Andrea Cremer - Bloodrose

Sabine had followed the curving corridor to the first level’s entrance to the garden. I had an eerie sense of déjà vu, having taken this very path myself last night. I peered through the glass doors, but the garden had bloomed into its full, lush glory in the two days since the Weavers had moved the Academy to Italy. Hanging vines, fruit trees, and thick hedges blocked my view.

I slipped into the garden, shifting into wolf form so I could prowl the paths on silent paws. Guilt nipped at my heels, but I couldn’t fight off the suspicion that something important was about to happen in this garden-something that affected my pack. As an alpha, I had to know.

Moving along the path, close to the hedges so I wouldn’t be spotted, I followed what I thought was the sound of voices. Quiet, but persistent, like the bubbling sound of a distant stream. I’d almost reached the heart of the garden when I caught sight of two figures. Their bodies gleamed ghostly silver in the bright veil cast by the near-full moon. I tucked myself against the trunk of the nearest tree, letting the shadows cloak me.

Sabine paused in front of the stone bench where Ethan was sitting. Ethan continued to sharpen his dagger; he didn’t look up.

“You can’t do it forever, you know,” she said.

“Do what?” He kept his eyes down; the dagger’s blade seemed to glow in the moonlight.

“Ignore me.”

“It’s nothing personal.”

“Of course it is.”

His shoulders hunched slightly at her words, but he didn’t speak.

A rustling of the bushes on the other side of the tree caught my attention. I had to bite down on my tongue so I wouldn’t yelp when a brown wolf slunk from the undergrowth.

Calla?

I bared my teeth at Shay. What are you doing out here? As much as I wanted time alone with Shay, this wasn’t how I’d envisioned it.

I was going to ask you the same thing. When you left dinner, I thought you might be sick and I wanted to make sure you were okay. Then when I saw you go into wolf form outside the garden, I wondered what was up.

My ears flattened. Nothing. Get out of here.

He tilted his brown-furred head at me, green eyes curious and intent.

“I just want to talk with you.” Sabine’s words cut through the night air.

Ethan didn’t move; she stood silently. Waiting.

Shay’s ears flicked as her voice reached us. Is that Sabine? He took a step forward. And Ethan?

Get down! I nipped at his shoulder.

Hey! He bared his teeth, but a moment later his tongue lolled out. You’re spying on them.

I flashed my own canines. Don’t be ridiculous.

That’s a pretty pathetic attempt at denial, Cal. He turned and bellied back into the brush. Besides, there’s a much better hiding place over here. You’ll get spotted for sure where you’re standing.

I stared as his brown body disappeared into the dark foliage. A moment later I scuttled over the ground after him.

Our bodies pressed together amid the thick branches. I let myself snuggle into his fur, enjoying the way our scents blended in the night air. It reminded me of our first adventures together as wolves. Long night hunts after which we’d eat our fill and then curl up together for a nap beneath the shelter of a pine tree or tucked under the huge trunk of a fallen tree. Watching the golden brown wolf beside me, my heart twinged with longing for that freedom. The uninterrupted hours where the wilderness and the world belonged only to us.

Inch over a little more; I can’t see. I pushed my muzzle against his shoulder, making the excuse to wriggle even closer to him.

I knew you were spying. He edged farther into the hollow, nipping my jaw affectionately.

Be quiet; I want to know what’s going on. But as I peered at the pale silhouettes of Ethan and Sabine, I rested my head on Shay’s forepaws. He laid his chin on the back of my neck, giving my ear a playful lick.

Why do you care what they’re doing anyway?

Because it’s Sabine and Ethan.

Good point.

Ethan had finally lifted his chin to look at Sabine, whose hands rested on her hips as she watched him.

He sheathed the dagger and sighed. “Fine. What do you want to talk to me about?”

“I’d like you to stop avoiding me.”

“I’m not avoiding you.” He sat up a little straighter.

“Really?” Sabine smiled thinly. “You could have fooled me.”

Ethan stood up and walked along the path away from her.

Sabine’s bell-like laughter rang through the night air. “See, you’re doing it right now.”

He turned, shaking his head. “I’m not much for company. Particularly the company of wolves.”

“I see.” She followed his retreat toward the rosebushes, heavy with red blooms turned black by the shadows. “So that’s why you’re working so hard at it.”

He stopped and frowned at her. “I’m sorry?”

“You’re doing everything you can to stay away from me, even though it’s not what you want.”

His own laugh was harsh, but his words had an edge of fear. “Since when do you know what I want?”

“I know every time you look at me.”

Whoa. Shay scooted closer to the edge of the bushes.

Shhh! I nipped at his shoulder, but a heartbeat later I moved up beside him.

Ethan stood frozen in place. Sabine took another step toward him.

“Spending time with me isn’t a betrayal of your brother,” she said.

He jerked back. “How did you-”

“Tess told me,” she interrupted. “I think she’s concerned about you.”

“That’s none of her business,” he said, voice shaking. “She shouldn’t get involved.”

“I don’t think she wants to get involved.” Sabine’s voice curled like smoke in the night air. “That’s where I come in.”

He stared at her, wild-eyed, looking like a rabbit caught in a snare. She reached out and rested her palm in the center of his chest.

“I’m not so different from you, Ethan. No matter what you might think. Feel how your heart is racing?”

He stared at her slender fingers and nodded.

Her other hand grasped his and pressed it against her breastbone. She didn’t take her eyes off his face. “So is mine.”

A sound emerged from his throat, a sharp cry somewhere between pleasure and pain. Their two silhouetted bodies became a single, dark tangle of limbs when he reached out and pulled Sabine against him, kissing her.

A low chuckle filled my mind. That’s our cue. Let’s go.

But… I was staring at the entwined pair, entranced by the scene while knowing it wasn’t my place to watch any more.

Come on, Cal. Shay’s teeth gently grasped the ruff of my neck. Your questions are answered. Would you have been happy if anyone saw our night in the garden?

I fought the urge to snarl at him. I’m coming, okay, stop pulling me. I’m not a puppy.

Behind us, I heard Ethan’s low groan and I flushed beneath my fur.

See. Shay crawled from the brush in the direction of the garden’s entrance.

We stole from the garden on silent paws. When we were safely in the shadowed doorway, we both shifted forms and slipped inside the Academy.

“War makes strange bedfellows.” Shay grinned. “Good for them.”

“I guess.”

“You don’t approve?”

“It’s just a little weird.” I frowned. “A Searcher and a Guardian?”

“It’s not the first time,” he countered. “Monroe and Corrine-”

“Are both dead,” I interjected, still troubled by what I’d seen. I wanted to be happy for them, but the loves I’d seen here had all ended in horrible loss. And the battle of our lives was ahead. I was afraid for Sabine and Ethan. I was afraid for all of us.