by Riley Storm
He’s not totally insane, however, else he’d be after the Throne instead. Keep that in mind, Kirell; he’s still able to think somewhat rationally, and that means he’s dangerous.
A noise ahead alerted Kirell to the presence of the first guard. It wasn’t much, the rustle of clothing as a bored guard shifted and tugged at his outerwear. Probably itching himself. It didn’t matter; he’d given away his position.
Kirell moved slowly to the right, circling wide around the scout. Shifters could see in the dark, but they couldn’t see infra-red, which was good else he’d stand out like a sore thumb.
A few minutes later, he spied the scout, back to a tree, head turning left and right in a slow, rhythmic pattern. Kirell smiled, moving forward only when the guard was looking away from him, and freezing when his gaze returned.
As silent as a shadow, Kirell rose up behind the guard, grabbing his mouth with one hand and sliding the steel dagger between the man’s ribs, thrusting in hard, upward and deep. There was a muffled scream, then the point of the blade hit home and the scout went limp. Kirell slowly set him down and continued on around the perimeter.
It pained him to kill members of his own House like this, without warning, in the dark. Alive one moment, dead the next. He took out the second one the same way, but the third was smarter. The third he almost stumbled across, until the man spat. The noise of the saliva spattering against a leaf alerted him that someone was above him.
Looking up, Kirell saw the man outlined in the tree. This was going to be much more difficult. He couldn’t approach with surprise. There was no way to climb a tree without alerting the occupant in it. Between the sound of his boots on bark, and the shaking of the trunk, he’d be spotted before he tried.
Kirell hefted the dagger in his hand, testing the balance. This had never been his strong suit, but he was no chump at it either. Grabbing the weapon by the blade, he judged the distance, cocked his arm back and let fly all in one smooth motion.
As soon as he’d recovered his balance, Kirell was running forward, following the blade. The movement alerted the shifter, but it was too late. The blade struck home, sinking to its hilt into the scout’s eye, killing him instantly.
Kirell grunted softly as he caught the falling body, before depositing it lightly onto the ground. His knife came free with a stomach-turning sucking noise, but he clamped down on his system and cleaned the knife. Another turn of the perimeter revealed no further scouts, and he signaled to his Queen that she could approach. He crept out of the woods and hopped into the SUV she was driving.
Neither of them spoke as she floored it to the only cluster of lights visible in the Ursa family cemetery.
Each of the shifter Houses had joined together at some point since they had come to the United States, working alongside one another to build the graveyard. Most shifters were cremated, their remains returned to the earth around the house itself. The royals, however, the rulers, were buried in the ground. Here, they all came together. Wolf. Bear. Dragon and more. No distinction was made over power.
It was a small place, hidden in the middle of a forest on land owned equally by all three Houses. This was one of the few places officially accorded as neutral ground for the three powers.
Klebra hadn’t chosen this place by accident, though. It was a message to Kaelyn. That if she didn’t do as Klebra wanted, she would find herself buried there as well. That wasn’t going to happen, Kirell thought with a silent, teeth-baring snarl. The only person who would die on these grounds tonight would be Klebra.
Kirell was going to make sure of it.
“That sonofabitch,” Kaelyn snarled, breaking hard as the lights of the SUV more fully illuminated the torchlit scene in front of them.
He barely heard her. The sight of his Natalia, tied to a stake, half her shirt missing, her hair a mess and blood flowing from a cut under one eye threatened to unleash the rage he’d been keeping contained.
“Play it smart,” Kaelyn urged, shutting off the car. “Use our brains. We have the advantage, he just doesn’t know it. Don’t push him further than we have to.”
Kirell nodded, but in his mind the only thing he saw was his hands around Klebra’s neck, squeezing tighter and tighter.
“You came!” Klebra crowed, moving to stand closer to Natalia. He looked down at his wrist. “And just in the nick of time too! How convenient.”
Kirell just stared, his face a blank mask of death.
“What do you want?” Kaelyn stepped forward, snagging Kirell by the arm and dragging him with her.
