Page 22 of The Wolf King

My heart thumps a little faster at the impropriety of what he’s suggesting. The alpha promised that no one would touch me. I assumed that meant him too.

The alpha says nothing.

“See sense!” roars Fergus. “Put her back! We’ll drop her off at the nearest village if you’re worried about the lass, but—”

A low growl sounds in the alpha’s chest. “She’s coming with us, and that’s final.”

Fergus gives him a long hard look, before glancing at me. An unreadable expression crosses his face. A mixture of exasperation and something else. Sorrow, perhaps?

He shakes his head. “She’s a human,” he says softly. “She’s not—”

“I’m bringing her to the king. I won’t hear any more about it.”

The alpha’s body jerks as he digs his heels into the horse and we speed ahead of the pack, leaving Fergus and the conversation behind.

There’s a shift in his mood. His corded forearms are strained, and a dark cloud seems to hang over us. Self-preservation should persuade me to stay quiet. And yet...

“My father is the king,” I say.

“He’syourking. He’s not ours.”

We always thought the Wolves were too wild and unruly to unite behind anyone. The history books say the clans have been at war with one another, as well as us, for hundreds of years.

“I didn’t know you had one,” I say.

“Do you know a lot about Wolves, Princess?”

“If you are anything to go by, I know they are lacking in manners.”

He chuckles darkly. “Oh, aye? Anything else?”

“I know you do as you please. Killing. Stealing. Invading the Southlands.” I think about what Sebastian said, about how Wolves take their women. I remember what Magnus did to that woman in the cell. My cheeks flame. “Doing other... beastly things.”

“It seems you have the measure of us, Princess. We’re all animals up here. Running rampant around the mountains. Howling at the moon. Eating princesses for breakfast.”

I tense and he laughs.

I don’t know whether or not he is joking. The church says Wolves hunt our kind when the moon is full. What’s more, there are many stories of Borderlands men being sent north to protect our lands, and only their bones being found, months later.

“Do you eat people?”

He laughs again. “Hush, we’ve got a long ride ahead of us.”

That doesn’t sound promising. And yet, I cannot quite stop myself from wanting to provoke him anyway.

“Did you hit your head when you were in that fighting ring?”

“Huh?”

I gesture to the right, remembering that the mountains were on that side of us before we entered the trees. “The north isthatway, you fool.”

“You know, not many people speak to me like that.”

“Not many people kidnap me and hold me hostage.”

“I’m not people.” His lips are close to my ear, and his warm breath tickles my cheek. “I’m an animal, remember.”

I shiver, something stirring deep inside me. I open my mouth to retort but he shushes me.

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