Darcon shook his head as Kull gaped. Leveling the arrow at Darcon again, Kantor never saw Aesir’s sword swinging toward him. Injured or not, the blond still had enough force to deliver a lethal blow to the back of Kantor’s neck.
Attention returning to Vargan, Darcon could already see the man was trying to come up with a way out of his situation. Three to one weren’t good odds, even if he had been a better warrior.
Darcon saw Vargan’s eyes shift to the side of the small cave beside them. Instincts roaring, Darcon reacted before Vargan could get more than a step.
Swinging both blades, he drove Vargan away from where he was sure Autumn was hidden. Aesir blocked the upper trail while Kull blocked the lower, leaving Vargan with nowhere to retreat.
The only thought going through Darcon’s head was that the other alpha had kidnapped his omega. Had drugged her. May have done worse to her.
His vision turned red, blood rushing in his ears as he pressed his attack. The weariness that had followed him for days was gone. The worry evaporated with the knowledge that they had found her, her scent a soothing balm letting him know she was there.
Darcon couldn’t say how long the fight lasted. It seemed to only be a moment and was over far too quickly.
He didn’t know exactly what happened, only that one minute Vargan was in front of him, and the next, he wasn’t.
Darcon stood on the edge of the cliff, chest heaving, as he looked at the rocks below. He hadn’t even heard the man yell. It was too far to see a body, but there was no way anyone could survive that fall.
Glancing to the side, he could see Aesir peering over the edge as well, eyes searching for the same thing he longed to see. When he turned to Kull, the man tipped his head toward the cave, reminding him that there were more pressing concerns.
Darcon stepped over and used Kantor’s cloak to wipe his blades before sheathing them. He was sure Autumn was already frightened, and showing up with bloody blades in his hands would only scare her more.
He didn’t know for sure if Vargan had been in league with anyone else, but he couldn’t hear anything, and he had to take the chance. He trusted Kull to protect his back.
Stepping into the entrance of the cave, he stopped to let his eyes adjust from the glare of the light outside. It only took a moment before he spotted Autumn propped against the wall.
The first glance didn’t show him anything wrong, but as he lifted her into his arms, the purr he’d let out to comfort her stuttered to a stop.
Darcon turned and rushed out into the light. Autumn’s body was limp, the cloak wrapped around her doing nothing to hide the bones he could feel protruding from her frame. Her skin was so pale he could see her veins through it, her once vibrant hair a thin, dull cap that did little to cover her scalp.
His heart lurched. She’d been gone less than two weeks, yet she looked like a corpse due for the fires. The Nightblossom milk had poisoned her to the point she looked like an aged and crippled old woman, and he held his breath until he was sure he heard hers scraping out of her barely moving chest.
“She needs help, Darcon. She doesn’t look like she’s going to make it.”
He looked up into Kull’s worried eyes, determination hardening his heart.
“I won’t let her go.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Autumn
Even in the fog, the most delicious scent reached her. Her body was warm for the first time in as long as Autumn could remember, and a comforting thrum vibrated beneath her ear.
The effort it took to open her eyes made her want to give in to the pull of darkness again, but she needed to see where the scent was coming from. It took a moment to make sense of what she could see, the broad expanse of skin covered in short, dark hairs not what she’d expected. Her fingers twitched, the urge to stroke the firm chest too much to resist, but her muscles too weak to respond properly.
Movement above her drew her attention, pale blue eyes boring down into hers as the soothing purr ended.
“Autumn, it’s okay. We found you. I’m going to get you help.”
She hummed, her tired mind unable to find words. She was desperately thirsty, but it was too much effort to ask for a drink.
Closing her eyes again, she relaxed against the warm body cradling her. She wasn’t quite conscious, but she couldn’t say if she existed in that half-aware state for minutes, or hours.
Familiar voices floated around her, but she couldn’t place them. Her body trembled even though the constant chill she’d felt had left, and her gut would randomly spasm, making her cough and gag on bile.
Occasionally the motion would stop, and a smooth edge would press against her lip. She was only allowed a little at a time, never to quench her thirst, and even the pathetic whimpers she produced didn’t earn her anything more.
Food was offered, but Autumn didn’t have the energy or the appetite to chew. No matter how coaxing the voices around her were, she turned her head away, refusing to part her lips.
The next time her eyes opened, they were met with darkness. Autumn was still cradled to a warm chest. Still wrapped in furs as the world rocked with each step of the alpha holding her.
“We should stop for the night. You won’t do her any good if you trip over a branch in the dark.”
“No. There’s no time to stop. I have to find one of the search parties and get a horse.”
She heard more grumbling but couldn’t make out what was said until the man carrying her spoke up again.
“You stop and make camp. I can make it on my own. I’m not resting until she gets help.”
Autumn’s mind slipped as the men fell silent, and she didn’t know how much time passed before more voices and light intruded. This time it wasn’t just the three familiar voices, and she could pick up the sounds of movement all around them though her world no longer rocked.
“We found her, but he used Nightblossom milk on her. She needs a healer.”
“I can take her back to the village.”
“No.”
The growl coming from the bare chest beneath her ear made her startle, her body protesting the sudden tensing of her muscles. It quickly cut off, changing to the purr that soothed her aches.
“I’m not letting her go.”
Her alpha’s voice was quieter but kept its firmness as she pressed her nose to him and breathed in his familiar aroma. There were other males around, but his was the scent that called to her.
“Fine. Take my horse. Larok will ride with you.”
The rocking began again as her alpha carried her somewhere further from the light as the men kept speaking.
“My brother?”
She could feel the muscles around her tense, the steps coming to a stop.
“Gone.”
Silence stretched between the men before she heard a sigh.
“I expected as much. Go. Take care of her. Tell Iris I’ll be home soon.”
There was a bit of shifting and a sudden jolt, Autumn letting out a whimper as she clenched her eyes tighter. Her alpha murmured to her as he adjusted her position.
“Thank you.”
All the stimulation was too much, and she felt herself fade away again as the sound of clopping filled her ears.
When Autumn woke again, she was lying in a bed. The softness of the surface beneath her was a relief, the constant ache she remembered faded to a dull murmur through her body.