Wild Magic One: By the Light of the Moon-- A Wolf Shifter M/M Romance

5- A Lesson Easily Forgotten

*****TRIGGER WARNING: Contains mentions of past rape and physical abuse.*****

EDON—

When I woke, it was to warmth. There was something heavy atop me, and my body was covered in something scratchy. But only over a few places. My wrists. My ankles, my neck, and a few spots on my back.

I lay for a moment, basking in the warmth, sure it was a dream. Master had never allowed me out of the cage, unless I was chained, and then only to his cart to service whomever had paid for me, but I knew I wasn't in the cage. For one, the wind wasn't beating at my thin skin. For another, there was silence all around. Silence, and warmth.

I took a deep breath, smelling only medicinal herbs, a fire that I could also now hear crackling, and female musk.

Just beside me.

I jerked up, staring down at a human female who lay curled up above the blankets that covered me.

The girl was a few years younger than me— maybe 12 or 13— with tightly curled hair so light it was nearly white, and soft gray eyes enhanced by dark black brows and lashes that watched me with surprise.

I yanked on the blankets, making sure they covered me, since I could feel that I was naked beneath them, and stared down at her in trepidation. Human females had never physically hurt me before, but they had never been kind, either.

"You're awake," she said unnecessarily. "Finally. You've been asleep for forever."

I looked around, testing the air and trying to scent anyone else. Someone had been in the room a few hours before, an older female, but her scent was almost completely faded. It was only me and this girl.

Why was she here?

The room I was in was large but cozy. Warm-colored rugs and tapestries covered the walls and floors, holding in the warmth that poured from the giant hearth on the other side of the room. The bed I lay on— I was on a bed! — had four thick blankets that covered me, as well as dozens of pillows I had been laying my head on.

As I stared around the room, my memories began to come back. Master's beating. The crowd. The man with the icy eyes. The doctor. The bath. Then... nothing.

Why was I here?

"Lhiam said to leave you alone, to let you rest. But I got bored, and I was curious. He's such a stick in the mud sometimes. He never lets me do anything I want to. You know it took him almost a week to bring me to the carnival? I had to wait around until that bitch from Kar'a left, and then..."

I watched the girl, almost amused at her chattering. She was cute, for a human, with little freckles across her cheeks and nose, and a full, pert mouth. I sat back against the pillows, unsure what else to do until the girl stopped talking, or something else happened.

"Oh, look at me, talking away, when you must be starving!" she finally said, and my ears perked up at that. I held a hand to my stomach, which chose that moment to growl. She let out a laugh and looked at me apologetically. "Of course you are. Like I said, you've been asleep for two days. Let me call someone for you. And I know my cousin will want to know you're awake."

I nodded as she paused, as if to ask my permission, and a wide smile broke across her face.

"See, you can understand me. Tate didn't believe Lhiam, but Lhiam was sure of it. I'm glad. You seem very sweet. It would be a shame if you were stupid."

I held back a laugh, and then sniffed the air again as a new scent hit my nose. I was jerked out of my bemusement by the scent of a male approaching. I scented him, but he wasn't familiar. Which meant he wasn't the man with the icy eyes, and he wasn't the doctor— Gerard.