Page 9 of Snarl First, Kiss Later (Alpha’s Prophecy #2)

NINE

AVA

A va regretted getting on the damn horse within the first twenty minutes.

Her shoulder throbbed like hell under the wrap, and every jostle in the saddle made the pain spike hotter.

But there was no way she was admitting it.

Not with Silas riding point up ahead, stiff as a damn statue, and Caz flanking to her left, humming some off-key tavern tune like they weren’t trekking straight into court politics and probable execution.

She would have preferred to walk, but it would take too long. Vehicles couldn’t go where they were going and horses helped mask their scent. So horseback it was.

The borderlands thinned behind them, giving way to thicker forest trails and terrain Ava recognized from old courier maps. They were skirting PEACE routes, threading through known rogue havens and shadowed clearings where no one sane lingered long. All in the name of subtlety.

Silas hadn’t said much since sunrise. He moved with that same coiled focus she was beginning to associate with his brand of guilt. Ava didn’t trust it, not fully. He’d tried to leave her behind twice now. Didn’t matter that he’d saved her life; she didn’t forget desertion.

“So,” Caz drawled, adjusting his reins as their horses crested a slope. “You two gonna talk about it or keep playing pretend?”

Ava blinked. “Talk about what?”

He looked between them, amused. “The whole ‘mate’ thing.”

Silas’s head snapped around. “Drop it.”

Ava made a sound in her throat that was half laugh, half snort. “Yeah, okay. Let’s not start a cult, thanks.”

Caz smirked. “Just saying. Heard it whispered already. Two packs in the west heard about the girl Silas bled for and carried into rogue healer territory. Word spreads fast.”

“It’s not like that,” Silas said flatly.

“No shit,” Ava agreed. “I’m human. Remember?”

Caz shrugged. “Doesn’t always matter. The bond forms where it wants.”

Silas muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like ‘damn wolves and their gossip,’ and nudged his horse faster.

Ava glared at Caz. “Don’t stir crap you can’t clean up.”

He winked. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

They rode for another hour without much talk, the quiet stretching long and uneasy. The air grew cooler as they approached higher elevations. Pines crowded tight along the trail, their scent strong enough to sting her nose.

Ava focused on the rhythm of hooves, the ache in her side, and tried not to think about the word Caz had dropped like a grenade: mate. It echoed anyway.

Silas had risked a lot for her, sure. But it didn’t mean there was some cosmic connection pulling them together. That was fairy tale bullshit. She wasn’t some fated savior. She was a courier with a scar under her eye and a history of bad calls.

When they stopped at a narrow stream to water the horses, Ava dismounted stiffly. Silas kept his distance, checking the area while Caz stretched out with a canteen and a smug grin.

She crouched by the water, rinsing sweat and grime from her face. The cold stung, but it helped.

“You okay?” Caz asked, kneeling beside her.

“Peachy,” she said, not looking up.

He was quiet a second, then nudged a flat rock into the water with his boot. “You know he hasn’t had anyone at his side in years.”

Ava scoffed. “Not my problem.”

“Might be,” he said. “You’ve got that look.”

“What look?”

“The one that says you’re trying real hard not to care.”

She stood abruptly. “We’re not friends, Caz.”

He held up both hands. “Copy that. Just keep in mind… you’re not the only one carrying ghosts.”

Later, as they continued through twisting switchbacks, Silas finally slowed his pace to match hers. His profile was still just as sharp but there was something gentler in his voice when he spoke.

“Why’d you really come with us?”

She didn’t answer right away. “Thought you wanted me safe,” she said finally.

“I do.”

She met his eyes. “Then stop trying to ditch me.”

He looked away. “Didn’t think you’d follow.”

“Bullshit. You knew I would.”

They fell into silence again, but this time it wasn’t cold. Just… tired.

That night, they made camp near a fallen birch grove, the moonlight filtering through broken branches. Caz took first watch. Ava sat by the fire, wrapping her coat tighter as she watched Silas check the perimeter.

“You still don’t trust me,” she said.

He paused, turned. “Should I?”

Ava shrugged. “Probably not.”

He approached slowly, dropping to sit across from her. The fire threw orange light over his scarred features. His eyes looked softer in the glow, almost gold.

“I’m not good at this,” he said.

“What, conversation?”

“People.”

She smirked. “No shit.”

They shared a rough but genuine laugh.

“I’ve done things I’m not proud of,” he said.

“Me too,” she replied. “But I haven’t let them define me.”

“You think I have?”

“I think you’re scared to stop running from whatever you feel you did so wrong.”

He didn’t deny it. Didn’t speak at all for a moment. Then he leaned forward, resting his arms on his knees. “Do you know why the Silent Sons want to kill Landon’s child?”

“Why?”

“Because if they do, the prophecy dies with it. They believe peace is weakness. That Landon’s new reign will unmake them. They believe Roman was betrayed by prophecy and plan to resurrect his cause through the corruption of Landon’s unborn heir.”

Ava stared at the fire. “And you think you can stop them.”

“I have to try.”

“Even if it kills you?”

He nodded once.

She stood, brushing off her hands. “Well, then I guess I’ll just have to watch your back.”

He looked up, surprised. “Ava?—”

“Don’t read into it, wolf. Just means I’m not done asking questions yet. And this mess you all are in? It’s affected my home before, I might as well follow through and make sure this shit show doesn’t do that as well.” She turned, walking toward her bedroll.

The next morning, they’d ride again toward a throne she didn’t believe in, beside a man she didn’t trust.

But maybe she was starting to understand him.

And that was enough… for now.