“It’s quite simple really.” Klebra laughed, that same high-pitched noise that seemed to indicate his break with reality. “You,” he said gaily, pointing at Kirell, “are going to relinquish your position, and suggest me as successor.”
He took another step toward Natalia as the pair of them entered the ring of torches. Behind them, the SUV’s lights shut off, giving the whole thing an eerie atmosphere. Behind Kirell, Natalia struggled with her bonds, looking frightened.
Kirell growled menacingly at that knowledge, but Kaelyn’s fingers tightened around his arm, holding him back.
“Good, good!” Klebra giggled. “Keep him under control. This really won’t take long.”
“Why am I here?” Kaelyn asked frostily.
“Isn’t it obvious? To confirm my appointment as Captain of High House Ursa. I will kneel before you, and you will say the words.” Klebra’s expression turned dark. “Otherwise, I will expose these two as frauds, and the fact that you knew about it all along. You will be stripped of your position, and I will ascend to the throne as the one who proved that the two of you were conspiring to ruin High House Ursa all along.”
Both Kirell and Kaelyn stepped forward at that, twin growls filling the circle.
“Ah, ah, ah!” Klebra said, waving a finger as he jumped right next to Natalia. “And if you don’t, I kill her.” His voice became flat, losing its enthusiasm but taking on a promise that convinced Kirell he was telling the truth.
They were in a bind. “If I do this,” Kirell said sullenly, “You let her go. The two of us will leave here. We’ll leave the House,” he said, clenching his fists. “And we’ll leave town. Unharmed.”
“As long as you never return,” Klebra agreed.
“Kirell, we can’t do this,” Kaelyn hissed from next to him.
“I’m sorry,” he said, pulling away from his Queen. “I have to. This is on me. You are needed where you are.”
Klebra chuckled at the exchange of words, and Kirell nearly lost control. But Kaelyn sighed. She understood too. Kirell had to give in. That was the only way she would remain Queen without disgracing herself. Maybe she could figure out a way to bring Klebra down, given some more time, now they knew he was actively scheming against her.
“My Queen,” he said formally, squaring himself up to her.
“Yes.” Klebra clapped.
“I hereby relinquish the title of Captain of High House Ursa, effective immediately.”
Kaelyn drew herself up as well, taking on the regal air of the Queen that she was. “I accept.” Then she turned to Klebra. “There, are you happy? He’s gone.”
“Not yet! Not yet! It’s not done.” Klebra pointed at Kaelyn. “Approach. I will kneel before you, and you will appoint me in his stead. Then we will be complete.”
Kirell almost rolled his eyes. There was nobody else around how the hell did he expect this to stick? The man truly was insane. But he could still kill Natalia with a flick of his wrist, and until then, he was too dangerous to dismiss entirely. Once Kirell could free her, once he could get his mate to safety, then things would change. But not before.
He didn’t even blink over thinking about her as his mate. During his time recovering, he’d come to the conclusion that they may have started out faking it, but he was convinced beyond a doubt now; Natalia was his real mate. Nobody else had ever made him feel the way he felt about her. And nobody ever would. She was his mate.
The Quee
n paused several feet in front of Klebra and spoke. “Approach, Klebra of House Ursa,” she said formally.
His face split in glee, Klebra walked up to her and knelt on one knee. “My Queen.” He glanced over at Kirell, probably as much to gloat as to keep an eye on him, to ensure he didn’t try anything while he was being confirmed into his position.
Kirell just glared.
“As Queen of High House Ursa, I give to you that which you deserve most.”
Kirell frowned. Those weren’t the words.
Klebra looked up just in time to see the Queen’s fist come smashing down into his face. She followed that up with a knee to his chin. “YOU DARE TO CHALLENGE ME!” she bellowed, picking the stunned Klebra up and tossing him clear of Natalia.
Kirell wasted no time, running toward his mate. Behind him, the Queen stormed off after Klebra.
“I AM THE QUEEN OF HIGH HOUSE URSA, YOU FOOL! DID YOU THINK I GOT HERE BECAUSE OF MY LOOKS? DID YOU ASSUME I WAS SOME INCOMPETENT WEAKLING?”
