𝓜𝔂 𝓥𝓮𝓻𝓫𝓸𝓽𝓮𝓷

23. Running Away From Falling Apart

After Peregrine and I had our argument, I felt a sadness deep within me. Never in my life had I felt such an overwhelming disparity like I had in that moment. Knowing that I, my soul, had finally felt completely whole just to be torn in half was crippling.

When she had admitted that she was going to leave with King Raven I felt the tears enter my eyes. I had felt that overwhelming wave want to take me under but instead of that I had brought her back to our bed.

She had murmured endlessly about how the king was in the same building but I did not care. I had told her that the king would have her for all of his days after that. She could not deny me one last claim, even if we had been doing it all day.

So it had been that I had taken her throughout the night, claiming every single part of her. From the top of her head to the bottom of her toes, she belonged to me and the king would leave here knowing that.

Once the sun had come up I had gone down and gotten her fresh water. I had warmed it by the fire, knowing exactly what she wanted to do with it. She wanted to scrub her skin clean before leaving with him and when she had gotten naked, ready to do so, I had snatched the cloth from her hand.

I had murmured how much I loved her as I slowly washed her. I had placed kisses on every bit of skin, remarking her in some way after I had wiped away the remnants of our lovemaking. Once I was done with that I had even helped her wash out her beautiful hair.

Before I had helped her dress I had sat quietly on the bed. She had came up alongside me, completely naked and laid her head in my lap. She closed her eyes and hummed as I ran my fingers through her hair, studying every single piece of her, knowing it will be the last time in a very very long time that I will see her. There will most likely be no seeing her after this. Neither of our realms would allow it.

After what only seemed like a few seconds, but was probably an hour, had she shifted in my lap before getting up. She went over and dug out the Mountain Realm garments. She had tried to put them on by herself but could not finish tying up her dress in the back. So I had stood and wordlessly walked over to help her, readying her departure with another man.

I had helped her pack a bag full of some of the necessities as well. She had carried it out of the room after giving me what would be our last kiss. I would not follow her out of this room. I could not watch her willingly go into the arms of another. I would surely explode into a shift if I did. My wolf would follow Pere to the ends of all of the realms now.

I let out a disheartened sigh knowing that she had just left. She had just gone to King Raven's room. Surely they would be departing any moment now. I get up and walk over to the window again and look out at the day. The weather was calm and surprisingly mild, like the king had conjured the weather himself. Or the realms were signaling their desires, telling us all that this was what fate truly desired.

I cock my head to the side trying to listen to their conversation but surprisingly cannot hear any of it. I do not know if I should be wary of the fact or just grateful. I pace around the room trying to make myself stay put and not tear her away from him.

My body begins to tremble more and more with each and every passing moment. The silence is deafening all until I hear his door shut and two sets of footsteps descend the staircase. My heart rate quickens and a feeling of dread begins to seep into me. I zone into each and every one of her footsteps on the wooden floor all the way until she is out of the door.

The wolf in me is trying his hardest to dig his way out, to shift. My legs start walking forward, seemingly on their own volition. I open the door and slowly make my way down the steps even though I had told myself I would not. I do not think I am entirely in control of my body right now.

Once I make it to the door and open it I have to take pause. King Raven is helping Pere onto her horse. Then he gets on top of his own. She is saying goodbye to a crying Ophelia and a mute, unemotional Garret. But then she turns to me and her features falter painfully. I told her I would remain inside, that I would not make this any harder than it already is but I could not help it.

King Raven looks over his shoulder at me but gives me nothing. He has schooled his features into a stone-cold mask. He looks away from and and over to Pere saying, "come now. We only have so much daylight in this realm." His heels dig into his horse, making it move forward into a quick pace. Pere gives me one last look before following suit.

I watch them ride away until I cannot see them anymore before wandering off in the opposite direction. I head toward the tree line with no shoes on and barely any clothing. I do not care how cold the snow is as it soaks into me. I do not feel much of anything at all.

Once I reach the woods I let my inner-animal out. I let my wolf free himself. He explodes out of me with a howl of despair before I make myself run in the opposite direction. I run hard, harder than I ever have in my entire life because if I do not then I know I will follow them.

✩✩✩

My wolf slowly limps toward the inn painfully, leaving bloody paw prints in the snow behind me. It is nearly a blizzard outside and in the dark of the night I can barely see anything but a wall of white. A wall of white and Pere. She is all I have seen in my vision as I had made myself run toward nothing to keep me from running to her.

I had ran for days. I had ran until my paws were raw and started to bleed and then I kept running. I kept running until I could run no more. Then I made myself turn around and run even though my legs had told me I could not. All the way back to the inn, the one that still smelled of the two of us.

Currently, each step of my paws feels heavier and heavier. Once I am outside of the inn door I shift back. My naked body immediately collapses into the snow. Not even the frigid coldness can keep me from seemingly being pulled under.

The loud sound of a door banging open makes me blink out of my near unconsciousness. "Prince Timber?" I hear a familiar deep male voice call out. "Oh no, my prince, what have you done to yourself?" I blink a few more times trying to make Sir Gregory's face out. "Help me!" He shouts as his hands go underneath my arm pits. "Now! Someone help me." No more than a few seconds later do I feel someone grab ahold of my feet.

They bring me into the warm building and I feel the darkness try to pull me under again. I hear an older woman's voice tell the men where to go, my men, and hope that she cannot see my nakedness. Once they open the door to the room I had once shared with Pere my eyes fly open, all unconsciousness forgotten.

I writhe in their arms, trying to free myself. I can hardly stand the smell of her here, the smell of what we had done in this room together. My wolf wants to come out and grieve all over again.

"Calm yourself." Sir Gregory says. "You are wounded and need rest."

"I will not." I manage to snarl out viciously.

He lets out a large sigh. "Very well then, Sir Rocco, please bring me the rag." I jerk my head to the side and see Sir Rocco dousing a rag with contents from a bottle.

"Get that away from me. Get that—" His hand smothers my mouth with the rag.

"I am sorry, Prince Timber, truly I am." Just a few seconds after I cannot feel my limbs, much of anything at all. I blink my now clouded vision before l no longer see anything at all.

A/N:
I hit my NaNo goal yesterday! I've officially passed writing 50K words for November in this book!