Page 34 of Hexes & Heartstrings (Shifters of Bastion Keep #2)

"There!" one of his pursuers barked, but Russell was already running past, disappearing around a corner in the front halls of the castle. He quickly considered his route options, sniffing the air for signs of any hidden foes.

"Kitchens," he said out loud, speaking into the microphone that hung from a loose collar around his neck. Nobody told him no, so the way must be clear, and he headed in that direction.

Once there, he saw a dozen cooks and a few castle staff idling around, talking with each other as they stood beside tables covered in pots and pans—doing a full inventory, it seemed like.

They fell silent as he appeared, though, and he slowed to a walk to navigate the crowded area.

He knew he wasn't supposed to be in here in his wolf form, but Leona didn't comment on it as he passed her.

Instead, she bent down just long enough to shove a large slice of melon between his jaws, which he devoured in one, two, three hungry bites.

"You're a good lad," she whispered, echoing the first words he remembered her ever saying to him, when he'd been a young pup hiding in the root cellar from the very loud and brash young lord of the castle who had demanded that he be his friend.

She'd given him apple slices for himself, and a small baggie filled with chocolate chips to bribe Ser with, then had spoken patiently with the lord.

After that, Ser had been a lot more considerate about not overwhelming Russell.

"Back way's clear," she whispered further, then straightened up and began haranguing one of the cooks for having scratched up one of her good pots.

As Russell sped towards one of the exits, he startled a stoic line cook, who dropped a bottle of vanilla extract a ways behind him. The cap popped off, and immediately there was a powerful, rapidly-spreading aroma.

"Whoops," he said in a deadpan, then gave Russell a wink as he made no move to pick the vial up.

Just then, the front doors of the kitchens banged open, and Russell chanced a glance behind him.

It was Lady Yi in her weretiger form, striding forward with an open-mouthed snarl as she looked about, but being stopped by Leona who brandished a large spatula.

"No fur in the kitchens!" she ordered.

Three others of Lady Yi's pack tried to slip past the cooks, but somehow the kitchen staff just could not seem to get out of the way, shuffling back and forth and knocking pots and pans onto the ground, blocking passage with a loud clatter that would disguise the sound of any departing wolf.

His tail wagging, Russell dashed away, following the path around the back of the keep.

So it went, Russell doing his best to avoid capture as the war game's clock counted down, running through Bastion Keep as he followed his boyfriend's clever strategy.

Instead of making a single, hardened position somewhere in the castle with which to guard Russell—something that Lady Yi was both expecting and quite skilled at overcoming, it had been explained to him—they were playing keep-away with Russell, forcing her to find, chase, and catch him before her allowed hour was up.

It wasn't easy. Though he often had a lead, sometimes his pursuers would seem to suddenly catch up with bursts of inhuman speed and strength. Spells cast by Lady Yi's witch, most likely, based upon the dusty smell.

But Russell knew his home, and even if Lady Yi had spent four years here as a guardian, she clearly didn't remember much of anything but the Guardian's Quarter. Certainly nothing in as much detail as someone who had grown up among its grounds!

There had been some close calls, though.

Twice, Lady Yi had sent troops to cut him off, but that was where the next part of his boyfriend's plan came into play.

Markos and the other defenders would be lying in wait, hidden around a corner, or in closets, and they would burst out and pick off the would-be flankers.

Three defenders against two, or five against three, a number advantage to make up for the fact that although Bastion's guardians were well-trained fighters, Lady Yi and her pack were better trained at combat with people .

Markos suffered losses, but his ambushes were forcing Lady Yi to waste time proceeding at a more cautious pace, wondering if the next hall or room would hold an ambush.

Russell also had another advantage, which came into play yet again as he rounded one of the central towers outside of the castle.

"Wanna try out our hoist?" one of the resident youths asked him, pointing at a litter. Attached to it were ropes, which led to a third-floor window where three other young teenagers were peering out with keen interest. "It's a lot of fun, I promise!"

