by Leia Stone
When it was just me and my dominants in the room, I let out a deep breath. My body almost caved forward as the tension eased itself from my tightly wound chest. Finn rested his head upon my leg, and I curled over so I could wrap myself around him.
This queen thing is so much bigger than I expected. How am I going to be enough of a shifter to do everything required of me?
A rush of warmth caressed me, and I closed my eyes at the sensation of his energy mingling with my own. You’re already enough. You’re giving your people everything you have. No one can expect more than that of you. Bringing in the alphas is a sign of the true leader within you. Delegation is important. Letting go of control and trusting in others is one of the hardest steps all leaders take. I admire your strength, and I’m so proud of you.
Have I told you lately how grateful I am that you chose me as your heir? I leaned back and kissed him on the nose.
I chose well. I chose my equal.
Well, if that wasn’t enough to give a queen her daily confidence boost, I don’t know what was. Finn was incredible, and for him to say that meant everything to me.
“You okay, Princess?” Blaine stepped in closer, still looking all guard-like, but some of the tension was gone from his handsome face. I sat back from Finn, reaching a hand out for Blaine to pull me to my feet. Then I surprised us both by wrapping my arms around him and hugging him close.
“Thank you for being my friend,” I murmured against his chest. “All of these years you have protected me, even before I needed guards.” The room was empty now except for my dominants. I would never show this much affection in public – even Monica, Jen, Victor, and Ben were at the far wall, giving us privacy.
His arms tightened then, and suddenly I was completely pressed against his hard muscles. His familiar scent and warmth wrapped around me and it almost felt protective, like Blaine was somehow a blanket I could crawl beneath to hide from the scary horrors of the world.
“You’re my best friend, Ari. I would die for you without even thinking about it. I’ve always known you would be queen, and I knew that there was no one worthier of the role. You’re different from the other heirs. You’re … more.”
I pulled back. My brow rose as I gave him my “what the heck” look. “You couldn’t possibly have known I’d be queen. The Red Queen stood for over a hundred years. And how am I different?”
Blaine tilted his head down to see me better; his light green eyes were glimmering, the color depthless. I stood on tiptoes to get close to him; he was much taller than me.
“When you were five and had just bonded with Finn, I had a dream. It was strange, this kaleidoscope of changing colors and scenes. The last one, which stayed with me right until I woke up, was a beautiful woman with white hair standing on a grassy hill. The grass was so green that it hurt my eyes, her dress so red it was beyond any color I knew. Upon her head was a crown of purple mecca stones.”
I was clutching at him now, my nails surely digging into his biceps, but he didn’t flinch.
“I had that dream for months. After some time, I started to realize it was you, that I was seeing you as future queen. It was almost like someone wanted me to know you were going to be queen and that I had to protect you. I had to make sure you would have the chance.”
My breath was coming out in fast little huffs as I tried to process this. “Only magic born see visions in their dreams,” I said in a whisper. “How is this possible?”
Blaine shrugged. “I have no idea. I never told anyone for fear that I’d be thought crazy, or worse, that it was a true vision and would be seen as a threat to the Red Queen. My great-great-grandfather was magic born. Maybe I inherited some of his gift.”
Was that possible?
“Thanks for telling me,” I said.
I realized this was the first time in a long time I’d really looked at my friend. Really saw him. He had sacrificed so much of his own life to serve me. “Thank you for everything.”
He hugged me again, and it was only when a throat cleared that we pulled apart. I turned to find Calista in the doorway, tablet in hand and a half-smile on her face.
“Sorry to interrupt, but I’m going to need her highness for a few minutes.”
Blaine stepped back and I let all the softer emotions inside of me swirl around for a bit before I tucked them away. It felt as if things had changed slightly, as if there was a depth to our friendship that had not been there earlier. It was a nice feeling and I was surprised by it.
Shaking this off, I crossed the room to reach my advisor. She handed me her tablet, only remembering at the last moment that electronics and queens did not go well together. She snatched it back, holding it up so I could see. She then started flicking through the pages.
I read as quickly as I could; it was an entire webpage dedicated to Kade and me, like a memoir of our love story or some crap. Only we didn’t have a love story. Dark, stormy emotions crashed within me as I read through the information. Most of it was taken out of context, some completely made up, but teamed with a multitude of pictures – including one from when he’d saved me during my coronation and had his hand spread across my chest as he funneled the mecca energy out of me – well, it all looked pretty convincing.
Calista’s face was creased with concern, her eyes sad. “I have the technology department staff dealing with it. We’ve taken the site down multiple times already, but it keeps popping up. Some of your people have seen it, and already there are discussions across the message boards. It’s being contained right now, but I just wanted to let you know.”
I nodded, too angry to say any more. I had not crossed any lines with Kade since becoming queen, and before that it was nothing more than a kiss or two. It was beyond frustrating that not only did I have to ignore my attraction to the bear king, but now I had to defend myself for actions I didn’t even take.
“Figure out who created the site and bring them to me,” I said from between gritted teeth.
