Page 53 of Cursed
There are murmurs of gratitude when the group of hungry men enters the warm establishment. The Inn smells of fresh bread and some kind of soup or stew cooking.Everyone grabs a chair, waiting for the waitress to take their food and drink orders.
“Good afternoon, Valeera,” Ryland says, shaking her hand. “Sorry for the delay. We got caught in a snowstorm that simply would not let up. Please sit with us and bring us up to speed on your situation. How many attacks have occurred; how many Rogues have you seen; how often do the attacks happen?”
Valeera is frozen for a moment at the sight of the scar. She recovers quickly, though, and sits down at the table with the two powerful men. “Thank you, Prince Drakemoor, Commander Drakemoor, for bringing your Enforcers to help us. I’m not sure how many Rogues there are in total. We’ve been attacked by roughly four or five of them at a time. Unfortunately, we’ve lost six pack members.”
Ryland interrupts her. “I’m terribly sorry for your loss.”
“Thank you.” Valeera raises her eyebrows, surprised at his sincerity. “Everyone who chooses to live this far out from the castle does so because they love these forests. We’ve felt very safe here for many years, considering we have always been the most dangerous predators in the area. Until now, that is.”
The waitress brings a beer for Valeera and stew, bread, water, and beers for Ryland and Zayne.
Valeera takes a sip of her beer. “There is no particular time of day or night when the Rogues attack. There havebeen seven attacks in and around the town over the past few weeks, and they show up every four or five days. The last one was three days ago. Therefore, we can expect another one tomorrow or the next day.”
“Have you determined from which direction they approach the town?” Zayne asks, dipping a piece of bread into his stew.
“No. They first surround the town, and then they approach from all directions. For a bunch of mindless animals, the attacks seem pretty coordinated to me.” Valeera frowns, then takes another big sip of her beer. It’s helping to relax her around the Prince.
Ryland nods and says, “We noticed a high level of organization when we cleared out a group in the eastern province. While ours are not the only Packlands impacted by these Rogues, we appear to be experiencing more attacks than the others.”
He turns to Zayne. “When we return, I want a plan for deploying our troops out to the rest of our lands. It should be a rotating schedule to better protect the Pack. We’ll review it with Garek and a few others when we get back. Then we’ll implement the plan as soon as possible.”
Zayne nods and says cautiously, “I know you are motivated to get the search started, but the horses and the men probably need a break from the cold. We should let them rest tonight and start fresh in the morning.”
Ryland growls, “Fine!” Sighing heavily, he says to Valeera, “We’ll need rooms for everyone for at least two nights.”
“Certainly. They’ll have to double up, but I’ll get the rooms sorted.”
Ryland stands, and the Enforcers stop eating to listen to their Alpha. “This town has already lost six pack members to the Rogue scum. I don’t want to lose any more lives. Therefore, the search for the Rogues will begin at first light!” Zayne was right; they do need a break from the cold. Ryland can see their postures relax as he waits for the sighs of relief to subside.
“We don’t know where they’re nesting. We’ll start the search east of town and work our way north tomorrow. If there’s time, we’ll sweep the area to the west as well.”
He looks down at Valeera. “Your Guards are welcome to join us, but you need to keep some back to protect the town.”
Back to the men, he says, “According to Mayor Valeera, we can expect another attack tomorrow or the next day. Zayne will coordinate rotating patrols day and night until we find the Rogues. Enjoy the good food, rest when you can, and remain alert.”
After they’ve eaten their fill, the men spend a few hours drinking beer and speaking with the Silver Pine pack members and Guards. They mourn for the families whohave lost loved ones. Ryland enjoys their company, but mostly, he hangs back, only speaking when absolutely necessary. He is aware that his presence makes the pack members nervous.
As the evening winds down, Ryland’s troops trudge upstairs to their assigned rooms. Ryland and Zayne, of course, are in a room together.
“Are you certain she’s the one, Ryland? She’s a slave from Starfall, after all,” Zayne says flippantly while they get ready for bed.
Ryland growls at his brother. “Why do you never listen? I told you. She’s not a slave. That is not who she is.” He continues removing his weapons and his boots, huffing at Zayne’s comments. “But yes, I am certain about Nori. It wouldn’t matter to me if she were a slave. I am all in on this Mate Bond, and I really hope she is too.”
Ryland sighs, sliding into his small bed. “Get some sleep. We have an early start in the morning.”
Zayne is still reeling from almost losing his brother a few nights ago. He can’t let it go, and says, “I don’t trust her. She almost killed you, Ry.”
“You’re wrong, Zayne. She never lied to me. True, she didn’t tell me she was from Starfall, but she did give me some indication about her life at that Pack, and it was horrific.”
Ryland pauses; his chest tightens as the image of Norigasping for air and collapsing to the floor flashes through his mind. “I never for one second thought she could be meant for me. I tried not to want her, but I’m telling you, Zayne, this connection between us is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced.”
Running a hand through his hair, Ryland’s voice drops low. “After I read the note from the Starfall Beta, I can’t even explain exactly what happened, except that it felt like I dove into my destroyer power. I allowed it to consume me; I even blocked Bade completely from my mind.”
He blows out a breath and turns to look at his brother. “So, no, Zayne, she didn’t almost kill me. Everything that happened that night was completely my fault.”
Zayne climbs into his narrow bed, trying to get comfortable. “I’ll admit, I’ve never seen you lose control like that. It was frightening to watch.”
He pauses for a moment, briefly thinking his bed is made for children. “So, now what? Has she forgiven you? She’s simply willing to let it go? I can’t believe that, Ry.” Zayne is trying to get his brother to see that Nori is too good to be true.
