How Did I Go To the Beast World in My Pajamas?

Chapter 41: Gifts to the Female

King Scott glanced from one person to the next before muttering to Samantha, "Cover yer mark, we need to talk, just us." He turned to the other wolves, loudly saying, "Boys, we didn't finish furnishin' the rest of the house, so can y'all get started bringin' in some things for the bedrooms? We'll catch up with ya in a few." After waiting until the room had emptied and the door had been closed, he leaned into the middle of the group, speaking so quietly Samantha could barely hear him. "Samantha, did you ever feel anything when you touched Spencer's mark before? Any kind of response at all?" She paused to think, but nothing came to mind. However, she'd never specifically tried to summon him through their spousal mark, which she mentioned to Scott. "Is there anything special I can do to try and contact him better?" she asked the wolverine king. "He should be able to feel even your lightest touch on your mark, especially if you're thinking of him at the same time. Because he has so much power, even if he's far away, he should know you're calling for him. You can try speaking out loud or pressing harder on your mark, but if my guess is correct, he's both too far away and shielded too well for you to be able to reach him. Go ahead and try, if you don't mind. At best, it'll bring him runnin' home to you as fast as his legs can carry 'im," Scott explained.

Samantha turned all her focus onto her bleak-looking spousal mark, attempting to center her thoughts on the brown eyes that were the only color the mark contained. Two fingers from her right hand moved to the bottom edge of the mark, near where the fox's own heart would have been. "Spencer, wherever you are, please come home. I don't know what went wrong, but I miss you so much and nobody knows where you are. I need you here; I love you and I don't want to be here without you," she said aloud, though she finished her sentence closer to a whisper. She kept her fingers on her chest, trying to channel her feelings through it and hopefully reach her mate. The longer she waited for any kind of response, the faster her hope faded, and eventually she looked to Scott, who shook his head sorrowfully. "He must be very far away, and for whatever reason, he probably can't hear you either," he said, though he seemed lost in thought. Finally, he turned to Samantha, a sober expression on his face. "That damn fox is one of the best males I've ever known, but his past isn't exactly somethin' he's open about. I'm only tellin' you this because it's important, and I think he'd want ya to have known before he just disappeared like that," he began. "For the decades I've known 'im, Spencer has been on the run from the Fox Kingdom. I dunno why, and he gets awful cagey if you ask about it, but it's been a long game o' cat and mouse. I think your little mouse finally got caught, Samantha, and if he did, then I know where he is."

Samantha looked at Benjamin in shock and grabbed his hand reflexively before asking eagerly, "King Scott, where is he? How can I get to him? How do we bring him back here?" Scott sighed before continuing, "I put a lot of thought into it, and if it were anyone but the Fox Kingdom, it might be possible to go in and bring him out. You're not from here, so ya don't know about it, but that whole kingdom is magicked to hell an' back. Even if all the strongest beastmen in Ten Thousand Beast City ambushed the place at once, not a single one of us would make it past their walls. On the other hand, for whatever reason Spencer's injured, well, all that magic is probably what's keeping him alive. He's never been close to getting caught before, so what little information those foxes that took 'im away gave you is prob'ly true. All there is left to do is wait, no matter which angle I'm lookin' at it. Spencer's gotta recover and then find another way outta there before he can make it back to you, but I promise ya that if and when he does, the first an' only thing he's gonna do is go find you," he finished. Samantha was gripping Benjamin's hand much harder than she was before Scott started talking, but the scorpion looked perversely like he was enjoying it, so nobody said anything to the female whose eyes were filled with tears.

There was a knock at the kitchen door, and Samantha hurried to dry her eyes while Scott and Eira stalled for time. Roger ducked through the doorway, his head and eyes lowered slightly in submission to his king. "Your Highness," he began, "we have completed the tasks you gave us, please allow us to finish bringing the rest of the furniture into the kitchen." Scott looked at Samantha, who gave a tiny shake of her head and whispered, "flower beds?" The king's booming voice was loud enough for all the wolves to hear when he replied, "Dig some flower beds in the yard for planting, that does not mean you can make a mess," he instructed, seemingly from experience. Scattered whimpering was heard as the wolves went to dig without having any fun doing so. "What is it, Samantha?" King Scott whispered under his breath. "Is there anyone else we can look to for help? Anyone who might have additional information on the Fox Kingdom?" she asked hurriedly. Scott scratched his chin thoughtfully, his jaw moving slowly as he pondered. "There's always King Patch, his new mate Iris may be able to help as well. I'll send word to them, but it'll take time to get someone I trust to make it over there. Lucky for us, they can fly, so hearing back shouldn't take as long," he said, flashing his signature cocky grin.