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6

"Wardo, you filthy bastard! You followed me!" Kadai growled, watching him emerge form the trees with that infuriating grin on his face, the same grin that always made Kadai want to deck the sneaky bastard where he stood.

Sarah twisted around in his arms, and he had the sudden mad urge to press her head against his chest so she wouldn't have to catch a glimpse of that sorry excuse for a Wolf.

"Well, I am the best tracker, even if I do say so myself," he said, somehow talking right through that smug grin, "but to be honest, Chieftain, even a novice could have tracked you down here. You really should be more cautious, especially when running a sneaky errand such as this..."

"What do you want!?"

"Why all the yelling, Sai? I was merely curious as to where you kept disappearing off to. It was starting to become rather obvious, you know. But who would have thought I'd catch you doing something like this? And with a Fox, no less! As I live and breath..." He started to laugh then; a cruel, wicked sound in the peace of the afternoon, filling his own heart with a twisted glee just as sure as it filled Kadai's with an unknown dread. He could feel Sarah trembling in his arms, and it infuriated him. No one should ever make her feel scared. No one!

"This is none of your business, Wardo!" he said. "I will give you only one chance to leave. You'd better take it, otherwise I swear by the Cora I will rip your throat out!"

"Ooh, how right you are, Chieftain. This is none of my business. But, you know what? I know someone. You know her, too. And I think this is very much her business, wouldn't you agree? I wonder what she would say if she found out..."

A great, throbbing ball of panic suddenly settled in the pit of Kadai's stomach, making him feel nauseous, making him feel like he might actually throw up, something he hasn't done in decades. Surely Wardo couldn't be serious? Surely he wouldn't... No! Why would he? It didn't make sense! "You wouldn't dare!"

"Kadai? Who is he talking ab -"

He suddenly felt so ashamed he couldn't stand to be so close to her anymore. He backed away, the simple innocence of her voice, her trust in him so absolute that even the idea of him being unfaithful hadn't entered her mind yet.

"Kadai? What's wrong?"

And now she was concerned for him. Not for her own safety, even with a strange Wolf only a few strides away. Not for her own sense of pride or honour. No, she was only concerned for him. She wanted to know what was wrong so that she might help him however she could. She wanted to know if he was all right.

It made him feel sick. It made him feel filthy.

He felt disgusted with himself.

He raised his hand and bit into the webbing between his thumb and index finger, an old habit that never really died out. This was a pain he could handle. This was a pain he could understand. Better to feel this than -

"By the Cora," Wardo said. "She doesn't know, does she? You never told her!"

"Shut up, Wardo!"

"Told me what?" Sarah said, suspicion only now starting to creep into her voice.

"What's your name, little Fox?" Wardo asked, his voice taking on a hideously fake politeness, as if he were talking to a stupid child.

Kadai could hear a faint rustle of fabric behind him, and he knew Sarah must be squeezing the neckline of her dress again. She did that whenever she felt nervous, and right now he couldn't blame her in the least.

"My name is Sarah."

"Ah, lovely. Well, you see, Sarah, the Chieftain here has been keeping a little secret from you. And dark times are upon us indeed if I turn out to be the most honest Wolf around."

"Shut up, Wardo!" Kadai thundered.

"Oh, forgive me, Sai! You should be the one to tell her, of course. How rude of me."

Kadai couldn't take it any more. He spun around, blood flying from his hand and splattering on the ground in a wide arc of fine droplets. The rage he felt was good, so he grabbed hold of it, forcing it to consume everything. If he could just feel enough anger, maybe it would blot out the fear and the shame. He advanced on Wardo, but the blasted Wolf didn't so much as flinch, not even when Kadai stood over him like a totem, his teeth bared. "Why are you doing this, you slinksy little bastard?"

"I have my reasons, Sai," Wardo replied, calm as can be. "Now, are you going to tell her, or should I? I'm actually hoping for the latter. It would be so much... fun..."

