Chapter 6: Erick

 

 

 

Each of the three wolves leapt in a different direction. I only had a second to react.

The wolf in the center grazed my cheek with its furry tail, lunging directly at Aiden behind me. My instincts gave a ferocious twist inside. I heard Aiden scream, and I suddenly smelled his intoxicating blood.

He was bitten.

Instantly, I grew claws. Scales covered my hands. When a wolf landed on my shoulder, I sent him flying with a single swipe of my hand.

"Aiden!" I cried.

He was several paces behind me, flailing on his back with a snarling wolf standing on his chest. I ran to him in a single stride and grabbed the wolf by its neck.

He twisted in my hand like a leaf spinning in the wind. I threw him across the clearing at his brothers, knocking all of them onto their sides. When they stood up and shook out their coats, I stretched out my neck and roared.

Yelping, they scampered into the trees. I stood and listened for a few seconds. Once I determined they wouldn't return, I turned around and rushed to Aiden's side.

He had a deep gash in the skin of his left shoulder. His shirt was soaked in his blood and stuck to his skin like paste.

His face was alarmingly pale under his honey-colored hair.

My poor mate, I thought.

He opened his eyes to gaze at me, and he paled even further, turning a sickly shade of green.

"Y-your eyes!" he gasped.

I covered my eyes with my hands, which were still tipped with my dragon's claws. Damn! I'd been so frenzied over protecting Aiden, I'd forgotten all about keeping my dragon at bay.

How much did he see? I wondered.

When I was sure that my eyes were no longer yellow and slitted, I opened them again.

"Give me just a moment, Aiden," I murmured, and I knelt down at his side to heal his shoulder with my tongue.

His blood was sweet as ambrosia and warmed my reptilian veins from the moment I latched my mouth to his wound. His breaths grew quick and shallow as I licked. He abruptly gave a shudder when the bleeding finally stopped, and I was able to pull away.

I gave him my hand and pulled him upright.

"How do you do that?" he asked as he twisted to examine his shoulder.

"Panther saliva has healing properties," I lied.

He gave me an odd look just then but didn't ask further questions. I offered him my hand once more to help him stand up.

"Who were they?" I asked.

Aiden dusted off his hands and clothes. "Wolves from the Grayback pack. Rivals of the ones you met last night." He picked off a leaf that was stuck to his arm and flung it to the ground.

"Why did they attack you?" I continued, watching him closely.

Aiden shook his head and glared impatiently at something in the distance. "I have no idea. I've met them once or twice, but…" He shook his head again. This time, he chuckled bitterly as he did it. "They hate the Black Paws, and they don't have a great relationship with the coven. There could be a million reasons for why they attacked me."

Graybacks? Black Paws? Coven?

I mentally ran through the unfamiliar names. It appeared I'd emerged in the midst of a war. What was going on between these shifters? And how was Aiden caught in the middle of it? How was I caught in the middle of it?

I had even more questions. Before I got the chance to ask, Aiden's eyes flickered, and he swayed on his feet.

"Whoa—" he mumbled.

I caught him against my chest and was shocked by how light and weak he felt.

"You need food," I said, and I urgently pulled him back into the R.V.

I sat him back at the table and hurriedly finished preparing breakfast.

"Thank you, Erick" he said weakly as I searched the cupboards for salt.

"Don't thank me yet," I replied.

I threw a concerned glance out the window, watching for movement in the forest.

 

* * *

 

 

The pot of stew bubbled on the hot metal coil, infusing the air with its redolent, savory aroma. It was just enough to distract me from the irresistible scent that emanated from Aiden's body.

He waited at the table while I checked the stew for doneness. After removing the lid, I prodded the meat inside with a fork. It slid easily off the bone and glistened with clear juices.

Before I could declare that it was ready, I heard a car driving into our clearing.

"Yoohoo!" Rowan's voice shouted.

She walked in loudly. A strap of a heavy bag crossed her body from shoulder to hip. The door banged shut once before Jimmy followed in after her.

They were only two, but two more bodies was all it took to crowd the small space inside the R.V.

