Page 48 of Spirit Trials

“I just did.” I open my mouth to ask more, but he stops me. “I just knew; Shade did too.”

“You can’t send him into the next trial, Rysden.” He doesn’t say anything. It’s hard to see his face in the dark, but I can feel the intensity of his gaze. “Okay?”

“I’ll try. Shade doesn’t always listen to me.”

That’s more than I thought I’d get from him, so I’ll take it. “Do you not trust me, Rysden?”

I can feel his surprise. “Why?”

“Why didn’t you tell me you were the prince? And why didn’t you tell me about Shade? What’d you do? Hide him the entire time I’ve known you?”

He's quiet, but I don’t get the feeling that he’s ignoring me. It’s more like he’s gathering his thoughts, which is such a Rysden thing to do. “I didn’t tell you I was the prince when I first met you because it didn’t exactly come up,” he says dryly. “By the time we got here, I wasn’t sure how to just throw it out there. As for Shade,” he pauses. “I’ve gotten used to keeping him hidden when I’m outside our kingdom, mostly to protect him. If our enemies knew he was out and about, they would kill him in an instant or try to take him.”

“I can’t imagine that would go well for them,” I interject.

“No, it would not.” There’s a protective edge to his voice.

“Why would they try to take him?” I ask, curious.

He doesn’t answer right away. “Because we’re bonded, if one of us dies, the other does as well. If we’re separated long enough, the bond will start to fade. If it faded completely, we would both die. As heir to the throne...well, it wouldn’t be good.”

I take in his words. In a way, I’m not surprised. It makes sense. It's quiet between us for a little bit. “Once we got back to our kingdom, I should have showed him to you,” he says.

“Yeah, well you’re not exactly the sharing kind of guy...”

“No, I’m not.” His forceful words surprise me, and I forget the rest of what I was going to say. “I should probably tell you that Shade is very protective of you. Once he knew you were in trouble, he came to you that night on his own. I couldn’t have kept him here if I tried.”

I take in his words and turn slightly to the wolf that’s sitting just a few feet from us. “Can I pet him?”

“You don’t have to ask permission,” Rysden says.

“I just didn’t know if he would...like if that was an insult to him.”

“That you touch him? No.”

Shade chooses that moment to rub up against my leg, and I lower myself to my knees and reach out and tentatively run my hand over his head. “Thank you for helping me,” I tell him softly. “Your fur is so soft.” After a few minutes, I stand up again; but Shade doesn’t go anywhere. He stays right between the two of us. “He’s pretty amazing, Rysden.”

“Yeah,” he answers gruffly. “It’s been the two of us for as long as I can remember.”

His words catch me by surprise; he’s actually sharing a little bit about himself. “Were you alone a lot growing up?” I ask cautiously.

“My dad was always busy running the kingdom, and my mom,” he pauses. “She wasn’t really around either.”

I feel like there’s a story there, but I don’t ask. “What about Jamik?”

“He’s several years younger than me, so he and I didn’t really do a lot together growing up. He was taken care of by a nanny, and we rarely saw each other. I was on my own most of the time.”

His words paint a picture of a cold childhood, and my heart aches for him. “But you had Shade?”

“He came to me when I was six.”

“Whoa. Is that normal?”

“No. Our people always get their spirit animals during the spirit trials, and that’s usually when the royals get theirs as well. But Shade came to me early. It’s always been the two of us against the world. I guess that’s why I’m protective of him.”

“It’s okay, Rysden. I get it. He’s all you’ve had for a long time. How do Lox and Hector play into all this?”

“Lox and I met when we were kids. He declared us friends and hasn’t left my side since.”