"You shut your filthy -"

"Tell me what!?" Sarah screamed, cutting through the anger he was trying so desperately to maintain, drowning it with her worry.

Why did it have to turn out this way? They were happy, weren't they? Why couldn't they just be happy forever? He didn't want this to end, what he had with her, but how could he explain without doing just that? Without ending it all...

"Sarah, I..." Kadai stammered.

"Oh, this is so... delicious..." Wardo said, rubbing his hands together. "Well? Go on, Chieftain. Or do you plan on telling her from all the way over here? A bit cold of you, I'd say -"

Kadai grabbed Wardo by the throat and slammed him against a nearby tree hard enough to make even the topmost branches shudder. The greasy Wolf's eyes bugged out in their sockets, and a wet, gargling sound came from his throat as he scratched and clawed at Kadai's hand.

Kadai leaned in close, said, "I'll deal with you later," and released him to sink down to all fours, spluttering and heaving, clutching at his throat.

But he was still smiling. After all that, the bastard was still smiling...

By the Cora, why was he doing this? What scheme did he have brewing in that demented head of his?

He turned to face Sarah, but her face gave him pause. It was the same look she wore when he first found her sleeping by the river. A look of pure terror.

So it's come to this? She feared for her life in the first moment of their first meeting, so it's only fitting she felt the same way now, when his words would surely signal the final moment of their final meeting.

Kadai approached her and placed both his hands on her shoulders. She looked up at him, her eyes fearful, yet enquiring. He could feel her shaking beneath his hands, waiting, waiting...

"Sarah?" he said. "I haven't been entirely honest with you. And I apologize for that. It's... I didn't..." How was he supposed to tell her? How!?

"Just tell me, Kadai," she said. "Whatever it is, I know I'll forgive you."

Trying to come up with an eloquent way to shatter the happiness they had built up over the past year was next to impossible with Wardo's wheezing giggles floating in the background, and speechcraft was never one of Kadai's strong suits anyway. He's always preferred to be direct and to the point, and now was no different. Better to get it out and over with than to drag it out any longer. He owed her that, at the very least. He took a breath and said, "I have been mated to a she-wolf named Shekka these past five years. We have a son together. His name is Banno, and he recently turned four."

There. It's out. He knew this would have to happen eventually, but some part of him had simply believed that they could live inside this little fantasy forever, where there were no such things as Wolves or Foxes or tribes and villages. No chains or cages of expectation and responsibility. Just them, together, forever. And now that it was over, that same part of him stood frozen, unable to accept the simple truth. Sarah was staring up at him, perfectly still, not even blinking. She didn't feel right underneath his hands, as if her spirit had fled in horror, and left only the empty shell of her body behind.

"Sarah?" A layer of wetness was forming over her eyes, making them shiny, making her beautiful green irises waver in the warm sunlight. He's never made her cry before, and seeing her eyes swim in the lakes of her unshed tears, knowing that he was the one responsible...

"Sarah, please don't -"

She slapped him across the face as hard as she possibly could, much to Wardo's delight.

"Ooooh! Foxy's got claws!

Kadai barely even heard him, so loud was that slap. He could actually feel the shape of her hand, warm and prickly against his cheek. In some dark corner of his mind, that slap would echo on and on forever, fuelled by his guilt and her pain.

She backed away, cradling her hand as if she intended to read her own future. "A wife and child, Kadai!? We've been seeing each other a whole year and you've never told me!? Were you ever going to!? Or were you just planning on stringing me along like some plaything!?"

"Of course I would have! Told you, I mean! Not the..." Kadai floundered, rubbing his cheek. "I've tried to so many times, I just never knew how! And I didn't want to risk ruining everything!"

"Wait, this has been going on for a whole year?" Wardo interjected. Sarah and Kadai both ignored him.

"How could you? You've turned me into a harlot! Some piece of meat on the side!"

"What!? Of course not! I have never thought of you like that! Not once!"

"Then why did you feel the need to keep your family a secret? You must have known what you were doing was wrong, or you would have been honest with me from the start!"

