The rain seemed to stop as soon as I said my prayer, and the moon came out of hiding. There was a still of promise in the air in which the Moon Goddess told me that she was going to help me keep my promise and that the king would be safe.

I breathed a sigh of relief and dipped my head in thanks before I cleared my throat and moved a hand across my face, trying to figure out the best way to get him back to the kingdom so that he could be helped.

Conner cleared his throat, and I looked at him to see that he looked between us with something in his eyes that I couldn't explain. He looked at me, and the pain and sadness was evident in his eyes while he studied me for a moment.

"Yes?" I asked and raised an eyebrow. I shifted a little in front of the king, making sure that I was in his way, even though a part of me knew that he wouldn't harm the king for whatever reason. "What is it? What do you want?"

Conner cleared his throat again and bowed his head, making sure that his gaze was towards the two of us. "Do you want to take the Hummer?" he asked and gestured to the car that was left behind. "I can help you load him in it, and you can drive back to wherever you need to go so that he can be looked after."

I hesitated and narrowed my eyes at the man that I was supposed to call my uncle. I had no idea what he was implying, what his reasoning was, and I wasn't sure if I trusted him enough to know where the kingdom lies.

"There are no strings attached," he said and shook his head, "and I will not follow you to wherever you go. My family will not either, so you do not have to worry about that."

Again, I stayed silent before I looked at Riser when he snorted.

My horse shook his head as if to say no, and I shook my head too while I looked at Conner.

"Thanks, but no thanks," I said. "However, you might be able to help me put him on the back of Riser. I think that might be the easiest way to get him back to his home besides using the Hummer." I licked my lips and cleared my throat while I looked away before I looked at him. "It'd cause unrest amongst the pack if I use the Hummer, and I don't want to do that by accident."

Conner hesitated but nodded. '"Then allow me to help you put him on the horse," he said. He paused and looked at Riser before he looked at me. "And how are we going to do that?" he asked and raised an eyebrow question.

"Riser, come here," I said and gestured to my other side, and my horse was instantly there, making sure not to step on me or the king. "Lay down so that we can get him on you easier. Ok?"

Riser eyed Conner before he snorted and shook his head as if to say no. He tapped the ground, and I rolled my eyes when he tapped out "no."

"Riser, come on," I said, mentally groaning. "We have to hurry. I can't lose the king, and he's the only help that we have to get him on you so that we can go. I don't want to cause them panic by taking the Hummer, and there is no other way. Please, lay down so that we can get him on your back. Please."

Riser grumbled but did what I asked and laid down. He kept his eyes on Conner, and I knew that he would protect me and attack him if I was threatened in any way. His ears were close to the back of his head, but he didn't try anything yet, much to my relief.

I bit back a sigh of relief, grateful that he did what I asked and looked at Conner. "Can you help, please?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper and Conner nodded instantly.

"I can," he said. He cleared his throat and looked at the king before he looked at me. "What do you want me to do?"

I licked my lips and cleared my throat while I looked between the king and my horse and then at Conner. "Can you grab him under one arm? I will grab him under the other arm, and hopefully we should be able to put him on Riser that way."

Conner nodded and looked at the gun near my side before he looked at me. "What do you want to do with the gun?" he asked, and I narrowed my eyes and scowled, my suspicions growing.

"Are you planning on using it on us?" I asked with a slight warning in my tone, and Conner's eyes instantly went wide before he shook his head no.

"Of course not," he said, his voice shaking just a little. "I was not planning on using it on either of you. You have my word." He cleared his throat and shifted on his feet while he bowed. "However, I wanted to make sure that you weren't going to use it on me, either."

I shook my head no. "If I had wanted to kill you, then I would have killed you already." I hesitated but grabbed the gun, made sure that the safety was on, and that the gun was disengaged before I held it out to him. "But here, I believe that this is yours."

Conner shook his head and took a step back and away from me. "Keep it," he said gently. "I am sure that you are like your father and like to use a bow and an arrow, but sometimes it is best to have a gun."

"But I can't have a gun like this," I said and gestured to the gun. "I don't want to give him a reason to hate me."

Even though he already does...

The man that was supposed to be my uncle slowly nodded, and a look of pain or pity filled his eyes. He didn't say a single word while he walked over to me and grabbed the gun.

Slowly, he inspected it, something flashing through his eyes before he put the gun back into the hostler on his belt, without saying a word.

"Are you ready?" I asked when Conner looked at me, and he nodded in confirmation. I cleared my throat and nodded. "Ok, then, get on his other side, and we will lift on three."

