The door shut behind her.
I am going to see Ronan… When it’s dark. Does that mean I am staying for the evening?
"How far away is it from here?” Rem asked, hugging herself, wearing a simple—but thin—dress. She should have grabbed something thicker when changing earlier.
"Oh, sorry, let’s go grab a fur first… You look freezing. I’ll get you more clothes when we get to the Warden residence," Nia said, quickly going back into the home, her long braids moving behind her back. She re-emerged after only a few seconds, carrying a black fur shawl.
Rem draped it over her shoulders, which helped greatly. It was the same texture as the one on the chair, but much smaller. "So, what kind of fur is this? I haven’t seen this on an animal before."
Nia hurried them along, shrugging her shoulders as they passed others. "Probably another shifter wolf. Some shifters collect the pelts of their enemies, too. It robs them of being one with the ghost trees."
"Uh, what?" Rem said, looking down at the fur hanging over her shoulders.
She wore the skin and fur of a dead shifter.
“Oh, don’t worry. It’s common. The fur goes to waste if the shifter doesn’t get a ghost tree. We really must go, though. Ronan won’t want you returning after the sun sets.”
Rem, urged on by thoughts of Ronan, moved forward with Nia, wondered justwhothe fur belonged to. It was odd to think about pelts in terms of'who'and not'what'.
Then, she imagined wearing Jackson’s pelt, a slick temptation slithering in her veins in the most selfish of reasonings. Witches had no tolerance for selfish endeavors. But Rem didn't live with the witches anymore.
She could punish her enemies now.
The corner of her mouth gently crooked upwards.
“So, you said that taking the fur of an enemy robs them of a tree?” Rem asked, falling out of her reverie, keeping her pace with Nia.
“When we die, we burn our bodies and plant a tree with the ashes in the Ghost Woods. Every pack has a Ghost Woods. They consist of these ghost trees, which grow really tall and fast, and the leaves glow in the moonlight.”
“Huh, kind of morbid,” Rem muttered. “Also, kind of interesting. Can I ever see one?”
“Probably! It’s not polite to go to another pack’s Ghost Woods, unless you have family or friends growing there. So, if not here, definitely back in Warden.”
A leaf drifted in front of them, and this one was more yellow than the rest. It made her think of home and apple trees, and she hoped her parents were doing alright with the harvest.They’re probably worried about other things…
Rem numbed such thoughts, which was just about the only thing she could do to keep her sanity.
The two continued to walk as Rem played out more imaginary scenarios, allowing the ambient noise of Scarlet Howl to fill in the silence between them. Would Ronan make a statement and have Rem sleep in his residence? Should she make it apparent that she wanted to compete for him? Should she ask Nia to help her?
Her pulse pounded in her neck anytime an image of the Alpha lingered too long in her mind.
They veered off into a wooded trail, the trees just as tall and dense as when they walked to the Elder’s area. Except now, it was just the two of them, and the sun was setting, the bustling noise of Scarlet behind them.
"So, why the woods again? It’s so quiet now," Rem said.
"We are going the back way. The Elders have told Scarlet guards that if they see a Silver out past sunset, to take you back. There aren't guards on these trails, as they belong to Warden—oh, no, don't look worried! Thereareguards once we reach the Warden gates, but they'll let us in since they belong to Ronan. This cuts the time in half, and I couldn’t figure out how to get horses to the townhouse without looking suspicious.”
“Won’t Loral know, though?”
“Ronan was very specific in his orders. He wanted the Elders to know, but only once we left. So, I think Loral will help fill in those gaps,” Nia said, grinning, clearly proud of her plans.
Rem groaned. It was important to avoid grabbing Fiona’s attention, and thiscertainlywould—wandering in the woods, at dusk, to see an Alpha... And yet, she didn’t protest. Ronan felt like the bridge that would help her cross the steep valley of magic, politics, and betrayals of this paranormal world.
Plus, wasn’t this what Fiona wanted?
Rem rolled her eyes—of course, it was. But Ronan didn’t know that. No one did.
The hour of twilight greeted them as the sky darkened; blazing torches guided them along the dirt path. They passed by other trails, which Nia said led to the homes of other Alphas, although they were spread miles apart. Giant paw prints imprinted in the dirt, leading in a myriad of directions.I guess traveling miles as a large wolf wouldn't take very long.