"She's got a point, you know," Wardo interrupted yet again.

"Shut up!!" Kadai and Sarah both shouted together.

"Sarah, can't we just please sit down for a while and talk this out? Like we've always - Hey, where are you going?"

Ignoring him completely, Sarah made her way back to the loose jumble of rocks at the mouth of the Cora's pass, her arms held rigidly by her sides, her hands balled into fists.

"Sarah, wait!"

She grabbed hold of the rope and started to climb back up, pulling herself along like a vixen possessed.

"Sarah!" Why wouldn't she look back? Did she hate him so much she wouldn't even say goodbye? Was this how their last moment together was supposed to end? No, this couldn't be happening. This had to be some kind of insane joke...

As if to confirm this, Wardo burst out in malicious laughter. "Ha! By the Cora, you should have seen the look on your face when she slapped you! It was priceless!" He struggled for breath, laughing and coughing all together. "And the way she looked at you as if to say, 'Why, Kadai? Why did you betray me?' I thought I would die right there!"

"You'll die right now, you cretinous bastard!" Kadai roared, fury boiling inside his veins, making his face feel hot. "Tearing your head from your scrawny little neck won't bring back what you've taken from me, but the Cora knows it will make me feel one hell of a lot better!"

"You will do no such thing, Sai," Wardo said, suddenly dead serious again, but still deathly calm. "Not if you still hold any love for your family."

"And what do you know of family!?" Kadai said, slowly closing the distance between them. "You have no brothers or sisters! No mother or father! No mate and no children! So don't you dare preach to me about family!"

"I assure you, Sai, preaching is not my intention. No, I have something far more selfish in mind, and I'm not ashamed to admit that. We all live our days striving to gain the most profit for the least amount of effort. Such is nature. The bear can chase the doe all day long and still go hungry, whereas the buzzard need only circle above, waiting for the right moment to feast on the carcasses left behind by those too foolish to realize their folly."

"Comparing yourself to a buzzard now, Wardo? I think you're giving yourself far too much praise. You're no better than the maggots infesting the carcass that buzzard feeds on!"

"Perhaps," Wardo said in an offhand way. "But you shouldn't be trying to figure out what the buzzards or the maggots represent in this little analogy. What you really should be asking yourself is, 'What is the carcass they feed upon'?"

Kadai didn't give a damn about Wardo's crazy talk. He was only listening with half an ear anyway. With the tree behind him, Wardo would only be able to flee to the left or right. He already had his left leg slightly bent, ready to push off, so if he pounced right now...

"The 'carcass,' Sai, is your wife, your child, and the Chieftancy of your tribe."

This gave Kadai pause. He quickly looked to the Cora's pass, hoping to see one last glimpse of Sarah before she disappeared, but she was already gone. "For once in your life, Wardo," Kadai said, hoping that his voice would only carry his rage, and not betray his deeper feelings of loss and regret, "either speak directly, or shut the hell up!"

"Oh, you want me to speak directly, Sai? Fine. I wouldn't expect someone as simple-minded as you to fully comprehend the situation anyway."

"You are the one failing to comprehend! We are all alone in the middle of the woods! I am bigger! I am stronger! And I will take great pleasure in peeling the flesh from your bones!"

"You will do no such thing, Sai," Wardo said again, completely unfazed.

"You seem to know an awful lot about what I shall and shall not do."

"Oh, I know far more than that, Sai. For example, I know that, right now, you and I are the only two Wolves absent from the village, and I made sure to tell everyone that I would be out looking for you."

"You think that means anything to me? You honestly think anyone will even _care_if you go missing? Even if they do, these woods can be dangerous. You could have gotten killed by a bear, fallen off a cliff, drowned in the river. Anything! I'll just say I never saw you!"

"All true, Sai, but your argument will only stand as long as there is nothing to link you to my death."

"There is no link!"