Kirell heard a dull thud and, looking over his shoulder, saw his Queen deliver another solid kick to Klebra, sending him spinning across the ground until he smashed into the stone wall of a mausoleum to some dead ancestor.
You’re an idiot, Klebra. You forgot she is of our blood as well. Now you’re going to pay for it. I guess that’s what she meant by ‘what you deserve most’.
None of that mattered though, not unless Kirell got Natalia out of there safely.
40
“Kirell!” Natalia exclaimed, unable to control her shaking as he skidded to a halt in front of her.
“Natalia.” He stared at her for a moment, then kissed her.
She let him, hungry for his touch, but quickly her inability to get her hands on him, to feel safe in his arms, won out over her enjoyment of the feel of his lips against hers.
“Look, I’m all for letting you tie me up, but this isn’t quite what I had in mind,” she quipped, pulling away from his face.
Kirell snorted, glancing over his shoulder as he yanked on the ropes that held her to the stake. They parted with ease, each mighty flex of his arms snapping the bonds until they were loose enough for her to struggle free.
“Natalia, I’m so sorry,” he started repeating as she fell into his arms. “I’m so sorry. I should never have let this happen to you.”
“It’s not your fault,” she said, gripping the back of his head. He lifted her clear of the ground, scooping up her legs as well.
“I need to get you to safety. The guards will be on their way, but it’ll take them a few minutes. Can you drive?”
“What? Why?”
“The SUV,” he said, pointing to the vehicle they’d arrived in. “Take it out of here, I have to help Kaelyn.”
She looked over at the two with a soft snort. “Are you sure? It looks like Klebra’s the one who needs help.”
Even as she spoke, the traitorous shifter lashed out with a fist that sent the Queen reeling. She wasn’t down, nor not even out of the fight, but Natalia understood what Kirell meant now. Better not to risk it by ending things here and now.
“I should have never let you go,” Kirell whispered as he carried her over to the SUV. “I should have told you how I felt, that I wanted you to stay. I should have fought harder for you.”
Natalia kissed his cheek over and over again. “I ran away,” she said. “Because I was scared.”
“Of me?” he asked, crestfallen.
“No. Not like that. I was scared because…” she hesitated, the fear even now stealing her voice.
“You don’t need to be scared of me,” he whispered into her ear. “I’ll be here for you. No matter what you need.”
“I need you,” she said, forcing the words out before she thought them through. “That’s what scares me, Kirell. How much I need you. How badly I want you in my life. How I want to be in yours.”
He smiled down at her. “I need you too, Natalia. More than I ever thought I could need someone. I love you.”
She bit her lip, staring up at a pair of vibrant blue eyes that were completely open to her. No shield, no defenses. Kirell had ripped those all away just now as he confessed that he loved her. Her. Natalia Kristoff. A human woman.
“I love you too,” she told him. There was no waver in her voice, no hesitation. It might scare the shit out of her, but she would no longer deny she loved this man. “Now go help your Queen before the others get here. I don’t want to see you get any more hurt.”
“No need to worry about his lackeys,” Kirell said, his eyes flashing. “I dealt with them out in the woods.”
She frowned. “All of them? Even the men from the restaurant?”
Kirell blinked. “What?”
“From Leblanc. The Canis.”
Her mate—why wasn’t it strange to use that word? But it wasn’t. In fact, it came to her naturally—went still, setting her down.
“What did you say?”
She looked around, fearful. “Outside of the House. The men who helped him capture me. I saw the face of one of them, he was one of the ones you fought outside of the restaurant. On our first date, you remember?”
Kirell was looking around, shifting to put her between him and the SUV. “Get in,” he said quietly, ignoring the fighting between Klebra and the Queen. “The keys are in it. Get out of here. Now.”
She turned to try and get in, but it was locked. “Kirell. Kirell it’s locked. It’s locked, Kirell,” she said, fear escalating. She knew any moment now that things would change.
“Stay behind me,” he urged, as three tall figures emerged from around a large tomb.
