A Wolf's Duty (49 page)

Get rid of the
bars on the windows. Quietly,
she
commanded.

The ivy surrounding the
window spread its roots deeper into the stone, weaving an intricate
web to crumble the mortar and stone. A thick tree branch caught the
falling frame as it tumbled from the wall leaving a hole large
enough for her to fit through. Rolling herself onto her side she
winced as the pain in her ribs exploded but pressed on, dragging
her body across the cold stone. Another thick branch entered the
hole in the wall, easily lifting her from the ground, wrapping
itself around her midsection before carrying her high in the air.
The pain in her ribs exploded at the contact but refusing to miss
the chance to escape she allowed the tree to continue to hold
her.

Freedom,
she whispered, breathing in
deeply.
Take me home.

You’re hurt.
You should heal.

I told you
that I can’t risk it, unless you’re telling me that you can heal me
when I’m awake then we’ve got to head back for the
estate.

The healing
requires that you sleep.

Then like I
told you, we head home.

It’s far from
here, you’re bleeding and may lose consciousness before we get
there. If that happens then we won’t be able to help you as much as
you might need. If you aren’t awake then we can’t maintain this
growth. We’ll go back to normal size.

Well if that’s
the case then just take me as close as you can to the estate. If I
start to feel light headed then you’ll be the first to
know.

If that’s what
you want.

It is, now
let’s stop wasting time. I don’t know when he’ll be back so we need
to get as far away from here as possible.
The branch around her middle moved, stretching further than
she would have though possible before another tree caught her in
its grip, wrapping itself around her before passing her on to the
next tree.
If we keep moving like this
then I’m sure we’ll be home soon.
She
smiled trusting the trees around her to take her far away from
Elijah and his madness.

Hours later
Elijah found himself frowning as he walked along the corridor to
the room he had locked Alex in, marvelling at her
resilience.
She’s a lot tougher than I
would have thought. Either that or she’s more loyal to my cousin
that I believed possible. I thought she would have given in by now
but she still refuses to agree to what I want. I hope she’s
recovered enough for another session. She’s no use to me dead but
she’s no use to me as she is either.

Scowling he placed the key
in the door lock and turned the handle, closing the door behind
himself. His frown deepened as he took in the empty room, his eyes
darting wildly from corner to corner before coming upon the empty
space where the window should have been. Striding forth he scanned
the area a low growl rising in his throat at the sight of overly
large leaves, before he looked out of the window, roaring at the
rioting ivy that covered the walls.

How did she
get out?
That man said she would be unable
to use her power when injected with the drug.
He paused as a thought occurred to him.
Maybe he was telling the truth when he said that he was
necessary.
He mused recalling Sean’s last
words.
There’s no escaping me Alex and I’m
coming for you.
The transformation washed
over him, changing his body into that of a large brown wolf. He
howled loudly, before his body sped off, intent on bringing his
prize back to him.

Chapter Forty
Four

The long
journey had finally begun to take its toll on her worn out and
battered body as spots appeared before Alex’s eyes and her mind
weaved in and out of focus.
How far are we
from the estate?

We won’t make
it there before you lose consciousness.

Are you
sure?

Yes.

Have we
managed to get a fair distance away from Elijah?
she inquired, concerned that the wolf would be
able to reach her should she stop.

We have
travelled a good distance. Will you let your body heal
now?

On one
condition.

What is
it?
The whispers pressed; increasingly
concerned that Alex would faint before they reached a place where
she could be put down safely.

If anyone
comes close, even if I’m not healed completely you need to wake me.
As long as I’m awake I can run. Will you do it?

Yes, the
instant someone approaches you we will wake you from the healing
sleep. Now will you heal?

Yes,
she conceded. The whispers sighed in relief, the
tree branch that had been carrying her lowering her small body to
the cool grass of a forest floor. Lying back against the thick
trunk, she sighed in relief as her mind lost touch with
consciousness as she was encased in a leafy cocoon.

Her scent grew
stronger the longer he ran, his body surpassing its normal limits
as it sped headlong in the direction her unique fragrance seemed to
be coming from. His surroundings were a blur, nothing registering
outside of his increasingly narrow field of vision.
Got to get to her,
he
chanted in his mind, lowering his muzzle as he pushed himself
faster, his large paws pounding hard against the ground beneath
him.
She’s got to be close now, been
running so long, she has to be around here somewhere.
His breakneck pace halted abruptly as her scent
hit his senses strong and hard. He spun wildly round in circles
until he found the direction it was strongest.
Xandria, I’m coming.
He sped off
again, coming into a small clearing his sharp vision spotting an
odd green bubble in the distance.
Xandria,
he sighed relieved before
remembering the last time he had seen her in the cocoon and the
extent of her injuries.
No, she’s been
hurt.
Running towards the odd greenery he
easily covered the distance between him and his mate.

Upon approach,
his body began to transform while he ran, returning to its human
form. The vines that were wrapped around her body began to recede,
withdrawing back into the earth that they had sprung from. Eager to
have his mate back in his arms, he tore wildly at the foliage with
his claws until she was free from its confines. Dragging her from
the remnants of her protective bubble, he pulled her close to his
chest hugging her tightly as he breathed in her fragrant scent. A
low groan passed her lips as he held her and he frowned at the pain
that simple sound showed. Laying her against the grass he began
examining her small frame, a growl rising in his throat as he took
in the extent of her injuries. Her skin was covered in dark
bruises, slashes cutting her flesh sporadically. Running a hand
over her limbs and torso the scowl he had worn deepened as he took
in the cracked ribs, thankful that more weren’t injured.
I’ve got to get her back to the estate,
he decided.