Calista nodded. We were walking now, my dominants trailing behind me. Within ten minutes, I’d left the basement and was back in my office. My crown went back into its special wooden box, then I let myself sink into the plush office chair behind my new oak desk. My new office furniture was perfect. I loved running my hands across the grains of wood and leather inlay. This place relaxed me, but unfortunately I had business to attend to first. I had to deal with Seamus – and all magic born, really. I loved Violet, but sometimes she did act above me, and I couldn’t allow that in my home.
Calista was the only one in the room now, so I said to her, “Print up a new royal decree. All magic born are forbidden from cloaking themselves in the presence of the queen. Punishable by…”
I would have to follow through with whatever I said here, and it would be stupid to kill a magic born over something like this. They were treasured and important, but they did need to learn their place. How dare Seamus spy on my private council meeting. The mere thought of it had my wolf howling inside of me.
“… banishment,” I said.
That was an order I could follow through with. If you were banished from the boroughs you were a disgrace to your pack and family. If you tried to reenter any of the five boroughs, you would be killed on sight. The closest you could live would be the Island. Not that I would allow Seamus to live in my Island house.
Calista nodded her approval. The first year as a queen was the hardest. If you let any wolf get away with anything, the entire race would walk all over you. Word would spread, and the last thing I needed were rumors spreading that I was weak. Especially with all these Kade rumors already floating around.
Plus, banishment was quite fair. The Red Queen would have boiled Seamus alive for what he did. The only one who would get around my new ruling was Violet, which was okay. I often needed her to cloak herself, and I trusted that she would never spy on me.
“Anything else?” Calista asked.
“Yes. Plan something fun for my dinner tonight. No business.”
She smiled and nodded. When I was just an alpha and heir I’d had time to relax. Now I had inherited an entire race and their drama was my drama. Rising from my desk, I crossed the room. I’d had enough for today. No more work.
The moment I opened my door, my five dominants were there, standing at attention. The sight of them always reminded me that Derek was absent. The pang in my heart was strong, but I never allowed it to linger long. I couldn’t dwell on his death, I had a war to prepare for, which was in part justice for Derek’s murder. He was a victim of the fae as much as the Red Queen. That was how I would honor them.
My guards followed me down the curving halls into the elevator, which took us up a few floors, and then out to a series of storage rooms. We walked in silence. They could tell I wasn’t in the mood for conversation. My focus was on the Red Queen, my aunt by blood, and the woman who I was starting to think I knew nothing about. The fae at the park had said to look to my queen for answers.
So that’s what I would do.
“Wait for me out here,” I said to the five dominants, before entering the large storage room. Normally, they’d check out a room like this, make sure no one was waiting to ambush me. But for some reason I felt the urge to explore in here alone and thankfully my people were learning to accept my commands. Not to mention things were always a little more relaxed within the royal estate; I was powerful enough to take on most attackers, the mecca at my call and all.
Flicking the light on and closing the door behind me, I surveyed the boxes. There must have been over a hundred in here, all neatly stacked and labeled. It would take me days to go through them all, time I did not have. I quickly read the labels, trying to see if anything jumped out at me. Clothes, shoes, files, jewelry, royal trinkets. As I walked closer to a stack of boxes I felt a small pull of mecca energy. It started like a tingling of awareness along my spine, strengthening the closer I got. Kade’s lesson came to me then: The mecca is conscious, a living breathing entity. If you can learn to listen, it can be used for your benefit.
I scanned my hand along the boxes until the tingling became unbearable. Trinkets. What mecca trinket were you hiding, Red Queen? Pulling the medium-size box down, I wasted no time tearing it open. The second the lid lifted I was assaulted by the floral fae scent, which I both recognized and hated now. It was faint, but definitely of fae origin.
Digging through the items, I tossed aside a few small ornaments, a pair of bronze ballet slippers, and some other pieces that didn’t interest me. Right near the bottom was a wooden box. My hand hovered over it and my heartbeat picked up speed. This was important; the box was practically vibrating with mecca energy.
Slowly I lifted it out and contemplated calling Violet to help open it. Now that I knew how powerful the mecca was, I feared it. The fear had started during my coronation when the energy had almost killed me, pressing in on me until I thought I would be crushed beneath it. It was reasonable to fear power like that. But I wouldn’t let the fear control me.
The second I had that thought, the mecca energy within the box lessened, almost as if it sensed my fear and wanted me to know it was safe to open. Okay, then … here goes nothing. Lifting the lid slowly, I blinked a few times as the object came into view. It was a beautiful, falsely vibrant, blue flower on top of a photograph. The flower glowed, the hue of the petals so deep and rich that I knew it was not of this world. Not to mention it was inside of a box with no water and no sun and still it lived.
Touch it or don’t touch it? As if against my will, my hand snaked out and closed around the stem of the flower. The second it was in my palm, my hand glowed the slightest bit purple, like when I touched the mecca crystal. Acting on instinct, I pulled it up to my nose and inhaled the scent of grass, sea water, and a sweetness that lay under the floral tones.
I was about to lower the flower from my face when I heard a crash. What the hell? Realizing it had come from the blossom, I pulled it closer to my ear and almost dropped it at the distinct sounds of waves, and birds chirping. In a rush, I set the flower down and backed up a few steps. Could this actually be possible? Was this some weird freaky fae mecca flower that was a connection to their world?