"Not yet, Sai. But tell me this; what would happen if I were to get even a single, good bite in? Or even just a single scratch before you end my life in the imaginative ways you've mentioned thus far? You've been Chieftain for almost ten years, so I assume you can think ahead, even if only a few hours."

The rage was still there, making Kadai grind his teeth together. His fingers flexed of their own accord, opening and closing, itching to throttle. The only thing keeping him from knocking this fool to the ground and stepping on his throat was the look Sarah had given him, that look of horror, as if the Wolf she had come to love was turning into a monster before her very eyes.

Even so, he couldn't make his anger ebb. She was gone, and this loathsome creature was the cause. However, he was able to keep it under control long enough to think ahead, just as Wardo had asked of him.

He could envision himself stepping through the gates, pretending like nothing had happened. Some Wolves would ask about the bite marks, and he'd simply tell them he'd been in a scuffle with a lynx. Then, he'd go to his tent and -

And that's where it all fell apart. Kadai tried to think up some other scenarios, but they all ended the same. There would be no way to hide it. She'd know.

"You understand now, don't you?" Wardo said. "How fitting, that the one you've been betraying all this time would also serve as your shackles and_my_ shield."

Kadai's mind was working at a fever pitch, creating ideas and shooting them down one after another.

What if I disguise any wounds he might leave on me, make them deeper, wider?

No, she'd recognise it immediately, and then I'd look even more suspicious. Same goes for covering them up myself. She'd want to see.

This is all pure speculation! There's no guarantee he'll even lay a finger on you before you deal the deathblow!

But what if he does? What if he does_!? _

"Shekka might be going blind," Wardo said, "but she's still the tribe's one and only witchdoctor. And, unlike you, I actually find her talents quite fascinating. Did you know she can tell the difference between the bite of a mountain lion and a bobcat? Something about the angle of the teeth and the width of the jaw..."

Of course Kadai knew all this. He's been mated to her for five years, after all. He's seen firsthand the way she could scrutinize any wound, holding it right up to her eyes, tilting her head left and right, examining it from every angle. She'd smell it, then delicately trace her fingers across the break in her patient's skin. Sometimes she'd even lick it, slowly running the tip of her tongue inside the cleft of the more serious wounds. This latter made Kadai's stomach turn, but little Banno would often watch this practice, completely transfixed, and Shekka would let him, as long as he promised to sit still and be quiet. And he would. He'd sit and watch in complete silence, not uttering a single word, like a good little pup.

Kadai couldn't understand why, but it was rather unsettling...

"Chieftain?" Wardo snapped his fingers a few times in Kadai's direction. "Having deep thoughts, are we?"

"No, you're wrong! Shekka would never betray me!"

Wardo widened his eyes in mock surprise. "You mean like you betrayed_her_? I always knew you were many things, Sai, but a hypocrite? How low you've sunk in such a short time. You may have no regard for the laws of our tribe and of our god, but Shekka certainly does. She'd expose you right then and there, for the good of the tribe, something you've taken for granted while you were off gallivanting with that 'piece of meat' as she so elegantly called herself."

"Just tell me what you want and have done with it!" Kadai said. He'd weigh the risks of attacking this traitorous creature again after he knew what, exactly, he was after.

"I know something you do not want your family to know. This gives me power, and I intend to use this power to achieve something that has always been out of my grasp. Or, at the very least, to improve my chances of doing so."

"And what is this great achievement?"

"I want to become Chieftain."

This statement was so unexpected, so absurd, Kadai could only gawk. Wardo? The Chieftain? Ridiculous! There are only a few ways to become Chieftain. First was the right of birth. Chieftaincy is traditionally handed down from father to ensa, or sometimes to a younger brother, if the Chieftain's sons are still too young. Second is the right of battle. If a Chieftain is challenged, and the challenge is deemed rightful, then the two shall square off in a fight to the death to determine who is most fit to lead the tribe.

Kadai supposed that Wardo could indeed open the way for a legitimate challenge if he chose to reveal his unfaithfulness, but that challenge could be taken by anyone in the tribe, and there were warriors far more capable than Wardo to take advantage of that.

