I didn't allow myself a second to consider my options. A second donated to thought may cost my mate his life. For my wolf there was only one thing to do. I moved until my small, runt body was between Thorn and the prince.

It was suicide. I knew it. Not only was I significantly smaller than Thorn I was hardly a fighter. My size had always impeded my ability to be violent so I never worked to enhance my skills, only focusing on other areas. My speed was my only useful tactic and I had abandoned it to put myself in the line of attack. In addition to all of this it was five against one. Thorn had noble allies for his cause. A cause that I was evidently against. I was fighting my own battle.

I expected a brutal attack to be instant because I knew the man I was facing off against and he was not a gentle one. I thought that Thorn would lunge for my throat without any hesitation. And after his initial attack his beloved followers would join in. There would be nothing left of me in minutes.

But there was only stillness.

My small body was lowered down in a defensive position with the human prince behind me. My eyes were locked with Thorn's. I wasn't snarling or growling. I didn't want to escalate the situation. But I refused to stand by while mate was mauled. The saying 'over my dead body' seemed to fit the situation very well.

Thorn's fore legs were lowered as well, but it wasn't out of defense. He was the attacker. And in this case he had all the power. I was weaker and feeble, protecting someone who couldn't fight while he had always been a fierce warrior. But he wasn't making a move. At least not yet. He just kept his eyes on mine, his hackles raised, and his jagged teeth exposed. He wasn't lunging for my jugular but he wasn't backing down either.

Because he refused to step down the two males who followed him so closely continued to have an intense grasp on both of Griffin's wrists. Though my mate refused to let out a true sound of pain I could hear the way his breathing shifted each time one of the wolves adjusted their jaws, digging deeper into his skin. And they weren't even attacking him. His human flesh would be no match for their vicious instincts. I could hear the slight panting from fear as well. He knew there were few ways we could get out of this alive.

My ears flickered as movement arose from beside me. A small, shy brown wolf took hesitant steps towards me. I refused to break eye contact with Thorn, but my ears were fully focused on Hunter as he crept to us. And slowly, ever so timidly, he came closer. Always so passive and wary, forever the peacekeeper. Just as I thought he was about to nudge me, to try to get me to calm down or back down, he positioned himself beside me, with me. Though he was terrified he was facing Thorn head on. He was defying his leader on my behalf.

Thorn's contained demeanor suddenly slipped, seeming to be betrayed by Hunter. The low rumbling that had been emitting from his chest switched to a louder, sharper bark. He leapt forward, closing half the distance between us.

I refused to back down. I held my position steady, scared, but stationary.

It was Hunter who let out a soft whimper. Though I knew he was trying his hardest to face this threat head on he had never been a fighter either. And it was that soft, helpless sound that caused Thorn's violent barking to cease.

He stayed still for a moment. His curled lips lowered, covering his sharp teeth and the cruel and forceful expression in his eyes shifted to something softer, something I couldn't read and didn't see often. We all watched him for a moment. Then, he gave his large, wolf head a shake and turned away from us.

As I let out the breath I had been holding I heard the two large males gradually release my mate. Though Thorn had clearly given up for the time being the pair seemed uncertain if they should let go of their newly found prisoner. It wasn't a common occurrence that the prince was found helpless in the middle of the forest and it seemed too perfect to be true for a pack like this. Between the rarity of the situation and the confusing transition in Thorn's demeanor there was reasonable hesitation. Eventually, they backed away completely.

"Oh God." Griffin hissed, presumably cradling his damaged wrists. I didn't bother to look.

Hunter's eyes moved towards my mate, seeming more uncomfortable with the human he had defended than with an angry leader snarling in his face. Then his attention was on me for a brief moment. In that instant I wished he was in human form so he could tell me all the thoughts that were so clearly whirling within his head. It was so evident to me that he was torn with the predicament I had put him in. I wanted to sort through all the tormenting thoughts with him and explain my reasoning. But I couldn't.

It had always been obvious that Thorn was the hard, but strong leader and I was the kinder one who softened all of the rough edges out. He loved both of us. Now the question seemed to be which of us did he need more?

But I was playing for the other side now. a side he had learned to hate. Hunter began following the pack that had once been my family.

For the briefest second I debated following him. As much as I was against the ideology they harbored now I knew nothing but the life we had found together for the past seven years. I wasn't used to palaces and guards. I was more comfortable with sleeping under a sky full of stars than eating at a massive dinner table with servants always hovering around. And I wanted to stay with those who had become my family when I had lost everything. Unfortunately, I knew that if I followed them Thorn might actually follow through with his previous threats and actually attack both me and my mate. Hunter wouldn't be brave like that again.

