. To his disbelief, they were able to slide the massive animal off Tatiana.

Willow went to assist her, to see if she could somehow use what little magic she had to help, but the instant her fingers touched her sister’s skin, Tatiana began screaming.

When Willow took her hand away, her sister quieted.

“See?” Eric shot her a venomous look. “She doesn’t want your help.”

“Tend to her,” Willow ordered, dropping to her knees next to the violently shaking horse. She began crooning low, nonsensical words that seemed to calm the beast. Ruben turned away, glancing from Tatiana to the woods.

“I don’t think you should move her,” he told Eric. Ignoring him, the other man slid one arm under her head and the other under her back, lifting her. He carried her over toward the wagon while Ruben followed behind.

“If I had my magic, I could heal her,” Eric said bitterly.

“Look, I understand.” Ruben clapped a hand on the other man’s shoulder and tried to keep an eye on the trees. “I’m not sure how or why, but it would appear someone has a powerful bow and is trying to take us out. We need to find this person before anyone else gets hurt.”

Without looking up from Tatiana, Eric nodded.

Inside his makeshift cell, Chad began to laugh. “Leave her, you fool. Do what I told you to do.”

Eric swung his golden head to glare at his brother. “Hurting her wasn’t part of the plan.”

“Plan?” Ruben looked from one to the other. As he did, Chad brandished a wicked-looking crossbow.

Ruben dove behind the wagon just as Chad sent an arrow flying. “Take cover,” he shouted to Willow, as she raised her head from her work on the horse. In plain view, with her back to Chad, she’d make an easy target.

“I’ll kill her unless you free me,” Chad said, the venom in his voice telling Ruben he meant it.

Seeing the danger, Willow froze.

“Take cover,” Ruben shouted, his heart in his throat.

“I can’t leave the horse right now,” she shouted. “If I do, he’ll die in great pain.”

“If you don’t, he’ll kill you,” Eric warned her, turning back to look at his brother. “And the horse will still die in pain. You promised no bloodshed, Chad.”

“I lied,” Chad told him smoothly, before shooting Eric in the leg. He laughed when his brother crumpled to the ground.

Willow took that opportunity to dive behind a large tree.

Chad grinned, bringing the massive crossbow to bear on Ruben. “Looks like you’re next,” he told Ruben.

“Kill us all and you’ll be trapped in there forever,” Ruben said. “There won’t be anyone left alive to free you. You’ll rot in your cage. A slow, painful death.”

Chad cocked his head, considering.

A movement above Chad caught Ruben’s eye. The coachman had climbed on top of the cage, unnoticed by the Bright prince. He held a long, deadly looking whip.

Quickly Ruben looked away. The coachman was their only chance.

Madness gleamed in Chad’s eyes as he sighted the arrow on Ruben’s heart.

“You don’t want to kill me,” Ruben said, knowing he had to distract the other man.

“Oh, but I think I do. But first, I want her to die.” As Chad raised the crossbow again, aiming at Willow, the coachman snapped the whip, knocking the weapon out of Chad’s hands with a loud crack. It discharged its arrow before bouncing into and through the bars onto the ground.

Ruben dove for it. Chad began cursing virulently.

Ignoring him, Ruben turned to check on Eric. The Bright prince had torn his shirt and made an efficient tourniquet over his wounded leg.

“I’m all right.” Eric waved him away. “Please, check on Tatiana.” The worry in his voice told Ruben the other man truly cared for his fiancée.

“Let me check her out.” Pushing past Ruben and Eric, Willow knelt at her sister’s side. She took Tatiana’s pulse, then began feeling along her arms and legs and rib cage, searching for broken bones.

When she looked up again, her expression was tight with strain. “She has at least one broken rib, and I think her left arm is also broken. Beyond that—if she has any kind of other internal injuries—I have no way of knowing. She’s unconscious.”

Exhaustion was evident in the way she swayed, even from a crouched position. Though Ruben hated to ask it, he had to. “Can you try again?”

For a second she closed her eyes, appearing to muster up her last remnant of faded strength. “She’s my sister,” she said finally. “I’m not sure she’ll let me, but of course I’ll try.”

