The Faye's Keeper - Keepers of Light, Book II

Chapter Three

~Wesley~

After a full breakfast, Wesley and Abby had gone over the map one final time with Alex. It was going to take them the better part of the next three days to arrive at the passage that Alex said would lead them to The High Forest. Alex didn't say if The High Forest was located in the National Forest or not, or if the passage was some sort of magical portal that led to one home of the Faye. It was possible, Wesley knew, that Alex didn't have the answer. Afterall, Alex had never been invited to The High Forest.

Driving two hours further into the mountains, Alex was dropping them off as close as he could get them. The road they had been traveling on turned into a dead-end a couple miles back. The SUV was currently parked at the end of it, trees and mountains hovering on all sides of them.

Alex helped Wesley unload the hiking gear. Both himself and Abby would be carrying backpacks, with everything they would need inside of them, to live in the forest for the next few days. Wesley was concerned, to say the least.

Although Abby said she'd been hiking before, there was a huge difference between hiking a few hours and hiking for days. Add the fifty-pound pack on her back, and Wesley was worried. He knelt down to check her pack straps, for the fifth time.

"Give her more credit, son. She'll be just fine." Wesley looked up to see Alex smiling down at him. Of course, the old wolf would know how he was feeling.

He gave a frustrated sigh, before standing. He glanced behind himself, where Abby had wandered down the path a ways, before running a hand through his hair. "Yeah. Yeah, I know, you're right."

A strong hand clapped him on the shoulder. Alex chuckled, "She's tough, Wesley. She won't let a good twenty-mile hike stop her."

Wesley grumbled under his breath, before saying more clearly, "You'd think the Faye could send her transport if they want to meet her so badly."

A dry chuckle escaped Alex's mouth before he bent down for Abby's pack. "I highly doubt they care how she arrives, just that she does."

Before Wesley could say anything in response, Abby came up behind him. Smiling at Alex, she took the pack from him and allowed him to help her strap it on. Once done, she turned to him and smiled cheerfully, "Ready?"

Unable to help himself, he chuckled. "I sure hope you can keep that smile going when we've been hiking through the mountain for hours."

He watched as she adjusted the pack, before smiling up at him again. "Well, only one way to find out."

Shutting the hatchback, Alex clapped his hands together. "She's got a point, my boy. Time to get going."

Wesley tossed the pack over his back, strapping it around his middle. He had added a few more things to his pack than Abby's. He could carry more weight than she could.

As Abby gave Alex a quick hug, nodding at his words of caution, Wesley took a deep breath. This wasn't his first time hiking through the mountains. But it was the first time he was doing it without his pack. Without Alex or Warren to guide him. Coming to stand in front of him, Alex put both hands on Wesley's shoulders. "You know these mountains, you know the dangers they hold. You're prepared for this, Wesley."

Focusing on Alex's green eyes, a deeper color than Abby's, with brown flecks throughout, Wesley sighed. "I know..."

Alex's hands squeezed his shoulders tightly before Alex took a step away from him. "Once you reach The High Forest, try and send word to us. I'm not sure the pack bond will give me much, with how far you'll be."

Adjusting his pack, Wesley nodded. "We will." He turned to see Abby, already waiting at the trailhead, and felt his heart swell at the sight of her. Despite the journey that layout before her, she looked excited and ready to take on the challenge. Her red waves were tired back in a long braid, the gray hat she wore and the white snow blanketing the area, made her hair look brighter than normal. How he ever got so lucky to find his True Mate and for it to be her, he didn't know.