Both went silent after they talked about the sons they lost. Even though Leland and Sophie understood they needed to talk about them in order to process their grief, it didn't make things easier or better.
It only happened not long ago. So, the wounds were still quite fresh. None of them say another word. Sophie didn't want to make the atmosphere turn more somber than it already was, decided to focus her attention on the little ones who started showing signs of hunger.
Leland nodded at her and took out a bag of food and gave the children some meat to fill their stomachs. He offered some to Sophie but she refused to eat anything until the children were full.
"You should eat first," Leland said to her. "We have enough food for days. We will stop in the next town and buy more food. Max and Duncan can also hunt for more meat."
After Leland insisted, finally, Sophie took some food and ate with the boys. She didn't want him to feel worried. She also realized that her body was still very weak and she needed the food to gain more strength.
"How far are we from the next town, do you know?" Sophie asked Leland after she finished eating and drank water from the waterskin.
"Perhaps, we will arrive there before sunset. We will spend the night in Anheim. You should rest in a proper bed."
Luciel's and Jan's ears perked up when they heard they would spend the night in the next town. They loved traveling and they still remembered the trip they took when they moved from Hastings to Livstad.
So, now, they were traveling again? Sweet!
Luciel and Jan were toddlers and like most young children around their age, even a rather large carriage made them restless and eager to arrive at their destinations.
How long till we get there? The two seemed to say as they glanced up with a mouthful of meat in their mouths as they scarfed down their lunch.
There wasn't enough room to run around and so they anxiously nipped at both their mother and the Alpha to communicate their boredom. Sophie chuckled as she opened her arms.
"Are the two of you really bored being stuck with your mother? Come here," she said.
Jan luckily enjoyed resting in his mother's arms when he got tired, but Luciel started a staring contest with Leland, which he often tended to lose.
On other occasions, Luciel and Jan also readily poked their heads out when traveling to bark at owls and at the other lycans traveling alongside them.
Sophie herself was a bit restless from long travels in a carriage.
Back then Sophie headed to Hauntingen mostly on foot by herself when she left Hastings and her relatives. She was not stuck all the time in a carriage.
However, walking was not an option now. So, she passed the time with conversations with Leland, napping, and also taking care of her kids.
She was very happy when they finally reached the town Leland mentioned. Anheim was a large town not too far from a lake. It had beautiful scenery and she enjoyed looking outside the window to admire the view.
"Let's rest here for the night," Leland said to Sophie when the carriage stopped in front of a really big inn. He got out of the carriage followed by his wife.
When he saw Sophie look so weak, Leland helped her walk by holding her shoulders. However, when she almost lost her balance because her legs were so weak, he immediately carried her in his arms.
"Let me," he said as he scooped her up. His heart pained when he realized she was still very weak from the after effect of the poison and miscarriage. Sophie didn't argue. She didn't want to attract any attention on them from the people around the inn.
The kids wanted to dash out immediately from the carriage but Duncan was faster. He had come with a big basket and motioned the kids to get into the basket and hide themselves from other people.
It was dangerous to show wolf pups around regular people because they might be suspicious that the traveling group was werewolves under disguise.
It was better and safer to hide the kids while they were in cities, So, Duncan had prepared the basket and blanket to cover them.
Luciel and Jan didn't want to, but the man looked at them firmly. "You must get into the basket, otherwise you can't get out of the carriage. This is the Alpha's order."
Luciel and Jan exchanged glances. They looked like they were wronged and wanted to ask their father to pick them up, instead of letting Duncan do it.
"Do what Duncan told you." At the same time, Leland turned to them and raised an eyebrow. It was enough to make Luciel and Jan relent.
Reluctantly, both pups entered the basket and sat. Duncan smiled happily and then cover them with a blanket. He also took a loaf of bread and put it over the blanket to cover up the lycan pups' existence further.
Then, he walked inside the inn, following Leland and Sophie. Max and the others took care of their carriages and horses before they joined the Alpha in the inn.
They rested comfortably in Anheim for one night. Sophie felt a bit fresher after a good night's sleep in a comfortable bed. Seeing the colors return to her cheeks the next morning, Leland realized they should stop traveling the way they usually did, traveling in the nighttime and resting in the daytime on the road.
His very sick wife needed to rest in a proper bed, in a nice inn at proper sleeping hours. So, her health wouldn't become worse than it already was.
"Let's travel slowly in the daytime and find towns to sleep at nighttime," Leland said to his men when they got ready to continue their journey. "It's less suspicious that way."
Nobody argued or contested his decision. Most of them understood that the Alpha did it for his mate, but they didn't mind. They were not in a hurry to attack the enemy. They were going back home to rethink the pack's future.
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