Chapter 19
Iris
It felt like a bucket of cold water was emptied on our bodies as I slowly regained my senses.
"Get on my back," He ordered with a note of urgency in his tone and I hopped on, knowing that I was to be blamed for our predicament. "The ride is going to be rough because I can sense some of our attackers coming closer, and I'll have to shift so hold me tight for your safety."
"Yes, Prince Gradel," I replied and wrapped my arms around his neck.
I should have been scared that we were ambushed, but being on his back was quite relaxing and it felt good to know that he cared about me against all odds.
The work of the mating bond, I guess.
He moved stealthily, his pace fluid and steady while he carefully evaded the guards who were drawing close to us.
From afar, I saw one of their sentinels on the tower with a quiver on his back, stretching forth an arrow against us, towards him. Blood rushed to my pulse and I patted Prince Gradel's back aggressively.
"Look!" I urged him, pointing toward the man.
It seemed as if the man had discovered that he had been noticed because he fired the arrow immediately and let out another whistle.
To my amazement, the arrow right stopped just in between Prince Gradel's fingers. I muttered some words of appreciation to the moon goddess for saving him, and at the same time, my heart swelled with admiration at his celerity.
"Do I need to get down?" I asked when I realized that they were getting closer to us.
"No," He replied rashly. "There's no need for that. Just stay out or you will become vulnerable and be at risk of getting captured again. I'm going to shift partially so hold me tight and keep your face buried on my back." He said firmly.
Without hesitating, the snapping of bones that accompanied changing from one form to the other resonated in the air, and then the silk fabric that adorned his body fell off and his furs sprouted, velvety and smooth.
His frame widened, twice the size, offering a shield that protected me from the eyes of our attacker. He let out a growl that exuded power and courage, and he stepped forward with a challenging gait.
Just as he ordered, I buried my face in his neck as I didn't want to watch the bloody fight. From the unending growls and the swift movement of his hands, I could tell how many sentinels had gone down.
The smell of blood saturated the air strongly making me restless, I wanted to be able to defend myself against these people. Even though I didn't have a wolf, I should be physically strong enough to hold my own.
Suddenly, Prince Gradel stopped moving and fear overwhelmed me. I raised my face and gazed at him.
"Are you alright?" My voice quivered, betraying the calmness I thought I had.
"I've been injured," He admitted, his tone laced with anger and disappointment. "Someone fired an arrow that had wolfsbane on the spearhead against my ankle and if we don't return to the pack, we might get killed."
My stomach tightened with fear and I made to slide down from his back as I didn't want to burden him with my weight.
"What are you doing?" He groaned, his arm stopping me halfway.
"You're weak, and I'm adding to it, so allow me to get down," I replied frantically.
He snorted and pushed me back in place. "I said I was just injured, not weak. I'll sprint back to the pack so hold onto me firmly as you've been doing." He muttered.
I was worried for him, but it was appalling that he was fighting this war all by himself. "What about your father? Can't you tell him that we need reinforcement?" I asked angrily.
"Don't mention his name in this matter, besides, he was not in support of me coming here. Hegar will keep our attackers off my back for as long as he can, but I hope he doesn't get injured as well."
********
He shifted to his full form and raced back to the pack. I'd never seen him run so I couldn't tell how fast he usually ran, but as we covered more ground, I noticed that his speed was reducing.
He would have been a magnificent sight to behold if we weren't in a fix. If we weren't trying to escape from our attackers who were giving us a hot chase.
As we neared Grey Rock pack, Prince Gradel's swiftness slowed. I've never experienced the pain from a wolfsbane poison so I couldn't explain how it felt, but I knew that it spread around quickly and if we didn't get to the pack on time, he would be dead meat.
"Are you alright?" I panicked when he halted in his tracks.
He tilted his head as a way of responding and began sprinting again, his breathing uneven. I wanted to slip off his back, at least to ease my weight off him but he kept stopping my attempts.
Relief washed over me as soon as I sighted the gate of the Alpha's pack house, and then he scooted to the ground, allowing me to come down.
Without thinking, I ran to the guards at the gate who became alert when I got to them. I didn't care that I was wanted in the pack, the only thing on my mind was getting my mate to safety.
"Please, you have to help him. He has been poisoned!" I wailed, flinging my arms in the air.
"What are you talking about?" A sentinel standing at the left side of the gate asked, his brows knitted in suspicion.
"Prince Gradel is in danger, he came to save me and then..." I trailed off when we heard a rumble from the opposite direction and then a loud thud followed. "He's dying!" I cried and took to my heels, not minding if they followed.
"What happened to him?" He finally asked when we got to Prince Gradel who shifted to his human form and lay unconscious on the ground with blood dripping from his heel.
With tears in my eyes, I said. "An arrow laced with wolfsbane was fired at him, if he doesn't get treated now we might lose him." I sobbed.