Page 54 of Wolf Caged (Bound to the Shadow King #1)

KAELERON

T he knock on my door was far too gentle and patient to be anyone but my sister. She eased it open before I could bid her to enter, striding into my office with purpose, pulling a pair of supple black leather gloves off and tucking them into her sword belt.

A belt that held two swords.

“You are training her with weapons?” I growled those words, the thought of Saphira handling a sword stirring something dark and dangerous in my blood.

My sister’s look was unapologetic, and a little irritated.

It had been close to two weeks since she had started training Saphira, and her regular reports were the only contact I’d had with the little wolf in that time.

I wanted to growl at the stacks of papers on my desk—a blend of reports and requests—and the endless meetings that kept me from her, together with the training that left her so tired that by the time I was done for the day and ready to dine, she was sound asleep.

A crueller male might have woken her and demanded she join him for dinner.

It had crossed my mind.

But I knew from first-hand experience how taxing on the body and mind training could be, so instead of demanding her presence, I dined alone with thoughts of her, mulling over everything I had learned and seeking her purpose.

I had taken to visiting Neve too, passing time with her discussing Saphira and hoping it might trigger another vision in the dragon.

So far, I had failed in that department.

Saphira’s role in my vengeance remained a mystery.

“She is doing well, brother. An exceptional learner and a very quick study. I thought it provident to teach her how to use weapons too, given she might often be within reach of a blade in this castle, even if she must disarm someone to get her hands on it.” Vyr settled her left hand on the hilt of her own sword, one that looked far too long for the petite wolf to wield.

I would need to see about getting Saphira a short sword.

Or perhaps a dagger, given Vyr’s last report about her impressive speed and agility.

Plus, a dagger could be easily concealed about her person and even if it were seen, few in my court would find the sight of it on her threatening. They would believe she was playing at being a warrior, foolishly believing such a small weapon could protect her from them.

A dagger it was.

“Of course, it might have something to do with her past training.”

I raised my eyebrows at her. “Past training?”

This was my first-time hearing about it.

“I have been trying to learn more about it. So far, all I have learned is that Chase trained her when she was at her pack, before her parents discovered them and put an end to it. So like our world. Females left defenceless,” she grumbled, her words and mood darkening as she spoke.

Before she could go off on her usual tirade, I held my hand up, halting her and regaining her attention, my own mood darkening as I got hung up on the name she had uttered.

“Who is Chase?” Shadows stirred at my feet on the black marble floor, restless as I considered the likely gender of the person Vyr had mentioned, given her complaint about wolf packs refusing to teach females to fight.

The only conclusion I could draw was that Chase was a male.

A male had taught Saphira to fight, or had at the very least tried. “Someone close to her?”

Images of this faceless male training her flashed across my mind, his hands on her curves as he guided her movements.

The growl had pealed from my lips before I could stop it.

Vyr’s smile was all mischief and delight. “This subject seems strangely important to you.”

I shut her down with nothing more than a glare. “Discover who Chase is.”

“Intelligence is not my forte, brother. You have a spymaster for that.” She arched a brow at me when I snarled again, not the least bit satisfied with that answer.

“This is an order, Vyr. I want to know who Chase is and I expect the information by the end of your next session.”

She had the audacity to roll her eyes at me, a trait she had surely picked up from the little wolf. “You could ask her yourself.”

I brushed that suggestion off with a wave of my hand, because I was not sure what I might do if this male turned out to mean something to her.

There were ways to be intimate without claiming the flower of a female.

I had no way of telling whether Saphira had been touched by another in the way I had touched her, and she had responded so sweetly to my caress, a wild little thing as she had sought her pleasure.

What if this male had been the one to teach her how to writhe like that, how to move her body in that bewitching way?

Darkness blanketed the room, my claws emerging to dig into the arms of my chair as I growled through my fangs.

Saphira was mine.

Jenavyr cleared her throat from somewhere within my shadows. “There is one thing I wanted to mention.”

I pulled back on the shadows, drawing them to me, clawing back control as the reckless part of me that wanted to claim Saphira as my own demanded I hear what my sister had to say, in case it was vital to securing Saphira as more than my possession.

I shut that unruly side of me down as I stared at my sister, waiting to hear what she had to say, because this information might be vital for another reason—it might reveal Saphira’s purpose to me.

I had gone through half the books in the library, had pored over ancient tomes, and had visited Neve hoping she would have had another vision, all to no avail.

If the dragon did not experience a vision soon, I would force one out of her.

The longer Saphira was in my court, the more dangerous her presence became.

To me.

I would not lose sight of my vengeance now.

Blinded by a female.

“Saphira is strong.” Jenavyr pursed her lips, her gaze thoughtful as she considered something.

“Wolf females can be strong, and I was told she is born of alpha blood.” Although I had my doubts that the wretched thug who had sold her had been telling the truth about that.

My sister still looked confused, her brow crinkled as she continued to stare at me.

“What is it?” I studied her, almost able to see the cogs turning in her mind as she worked through whatever was bothering her.

But then she shrugged. “I know wolves can be strong, but I think this is different. I do not know how… her strength and speed just feels… unnatural.”

“You have never trained a wolf before. It is likely that you are expecting her to feel like a fae, to respond like one, and that is the reason you are confused.” But as I looked at her, I had the feeling it was more than that.

My sister was clever, astute, and often noticed small things about people. Years of being allowed to do nothing more than watch others as a child had taught her to look hard at them to divulge their secrets to entertain herself.

What secret was Saphira hiding?