Then we’ve got
to come back and find out who did this to our mate and make them
suffer,
his wolf added.

They won’t
just suffer; the person who did this to our Xandria deserves death.
Nothing will satisfy me but that.

I was
beginning to think that you didn’t have it in you.

Well we’ve
both just found out that I can be just as violent as you, are you
satisfied?

No. I didn’t
want our mate to have to suffer for you to realise that sometimes
death really is the only option.

While the
plants had released her as she had requested it took longer than
she would have thought to come back to her senses, as she struggled
against the healing sleep that her body so desperately needed.
Hands caressed her body and she wished she had the strength to open
her eyes as terror consumed her mind.
Elijah caught up with me already. I was so close.
Her mind raced.
No, I can
still hear the whispers so he hasn’t injected me with that
power-stealing drug. I can take him on. I defeated Lucinda and I
can beat him too.
Her body still sluggish
and unresponsive to her demands, she began to allow the whispers to
fill her mind, preparing to attack as soon as her body was able to
move.

The ground
beneath their feet rolled as it reacted to her emotions and desire
for escape, forcing Tobias back. His heart pounded in his chest as
the moving earth shifted her further away from him and he began to
fear the consequences that the movement would have on her injuries.
“Xandria!” he shouted leaping forward, desperate to reach
her.
Is she doing this? Xandria are you
mad at me?
his mind shouted, reaching for
hers.
Of course she’s mad,
he reprimanded himself.
I
let this happen to her, I let her get hurt this badly. I’m a
terrible mate.

“Xandria, I’m sorry. I’m
so sorry.” he screamed moving with the churning earth to keep his
balance.

Her eyes fluttered open at
the sound of her Tobias’ name for her and the ground stilled.
Struggling into a sitting position, she watched as he approached
her, tears of relief welling in her eyes as he came ever closer.
“Tobias.” Despite her body’s protests she tried to rise to her
feet, determined to reach him.

Rushing forward he caught
her before she put her full weight on her damaged legs, urging her
back down into the grass. “Xandria don’t move.”

“Tobias,” she sobbed,
clutching at his chest as her strength deserted her. “I knew you’d
come, I just knew it.”

“I’m sorry dearest,” he
consoled, stroking her hair as she cried against his chest. Her
tears continued to fall and each felt like a hot iron against his
flesh, his heart stuttering in time with the onslaught. “I should
have noticed that you were missing yesterday. I let this happen to
you. I know I shouldn’t even ask, but forgive me.”

“It wasn’t your fault
Tobias, you couldn’t have seen it coming.”

“Don’t make excuses for me
dearest. I don’t deserve it. We need to get you back to the estate,
you’re hurt and I want someone to have a look at your
injuries.”

“Tobias,” she
interrupted.

“No. Don’t try to make any
more excuses for my actions I don’t want to hear them. I spoke to
Ilyanna, she said that you were lonely and that was my fault. If I
hadn’t been so wrapped up in preparing to be King you wouldn’t have
gone to see her and you wouldn’t have ended up alone in that
corridor. The blame once again lies with me.”

“Tobias,” she continued, a
small smile appearing on her face at his attempts to reassure her
even while she tried to get him to listen to her.

“I swear that something
like this will never happen again dearest. I’ll assign guards to be
with you at all times when we’re apart.”

“Tobias!” she yelled,
finally gaining his attention.

“What is it
dearest?”

“That isn’t important
right now. I trust you not to let it happen again and I’m sure that
this time was beyond your ability to control, but there are more
important issues to discuss.”

“Can whatever it isn’t be
discussed when we get back to the estate? I want to get you seen to
as soon as possible.”

Looking over
her shoulder at the surrounding forest, she was reminded of how she
had arrived at this particular place and who she had escaped
from.
He’s probably found out that I’m
gone by now, might even be on his way here right now.
“No Tobias, we need to talk about this now. It’s
important.”

“What is it?”

“It’s about the man who
took me.”

“I know all about him,” he
growled, wishing that the man were here now despite being overjoyed
that Alex had somehow managed to escape him.

“You do?”

“Yes. Ryan told me that it
was the man who tried to attack you when you were in England, I
know of him and once you’re safe I’ll find him and he will be dealt
with accordingly, his punishment in line with the crime that he has
committed against not only me but our people.”

Death?
The wolf inquired.

Of course,
I’ve already told you this. I won’t have mercy on him. Look at what
he’s done to our mate. Death is the only suitable punishment for
the likes of him.
A painful one at
that.

I’m glad that
you see things that way.

“Tobias are you talking
about Sean?”

“I don’t know
his name.”
You don’t need to know the name
of someone to kill them when they harm your mate.

“Tobias, Sean isn’t going
to be a problem anymore.” She shuddered remembering the brutal way
his life had ended.

“Why? What happened to
him?”

“He’s dead.”

“You killed him?” he
demanded, astounded that his gentle mate was capable of such
violence when she was usually so opposed to it.