Chapter 19 – Grace

I sit at the entrance of the cave, the sound of rushing water drowning out anything the quiet night may hide. My eyes are closed and as I take a deep breath, I open my senses to the surroundings and search for any wolves near us.

“We should be good to run soon.” I state, opening my eyes and turning back to look at Caden in his golden wolf form and Amelia with her blonde fur slightly damp from the mist of the waterfall. His green eyes meet mine and I quickly turn away, hoping that I am not blushing as I stand and drop the blanket that is covering me. I shift quickly, my bones realigning themselves until I stand in my fur form. We lost time waiting out the Ragers and now we need to gain it back by executing our plans. Picking up my bag in my mouth, I nod to my companions before jumping into the water and padding towards the shore with the sounds of Caden and Amelia following me as they both splash into the water. I roll my eyes, thinking that Amelia will need more training later when it comes to swimming in wolf form once we are back home and return my focus on swimming. After a quick swim, I thankfully find myself on land shaking the water from my fur while I wait for the other two to join me. My senses are alert to every movement while I look around for any potential threat. Caden is the first to reach the shore, his emerald eyes staring into mine before the splashing of Amelia joining us pulls his attention away. She too shakes the water from her fur before she pads to my side, nudging her head affectionately against my shoulder. With the three of us now on solid land, we take off into the forest with Caden in the lead and Amelia and I flanking his sides. We will need to make it close to the Fae before morning in order to find a place to rest. If I am not mistaken, there will be more caves and tree houses for us to sleep in but this also means there will be more wolves to contend with. Caden skillfully leads us through the forest and once again I am thankful that this wolf has been to the run multiple times. His knowledge of the land is a blessing to Amelia and I and hopefully we will reach the lodge without any more problems because of Caden and his help. Caden slows his run, his hackle raised as he stares to the right. I shudder, closing my eyes and taking a deep breath.

[Grace, what’s wrong?] Amelia asks through our link. I ignore her question for the time being as Caden looks back at me. I can see the worry and fear in his eyes and know instantly that we underestimated the Ragers. He nods, as if sensing my own fear and drops his bag to shift.

“We are too far from the waterfall but there is a cave just a few meters away. If we can make it there, Amelia and you will be safe.” He states. I nod, understanding his meaning and wait for Caden to shift back to his wolf form and lead the way once more. He takes us slightly to the right, always checking back to see if Amelia and I are following while howls of wolves on a hunt sound around us. The Ragers have scented us but there is a chance we can find safety soon.

The trees around us grow denser, making it impossible for Amelia and I to run on either side of Caden. Instead we are left to continue our escape in a single line with Caden in the lead, Amelia behind him and me taking the rear. I can hear the Ragers but the forest is too dense for them to get to us and I smile, once again we escaped from their pursuit. Time passes with the three of us slowly trotting in a single file line until the trees begin to clear up and soon we find ourselves in a meadow of moon flowers hidden in the forest by a dense wall of trees. Caden drops his bag padding into the meadow and dropping onto his stomach where he promptly rolls around the flowers like a little pup before abruptly stopping and shifting to his skin form.

“Roll in the flowers to hide your scent. Its going to be morning soon so we should get some rest.” Caden calls out before laying back on the soft meadow. I drop my bag on the ground beside his before finding a spot to roll around in. The soft fragrant scent of the moon flowers fill my scenes, calming me. Something about this field seems familiar, as if I have been here before. With a soft smile and now fully covered in the moon flower’s scent, I decide to rest where I am and stretch out on the ground, my tail wagging gently.

“Comfy?” Amelia asks laughing. In her hand is my pack and she smiles when placing it in front of me.

[Is it that obvious?] I ask, resting my head on my paws while Amelia takes a seat beside me, running her fingers through my fur.

“Yes. But you and I both know we need to talk about how we are going to get passed the Ragers.” Closing my eyes, I take in her words and know Amelia is right, but I don’t want Amelia to be in danger. She has Bryden waiting for her safe return while I have no one but Amelia. I cannot allow her to be claimed or captured by anyone, especially Ragers, when she has someone to return to. Shifting to my skin, I stretch my limbs and dress quickly. I know what needs to be done to protect Amelia and that means I need to wait for her to be asleep before I can speak to Caden.

“Lets rest like Caden suggested then we can come up with a plan when we wake up.”