The only other way would be to -

"No..." Kadai said, shaking his head. "You can't be serious? You don't expect me to just give you my title!?"

"Well, that would be nice, but let's be realistic, shall we? Handing over the chieftaincy while you're still in perfect health would be incredibly suspicious, and not all Wolves are as clouded as you are. The truth will come out, and when it does, we'll both be in huge trouble. Oh, and I'll just ignore your little plot for now."

"My plot?"

"You think I'm stupid? If you simply gave me the title outright, you could later claim to change your mind and challenge me to get the title back. As the previous Chieftain, you'd have every right to do this, and then you could murder me in front of everyone without having to worry about breaking any laws. And even if I chose to divulge your secret then, I'd still lose the right to Chieftaincy, since there's no such thing as 'right of extortion.' The title would simply go to one of the other muscle-brained oafs roaming around, but at least you'd get your 'revenge.' See the problem?"

The idea of murdering Wardo through the right of battle never even occurred to Kadai, but he kept quiet, carefully thinking over every bit of information, analysing the situation for what it really was. He was definitely dealing with a cunning Wolf, and any mistake on his part might have dire consequences for him and his family, so he had to be thorough, and he had to be quick about it.

Wardo knew his secret. That gave him an advantage. If he told anyone, Kadai would lose his position as leader of the Wolves, but since Wardo didn't have any right to the title, he wouldn't get what he wanted either. The only way for Wardo to become Chieftain without risking his own life would be for Kadai to give away his title, but that wasn't an option.

They were stuck. They were both stuck.

"This is insane," Kadai said. "Your threat is empty! You have nothing to gain by this! I refuse to play into this sick game of yours! Even if you go climb to the top of the Cora and shout my infidelity for the whole world to hear, what makes you think anyone will believe you? You have no proof! You're just a lowly tracker, always sneaking about, and I'm the Chieftain of the Wolves!"

Wardo smiled, that wicked, evil smile that only ever seemed to touch one half of his mouth. "You're blinder than Shekka, Sai, but I can understand why. That 'Sarah' of yours... quite blinding, isn't she? I can't blame you for not noticing."

"Not noticing what?"

"The other Wolves, they don't notice me. Like you said, I'm quite good at 'sneaking about', but I'm always around, always with my ear to the ground, always listening. I probably know more about what goes on within those walls than any other, and what I know is that the Wolves have been talking, Sai. They've been talking about you. Always disappearing into the woods at the strangest of times, always alone. You claim to go 'hunting' even when the larders are full, and you hardly ever come back with more than a scrawny rabbit or a handful of fish, almost as an afterthought. Did you really think no one would notice? It's only been light gossip and speculation so far, just a way for bored she-wolves to pass the time, but it could easily grow into something more, and I can't have that."

Kadai's anger, which had been simmering down as the full weight of his predicament started to reveal itself, suddenly flared back up again. "_That's_why you made me tell Sarah about my family!? So you could have your blasted trump card!?"

"Holding a secret over someone's head is only good for as long as that secret remains just that: a secret. If anyone found out and blathered about it, I'd have nothing. And the way you were going around, so reckless! It would only be a matter of time before everyone figured it out. But now that your little love affair is over, this can stay just between you... and me... What do you say, Sai?"

"To hell with you, that's what I say!"

Wardo clicked his tongue and shook his head, as if he were speaking to an irrational child who refused to see reason. "Now, now, Chieftain. Before you go and lose your temper (again), why not hear what I have to say first? I think you'll find it most fair."

"I find that very hard to believe."

"Instead of giving away your Chieftaincy, all I ask is that you name _me_next in line."

"What!?" It was getting harder and harder for Kadai to control himself. "That honour is for my son! You have no right to take that away from him!"

"That pup of yours? He's more concerned with catching lizards than learning how to govern the tribe. And please don't think I'm insensitive to your situation. I don't expect you to name me your successor right away. Perish the thought! But once you've grown older, and the time comes to step down? Or maybe (Cora forbid) you find yourself on your deathbed one day? Then, Sai. That's when I'll come to collect."