Russell yipped, leaping on after making sure that he was in his smallest wolf form. Immediately after, he started rising into the air. It was a jarring ascension, but rapid.

"Awesome!" a young werebear said after Russell leapt into someone's personal chambers, one that he knew was occupied by a maid and her family; just a couple months back, he'd repaired a crib for her, and this young bear was one of her sons.

"We'll be at this all morning, if you ever want another ride! "

Saving his breath, Russell gave the teen's leg a grateful lick before dodging into the hall.

The castle staff, though officially non-combatants, all seemed to want to help in their own small way.

A housekeeper chose just this morning to wax a hall, but only threw down the fluids after Russell had charged past, delaying his pursuers.

Others sprayed disinfectants and other smelly things as they cleaned, muddling the scent of his passage.

A couple of men carried linens aimlessly through the hallways without any real destination, just on the off chance that they might get in the way, like the cooks had done.

Russell loved each and every one of them, and despite everything, couldn't help but feel his eyes grow hot each time they acted on his behalf.

When Ser's mom had made him take part in the challenge, he'd felt sad and hurt that she'd put him in that position. But maybe this was just her way of showing him directly how much people cared, and that felt good.

Time for the roof, he decided, then slunk away on all fours, sniffing carefully for any of the invaders as he went.

It proved a good choice. He was able to spend ten whole minutes hunkering down behind a southern battlement where the northern wind would carry his scent away from the castle, giving him a chance to catch his breath.

It wasn't stress-free, since he was constantly sniffing the breeze and listening to every tiny sound to make sure that he wasn't being snuck up on.

But it was at least a breather, and he relayed his exact location when Bruin asked, receiving specific instructions in turn.

All too soon, though, he saw the werecrocodile that had punched him emerging from a far tower door. The man shouted, pointing in his direction, and he was joined by two others.

As the seconds ticked away, though, they didn't advance, just conferred with each other too quietly for Russell to make out.

Russell whined, feeling his heart hammering unpleasantly. Not the nice feeling, like when he went for a run, or when he had Bruin sitting in his lap kissing him, but the roiling in the stomach kind, like when he was sick.

Why weren't they approaching?

Then there was a sound from the other direction, and he saw Lady Yi and another shifter appear from a different entryway. Oh! They were boxing him in from both sides!

"Bruin…" he whimpered, shrinking in on himself.

The five shifters began jogging carefully towards him, probably wary of a trap. One of them howled at their imminent victory.

Leading the way, Lady Yi was almost upon him when Russell fell through the floor with an odd splash.

"Gotcha!" Markos said, catching him in his arms.

Bruin's spring-time scent of magic permeated the air, and his boyfriend gave him a brief, tusky grin.

Looking up, Russell saw the stone ceiling finish rippling, settling back into its normal solid shape.

Russell was set on his paws. He barreled his snout into Markos as a thank you for catching him, and then spun around to receive a tight hug from Bruin.

"We've got guardians ready to intercept them when they try to leave the roof," Markos added while Bruin hurried to pull off a canteen from his belt, giving him a drink.

"They'll be delayed long enough for you to get back to the ground level, and by then they'll have to start a fresh search for your scent. "

Russell licked Bruin's face, then turned and charged to the nearby stairs.

And so it went.

Despite their clever plans and tactics, though, Bruin's team was suffering losses, reported through the mic that Russell wore.

First they were down to ten defenders, then eight.

Then four , as Lady Yi took a break from hunting Russell to instead hunt down his protectors in a single unified group, removing their ability to harry them.

In the end, it was just Markos, Bruin, Ivar, and Russell remaining, with not long to go.

Five or ten minutes left, maybe? Less?

"Go, Russell!" Markos shouted, not sparing a glance as he brandished his twin wooden swords, making a last stand at the training yard's entrance to the castle. A distant yell let him know that Ivar, up on a roof and raining down arrows, had finally been subdued.

Leaving the pack leader to cover his retreat, Russell ran, a straight shot to the Great Hall.

"Russell!" Bruin called out upon seeing him, and Russell staggered over to where he stood, panting.