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n(Februay Note) SHOUT OUT to the ever wonderful @Nessa52283, @Khadeja_Magdob, @Samantha_Dogan, @Stacey_Corbett, @Citrus_Time, and @oirCheerio6 for the gifts to celebrate Reth & Elia's contract yesterday. I'm convinced I have the best readers on WebNovel! I hope you enjoy today's chapter, it's dedicated to you!

n*****

nRETH

nIt took almost two days of tracking to find the Silent One—which was odd in itself. It had clearly caught the scent of the females in the WildWood city. The scouts had followed it in a direct line towards them for a day while they called Reth. But before he arrived, it had started to circle, spiraling through the WildWood so that Reth almost missed the Scouts that had stayed behind to follow it.

nBy the time he sighted the animal, his own skin was itching to shift, and the smell of a dominant male hit so hard, he was forced to stop for a few seconds to bring himself under control.

nOne of the adolescent Leonine, along for the trip to learn how these things were done, lost his own control, and the other men's attention was distracted, helping him come back to himself. Reth heaved a sigh of relief that none of them noticed his own battle. They would have known that wasn't normal for him.

nWhen everyone was back in their natural forms, and the men had turned back to him, expecting that he'd begin to move, he shook his head.

"Just a moment,

" he said bluntly.

nReth closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, like he was pulling the scent of the animal, when in truth he was working to discipline his body.

nWhy was the urge to shift so strong? He hadn't had to fight it like this since his own teens. But with the controlling breath had come a new scent on the breeze—or rather, he'd sensed a quality to the Silent One's scent he hadn't picked up before. He frowned.

"Do you smell that?

" he asked the Scout Leader.

nThe man sucked in through his nose with his eyes closed too, and frowned also.

"What is it?

"

n

"I don't know.

" Reth turned to face the direction the animal was in—less than a mile away, if his nose was right.

"But I think we better find out.

"

nA few minutes later, they crept along a rise above a clearing where a freshwater creek hugged the eastern side. The animal's scent was strong here, and as they reached the edge of the rise, Reth put his hand up in a signal for the others to stop walking and wait for his further command.

nAlone, he padded to the edge and peered over, his eyes widening.

nThe creature below was massive. It was no wonder the scouts had called him in to deal with it, and he thanked the Creator that they had. It was nearly as large as he himself in his transformed state, its jaws alone big enough to crush a man's head.

nBut it wasn't the size that gave Reth pause. There was a scent on the animal—something unnatural. Something sharp. The male lay in the shade of the rocks below, asleep because it was daytime. Their animal ancestors far preferred to move and hunt at night.

nReth had been careful to approach down wind so he wouldn't disturb it. When the time was right, he'd allow it to catch his scent. In some cases, that alone was enough to move a Silent One along. But Reth doubted that would be the case this time.

nHe cursed under his breath. The Lion below wasn't just huge, it had that smell—something off—and its scent was heavy with its dominance.

nHow a male that strong came to be alone, Reth couldn't understand. To have reached this size and certainty and not have already gathered himself a pride—a large one—was completely illogical. And yet, here he was.

nMuttering under his breath, and rolling his shoulders to push back the urge to shift and show this monster who was boss, Reth slunk back down the rise and rejoined his men below. Using hand signals for them to follow, he ran them half a mile away, still down wind, to discuss the strategy.

nThis one was going to need a very careful approach.

n*****

nELIA

nShe knew it was too early—Reth had said he'd likely be gone at least three days. But when she saw Behryn at the market on the second day, her stomach flipped. She'd thought the Defender had gone with Reth. Who was protecting him if Behryn wasn't?

nElia had noticed the guards at the Cave, and along the path—and at different points during the day she'd caught sight of men with the same leather armbands as Behryn watching her. Especially when Lucine was nearby, scowling at her, she'd noticed. But she hadn't seen Behryn himself. She'd assumed he'd gone with Reth. If he was here and Reth wasn't…

nShe saw him at the market tables, his back to her, speaking to people at one of the tables near the back, but by the time she got down to the floor, he was gone. When she followed the nearest trail through the forest to one of the city's commerce rows where stalls and boxes were lined up under and around—and occasionally inside—the massive trunks of the trees she caught sight of him again, speaking with one of the merchants.

nSwallowing her insecurity, she walked firmly up to him, intending to ask him why he wasn't with Reth, and what he knew about their King's return.

nHe spoke quietly to the woman who was showing him lengths of leather, when Elia touched his shoulder and said,

"Behryn, I'm sorry to interrupt but—

"

nThe man shoved out a breath and whirled on her, drawing his sword in the same moment that he froze, eyes wide, when he saw her.

nElia froze too, looking at him in shock.

n

"Elia!

" he ground out.

n

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you—

"

n

"Then do not touch me without warning—not if you wish to keep your hand!

" he barked, shoving his sword back into its sheath, and turning his back on her.

n

"But… I just wanted to ask you…

" Then she caught the look of fierce disapproval the merchant was giving her, and she caught the whispers of two others nearby, who glared at her when she turned.

nShe didn't understand, what had she done?

n