Royal Wolf Box Set by Haley Weir
Chapter Six
During the hunting party, it seemed like the humans that Aeron chose to bring along with him had never actually gone hunting before. They were clumsy with their weapons and quick to jump at the slightest sound. The shifter pack leaders were more agile and astute in their human forms than the humans themselves were. Cassandra never did fully understand why it was that the hunting of wolf shifters had even been able to become a threat. The humans now seemed so lacking that she couldn’t imagine them being able to overpower powerful wolf shifters like her husband—and Rubius.
She tried to stay focused on walking between both Aeron and Theo until they got into the thicket of the forest. She thought that it would avoid any stray glances or temptations. For the most part, it seemed to be working. The hunting party fanned out a bit in the same general vicinity and waited with their weapons perched for a small or innocent animal to wander within sight. The chances of that were low, considering so many people would have trouble staying quiet and still.
Aeron and a couple of the pack leaders and humans were standing a few yards ahead of where she was in the center of the thicket. The remaining humans were several feet at her sides in either direction, staring out into the woods and waiting for something to materialize. Rubius and the remaining pack leaders stood just off-center behind her. Everyone was either watching the trees for signs of movement or talking quietly amongst themselves.
Theo was being well-behaved for the most part and acting like any eight-year-old child would act. He was digging around on the ground for interesting rocks and trying to make weapons out of sticks and branches. He occasionally spotted something a bit more interesting like a moving snail, which he would watch after for a few minutes until he got bored. He wanted to hunt. He wanted to chase after deer and rabbits and sink his fangs into the neck of one of them for a tasty meal that was fresher than the stuff he had been fed in the city. To him, humans took the thrill out of everything, even the food.
Cassandra had been keeping a close eye on him, until she saw that Aeron was engaged in explaining the intricacies of how to carve tipped arrows to the humans . She let herself look over her shoulder at Rubius. Immediately, his eyes fixed onto hers as if he had been standing there and waiting for her to look at him the entire time. She shouldn’t have looked back, and she was immediately sorry – on multiple levels – because once their eyes met, she couldn't look away. Cassandra stared longingly at Rubius, and the fire that raged within her flared again. She knew that her husband couldn’t see the look on her from behind her, even if he had been paying attention enough to notice. The other pack leaders around Rubius might have noticed, but they weren’t members of Aeron’s pack, and their allegiance was only to Rubius. Even if Cassandra had done something inappropriate, none of them would have paid it attention or spoken word of it to Aeron.
Her chest heaved as she looked at Rubius’ shoulders, which were rising and falling more broadly than they had been a moment ago. She saw his fingers curl into tight fists by his side. If their stare could have invoked a single emotion, that emotion would have been need.
“A wolf!” one of the humans shouted.
Cassandra and all of the others looked. A human off to her side, a young man with his bow lifted and arrow drawn, was aiming at a small wolf that had carelessly run over to chase a rabbit too close to where the hunting party was gathered. Immediately, Cassandra’s hand flew over the top of her mouth to cover it and keep her from screaming. She knew that wolf—it was Theo.
Theo was frozen in place as he stared with his wide yellow eyes at the human that had him within aim of his bow. The rabbit was clenched in Theo’s canine jaw as he crouched down on his haunches, suddenly keenly aware that he had made a grave and possibly fatal mistake by letting his impulses get the better of him again.
There was no time to convince the human to withdraw; the young man was already drawing back his bow and it would be loosed from his fingers within a matter of moments. Aeron started to run toward the man, calling to him to lower his weapon. But the man was focused on getting a kill, even though there would be no honor in killing an animal as young as this. There was no way that Aeron would reach him in time. Cassandra did the only thing that she knew to do. She didn’t pause to think; she simply acted. She pushed off her feet and ran to put herself between the hunter and her son, just in time for the arrow to pierce her stomach.
Aeron screamed as he ran forth. Theo dropped the rabbit from his jaw and howled. Rubius leaped toward Cassandra so quickly that he made it to her in time to catch her falling body before her head hit the ground.
The human hunter immediately began bumbling a verbal apology as Aeron knelt down beside his wife and looked at where the arrow had struck. She was awake and in pain, but the wound would not be fatal. It had struck her just below her bottom rib. When Aeron stood up again to look at the human, his face was so filled with rage at the threat against his wife and son that some of the other pack members had to quickly flank his sides and get him to calm down.
Aeron saw that they were right – this was exactly the kind of incident that would expose them and cause even greater harm. The humans stood around looking at them in shock. Theo was lingering nearby instead of running off. Aeron had to smooth over the situation or it would put them all at future risk. He tur he ned back toward where Rubius and his family were on the ground. He made a small noise to the wolf that was enough of an indication to let Theo know that he was expected to run off now, shift back, and end up in his bedroom at the castle until his father could come and speak to him about what he had done later. Without further hesitation, the wolf pup ran off into the woods, yowling as he went.
“Rubius,” Aeron said as he knelt down again and lifted his wife’s hand in his. “Please take my wife back to the castle and tend to her until I am able to get there. I will deal with this matter and be back at the castle as soon as I can.”
Rubius nodded and looked at Aeron in slight disbelief at being trusted to stay alone with Cassandra, although thankfully, Aeron hadn’t picked up on it again.
“I’ll return as soon as I can, my love,” Aeron said as he kissed his wife on the temple. He leaned forward to whisper in her ear. “You’re strong, and you saved our son.”
Cassandra managed to give her husband a weak smile, ignoring the pain since she was just so happy and relieved that Theo had not been hurt. When Aeron stood back up again, he turned to face the rest of the hunting party and gathered them to explain. The rest of the pack leaders stayed with him to support his story, with some even teasing about how soft the queen’s heart was toward all living things. Cassandra didn’t hear much more of their conversation after her husband had called off the hunt and Rubius lifted her in his arms to leave.
Rubius’ arms wrapped around her as Cassandra’s legs dangled and her head rested against his chest. She held one hand clasped against her ribs where the blood was seeping out from around the arrow and soaking her dress, turning it from a light ivory color to a darkened shade of crimson. She pressed her cheek to Rubius’ chest and heard the pounding of his heart against her ear. She wondered if the pounding was caused by the weight of carrying her at such a quick-paced walk back to the castle, or if it was because of the close tightness of their bodies pressed together as he held her. Before long, she was weary and dizzy from blood loss, so she let her eyes close as she breathed in the enticing smell of his skin.