Why did the Red Queen have this? How did she get it? Could someone in the other world hear me now if I spoke?
I couldn’t think about that. I stepped forward again, planning on slamming the box shut and having Calista lock it in my jewelry safe, when I noticed the photo it was perched on. I stared at it for a moment, a surge of emotions tightening my chest and throat. As I reached out for the old weathered photo, a smile spread across my face; a war of both joy and sadness were fighting within me. It was my mom and the Red Queen.
As I traced my fingers along my mother’s face, I was surprised to see both her and the queen were pregnant in this photo. I recognized the surroundings and clothing style enough to know this was taken when my mother was pregnant with me. I couldn’t recall her ever telling me that her sister had been pregnant at the same time. This must have been one of the times the Red Queen miscarried. If my memory served me correctly, she had more than a few losses in her quest for a child. It was one of those sad stories in our royal history.
I brought the photo closer, really seeing my former leader. The Red Queen looked radiant, healthy and happy. She had her arm around my mother, holding her tightly. I never saw this side of my aunt. She was always so cold and distant to me and others. Maybe the multiple miscarriages did that to her. I didn’t know much about babies or pregnancy, but her belly was quite distinct here, which meant she lost the baby late in pregnancy. I couldn’t imagine such a loss.
It was one of the few times that the Red Queen ever failed: producing an heir. Luckily my mom had had Winnie and me to carry on the red line. Slipping the photo into my pocket, I closed the wooden box, trapping the flower inside. Anything to do with the fae was dangerous. I would not open that again until we knew more about what we were dealing with. Hopefully one of the magic born would find some useful information in the secret fae spell book room.
When I exited the storage area I tried to school my features so that none of my dominants knew I was bothered. I was bothered though – a fae flower in my home, in the former queen’s personal items. Did any of us truly know the Red Queen? Even the council?
I traversed the winding halls until I was back at my private quarters, exhaustion crushing in on me. Emotional stress was actually worse than physical activities. I needed a long hot bath before my dinner plans. I just wanted to wash this day away. As usual, Blaine and Victor searched my apartment for any intruders while I waited at the door with my other guards.
Blaine let out a shout. “What the hell?” And before I could think, I was running into the apartment, even though Monica tried to hold me back.
I’d never heard Blaine shout out like that. Generally he handled everything without a worry. Monica finally caught up to me, yanking me back hard so she could position herself in front of me as we skidded around the corner into my bedroom. I was so relieved to see Blaine, his body rigid, and before him … Violet.
“Violet! You scared me half to death!” Blaine cursed a few more times, running his hand over his hair, making it stand up.
That was it. That was all I needed to lose it in fits of laughter. Everyone looked at me as I laughed so hard tears streamed down my cheeks. I had been so stressed lately that when I finally had reason to laugh my body was just on overdrive with emotion.
Blaine shook his head, the slightest of grins lighting up his face. “Sorry if I scared you, Princess. She appeared out of thin air. I almost stabbed her.”
His sword was still out in front of him, the tip a few inches from Violet’s navel. My best friend was watching me, her face drawn, eyes dropping at the corners. She looked exhausted, her voice low as she said: “Well, Ari made a new royal decree that I couldn’t cloak myself in the royal house, so naturally I had to come disobey her just to shake her day up a little.”
I shook my head at th
e magic born. “My day is well shaken, thank you very much. Is that all you came for? To scare me and nearly get stabbed by Blaine?”
Violet nodded. “Pretty much. Anyways, I actually have some work to get to, so ... see you tonight at the thing. Bye.” Then just like that she vanished.
“The thing?” I asked, and everyone shared a look that made it immediately clear they were keeping some information from me.
My wolf rumbled in my chest; still no one answered. Letting out a deep breath, I pushed my beast down inside. I knew they wouldn’t keep anything too serious from me, and for now I had neither the time nor the energy to beat it out of them, so I let it go. Probably Calista planning a poker night, or some other gambling-style activity.
I shooed everyone out of the room. Monica and the rest of my guard just chuckled as they went. Blaine was the last one left, and it didn’t look like he was leaving just yet.
He quirked his lips into a wry grin. “You know, Princess, if I’m checking your apartment for intruders and I yell … you’re supposed to run.”
“Never!” I didn’t even hesitate in my response. Our eyes were locked on each other, strong electricity charging the air, a spark I’d never noticed before.
I cleared my throat, stepping back so I could sit on the bed and take my shoes off. “Thanks for looking out for me … I’m just going to take a bath now before my dinner plans.”
Blaine’s green eyes shot through with darkness for a brief moment, before he lowered his head into a half-bow nod. “Right, I’ll just be outside keeping guard.”
As he left the room, I had to smile again at Violet taking him by surprise like that. She was such a pain, but she was my pain and I wouldn’t change her for anything. Blaine too. I was blessed to have such amazing friends.
Discarding my clothes, I strode into the private bathroom, which was literally the size of my old apartment. Stepping under the warm water, multiple shower heads directed spray at me from all sides. One perk of being queen was the best shower in the world.