“Us?” It could simply mean our mate connection, or something much more dangerous. “Does anyone else know what you are?”
“There’s no telling what anyone knows anymore.” He sighed, and unclipped a pair of leather pants from the hanger. “But I don’t plan on finding out. I’m not bringing you back to the castle. It’s not safe. You’re still in heat.”
“The king will listen to reason.” That assumed he cared about my safety, Solen should be able to convince him I’d still be just as wrongly accused when my cycle was done.
Sometimes, I wondered if Zelene catching the attention of His Majesty put us in more danger than we ever were before.
“The king will listen to what he wants to hear. He can have a trial without us.”
“A trial?” This was so much worse than Solen had let on. No wonder he was so rattled. “He wants to put us on trial?”
Royal trials were no joke. I’d been very far removed from some of them as an armory employee, but they put everyone on edge. Justice in the castle always favored the king.
“Adalai thinks it’s good for the pack to see justice served.” He growled. How this man hadn’t shifted yet was beyond me. He’d denied his animal for so long it had him twisted in knots. “But he’s wrong. The pack needs to see that the king isn’t always right.”
“Solen,” I gasped. “You can’t be proposing revolution.”
“No. But we’re not going back there. We’re innocent. We’ll go to—”
“Where?” I put my hand on his arm. Power vibrated through his body. “We’re in the middle of the desert. Half the army’s gone rogue and there’s a bounty on my head. The only places we can go are the Badlands or the Keep. One is full of wolves that are already licking their chops at the prospect of an omega female in heat, and the other would declare victory if they captured the king’s omega general. And this is probably a good time to remind you that you tore the only clothes I had to shreds.”
That got a grin out of him, and he looked human again. Inwardly, I breathed a sigh of relief because now I had a chance of talking some sense into the man.
“We’ll go further than that,” he said.
I shook my head. “We need to go to the castle, Solen.” I let my towel drop, and the way he drank me in gave me the strength I needed to face this. “Running will make it worse. That’s if we make it back to the castle.”
“All those threats you listed wait for us no matter where we go.”
“Right, and if we show a good faith effort to return to the castle, we’ll have the support of the king if we fall into trouble. If we’re caught going somewhere else, the king could look the other way when we need his help the most.”
Solen didn’t say anything. He sat on the edge of the bed, and I joined him. If we weren’t careful, he’d have me pinned down in the tangle of sheets to rut me once again. I wouldn’t complain if it happened, but it would solve absolutely none of our problems. He had to face this. Whatever scared him about this accusation. He had to show the king how strong he really was.
“We’re innocent,” I reminded him. “And the world finding out you’re an omega isn’t the worst thing. Everyone knows the King’s own mother was omega.”
His gaze roamed my body one more time. “Do I carry you naked into Luxoria and have you stand trial while I fight off every male who thinks he can lay his dirty paws on my mate?”
“No.” But that ridiculously all too real scenario gave me an idea. “We arrive as wolves.”
Solen
Chapter Eleven
I entered the code to lock my bunker from the outside and the cover slid over and filled with sand, effectively hiding the opening again. I turned to Ashla, finding her solid gaze. She had already shifted into her wolf, but her eyes remained familiar. The animal was beautiful and sleek, with a coat of gray and brown that fluffed around her baby blues. We were to cross the desert as animals and return to the castle as omegas.
This was it. We were going to face the charges against us. Together.
Ashla was sure we could prove our innocence, but I wasn’t counting it a victory until I saw the so-called evidence. Something must have convinced the king to question my allegiance after so many years.
“Ready, mate?” I didn’t wait for Ashla’s answer before I shifted, urging my body down to all fours as my skin peeled away to reveal my powerful wolf’s form.
I’d never voluntarily shifted in front of anyone before, but just like before when she caught me in the armory, with Ashla, I didn’t feel threatened. I didn’t have to hide who I was, not from her, and that taste of freedom was something I’d never expected to be given.
“Stay close,” I spoke to her mentally. “If you scent any wolves, take the lead. Head straight for the castle and find Zelene.”
“Yeah, right,” she snorted. “Like I’m gonna leave you to fight alone.”
I growled, snapping at her neck with my fangs, just enough to assert my authority… whatever of it I had left. But instead of growling back, she lowered her head, rubbing her nuzzle along my jaw, melting my resistance faster than should have been possible.
“I can’t leave you behind,” she said. “What kind of omega would I be?”
“Is that the only reason?”
She pulled back, her wolf eyes clear and honest. “You know