"We are going back to the palace, Lettie." Griffin stated, almost like he could see the indecision on my face. His tone was sharp enough to surprise me and when I meant his eyes I was baffled by the anger that had filled them. A mere second ago I could sense how distressed he was.

I didn't argue.

After longing for my mate for such an extensive period of time it was almost impossible to imagine that this was how our reunion would be. Bitter, cold, and anything but loving. But Griffin's firm silence as we progressed in the opposite direction from my pack spoke well enough. I had crossed a line. I had upset him deeply and maybe even hurt him. I would've loved to shift into my human form in an effort to elicit a response from him, but I had torn my dress to shreds and it was over a kilometer away at this point. For now, I would have to remain in wolf form and hushed.

With each step we took back towards the palace I had a growing sense that we were not alone. For a while, it was merely a notion I harbored in my mind and perhaps false hope. The idea that my mate had put himself in such danger without any reinforcements seemed terrifying to the point that I deemed it unrealistic. He was the prince, after all, I doubted he could leave the palace grounds alone.

It took some time, but eventually I was right. The guards hid themselves well, masking their scent with the use of mud, floral scents, and fast flowing streams. They had kept their distance as well. They were far enough not to be detected, but if something had happened I'm sure that Griffin could've been quite injured before any of these guards had reached him. The distance was too great to be covered quickly in the event of an emergency. I wondered if it was his idea that they stay so far away or theirs. It seemed foolish either way. This whole situation would've been avoided if Griffin had revealed his guards and sent Thorn running or scared him into submission.

When the whole team banded together it must've been about ten guards. The majority of them were in human form with long swords strapped to their bodies though a couple were in wolf form. It seemed odd that they would prefer to use such weapons over their natural ones. I didn't doubt that some of them were unable to shift, though which lead to the need of metal swords.

When King Archer had decided to make a separate kingdom, pulling away from the human realm, it wasn't a clean break. Men and women who had worked in the castle for years could not be left behind simply because they were human. They were given the choice to join the new kingdom despite their differences or return to the human kingdoms in hopes that they would be accepted. Many guards were too invested financially and emotionally in the werewolf kingdom to leave and many subjects refused to be led by a human after years of following a werewolf. It only made sense that there were still a few guards and subjects who were human all these years later.

Thankfully, there was no need for the swords as we moved through the dense forest that was filled with beasts and villains.

We walked for hours. I was still moderately exhausted from the wild treks that Thorn had appointed, but now my mate was demanding the same thing. And just like Thorn I wanted to keep the peace more than I wanted to rest so I continued on with my head down. I was only grateful that my little makeshift pack didn't focus all of our travel on moving away from the palace. Though we changed locations often we remained relatively close to our primary target which seemed wonderful now.

By the time we reached the palace ground my feet were tender and I was beyond drained. I felt like I was dragging my body along and the guards appeared to be in the same state. Rest was all I wanted. But some part of me still didn't want to enter the palace though I knew a comfortable bed was waiting for me. I knew that Griffin and I would have to talk eventually. And judging by the continued silence I could only imagine that it wouldn't be a very pleasant conversation. Unfortunately, there seemed to be no way I could avoid the confrontation without causing further disagreements. I simply had to accept the consequences for my actions now.

My tension grew as the guards fell away from us. One by one the exhausted men would abandon the group, heading towards their homes, the stables, or anywhere they assumed the prince wouldn't go. As each one of them left my anxiety increased, knowing that this hard confrontation I was dreading was only coming closer by the second.

We entered the palace and he didn't demand that I shift which surprised me until I remembered I still didn't have any clothing. Being in wolf form was much more acceptable than being nude I suppose. Now, no one seemed bothered by my wolf trudging up and down the impeccably clean palace hallways but it only made me more uncomfortable. It was clear that I was deeply out of place. Griffin said nothing about my state and didn't speak or smile at any of the staff which was incredibly unlike him.

For a second I thought I captured a familiar scent, but then I reminded myself that I was only trying to make myself feel better about the situation ahead.

We reached my room and I balked slightly when he opened the door. After a breath I slipped inside. I knew the conversation was coming but I didn't want to spur his anger by refusing his clear requests.

"Agatha," Griffin addressed, his voice cold and almost rude, "She needs a bath."

He spoke like I was a mutt who had stumbled upon a skunk.

Then the bedroom door was closed without another word and I could only stare at the floor in shame. The heavy sound of the locking clicking filled the room.

"Oh child." Agatha whispered, moving towards me with empathy, "What have you done?"

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