I didn't know where my father was and if he was still alive, but I didn't care while I rode my horse, trusting that he would know where he was and praying that my father was still alive.
Sweat gleaned from across my forehead, and my whole body was tense while we went in this direction, praying that we were going in the right direction so that I could save him and then get back to my kingdom and mate before it was too late.
We were running out of time too fast for my liking...
And even, I knew that.
My heart ached and became filled with guilt and pain while I rode my horse toward wherever my father was at, and I prayed that he wouldn't be dead or injured and that he would let me go back to the king before it was too late to save him.
I wanted to save him just as much as I wanted to save my father...
My horse snorted and shook his head before he started to walk instead of galloping like I wanted him to, breaking me from my thoughts. He flicked his tail and snorted before he shook his head again.
I blinked and blinked again, stirring myself from my thoughts and looked at my horse whose ears were pricked forward. "What the fuck, Riser?" I asked, seething slightly. I nudged my horse's sides to get him to start running again, but he didn't do what I wanted him to do, for some reason. "Would you start running, again, Riser!?" I whisper hissed and squeezed him tighter at his sides while I pressed my lips into a thin line. "We are running out of time."
My horse rolled his eyes and shook his head, snorting, his mane flying from side to side. He flicked his tail in impatience but didn't pick up his pace like I wanted him to.
The hair on the back of my neck stood at attention, and my heart skipped a beat before it started to pound fast and hard in my chest. "Are there people ahead of us?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper, and he nodded and flicked his tail again.
Oh, Goddess...
I breathed a small, nervous sigh and wrapped my reins a little around the saddle horn before I took my bow off of my back and pulled an arrow out from my quiver. "Do you think they know we are here?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
My horse snorted and flicked his tail. He didn't say a word, like he could actually talk, but he didn't give me any indication that they knew we were there or coming toward them.
My heart skipped a beat before it started to pound fast and hard in my chest, leaping into my throat every so often, and I stayed silent while we drew closer to whatever my horse heard.
Laughter filled the air around us, and I had to bite my lip hard to keep myself from gasping out in shock and fear because I knew that laugh.
Oh, Goddess. He found me...
How did he find me..?
Again, there was another burst of laughter, this one more maniacal and evil than the last, and I flinched and grabbed my bow tighter.
Gavin...
My heart skipped another beat and pounded harder and faster in my chest, jumping into my throat every once in a while.
Goddess, please keep me safe...
My hands shook a little when an image of him shifting into his wolf form flashed through my mind, his eyes holding no compassion, no nothing but straight up murder as if the only thing on his mind was murder.
My side ached, and I could still remember his claws digging into my skin while he loomed over me, the hunter becoming the hunted.
He had almost killed me that day only to be stopped by someone unexpected because of how close they were to each other and how much that he respected him.
Does that mean he's here, too?
I stopped the hope that wanted to take over my heart while I signalled Riser to move carefully the closer we got to them.
I grabbed my bow tighter in one hand, praying that I wouldn't be seen or heard by them until I was close enough to them to see what was happening and how many people were there.
More laughter filled the air around me, and I set my jaw and grabbed my bow tighter. "Oh, I have missed you, Mr. Lowell," I heard Gavin say, and I bit back a small gasp while I bit the inside of my lip tighter until I tasted blood.
Oh Goddess...
My whole body grew tense, and my heart pounded hard and fast in my chest, my mouth going dry. I hesitated before I nudged my horse to go a little faster, hoping that it was safe for me to do so, especially since I had no idea what Gavin was doing with my father.
"Oh, I have missed you too, Gavin," my father said with a tired chuckle in his voice, and I had to bite my lip to keep myself from letting out a small sob of relief.
Oh thank Goddess... he was ok...
Gavin cleared his throat. "So, where is your daughter?" Gavin asked, changing the subject, and I had a feeling that he raised an eyebrow in question while he stared at my father. "I know that you said that she was in danger, but where?"
My father sighed and there was a small shuffling sound while he shifted from one side to another. "In a castle," he said before he cleared his throat and shook his head, grimacing. "She is locked in some cell, I think. I do not know. It's been a while since that happened."
He cleared his throat again and shifted some more. "I wish I knew what was happening to her, but I don't." My father's voice cracked a bit, and my heart ached and became filled with pain while I kept going toward them.
I stopped Riser as soon as we reached the edge of the woods, and I bit back a small gasp when I saw my father with a blanket over his shoulders and drinking something from a cup with Gavin and then Gavin's... "friend" Leo was beside him.
"I am sorry," Gavin said and patted my father's arm, and a part of me could tell that he wasn't. "Do you think that I will be able to help her?" he asked, raising an eyebrow in question.
My father shrugged and grimaced while he took a sip of his drink. "I don't know," he said and pulled his cup away from mouth. "I am sure that she will be happy to see you."
Leo coughed, covering a snort, and they both looked at him. He kept his face blank while he looked between the two of them, his eyes filled with innocence. "Yes?" he asked while he furrowed his brows and cocked his head. "Is something wrong?"
"Nothing is wrong," Gavin said and shook his head, and he narrowed his eyes further while he scowled. "However, I do want to know why you were coughing like that. Are you ok?"
"Yes, A- Gavin," Leo said and nodded in confirmation. "I am ok."
"Mmmhmm," he said and frowned while he slowly blinked. "I do not think I believe you, Leonardo," he warned, baring his teeth in warning. He bit back a warning growl while he stared at him. "What are you trying to hide?"
"Nothing, Gavin," Leo said and shook his head before he cleared his throat and shifted on his seat before he looked at my father. "Do you think you can lead us to the castle to rescue her?" he asked, changing the subject.
My father sighed and moved a hand through his hair before he shook his head and grimaced. "I don't know," he admitted before he cleared his throat and looked at Amara. "Do you think you can?" he asked, raising an eyebrow question.
Amara flicked her tail and ignored him, and I couldn't help but bite back a snort. She flicked her ears from side to side before she waited for something or someone to appear.
Does she know that we were there..?
I shivered when I thought that before biting back a small snort because there was no way in hell that she could.
But Riser did lead me over to them...
My father sighed frustratingly before he shook his head and pursed his lips in annoyance. "I don't know, Gavin," he said apologetically. "It was a blessing, or a curse, that we made it there the first time."
"She'll be alive," Leo said and nodded. "There is no doubt in my mind that she will be alive."
"Hmph." My father smiled and shook his head, taking another sip of his drink. "I hope so too, Leo," he said, pulling the cup away from his lips and biting back a tired sigh. "I hope so, too, but at this point, I have a feeling that it is too late."
Gavin's demeanor changed as soon as my father said those words, and Leo shifted closer to my father and away from his Alpha. "Then, Old Man," he said while he stood with a sneer on his face, and my father stared at him with wide eyes at this sudden mood change. "I think that means you are actually not needed at all and should be dealt with... permanently."