Alpha Queen: First of Her Name

Chapter Fourteen

Magnus dresses us in some spare furs. He paid special attention to me, which I found a tad unsettling. This Lycan Clan leader is almost as old as my Dad so the looks he keeps giving me cause my already sensitive stomach to keep lurching. Everest who is dressed from head to toe in the rugged furs of the Lycan people sits beside the fire with mirth painted across her pretty features as Magnus continues to huff while choosing a pair of gloves for me.

"I'm sure these are fine." I try to take my hands back but Magnus jerks them back into his. "Never mind."

He pats my hands, tying the fastens of the gloves securely around my wrists. "Can't have the little human freezing again." Magnus' chest rumbles as he ruffles my hair then lifts the hood of the furs. "You are so weak, it's cute."

I openly scowl at the man. "Thank you."

He leads me over the Everest and I plop down onto the ground beside her. We watch as the Clan leader leaves us in the center of the hut while he goes behind a curtain where I assume his bed is. It's where Magnus retrieves the furs that we wore now.

"He's very fond of you." Everest knocks our shoulders together.

Grinning back at the woman, I rub my cheek on her shoulder. "Yeah. He reminds me of my Dad."

"I was thinking the same thing." Everest touches the gloves that protect my hands from the harsh cold. Hours ago I was blue in the face and had lost feeling in my feet, legs, hands, and arms. The awful pins and needle sensation didn't help. Nor did Magnus' gruff voice and his chuffing purrs as he rubbed the sore extremities back to life. Since wolves and Lycans are naturally warm, out of Everest and I, my condition was the worst. "He keeps saying a word when he speaks to you." She lowers her voice to whisper in case the man can hear us behind his curtain.

Having noticed the man's language barrier, Everest and I had strived to try and understand. Magnus spoke in small sentences and then would switch to longer ones in his language when excited. When we had finished our breakfast the man had given us each a bucket of steaming water and acted out washing when his words had no effect on us. Now sparkly clean and blessedly warm, I can't complain about anything. "Maybe it's a nickname?" I shrug, "You know what? I'm surprised the Lycans treat us better than some of the wolves and humans back home." We both know I'm referencing Summerland when I say this.

"I saw that as well." She turns her head to the curtain before huddling closer to me. "Do you think we can really visit in three months when the Winter solstice happens?"

My heart flutters with excitement. "I would like to come back."

Magnus enters the room again. The man is dressed warmly in his furs, his bushy beard contrasting nicely with the white of his outfit. He claps his hands, smiling at us. "Well Little Ones, are we ready?"

Ahead of me, Everest and Viktor chase each other. I watch as the Lycan takes special care not to be too rough with Everest even though she's not holding back in her playful bites toward him. Even in human form, Viktor's canines are larger and more prominent than Everest's. Beside me walks Magnus and a trio of his guards. Everyone is spread out in a circle around Magnus. No doubt the older man could hold his own in a fight. The sight of the nasty-looking war hammer strapped to his back was enough to scare me.

"We will cross river," Magnus says to me, peering down at me happily. "Then you will be at wall."

I didn't hear any rushing water but again, humans didn't have superior hearing like wolves and Lycans. If Magnus said there's a river nearby then there must be. I return his smile, enjoying his presence. Being away from my Dad for a week when I'd never been away from my family was beginning to take a toll on me. I had discovered my poor appetite the second we arrived at Solstice Palace. The revelation of Queen Mac being my mate is what I chalked up my dwindling appetite to but now, I'm thinking it's because of homesickness.