“Don’t just stand there!” Klebra shouted from where he and the Queen were beating each other to a pulp. “Kill him and get over here.”
Kirell watched in satisfaction as the distraction earned the traitor a flurry of blows from his Queen, fresh blood spraying from his nose as she connected solidly. Still, the ruler of House Ursa was flagging, not used to extended combat.
Where the hell are Klaue and the guards?
He spread his legs, drawing on what little energy and strength he had left after his beating the day before and then sneaking around the woods. It wasn’t much, but it would have to be enough. It would be enough.
“Here boy. Here boy!” he snarled, whistling a command at the Canis elders, purposefully antagonizing them.
Then he advanced.
41
He was weak. Sore. Beaten and bruised. Barely-healed bones and exhausted energy reserves. Kirell fit every description.
But most of all, he was pissed.
Normally, he kept that anger bottled up, especially when he was fighting, because it was better to fight with a clear mind.
Not this time.
Tonight, he unleashed his rage, filling the torchlit circle with a bellow that wavered the flickering fires of the staked lights and caused the wolves to pause. The noise tore at his throat, but as he shifted it grew deeper. More powerful.
Angrier.
Kirell pawed at the ground, his claws digging massive furrows in the earth, a promise of what he would do to his victims. Bone-white teeth flashed in the dim lighting as he growled and challenged the trio of wolves, who had also shifted. His eyes flickered with a fevered red as a crimson haze descended over his vision, blocking out everything but the three living Canim.
Time to change that number to zero.
He roared a challenge once more, then charged. He wasn’t going to win the fight by being on the defensive. It was time to attack, to show them the true speed and power of a battle-enraged Ursidae. These opponents were old; elders, yes, but unused to combat anymore, and he was banking on them not being ready.
They weren’t.
Closing with blinding speed, Kirell swiped at the slowest moving one. The wolf shifter darted away, but not without a line of red marks along his side. They were still fast, managing to avoid an instantaneous death blow, but it left no doubt that he’d drawn first blood.
; Come on, you mangy flea-bitten mongrels. Let’s see what you’ve got.
Kirell didn’t have much energy and fighting in his animal form was going to sap it even faster than normal. He had to end the fight, and soon, or else the wolves would be able to use their numbers against him. Unless I can do something about that.
He spun as one of them darted at his hind legs. Claws sliced through air, barely missing the wolf. Even as he did that, another came in from his blind side. Kirell was ready. In fact, he’d counted on them doing this.
In a move completely unexpected of any bear, he dropped his weight onto his forelegs and did his best to mimic a donkey as he kicked out behind him. The wolf didn’t stand a chance. A paw nearly the size of a manhole cover slammed into the powerful beast’s skull with the force of a moving vehicle.
Bone crunched and the snout collapsed back into the animal’s brain, killing it instantly. Kirell whirled and smacked the creature across what remained of its face, ripping fur and spraying blood everywhere as he reveled in the kill, bellowing his victory to any and all that might hear.
Something clamped down wickedly on his flank, followed moments later by blinding pain as the massive wolf ripped a chunk of flesh from him, darting out of the way of his defensive swipe. The other one came at him from behind, leaping on top of him. It bit down and used the clenched bite to hold itself still as claws ripped through Kirell’s thick fur, opening cuts that drew blood.
He roared in pain and rolled swiftly, dislodging the wolf lest it be crushed by his weight. The canine leapt free, howling in a combination of success and frustration. It had hurt him, but not enough.
A quick glance showed that Natalia was still safe, having moved to the far side of the SUV, keeping it between her and the raging battle. His anger spiking at the danger she was in fueled him on again.
How dare these washed-up never-was pieces of dung threaten his mate? He couldn’t wait to rip the throat from Klebra, assuming his Queen didn’t beat him to the punch. The traitor had not only betrayed his own household, but he’d dared to put a hand on Kirell’s mate. He was going to kill him for that, staring into Klebra’s face as he delivered the fatal blow. Kirell wanted to watch him die, so that he would leave this earth seeing nothing but triumphant victory on his hated rival.