Page 92 of Simon

Thorn’s growl reverberated in the air. The ground trembled under his heavy footsteps as he stomped towards me. With a forceful toss, he hurled the block of wood away, and it landed in the fire. The glint of the knife reflected from the light source and its sharpness threateningly pointed in my direction.

“Faun, you dare to challenge me,” he seethed, the intensity of his voice sending chills down my spine. “It is best that your female left. You don’t know how to hold your tongue.”

The extra fur on my back stood up. I bent my knees and lowered my head, my horns tingling, ready to run and plow into his assets.

“That’s enough!” Ellie shouted. “This is ridiculous! Simon, Lucy left!”

I straightened up and rounded Thorn. His body followed me as I got closer to his female. Out of respect for his mate, I tucked my shaft back into my pouch as best as I could without damaging it. I still felt an undeniable need torutmy mate, a sensation that had not left me even while I slept.

I was grateful Lucy understood my pain. If not, I feared my shaft would have fallen off in the days I slept.

I stood in front of Ellie with my claws buried in the fur at my sides.

“Wolf shifters took her. She rode on the back of one. They said her father was sick, and she went with them.” Ellie tilted her head to where Lucy was last seen.

Thorn scoffed and growled toward his mate. He was saying things I couldn’t make out because I was too busy forming a plan.

To find what was mine.

“You shouldn’t have told him. Make him figure it out on his own. He led an ogre near our home, his body is weak, he couldn’t even—”

I pulled out my shaft while Thorn was scolding his mate, who merely rolled her eyes without care. I aimed it right toward his enormous foot and released a long stream of piss.

Thorn lifted his foot, his face full of shock, and when he was about to speak, I lowered my head and head-butted him in the gut. He roared as he fell on his backside, and I darted away, running straight toward where Lucy had gone.

Ellie’s laughter was loud enough to be heard through the Wood as I charged through the brush of the branches.

Thorn roared in frustration, screaming for me never to return and that I was never welcome back.

I had no reason to come back. His mate had poisoned me. He called me small and said I was not worthy of my mate. They were both more trouble than they were worth.

It was difficult to find Lucy’s scent. It had dwindled within the Wood. But then, I felt the Wood surround me once again, guiding me to where I must go. The trees bent, and the leaves fluttered, pointing to where I must follow.

It didn’t take me long to find her, with the brush of a branch pushing me in one direction, I darted down a path less taken and found her scent once again.

I was not angry that she left me. I understood it was important to take care of family. Calliope taught me how important it was. She took care of me like one of her own; rescued me when I needed it.

My mate was smart and knew I would wake, and that I would come to find her.

And I would find her.

It is, though, unwise to travel with wolves. The ogre was still afoot, and a few wolves would not have been enough to save her. They couldn’t even beat an orc two at a time. What made her believe they would save her from an ogre?

My hooves flew across the soil, and birds flew from the branches. I nearly hit them with my horns since they were not paying attention to their surroundings. They barely heard me before I made my presence known.

The fur that had sprouted on my back days ago was still present, from the rut, as Lucy called it, which fueled me further. I’d slept for days. My body was well rested. I hoped Lucy had taken care of her father enough so he could get better on his own, because it was my turn.

I needed hernow!

The forest thinned out as I ran, with the trees giving way to a small clearing. In the center, I saw her—Lucy—standing withthe wolf shifters. They all had her surrounded, along with a tall figure in the middle. Long green hair and tan clothing hovering right above my mate. The dappled light sources’ filtering through the leaves above created a magical look to the area.

One wolf in particular was standing close to my female. Too close for my liking.

With my stealth and speed, no one saw me barrel out of the woods because they were all foolish. They were not waiting for an ogre to strike.

Without hesitation, I charged forward with my horns lowered as I barreled into the wolf nearest to my mate. He flew through the air and landed with a thud, momentarily stunned.

“What the fuck!” The shifter clutched his stomach.

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