BOUND: Mates at War | 18+

27 My Wife

A leaf crunches and I lunge for my bow. It's not him, I can't feel him close.

A huge wolf steps into the clearing with a backpack hanging from his mouth. He drops his head down, raising one paw in the air. I release some of the tension on the bow string but not completely.

He starts to shift and I look down at the ground uncomfortably until he's pulled on some pants.

I recognize him immediately, the quiet scout, Dylan.

"I'm sorry if I scared you. Roman will be here by tonight, he sent me ahead so you aren't out here alone. I can sit outside of camp... if you want me to."

"N-No... you can sit."

I don't know what to do with another wolf. I don't feel a bond to him like I do with Roman, this is extremely uncomfortable.

"I'm Dylan, by the way."

"Solana."

I sit against a tree as far away from him as physically possible in this small space.

"Elves have mates, right?" He asks after several minutes of complete silence.

"We call them lovemates, but yes."

He nods slowly, obviously deep in thought.

"What kind of elf are you?" He asks nervously, "Am I allowed to ask that?"

"You can ask that," I can't help my small smile, "I'm a woodland elf."

"I thought so but river elves look so similar I thought maybe..."

"Woodland elves and river elves are closely related. I haven't seen a river elf in years. We don't think there are any left."

"Oh, no, there are definitely river elves left, a lot of them." He looks surprised that I don't know this.

"How?" I sit forward, "How do you know this? What do you mean by a lot?"

"About three years ago, when I first started scouting, there was a colony of river elves discovered on the southern side of the mountains. We couldn't get to them at first, it took some logistical planning. When we went back they were gone. There were at least two hundred of them by my best guess."

I can't speak. My mouth is hanging open while my mind races.

"W-What..." is all I can manage.

"We never figured out where they went."

Two hundred elves, alive, living somewhere out there. The idea fills me with a hopefulness I haven't felt in a long time.

I sit back against the tree again, optimism blooming in my chest.

"I trust Roman, he's honest and loyal, for him to say the things he's saying... I know in my heart that they're true. The things we've done... I...I," he struggles.

The things he's stumbling over are the same things I am. Where do you draw the line between following orders and willfully doing wrong under the blanket of "duty."

I know they were executing orders given by the Queen, they were protecting the kingdom from a threat foretold in a prophecy.

They have to be held accountable for their actions at some point but where and how?

Sitting here now, talking to Dylan, he seems like a decent person, kind even. It's hard to reconcile that with his actions. After spending time with Roman I can understand his sense of duty, his need to protect and his loyalty but that doesn't excuse everything.

My mind is swimming, this seems impossible to overcome.

I'm hit suddenly with a calming sensation. Roman is close by. I can see that Dylan senses him too.

"That's my cue," he pulls himself to stand and walks into the brush.

Roman comes into the clearing quickly, his chest heaving and a wildness in his eyes that makes me shiver.

I open my mouth to speak but he slams his lips against mine before I can. The possessiveness of the kiss is consuming. His hands are everywhere, roaming over my neck, shoulders, back and hips.

When he pulls his lips away I'm breathless, clinging to his chest to keep from swaying.

"Are you alright? Everything with Dylan was ok?"
His eyes search my face.

"Everything was fine, what about you?"

He nods his head and calls over his shoulder. Dylan walks in first, followed by three men of equally large, menacing stature. Miles, another I know from the dungeon and one I don't recognize.

"This is my scouting group. You remember Miles, that's Cale and Aric." The men behind Dylan and Miles look bewildered.

"I can't believe this is real," Aric says quietly, staring at me.

"She's really your mate?" Cale asks him.

Roman wraps his arm around my shoulder protectively, "yes."

They have the same heavy, baffled looks on their faces that seems to come with the knowledge of the King's real killer. Their shoulders are tense and hunched forward and their brows are pulled into deep scowls.

"Are you ready to go?" Roman turns to me.

"We're all going to find my dad?"

I can't imagine any of the elves will be thrilled with five wolves showing up on their doorstep.

"We've been given a new directive, she wants us to track down her bird," he looks up in the tree where the bird is perched.

We leave the small camp, heading to the mountain elves' old encampment. I'm not sure exactly where their meeting place is but I'm hoping to get close enough to come across someone.

The terrain is becoming steeper and more inhospitable by the step. Loose rocks and large boulders keep our pace annoyingly slow.

"We're getting close to the hidden entrance to the old camp but I'm not sure you'll fit. How did you guys get in before?"

"We went all the way up and over," Aric points to the ridge, still a long way off.

My feet hurt just looking at the distance we still have to go. It might be better for finding a scout or guard to go that way.

"I can shift and carry you," Roman whispers as he lifts me up onto a particularly large rock blocking the path.

"How will you get over rocks like this in wolf form? I appreciate the offer though."

As I slide down the other side of the boulder I catch Miles looking at Roman, shock on his face.

It takes another two hours of grueling climbing to reach the ridge. The flat surface cut into the side of the mountain is covered in dense patches of trees. I can see the entrance to the cave that leads to the open quarry.

Before I can breathe a sigh of relief, Roman pushes me behind him, his body rigid as all the men turn to a patch of shrubbery on the far side of the ridge.

The tips of two arrows emerge first, followed by the elves holding them at the ready. I don't know these elves, they aren't from the group I met with my father.

Finlas steps out from behind them.

"Ah! Look who we found! My wife!"

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