The Broken Wolf
Chapter 116

“Not in the trees,” Seth says quietly, making sure no one can hear him. “I’m not taking a chance of you falling.”

I want to argue with him, but I know we need to be quiet, and his intentions are good. I roll my eyes as I stretch, but I don’t say anything. Albert comes jogging up, having changed clothes. I guess he’ll be following us.

“Are you sure you’re up to this?” he asks, pulling his shirt off and throwing it on a bench. I can see many shewolves turning to look at him. I pull my shirt over my head, tossing it on top of his, causing him to growl lowly, looking around.

“Put it on, Molly,” he says, picking it up and handing it back to me.

I roll my eyes. “No. Between my high-waisted pants and a bra, you have three times more skin showing. Besides, we’re wolves.”

“Molly,” he says lowly, angrily. “You’re a princess.”

“And you’re a prince,” I rebut. “What’s the difference?”

“Because you’re MINE,” he says, his fists in tight balls as he tries to contain his anger.

I reach up, placing my hand on his strong chest. “And you’re mine. You can either put a shirt on, or learn to control your jealousy. People are looking at you just as much as they are me.”

He throws the shirt back down on top of his. “Fine,” he mutters and jogs off. I take off behind him, quickly catching up. I’m aware he’s going quite slow for me to be able to keep up as his legs are twice as long as mine.

We make a few laps around the packhouse and then Seth turns and heads down the road that we drove in on. He doesn’t go all the way, though, when he stops and looks at me. “You still alright, Love?” he asks and I nod, trying to catch my breath.

“I’m fine,” I tell him with a smile. “I haven’t really had the chance to run since I shifted. I feel so much stronger.”

He smiles at me, grabbing me by the h**s and leaning down, a serious look on his face. He looks around, I assume to make sure we’re alone. “Altair wants you to shift tonight,” he says quietly.

“What? I can’t!” I say, confused.

“I know, but he insists that you’ll both be fine,” he tells me, his thumbs rubbing my skin. “He wouldn’t suggest it if it wasn’t completely safe. He said it’s important that everyone know that you DO have a wolf.”

Sage…

I’m here. I heard.

Can we even shift yet?

We can, but not for long.

The baby?

It’s still early. They will be alright. This seems important.

I place my hand over my belly, like that might actually protect the little life I’m growing. I know Seth thinks it’s completely safe, but I’ve always been told that it’s not. “Can I think about it?”

“Of course,” he says, kissing me. “If you don’t want to, that’s fine. I think he’s right, though. If people see you have a wolf, they won’t even consider the possibility that you also have magic.”

“I know,” I tell him. “I really will think about it. I promise.”

He k****s my forehead and releases me, smiling at me as he does. “Race you back,” I yell, and take off running. I have no actual chance of beating him, but he lets me get ahead of him for a moment. We’re nearly back to the pack house when he grabs me, lifting me in the air and tossing me over his shoulder.

“Seth!” I exclaim with a giggle, but he just swats me on the behind and slows to a walk, moving to where we had started. To my surprise, he leans down and picks up our shirts, but doesn’t sit me back down as he heads back to our room.

I look up and see Albert behind us. “Hey!” I yell at him. “I thought you were MY guard!”

He laughs but just shrugs at me. “He’s the boss.”

Seth makes his way through the packhouse and up the stairs. I can hear giggles and by the time I can see anyone when we pass, they are looking back at us, smiling.

As he opens the door to our room, I can smell our parents all in there waiting for us.

“Seth!” Audrey nearly shrieks, completely aghast. “Put her down! This is not proper behavior!” Seth finally sits me down, making sure I have my balance before releasing me.

“Why do neither of you have shirts on?” she says, looking very displeased.

“We went for a run, Mom,” Seth says with a shrug. “Why is everyone in here?”

“We all just wanted to congratulate you, share in the excitement,” my dad says with a chuckle, wrapping me in a hug. “You two had other ideas, though.”

I giggle, but lean my head against his chest. “I felt so tired. Sleeping didn’t help, so I thought maybe a run would.”

“That’s the worst logic I’ve ever heard,” my mom says, swatting my dad away and hugging me, placing her hand over my stomach excitedly.

I smile at her, excited to see her so happy. “It worked. I think.”

“I think actually eating had a bit to do with it, too,” Seth adds, flopping his sweaty self on the bed, ignoring the fact that our room is full of people.

Mom and Audrey are both fussing over me, getting stuff out for me to wear, planning what to do with my hair.

“Did you talk to her?” Benjamin asks Seth very seriously.

I turn and see Seth nod. “She’s going to think about it.”

“I thought this was Altair’s idea,” I say, though more of a question.

He sighs, looking me in the eyes. “It is, but it’s something we’ve discussed and all agree is the best move for the moment. I didn’t want to even bring it up to you until I got more information about how unsafe it could be.”

I look down at the floor, feeling a bit foolish that everyone thinks it’s a good choice, but I feel so uneasy about it. I place both my hands on my stomach, willing the pup to just let me know the right thing to do.

“You’re strong, Molly,” Audrey says gently. “A weaker omega wouldn’t be able to safely shift, but you’re so strong. Your bloodline is strong. Seth’s is even stronger.”

“The baby is stronger, I’m sure of it,” Benjamin speaks up. I look up and look into his eyes. He looks worried, but not about this. Of this, I can tell he’s confident that it will be just fine.

“But if something DOES happen,” I say, my voice cracking. “It will be MY fault, and no one else’s.”

Seth sits up, reaching forward and pulling me into his lap. “It will be OUR fault, not yours. You’re not in this alone. But I truly don’t think there will be any problems. Altair would never chance you, muchless our pup.”

I lay my head onto his shoulder, trying to hold back the tears. The entire situation is scary, but he’s right. The easiest way to hold off any attack by his uncle’s pack is to show that I DO have a wolf. The story of Alpha Randall Bardulf’s wolfless daughter has been told all around the kingdom. People know, and no one has ever said anything against it because I didn’t have a wolf, for years.

“We are going to have to explain that I was placed under a magic spell to confine my wolf,” I say quietly. “What if people think that it gave me powers?”

“It’s a risk,” Peter speaks up. “But we’ll do that once you’re back at the palace, locked away safely and we have more time to work out what exactly is going on. For now, it’s the easiest way to keep you and Seth safe while we’re out here.”

I nod at him, understanding their logic, but still feeling so uneasy. To my surprise, Peter comes to sit on the bed next to Seth and places his hand on mine.

“Molly, I am the King of Werewolves, preparing to hand the throne to you and my son, and this is the heir to the throne. If anything happens to him, the next won’t be as strong. It’s unfortunate, but that’s just how werewolves work,” he says, giving me a kind smile. “There’s no chance that I would ever, EVER take a chance at endangering your firstborn son. I truly believe this to be safe, and the safest thing for you as well.”

“I know,” I whisper, trying my hardest to smile at him. I know that he would put the safety of the kingdom before anything, and that includes producing the strongest heir.

“Whatever you decide, it will be the right decision,” Peter tells me. “That’s your pup, and we’ll all support your choice and do whatever it takes to keep you safe.”

“Well, it’s time for everyone to get out,” Audrey says, clapping her hands. “It’s time to get ready for her first official act as a Princess.”

Everyone stands to leave except Seth. “I need to shower,” he says to his mother, making no move to release me.

“You’re going to our room with your dad,” she informs him. “We already moved your stuff there. You should also know that this is the biggest room here.”

“Well, no one really planned for you all to be here,” he says as he releases me, but not before kissing me on the temple. “I’ll be back in an hour.”