Chapter 142: Left Behind (bonus)

The first wolf to taste the soup went completely still.

A shudder passed through his body so visible that the wolf beside him grabbed his shoulder in alarm.

"Are you dying?"

The wolf ignored him, took another sip, and that caused his tail to start beating again.

Around the settlement, similar reactions rippled outward like a wave.

Faelynn was already on her second serving before most of the clan had finished their first. She had planted herself near the pot with Luth on her lap, and every time one of the Dow clan females tried to slow her down, she bared her teeth in a way that sent them giggling back to their own portions.

When her pan was empty, she simply held it out without looking up.

Someone refilled it without being asked, and the pregnant female downed the chunks of meat and tubers between each sip of the broth.

The wolves were not the only ones who had been affected.

The Dow clan members were stunned to discover that soup was an entirely different taste from roasted meat. And it was oddly richer despite not being as filling.

The warm broth settled in their stomachs like liquid comfort, and the combination of soft tuber, tender meat, and layered herbs was making several of them visibly emotional.

One male simply stood there with the pan pressed to his lips, and his eyes closed, as if the food had transported him somewhere far away.

Calis ate in silence, but the way his ears stayed perked forward through every bite told Tera everything she needed to know.

Tera was seated between Xavi and Ermin, her back resting comfortably against the base of a large tree. Her own pan sat empty in her lap, and she was full.

The broth had been especially delicious, richer and more satisfying than she had expected from her first attempt, and the warmth of it had spread through her chest and limbs until her whole body felt heavy and content.

The beasts had insisted she eat first while they served the others, practically taking the hoe from her and shoving the pan into her hands before she could react.

It had been a funny sight watching the beasts drool while serving the others.

Now she watched with a soft smile as her mates fed the twins.

Xavi had Nadia cradled in one arm, her small body tucked against his chest. He was carefully placing tiny pieces of soft tuber and shredded meat into her mouth, and the bear cub was accepting each offering with cute greed.

Ermin had Althea on his knee. The panther cub was considerably less dignified about the process. She had grabbed a chunk of meat from her father’s hand and was gnawing on it with both fists. Her face was smeared with broth from forehead to chin.

Tera’s chest ached.

Her babies looked so cute.

The night slowly settled into a peaceful quiet of beasts still eating.

All the cubs had fallen asleep in a pile near the nursery, including the older cubs.

Tera noticed Nadia had fallen asleep.

But she wasn’t the only one.

Xavi’s own eyes were heavy. His head nodded once, then twice, before he caught himself and straightened with a small shake.

Tera’s smile softened.

She glanced at Ermin and saw the same tiredness written in the lines around his eyes, even though he was still focused on Althea.

He was exhausted. Ermin and Xavi had been exhausted since before she disappeared, and the search for her had drained whatever reserves they had left. Then they’d gone out hunting with the wolves this morning and had stayed on their feet all day helping to prepare the feast.

They needed rest.

"You two go and sleep," Tera said softly.

Xavi’s eyes snapped open. "I am not tired."

His head immediately dipped again, and Tera couldn’t hold back her chuckle.

Ermin shook his head. "I do not want to leave yet."

Tera nudged Xavi’s shoulder gently. "Look at Nadia. She needs to lie down properly, and she shouldn’t be alone."

Xavi looked down at the sleeping cub draped across his arm.

He smiled faintly.

"Go," Tera said, pressing her hand against his chest. "I will walk you there. Ermin and I will come soon."

Xavi relented with a low grunt and stood up, rising carefully so as not to jostle Nadia.

Tera kissed Ermin’s cheek and walked with Xavi toward her shelter. Ermin watched them go, a faint smile on his lips as his cheek tingled from Tera’s kiss.

The firelight played over Tera’s hair, over Xavi’s broad shoulders, and over the sleeping cub in her arms. They moved like a small, complete unit, and Ermin felt something shift in his chest as he watched them disappear into the trees.

It wasn’t jealousy.

It was a quieter and more complicated feeling.

He looked down at Althea, who was still working through her portion of meat. Ermin wiped the meat juice from her cheek, and she fussed, batting at his hand.

His smile faded as he turned his attention elsewhere.

The beasts were huddled together in small groups, chatting lazily with content looks on their faces.

Ermin missed the Jackdaw tribe.

The admission sat strangely in his chest. He had spent so long drowning in anger over his exile, blaming Tera for all of it, that he had never stopped to look at the bigger picture.

He had friends there. Males he had grown up and shared meals with since they were cubs. Two of them had even been Naiya’s mates...

He had always admired the tribe leader. She was the kind of female who drew every eye in the tribe without trying, and Ermin had wanted her attention.

Naiya chose good-looking males. Everyone knew this. So, Ermin made sure he was the best-looking male in her line of sight.

And it had worked. She had noticed him.

But when everything fell apart, when the drugging was discovered and the tribe turned on him, none of his relationships with the tribe members had mattered. Not even his devotion to Naiya.

They had thrown him out in a single day.