"You rotten bastard..." Kadai growled. He took a step forward and felt a small amount of satisfaction when Wardo took two steps back.

"Listen to me, Sai," he said. "Just think about it! You still get to live out your days as Chieftain, as if nothing had happened! Shekka never needs to find out, and you never need to disgrace your family or your honour. But if you betray me, Sai. If you let that scrawny child of yours become Chieftain, or if you die before naming me your successor, you know what will happen, right? I will go straight to Shekka, as she mourns, and I will tell her everything! Everything, you hear me!? You'll go to your grave being cursed by your own family as the betrayer you are!"

Kadai stopped, his anger now tinged with the sickly hue of guilt. He could try to justify it in his mind as much as he wanted, but it wouldn't change the simple facts. He was a betrayer. Both to Shekka and Sarah.

"Does... does Shekka suspect anything?"

"Not at all," Wardo assured him. "It's funny, actually. It's always the ones we love the most who are the last to find out, maybe because they only see the good."

Kadai sighed. Wardo was evil and manipulative, but he was right more often than Kadai would like to admit. He did love Shekka, he really did. But he also loved Sarah. What did that say of him?

"Do we have an accord?" Wardo asked and stuck out his dirty, callused hand.

Kadai slapped it away. "I'll never shake your hand as long as I live, you filthy mongrel!"

"Do. We. Have. An. Accord?" Wardo asked again, emphasising each word as they passed over his slimy, silver tongue.

Kadai could see no alternative, and even if there was some magical solution to this problem, there's no way he could think of it as he was now. Time was running out.

"Fine, you have your accord. Now get out of my sight." He spat at Wardo's feet, but the bastard didn't seem to mind in the least.

"Wonderful," he said, backing away with a sarcastic bow. "It's been a pleasure doing business with you."

"Leave me," Kadai said, his voice quavering with all the anger he had pent up over the last few minutes. A part of him still wanted to chase down the retreating Wolf and tear his throat out, but he couldn't afford to take that chance. Wardo might not be a warrior, but he was still a capable fighter. The scars on his chest stood as a living testament to that, and dispatching him without sustaining any injury that would mark him as a murderer was unlikely. The loathsome creature planned it all out in the finest detail.

Seething, cursing Wardo's name with every breath, Kadai watched him disappear among the trees, merging with the shadows as if he were one of them.

Only when the sounds of the leaves crackling and the twigs snapping underfoot had disappeared completely, and he was absolutely sure that Wardo was gone and that he was all alone, did Kadai allow himself to vent some of his anger and frustration. He dropped down to his knees and punched the ground as hard as he could, creating a small puff of dust that only infuriated him even more. He struck the ground again and again, the raw emotion raging inside his body. He wanted to scream so badly, he just wanted to let it all out, but the thought of Wardo hearing his anguish echo through the woods, listening as that half-smile stole across his lips, was more than Kadai could bear.

So he punched the ground in complete silence, not even grunting, not even crying out in pain when his skin tore open and the sand stuck to his bloody knuckles in sticky clumps.

It didn't make him feel any better.

He could feel the entire year; the months, the days, the hours, the minutes, the seconds, all passing him by in that single moment. There was a lot of pain, but it was still the best year of his life, and he wouldn't let it end on a note like this.

Kadai slowly got back to his feet, his arm tired and aching, and turned to the Cora's pass. There was something he had to do, something important. He had to see Sarah one last time. He owed it to her to set things right, even if it meant it would be the last time they ever saw each other. He had to tell her how sorry he was, and... and that the time they spent together meant so much to him...

He wasn't sure how he would be able to tell her all this, but he knew that, when the time came, maybe he wouldn't have to say anything at all.

Maybe they could just be together one last time.

All the words in the world couldn't compare to something like that.

He would go to her, and he would hold her, and she would know.

She would know that he loved her.

---

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