"Cooking breakfast?" Jimmy said, throwing a hopeful glance at the pot, which was presently spewing clouds of steam.

I set down my wooden spoon. "We were attacked," I said.

"By Graybacks," Aiden added.

The energy in the room shifted in an instant.

"When?" Jimmy asked urgently.

"This morning," I said.

The pleasantness in Rowan's face evaporated. "Did they—"

"Bite me?" Aiden interrupted bitterly. He crossed his arms on top of the table. He was still wearing his bloody, torn clothes. "Yes."

Rowan slipped the bag off of her shoulder. "Let me see—"

"Erick already healed me with his saliva," Aiden said, but he pointed to his shoulder anyway, where his skin had begun the process of healing itself.

Rowan froze. "Did he now?" She gave me a long, pointed stare. "Erick, can you help me forage for some medicinal herbs?"

"Right now? I suppose I cou—" I said.

"Great." Rowan picked up her bag and dropped it on the table. "Some extra clothes in there for you guys," she said distractedly, just before pulling me towards the door.

Jimmy moved past me to stand beside the stove. "You don't mind if I, uh…"

"There's plenty. Help yourself," I said.

Leaving Jimmy and Aiden to eat, I followed Rowan out into the forest. She stopped after a few minutes and spun around to face me.

"Aiden's your fated mate, isn't he? Just admit it."

I could feel the blood draining from my face. "How did you know?"

"Your saliva healed him. Only fated mates can do that. Kaden's got a fated mate, too. They met a couple years ago. It was a whole thing that happened," Rowan said, flapping a hand dismissively. "Listen, if Aiden's your mate, you have to tell him now."

Something savage wrenched loose in my gut. "Absolutely not."

At my tone, Rowan jerked back. "Why not?"

I glanced over my shoulder. We were far enough away that the R.V. was barely visible through the trees, the smell of pine overpowering the smell of Aiden.

"I'm anxious to return to the Wood. That's all I want. If Aiden knew, it would…complicate things," I said.

Rowan shook her head. "How could you go back to that enchanted fairy place knowing you left your mate behind?"

I could have told her that I'd done it once before, long ago. But I didn't. "I am no ordinary shifter. I'm a dragon," I merely said with a single shrug of my shoulders. Eager to change the subject, I steered her attention back to what had happened earlier this morning. "I believe you owe me an explanation, considering the favor you've asked of me."

"I'm sure it's so hard for you to be alone in the wilderness with your fated mate," Rowan said, rolling her eyes.

"Just tell me what you've gotten me into," I said. "Aiden is connected to a coven, correct? You may start there."

Rowan sighed loudly, blowing out her cheeks. "To make a long story extremely short, the Black Paws suspected that the coven was using shifter blood to develop a cure for shifting. They obviously achieved their goal." She pointed her chin towards the R.V., indicating Aiden.

"Why would the coven want to cure shifting?" I said.

"That's what the Black Paws are trying to figure out. It's the reason they won't let Aiden go," she said.

"And the Graybacks? Why did they attack Aiden this morning?"

"I assume," Rowan began as she nervously adjusted her glasses, "it was for the same reason the Black Paws wanted him. To see the cured shifter for themselves."

"But why?"

"I wish I knew."

"Well, have you determined how to send me back yet?"

Rowan blinked quickly. "I'm still working on it."

I could feel an edge of duress inside, as if I had a sword pointed at my throat. I exhaled slowly and fixed Rowan with a direct, unblinking stare, so that there was no mistaking how serious I was.

"The Graybacks could come back," I said. I supposed Rowan wanted me to keep protecting Aiden, which I was happy to do. What made me unhappy was that Rowan had summoned me from the Wood by accident, and now I was effectively stuck here, doing her bidding.

I needed to get back to the Wood before things got too serious.

"I'll tell Kaden and Caleb. They're the alphas. They can handle it themselves," Rowan promised.

I nodded. "Thank you," I said. But it wasn't good enough.

As we trekked back towards the R.V., I silently promised to myself that while the Black Paw alphas carried out their investigation of the Graybacks, I would do a little investigating of my own.

After all, I was no ordinary shifter.