The forests of Faria were so much bigger and taller than I had ever imagined. The trees seemed to reach to the skies. It was an illusion of course, but my surroundings made me feel so much smaller than I was.

Kirigan had taken the lead. The man was the oldest in the group, in his forties I believed, but he had not a single gray strand in his dirty blond hair. I could see it in his eyes though, and his face was weathered and rough looking. That man had seen a lot in his life. And as a result he took a fatherly stance to the rest of us. As he did now, leading us forward into the unknown.

We had been walking the whole day, following a dirt road which we thought would lead to some form of civilization. I wasn't the only one who'd been surprised to see a road and I felt bad for even assuming they didn't have them in Faria. What would Mathew say if he knew what I was thinking? I chuckled to myself—he would probably laugh and tickle me into oblivion. He wouldn't get offended, that I was sure of.

"My lord." The soldier named Kalim cleared his throat and stopped me.

Suddenly I felt self conscious, had he seen me daydream and snicker to myself? "Yes?"

"Are you sure we'll be welcomed here?" He continued and looked over my shoulder into the thick vegetation behind me.

"My husband, Sir Rillon, is their Alpha and I'm sure they'll be wanting to know what's going on in our city, and what's happened to him," I answered as I peered at the dark haired man. He had the same features as Angela and I wondered if their homeland was the same. Kalim nodded at me, but my words lacked confidence and I didn't help the situation at all, so I added, "and help us save him and the others."

Hearing this he gave me a look that was full of pity. In their minds we were seeking refuge from common enemies, but in my head we were searching for allies to take back what was taken from me.

"One step at the time," Angela whispered and gave me a quick hug as she walked past me. "First of all we need to find them."

We continued our walk in silence. The road seemed to run along the forest edge, just out of reach from the wall, but still giving the travelers a good chance to spot any enemies trying to breach the border. As we walked I started to wonder, the people here were part wolves. They had different bodies, different senses even in their human form. Maybe we needed a different strategy?

"Kirigan," I called and waited for him to slow down so I could jog up to him. "When I was a child I was thought to stay put if I was lost in the woods."

He peered thoughtfully at me but nodded. "That is a good strategy indeed. It would be harder to find a moving child in a big forest."

"Don't you think the pack has scouts or guards patrolling the roads?" To be fair it was more of a statement than a question so I didn't wait for him to answer. "The people here have a great sense of smell, and hearing. I think we should just stay put, make a lot of noise, put on a spicy stew and wait."

Kirigan peered tiredly at me, then looked at Angela for some sort of reaction but she seemed to agree with me. "We can give it a go, but we won't stay here for too long My King. Remember, your safety is my responsibility."

I gave him a smile and a nod, eager to rest my legs for more than a few hours this time.

"If anyone knows the autonomy of the Lycans, It's Adrian," Angela chuckled and gave me a teasing wink.

"I'm sure you wouldn't dare say that to my husband's face," I countered, but her smile only widened.

"I'm sure Mathew would love my joke," she said confidently, and we both knew she was right.

We soon found a spot suitable for a camp. I sat down and watched as everyone around me began doing their chores, Daniel and Young went to pick firewood, Kalim searched the bags for food. Angela stood watch and Kirigan did Kirigan things. And me? Well, I was back to being treated as a king and I was forced to sit and wait for a fire to be lit and food to be made. They wouldn't allow me to partake in any of it. My body needed the rest, so why did I mind? Because I felt useless sitting alone on a tree trunk with only my thoughts as company.

It didn't take them too long before a well seasoned stew was boiling over a fire. The men had made sure to bring a lot of supplies from their camp and I was truly grateful for it. Young had even snared a hare and the scent of fresh meat made my stomach growl.

As king I was given the largest plate, and the most tender pieces of meat. I felt bad, but accepted it. I had to or they would feel uncomfortable. It was just the way things were. As time passed and their nerves seemed to be settling down, conversations sparked amongst them and eventually they had the courage to address me.

"What news do you have from the capitol, Lord?" David asked as he finished his meal. Noticing the worry in his eyes I weighed my words carefully.

"Do you have family there?"

"We all do," Kalim answered lowly as he peered into the fire. "I left my homeland to create a better future for them, but we went from one war to another." There was no anger in his voice, no emotions at all. The sign of a defeated husband and father.

I didn't know what to say. I wished I could tell them about the bright future I had planned for but I had a feeling it would sound like a foolish daydream to them. "I have no idea what's going on in the capitol right now to be honest. Before Roland's attack there were plans to take the battle elsewhere..."

"Roland must have known we would have won, why else did he change his plans to overthrow you in your home instead of on the battlefield?"

Kirigans words made sense, but he didn't know the man like I did. "I fear it was his goal from the start. The planning of the battle was only a way to keep our minds set on a mission and divert our gaze from the truth."

"That he was planning a coup."

"I'm not sure," Angela muttered. "I think he was on our side at one point, but when he realized he had lost you to Rillon he decided to kill the competition and convince you to take him back to keep the throne."

I laughed out loud, "that's crazy Angie."

"Is it? Really? For some reason he's been obsessed with you from day one. He's clearly mentally ill. If it wasn't for the fact that the ambassadors visited you I would even doubt the threat is real. What if he lied about everything and hired them?"

"Angela... stop," I pleaded.

"Yes," Kirigan agreed, "let's be rational, we're not helped by conspiracy theories."

The quiet one, Young decided to speak up when everyone else fell silent."I was stationed under Sir Roland once. He seemed like a good guy. Maybe he was influenced?"

"Blackmailed?"

"Or magic?"

Kirigan sighed once more, "enough! Young. Daniel. Take a walk. Check our surroundings." The younger men quickly stood on their feet and walked off. As soon as they were out of earshot the older man turned to me, "get some rest My Lord, we will take turns keeping watch."

I was quite used to sleeping outdoors by now and my body was too exhausted to feel the sticks and stones poking my muscles. The blanket was keeping me relatively warm and the trees felt protective around me. For once I didn't have any nightmares and when I woke up I felt more relaxed than I had in a while.

"Good morning."

The unfamiliar voice pulled me out of my thoughts and I instantly jumped to my feet.

"Who are you?" I called out to the man who was seated calmly by our fire and smiled back at me.

"I will tell you, but first I must know... why is my Alphas scent on you?"

I was perplexed by his statement but it wasn't the time for questions. "I am Adrian of Gera. Mathew Rillons husband."

The tall and blond man's lips widened to a grin. "I suspected as much." Shortly after he signaled towards the thick vegetation and six men appeared with my guards held tightly in their grips. "Release them."

My eyes widened. "Wait, you managed to sneak up on them all," I snickered and cast a teasing glance at Angela. "Even my spymaster."

The man shrugged and seemed unbothered, but then he cleared his throat and bowed his head slightly. "If you don't mind me asking, King Adrian of Gera, Is Alpha not with you?"

My eyes instantly fell to the floor and I could feel the energy in the air shift around me. Muscles tensed and breaths were held as they waited for my answer.

Before I began my story I lifted my head to meet the blue eyes of the man before me, and in them I could see the wolf within him. "The leader of my army turned on me, they captured every Lycan and sympathizer of mine. Angela managed to get me out of the castle before Sir Roland came for me."

"Captured or killed?"

"Captured," Angela quickly added. "I watched as the soldiers escorted them to the cells in the dungeons."

The man who had not yet presented himself nodded a few times, "let's move swiftly then. Eric will want to hear this." And shortly after our first meeting, I was riding on the blond man's wolf as he sprinted through the forest leaving the rest of the group behind.