Chapter 9

I picked Lillian up and carried her out of the wagon, just as the others arrived. From the feel of her in my arms, I could feel she was breathing, but it was very shallow. They all had looks of dismay at her state and I could feel their worry that she was not showing up in our bond. Janet came over and ran her hand along the top of Lillian’s head, as a small tear fell along her cheek. She looked up at me with pain and anger in her eyes.

“Janet, please have the others go locate the Voguel kills.” I asked numbly. “Perhaps we will be able to recognize them and thus get a clue as to who sent them. They may also have weapons coated in whatever was used to incapacitate Lillian. We know that Curare and Wolf’s Bane does not work on us, so it has to be something else.”

Kayla, Cherish, Faye and Ingrid took off into the woods to locate the one I killed from the trees, along with the one Lillian had dispatched. Irenia and Elsie went after the Voguel I had killed in midair as it leapt out of the wagon. Janet went to check the body of the driver. I sat down on that dirt road as carefully as I could and held Lillian to me. Fear, worry and a sense of loss filled me at not being able to reach her and it threatened to consume me. I had not felt this loss and despair since I had lost my parents all those years ago.

Lillian had become an incredibly special part of my life since my change, as had Janet, and now I might possibly lose one of them. If I were to lose both of them, I did not know if I would be able to cope. Just the thought of it left me cold and numb inside.

I had not realized that I had shut everyone out until I felt Janet place her hand on my shoulder. The contact jolted me out of my self-pity and allowed me to focus again. I looked around and saw sympathetic looks on everyone’s faces. In the time I had been dwelling on things, they had conducted their searches and returned.

“We have checked the four involved with taking Lillian,” Janet said softly, her voice full of compassion. “We only recognize two of them as being from the town, while two are from elsewhere. The two we did recognize worked for the stable master. I believe we will need to have some words with him.”

I simply nodded as I rose with Lillian still in my arms. I felt Janet support me as I lifted her up, making sure that I did not lose my balance. Once I was comfortably upright, I nodded to the group and we began walking back to the town. I wish we had the wagon with us, but it was still in the stable masters, and it would have delayed our response going back for it. I kept my grip tight, as I feared a misstep would cause me to drop her. I kept trying to sense her but got nothing in response and I continued to worry.

“Make sure that they checked the bodies for anything that could have a chemical on it. We need to figure out what it was they dosed her with. Once Kayla figures that out, we may know how to help her.”

Janet nodded, “They knew what to look for, Davik. You just worry about getting our girl back to the inn so we can take care of her.”

I nodded briefly and we continued on our way to the town. The road was uneven and overgrown in parts, so I found my feet planting in weird angles. My eyes were torn between looking at Lillian, looking ahead to make sure I did not trip or scanning the forest surrounding us for further threats. Ten minutes later, the others joined us and reported they had found a few weapons as well as some metal darts that they think could be what was used on Lillian.

We entered the town to find it practically deserted. No doubt the sound of the howls had alerted the residents that Voguel were on the prowl. As we headed to the inn, we passed the stable and I made a mental note to pay it a visit tomorrow. They had crossed the wrong person, and someone was going to pay for what had happened to Lillian. We went directly upstairs, with Ingrid and Elsie heading into the main building to order food and supplies.

As soon as we were in the room, I placed Lillian on the nearest bed and slumped down on the floor beside her. I had pushed myself harder than I had ever done before. I did not think I could have done the things I had done tonight. However, the fact it was fueled by my rage made me question its usefulness. I did not see myself getting that angry in every battle and the strain on my body was immense. I found myself fighting to stay awake only a few moments later and could not win the battle.

I woke to find myself in a familiar cave. It was the one that I had shared with Lillian a short time ago. The fire was lit and roaring with a pot of something being kissed by the heat of the flames. The smoke billowed up through the opening, though it was much darker than I would expect. The smell was delicious, and I found myself looking forward to the taste.

I heard movement behind me and saw Lillian walking out of the storage room. She wore a chestnut coloured dress that was accented by her fiery red hair. She was carrying a bowl full of potatoes and had not noticed me.

“Oh, Davik! I did not hear you get back,” she said with a warm and inviting smile. “Did your hunt not go well?”

I looked at her in confusion which made her look at me in equal dismay. I could tell that we were in a dreamscape. The bond revealed that much, but she seemed to regard it as nothing more than a dream. Behind me I began hearing a deep growl and turned to see Lillian ... more aptly Lillian’s wolf form. I actually had to look back and forth between the two as I had never seen them like this before.

Lillian looked at me with a forlorn look and said, “She says that you are not supposed to be here. She is protecting me from any more harm at the hands of others.”

I turned and asked, “What do you mean, she is protecting you, Lillian? At the hands of what others?”

She looked at me as if I were the village idiot and let out an exasperated sigh as she slowly shook her head.

“She was allowed more of a presence in me by the bond I forged with you and Janet. When I changed into her that first time, she was mostly in control and she decided it was safer if she stayed in control.”

“Wait a minute,” I demanded. “So, you are telling me your wolf half decided to prevent you from changing back on purpose? Without you being aware, or having a say?”

Lillian nodded, “She exists somewhere within my subconscious. This is really the first time I have been able to converse with her.”

“Is that why you disappeared from our bond? Because whatever you were given allowed you to come here and you two have been talking?”

Lillian simply nodded and I let out an irritated sigh as I slumped to the ground. Lillian’s wolf growled even more menacingly and got right into my face. I grabbed her by the neck and lifted her off her front paws, causing her to yelp in surprise.

“Let me make this clear,” I told the beast, “do not try my patience. You took from me someone I love deeply and locked her away in your body. You have kept her isolated from us in a foolish and misguided attempt to protect her. I get it. You are whatever part of her that protected her through her past traumas, but she has us now. Your job is to work with her and lend her your strength. A strength, I might add, you got from me. So please, let her come back and let her change back. I miss my red-haired goddess and I swear I will do whatever I can to keep her safe.”

I placed the wolf back down gently and watched as she studied my face for a time. I could not glean anything from her mind, as it was shut off from me. Her body language told me that she could still decide to rip my throat out at a moment’s notice. Then she walked up and licked my cheek, before turning and walking out of the cave.

“She has said that she will return my ability to change back to a human and looks forward to fighting alongside you again. She hopes that together you and she will be able to keep me safe.”

I smiled in happiness and appreciation for the she wolf’s choice, before I rushed over to lift Lillian up causing her to giggle with excitement.

“You are going to have to wake up for that to happen, love, but I do know this. I am going to give you all the sex you have missed out on since Retvan. Though I owe you a lot of other things that I know Janet will agree are long overdue.”

She pulled me into a soul searing kiss that made me see stars. When the kiss ended, we were both a little wound up and I contemplated taking her right here in the dreamscape first. She shook her head, once again understanding what I thought, but gave me a smile.