Chapter 27

While Thomas was meeting with King Edward and his war council, Frost had slipped off. When he exited the tent, he found his direwolf lying at Catherine’s side as she sat against a tree. She was whispering to Frost as she stroked the fur on the wolf’s back. If Thomas had tried that, he would be missing fingers.

“Hello there, pretty lady,” Thomas said to catch Catherine’s attention.

She looked up and smiled at him. In a flash, she was up and in his arms, giving him a fierce hug.

“I was worried about you.”

Thomas could feel her tremble in his arms for a moment before she pushed him away with a disgusted look on her face.

“You stink.”

Frost chuffed her agreement, which caused Thomas to turn on his wolf.

“You don’t smell much better,” he observed.

Frost’s top lip rose to show her large canines. Catherine stepped in before Thomas and Frost could begin to wrestle around in the middle of the camp.

“Come on. You both, need baths.”

Thomas turned to see Catherine walking away. He was almost knocked down when a big furry beast hip-checked him as she bounded after Catherine. He doubted Frost would be so playful when Catherine got hold of her.

Catherine led them to the monastery. She walked around it, and behind was a trail that led into a copse. They had only gone a little way when the trees opened up into a clearing where there was a pond. When Catherine began to remove her dress, Thomas decided that bathing with her was now his preferred practice.

Thomas stood frozen in place as he admired her beauty. She didn’t look back as she entered the water. When all the good parts were under the surface, Catherine turned around and smiled.

“What’s taking you so long? Haven’t you missed me?”

“You have no idea,” Thomas admitted as his body unfroze and he began to disrobe.

It didn’t take long before she saw evidence of how much he desired her. Frost broke the perfect moment when she ran into the water, swam out to Catherine, and then back to Thomas. She ran around him as she made a loop around the pond. When she came back, she dove into the water again.

They both laughed at her crazy antics.

Thomas and Catherine lay on their backs, allowing the sun to dry them after they’d reminded each other how much in love they were. Frost was off frolicking in the woods. Thomas felt a slight sense of peace after being on edge for the last month.

Thomas stood to put his clothes back on. He suddenly fell back and rolled to the side as he reached for Dragon and bared its blade. His magic had flared a dire warning as a knife sailed past his head. Whoever this was, they were good because he hadn’t been able to detect them until the last moment.

What he saw surprised him: it was a woman lurking in the shadows. She’d gone still like he did when he didn’t want anyone to see him. Could it be that she had magic like his?

Thomas crouched down and pulled Fang from its sheath with his off hand. As he stood back up, he flung it at her. She stayed perfectly still as his blade stuck in the tree next to her ear. She had obviously known that he wasn’t trying to kill her. Their eyes locked, and she tilted her head to the side to indicate that he should follow her.

Thomas strode forward and was impressed when she disappeared. If he hadn’t seen a flicker of a shadow, he would have completely lost her. He pulled Fang free of the tree and followed her deeper into the woods.

He glanced back and was glad Catherine had stayed still. He raised one finger to his lips to keep Catherine quiet.

He found his attacker outside the clearing. Thomas smiled when he saw her take a fighting stance.

“You worried I might have taken offense at your attempt to kill me?” Thomas asked as he glanced at the knife in her hand.

She stood straight up, and the knife went back into her boot. A white blur launched from cover, taking the woman down.

“No!” Thomas barked before Frost did any serious damage.

The girl glared at him.

“Frost, watch her while I go put the rest of my clothes on.”

Before he left, he took all her weapons. Then Frost let her sit up, and Frost lay down to watch the woman.

Thomas got dressed and calmed Catherine down. He sent her back to camp so he wouldn’t have to worry about her safety. He took a moment to compose himself before he faced this woman. He had no doubt that being unarmed didn’t render her defenseless. That point was made abundantly clear when he found her quietly talking to his direwolf, and Frost’s tail was wagging.

“Your mother sent me,” she announced as soon as he saw her.

Thomas tried not to look surprised.

“That would have to be a neat trick for you to contact her from the other side of the veil. My mother has been dead for nearly thirteen years.”

“She was alive and well when I talked to her a month ago. She sent me to observe you.”

“For what purpose?” Thomas asked.

“To discover whether you’d come into your abilities.”

“What abilities?” Thomas asked, not showing his hand.

She smiled and began to count off what she’d just learned.

“You were able to sense my attack, then you saw me, and finally, you can communicate with animals. I’m sure there are more, but that is enough to offer you an invitation to return with me to be trained.”

Thomas had heard enough.

“Come on, Frost. We need to get back.”

“Wait! I have proof,” she said as she reached for a pouch.

She untied it from her waist and tossed it to Thomas. He opened it to find his mother’s wedding ring. It had an ancient script written around it that his mother said was ‘Mo Anam Cara,’ which translated to ‘My Soul Mate.’ He had never seen her take it off and had never seen another ring like it.

There were only two reasons this woman could have it. Either whoever killed his mother gave it to her, or his mother had sent it.

“Your mother said to give the ring to Princess Catherine. She knows your mother.”

“How?” Thomas asked.

“Just show it to her. Let Catherine explain. Your mother said that if Catherine didn’t confirm knowing her, you would never believe that your mother still lived.”

Thomas knew she was probably right.

“Where is my mother now?” Thomas asked.

“She is with King Gabriel. His army will be in place to do you the most good in four days. After all this is done, find your mother.”

Thomas dropped her knives on the ground and left with Frost to discover the truth.

Thomas was met at the edge of the woods by Torun and Shepherd. He hadn’t seen them when he met with the war council. They clasped wrists in greeting.

“Catherine said that an assassin was after you,” Torun said, looking confused.

“It turned out to be someone from King Gabriel with a message. I need to speak to King Edward,” Thomas said.

The two King’s Guardsmen fell in step on either side of Thomas.

“From all reports, you’ve been busy. I’m a little jealous,” Shepherd said.

Thomas could see how he would feel that way. As for Thomas, now that he knew what war was really about, he would gladly have stayed behind.

Before he could respond, they were at King Edward’s tent, and the Royal Guard motioned for them to enter. Thomas came up short when he spied Jacob, Maeve, and Catherine, all looking nervous.

“Get in here,” King Edward said, not looking happy.

“Before we talk, I have news from King Gabriel. He will have his forces in place in four days,” Thomas shared.

Thomas spotted Cullen. King Edward looked at his spymaster, and Cullen left the tent. Thomas assumed he was going to inform the war council.

King Edward turned his gaze on the four of them and glowered.

“I understand that the four of you did something without your King’s permission.”

Thomas knew that King Edward was pissed when he began speaking in the third person. This was the judicial aspect of the King’s persona that he took on when he was about to do something unpleasant.

Thomas was the only one who looked him in the eye.

“We got married,” Thomas admitted.

“Did it not occur to you that this was something that your King would need to approve of before it happened? It’s not like we are talking about the heir to Henning or the consort to Princess Catherine. Mere minor goings-on in our kingdom!”

“I gave Jacob and Maeve my blessing. If there is blame, it should fall on me,” Thomas said.

Jacob looked at Thomas with a momentary grateful glance, but King Edward’s countenance quickly had him looking at his feet again.

“And you think you have that authority?!”

“We really haven’t had the opportunity to define my role since my return,” Thomas said with a straight face.

“I should throw you into the nearest dungeon,” King Edward threatened.

“You will not!” Catherine barked in disbelief. “You’ve thrown Thomas and me together since day one. It has been your plan for him to become my consort since the beginning, and now that he has, you are upset? Is it because you wanted to lord it over him and make him come to you for permission?”