Conner did what I said and walked to the other side of the king. He stayed silent and looked at me before he looked at the king, looking nervous about being this close to someone like him.

"Are you ok?" I asked and looked at him. I took the cloak off of the king before I moved a hand through his fur, glad that he was still warm and alive. "He's... still passed out, so he can't hurt you..."

And he can't hurt me either...

Conner pressed his lips into a thin line before he hesitated and nodded. "A little nervous," he said honestly. He cleared his throat and did what I asked him to do and grabbed under the king's arms.

I bit back a small laugh and nodded. "Me too," I said and ignored his look before I shook my head and cleared my throat.

I did the same thing and grabbed under his arms too. I took a deep breath and looked at him to see if he was ready.

Conner didn't say a word and nodded. He looked at me before he helped me lift the king over my horse's back. He grunted while he did it, and I understood what he meant because I was also struggling to get the king on my horse's back as well.

Goddess, please give me the strength to help him, I silently prayed while I struggled. Please, I need your help to get him over my horse. I can't do this on my own.

My whole body grew warm, and I shivered as if this strength just filtered through me from somewhere, and I was able to lift the king on my horse with the help of my supposed uncle.

As soon as the king was safely on my horse, Riser snorted and stood, and Conner took a huge step away from him. My horse snorted again and placed his ears on the back of his head while he looked at Conner, and his meaning was clear, leave us the fuck alone.

I held back an eye roll and cleared my throat. "Riser," I said, and my horse looked at me. "Be nice." I looked at Conner. "Thank you for helping," I said and cleared my throat before I looked at the king and put the cloak on him again. "Now, if you'll excuse us, we have to get going and make sure that he stays alive." I looked at him again.

Conner nodded and backed up, giving me space to get on my horse. "Of course," he said. He cleared his throat and looked towards the way that his family had gone before he looked at me. "I'll make sure that you are not followed," he said. "Good luck."

I pressed my lips into a thin line and nodded before I looked around for my dog. "Pippa, come," I said when I couldn't find her right off the bat. "Quickly, please. We don't have time to hide. It's safe. We're alone."

My dog barked once and bounded out of the bush. She whined and looked at me before she ran to the bush and then ran back to me, wanting me to follow her.

I pressed my lips into a further line but nodded, knowing full well that she wouldn't do it if it wasn't important, especially since I said that it was important to move quickly. "Ok, what is it?" I asked and walked over to the bush that she went into again.

"What is it?" Conner asked and was about to walk behind me but was stopped by Riser. "Stupid horse," he said. "I'm not going to hurt her."

I didn't respond and reached into the bush only to feel my bow and the arrow that I had tossed to the side. 'It's fine," I said with a small breathless laugh and pulled them out. "She wanted to let me know that I dropped my bow and arrow in this bush. Good girl." I looked at my dog, and she wagged her tail, looking pleased with herself.

Conner relaxed and watched as I put the bow and arrow away before I picked up my dog and walked over to them. "Are you ready?" he asked, and I nodded in confirmation. "Will you need help getting onto your horse?"

I hesitated before I shook my head. "Can you hold my dog for me, though, please?" I asked. "I can get on him easily if I don't have her in my arms."

Conner nodded and held out his hands for my dog. "Why do you have a Yorkie anyway?" he asked.

"Because I found her on the streets and decided to take her in," I replied and gave her to him. I bit back a grin when I saw how hesitant she was to be in the arms of a stranger.

Conner looked at her, and I could tell that he was hesitant too, but he didn't say a word while I got on my horse, being careful of the king. He watched me get on and get settled before he handed me Pippa. "Good luck, Belle," he said, and I nodded in thanks.

I looked in the direction that his kin went before I looked at him, hesitating. "If you get in trouble with your family, pray to the Moon Goddess. I'm sure that she will help keep you safe, especially since you helped us."

Commer nodded and looked relieved. "I will," he promised. He cleared his throat and looked the way that his family had gone before he looked at me again. "Good luck," he said, and I nodded while I set my jaw.

"You too," I replied. "Stay safe, and thanks again." I offered him a wry smile before I nudged Riser into the direction we had to go and looked at Conner. "Thanks again... Uncle."

And with that, I squeezed Riser's sides, and he started to run as fast as he could to make sure that we could take care of the king before it was too late, leaving my uncle standing there in stunned silence.

Please, don't let us be late, I prayed while we ran. Please.