Wolf Bloodline; Part 2

Trust And Lose

When the wagon we had left the train stopped moving, we quickly got out. The wagon was attracting a lot of attention at the moment, and we knew that if anyone came looking for us, this would be the first place they would check. So we had to get out of the wagon and disappear from sight as fast as possible.

As we stepped off the wagon, the prisoners we had been traveling with wanted to head east for safety. But we couldn't go with them - we had to get to the tournament where the others were waiting for me. Before we parted ways, one of the prisoners spoke to me one last time.

"We can't thank you both enough," he said gratefully. "Thank you again for everything."

As Lena went to scout ahead and look for other people who could help us, the man suddenly shoved a piece of paper into my hand and whispered urgently in my ear.

"Be careful," he warned.

I was taken aback and didn't understand what had just happened. Why had he given me this warning? Just then Lena returned and the man walked away with the other prisoners without another word, heading east. It was an interesting encounter that left a lasting impression on me.

Lena noticed my confusion and asked me with a puzzled look on her face, "Is something wrong?"

"No," I replied, still deep in thought. "I'm just wondering if they'll be safe in the east."

"Don't worry," Lena reassured me. "The king has more power in the east. The paladins have a great superiority there and the king has more soldiers stationed there than anywhere else."

"Do you trust the King?" I asked her.

"Of course," she replied confidently. "Even if he gives you a proclamation, he is good to his people and always looks out for their well-being. So don't worry."

The conversations between Lena and the prisoners were like a secret. I didn't know what was going on, but I knew one thing for certain - we couldn't stay here any longer. The soldiers could come at any moment. So I talked to Lena and we quickly made the decision to start traveling again. We covered a long distance in a short amount of time, with silence reigning the whole way.

I knew that the man had given me the paper secretly, so I didn't want to open it in front of Lena. I had to wait for the right moment to do so. But the main question that kept nagging at me was why he had done such a thing. After all, we had saved them together. What could he possibly be hiding from someone who had helped save his life?

I guess only time would tell. Still, I couldn't help but probe Lena with a few questions.

"You know they're gonna come after you after what you did, right?" I asked her.

Lena answered my questions calmly and properly. "Yeah, I know," she said. "But I had to save them."

"Well, what about your brother?" I pressed.

"I don't know where my brother is," she admitted.

"Then why did you take such a risk?" I asked her.

"Because these people were going to be killed," she explained. "And I couldn't just sit around and wait for them to die."

"How long have you been watching them?" I asked her.

"For a long time," she replied. "For a long time, I heard their screams. But today, thanks to you, we put an end to it."

"We did it together," I reminded her.

As our conversation continued and warmed up, the doubts in my mind began to fade. I knew I had to be careful and consider every possibility, but the look on his face told me that he was innocent. I trusted him - not just blindly believing as I used to, but truly trusting him. We had a long journey ahead of us, so I didn't want to dwell on the subject for too long.