May Death Do Us Part

Chapter 57

57 Chapter 57 : Do you believe in werewolves?

This Chapter is dedicated to DaoistACYox8 for giving this book its first golden ticket.. I was so excited when I saw it omg thank you so much!!!******The silver haired wolf jumped back and then immediately slid to the left, avoiding the arrows that had been launched towards him. His heart felt like it was being ripped out of his chest as he watched Ella move further and further away from him until he could no longer see the horses.As Zander and Roland turned their horses around, now fairly certain that some distance had been made between the others and them, Roland placed one more arrow on his bow and launched it towards the silver wolf, this time landing a hit on its shoulder.The two men then galloped away, leaving behind the wolf that had plummeted to the ground. The silver beast began to transform, the sound of cracking bones and tearing ligaments were audible as the beast reduced in size. It’s hind legs straightened, it’s long silver fur shriveled away leaving only traces atop a handsome head, it’s claws and fangs suck back in, and it’s long ears shrunk.Nathan weakly pushed himself up, supporting himself on all fours as he winced in pain from the arrow that was lodged into his shoulder. He grabbed the arrow and forcibly yanked it out with a loud growl, his eyes looked back up towards the palace gates, Adam was long gone, and he had taken his wife with him.*Damn it!*Suddenly, Nathaniel felt someone drape something over him, covering his almost naked body. His transformation had reduced his previous clothing to small shreds of cloth that hang loosely over his muscular body. He looked beside him wondering who the Good Samaritan was who had come to his aid.”Theo?”The butler squat down beside the silver haired prince, he picked up the arrow that Nathan had removed from his shoulder and examined it, “it’s not silver, neither is it poisoned,” Theo spoke calmly, “you’ll live your grace, that wound will probably be completely gone by nightfall.”Nathan eyed the butler in total shock, what was going on right now? Theo placed Nathaniel’s hand over his shoulders and helped him up, “you need to rest now, that must have taken a whole lot out of you.””But Ella..””We will go after her your grace, but not now,” Theo spoke, “I have much to tell you, you’ll understand everything soon enough, but first you must rest.”Nathan wanted to retaliate but he didn’t have the energy to do so, his entire body was sore and he felt exceptionally tired. Resting for a bit didn’t seem like such a bad idea.As they walked back to the palace, Nathan couldn’t help but notice some of the guards who were staring at him, terror and confusion written all over their faces. He couldn’t blame them though, they had just witnessed the crowned prince turn into a monster, their minds were probably so conflicted right now.”Don’t pay any heed to them your grace,” Theo spoke as if reading Nathaniel’s mind, “I will take care of it later.”All Nathan could do was nod, what was going on with his butler? Shouldn’t he be running and screaming after what he had just witnessed? Why was he so calm and collected? As if he had expected something of that sort to happen. And why did it seem like he knew something Nathan didn’t?*After riding for hours, Adam and his men had finally reached the outer shires of Meria, these consisted of very small farming areas and were the furthest from the capital. The people of these shires mostly lived simple and secluded lives, never involved in politics of the kingdom, never taking interest in what occurred in the capital, and no one ever bothered them. They didn’t even have a governing lord, they were a freelance people, and this was actually very common in most outer shires of the kingdoms of Ronia Cresus.”Your grace!” Beric called out to Adam as they rode, “we should stop and find somewhere to camp! We’ve been on the road for hours, soon the horses will give out!””No! We keep going! What if Nathan and his men are after us?!” Adam responded, “We can’t afford to get caught!”Beric shook his head, he should have expected that, Adam was very stubborn, but his stubbornness was going to cost them if they didn’t give the horses a break. The Merian skies were already painted in deep hues of red and orange, indicating that dusk was fast approaching. They had been on the road for too long at such a speed.Cradled up against Adam’s chest, Ella began to feel dizzy, she was extremely exhausted and her legs felt numb. She had never endured such a long and rough journey on horseback. Back in Meria, her and Nathan would go for an hour tops on horseback and she’d always complain about her legs and they would head back. So this to Ella was unbearable, especially in her current outfit.Adam felt Ella’s body sway a bit to the left, he grabbed the reins of the horse with his right hand and secured Ella with his left. “Hey, what’s wrong?!” His voice was panicked when he felt her body going limp.The prince pulled the reins of his steed and halted his horse, he jumped off and slid Ella off the animal into his arms. Beric, Odran, Ivan and Ozias also slowed down and eventually came to a stop. They dismounted their horses and walked towards Adam.”What happened? Is she sick?” Ivan questioned the prince who had gotten down on his knees and rested Ella’s head on his lap.”No, she’s just tired,” Adam responded, “I should have considered that she’s not used to this kind of journey, she’s completely knocked out.””Oh thank the gods..” Ivan mattered under his breath, earning an angry glare from Adam. “I’m not happy that she’s knocked out or anything,” Ivan explained in defense, “its just that we’ve been on the road for hours and personally, I felt like my nuts would craw up my stomach if we kept moving like that.””Ivan is right,” Ozias added on, “despite his colorful choice of words, we all need to rest, it’s been a long day.”Adam looked down at Ella who was fast asleep, or passed out, he really couldn’t tell. He gently stroked her cheek and nodded, “very well, we’ll take a rest. But not out in the open like this, we need to find shelter.”Odran pointed at the little cottages that were visible a few meters away from where they were, “I’m sure we can find an inn there,” he spoke, “we can rest and feed the horses. Our journey can resume tomorrow.”The group nodded in unison and one by one all mounted their horses and rode slowly towards the small settlement. Adam moved the slowest, making sure Ella couldn’t slip out of his arms and fall, he felt a little guilty for putting her through all of this. He gently kissed the top of her unconscious head and whispered, “bare with me just a bit longer, everything will be okay soon enough.”*Nathan found himself opening his eyes in confusion, after Theo had cleaned his wound and given him something to eat, he couldn’t remember what had happened. He sat up and realized that he was in his chambers, and looking at the lit candles and flickering fire in the fireplace, it was late into the evening. He must have fallen asleep, no, he must have passed out for over four hours.Nathan reached for his wounded shoulder but was surprised to feel that his wound was completely healed, there wasn’t even a scar to show that he had been injured. He looked down at the palms of his hands, wondering what kind of creature he was.Moments later, his door creaked open and Theo walked in with a tray of food. He placed the tray on a small table next to Nathaniel’s bed and sat on the sofa next to it.”How are you feeling your grace?”The silver haired prince rubbed his shoulder and bobbed his head up and down, “I’m fine Theo.””That’s good,” the man spoke. He then proceeded to pouring a cup of wine and handing it to the prince.Nathan looked at the cup skeptically before returning his gaze to his butler, “I don’t need wine Theo, I need answers, what is going on with me? And when can I go and get back my wife from-“”Trust me, you’ll need wine for what I’m about to tell you,” the butler explained.Nathan narrowed his eyes at the man before accepting the wine and taking a big sip, immediately he felt his tense muscles loosen up a bit. What ever that transformation was that he had undergone, it had really taken a tow on him, he felt like he had been run over by a carriage.”Tell me your grace,” Theo spoke, “do you believe in werewolves?”