Shaking with the effort, she began humming tunelessly as she let her hands hover over Tatiana’s rib cage. Tears streamed down Willow’s cheeks, but she held her position, until the tremors became all-engulfing shudders. As Ruben rushed to steady her, she collapsed in his arms.

“Is she...?” Eric asked tentatively.

Ruben cradled the woman he loved and glanced up at the other man, only to find him gazing at Tatiana with an eager, hopeful and completely besotted look.

“I don’t know.” Transferring his attention back to Willow, Ruben gathered her as close as he dared, wishing he could send some of his strength to replenish her limp body.

But whatever magic he possessed was limited to shape-shifting and he could do nothing but hold her.

Willow’s chest rose and fell with shallow breathing, and she didn’t appear hurt, just depleted.

Next to him, Eric gave a glad cry. “She’s waking up.”

Sure enough, Tatiana had begun to stir. Pink returned to her colorless skin as she regained her strength. Ruben wished he could say the same for Willow.

“Keep her still until she can focus,” Ruben cautioned.

Eric nodded, reluctant to tear his gaze away from the woman he planned to marry. Tatiana moaned, trying to push up onto her elbows. She opened her violet eyes and blinked up at Eric. Realizing who held her, she tried to push him away, struggling to see beyond him. “Chad?” she cried out, her voice full of anguish. “Chad.”

To his credit, Eric continued to hold her. “He’s alive,” he said drily. “As am I and your sister, I think.”

But Tatiana did not hear him. She’d already slipped back into unconsciousness.

Ruben looked away, back at his mate. Her long lashes fluttered, and he saw a shimmer of awareness in her caramel-colored eyes. “Willow?”

A ghost of a smile touched her lips. “I think I healed her...”

“Shh.” Placing a soft kiss on the smooth skin of her forehead, he held her close. “Conserve your strength.”

“But Tatiana...”

“She woke up and then went back to sleep. I think she’s going to be okay.” He kissed her again, this time lingering. Inhaling the fresh lilac scent of her, he suppressed the urge to hold her tighter, afraid he might injure her.

“Great.” Willow smiled sleepily up at him, then stretched. “Give me another minute to regain my energy and then I can help you two figure out how to get everyone home without injuring them more.”

By the time Willow was able to stand—shakily, and while leaning heavily on Ruben—Tatiana had come around again. Despite Eric’s protests, she had gotten to her feet and gone to crouch near the cage, where a furious Chad still sat, glaring at them all with murder in his gaze.

“Are you all right, my love?” Tatiana gushed, attempting to reach through the bars to caress Chad’s face.

“Get away from me, you faithless whore,” Chad snarled.

At his words, Tatiana drew herself up straight, her injury apparently completely healed. “What’s wrong with you?” she demanded. “How can you speak to me like that, after we’ve made love? I know we’re meant to be together.”

Chad spat at her, contempt twisting his face. “I don’t want you. I never did. You and my brother deserve each other. Two fools.”

Shocked, Tatiana stumbled backward, nearly falling. Eric had come up behind her, and he caught her, though he moved now strictly from reflex, his jaw tight and his gaze hard.

“You slept with her?” Eric asked his brother, his voice completely without inflection. “The woman I planned to marry?”

Ruben couldn’t help but notice how the other man used past tense now. He couldn’t blame him. What kind of man would want a bride so faithless that she’d cuckold him with his own brother?

“What kind of man are you?” Revulsion plain in his every action, Eric set Tatiana apart, ignoring the way she desperately reached out to him, apparently realizing she’d lost it all.

When she touched his shoulder, he spun and turned on her. “For that matter, what kind of woman are you? We were supposed to wed. We’d even begun discussing wedding plans, for Bright’s sake.”

Most women would have hung their head in shame. Not Tatiana. She looked Eric straight in the face and smiled. “I will make it up to you,” she promised. “If you’ll let me.”

Not an apology at all.

For a heartbeat, Ruben thought Eric might strike her. The thought apparently crossed Eric’s mind, as he raised his hand before lowering it and clenching it in a fist.

This made Ruben actually like the pompous prince, who seemed to have a heart after all.

“The engagement is off,” Eric declared, in a hard, flat voice. “Do not come near me again.”

Disbelief flashed across Tatiana’s face. “You can’t do that. Our parents have already signed the marriage contracts.”