by Zoey Ellis
"What do I do about his offer?" Cailyn asked. "I can't put him off forever."
"Try," Amara said, slowly retreating back down the stairs. "It doesn't matter what you say, he'll never let you go. But if you delay, at least he won't announce it to the rest of Eiros for now." She paused. “The Mothers asked me to start erasing your memory.”
Cailyn stilled, a cold shock gripping her. For a moment, she couldn’t even speak.
“I told them I’m not skilled enough to do it to the degree you need it,” Amara said, “and that it’s too dangerous to mess with your mind with the potions Malloron is giving you.”
Cailyn nodded, numbly. Amara had bought her time.
“It will happen, Cailyn,” Amara said softly, as she backed away into the darkness. “Whether you stay with Malloron or go back to Drocco, it will happen. Prepare yourself.”
Cailyn nodded again. There was nothing she could do about that fact. If anyone had told her a compromised Omega was roaming the Lands she would have chased the offender down herself. "Be safe, Amara."
"You too, sister" came her whispered reply.
***
That evening during dinner with Malloron, Cailyn could tell something was wrong. He looked exhausted and had much less patience with the servants that brought dinner.
"Is something wrong?" Cailyn asked lightly.
“No,” Malloron said, gruffly. He remained silent for a moment and then glanced at Cailyn out of the corner of his eye. “Did you enjoy your walk around the castle today?”
Cailyn chewed slowly and then nodded. He had never asked her that before. Amara was right. He was tracking her movements around the castle. “Yes,” she said. “It feels like there’s always so much to explore.” She smiled at him. “The castle is massive.”
“As long as you don’t get lost,” he said. “Do you feel you need an escort to help you navigate the castle?”
“Oh no,” Cailyn said. “I don’t think so. All of your servants are really helpful. I did actually get lost today and a friendly girl helped me to find my way back to the gardens.”
Malloran smiled. “Do you remember what she looked like?” His tone was casual, but for him to even ask suggested something was wrong. He wanted to know who else had been down there with her.
She pursed her lips. “I can’t really remember,” she said, slowly, frowning. “She was wearing a really lovely tunic… like something we’d see at the markets.”
Mallron nodded and continued with his meal.
They ate in silence for a short while and he then pushed his plate aside in irritation.
Cailyn watched closely as he gestured to the servant standing by the wall to pour him more wine.
“Are you well?” she asked. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you leave any food on your plate since I’ve arrived.”
Malloron began to scowl but his expression quickly changed into a smile. "I do have some concerns, yes."
"Anything I can help with?"
Malloron stilled for a moment, and then placed down his glass. "Actually, Cailyn, I feel there may be something you can help me with indeed." He leaned forward on the table, his rich brown eyes taking her in. "I've told you I would like you to be my queen, and I'm still waiting for an answer. Do you have one?"
Cailyn's eyes widened. She hadn't expected him to ask so directly or intensely. She took a sip of wine, feeling his eyes boring into her. "Do you need an answer right now?" She didn’t have to fake the nerves in her voice.
Malloron sighed. "I don't want to put pressure on you, Cailyn. I just… I need to know if you’re seriously considering it."
Cailyn's eyebrows knitted together. "Of course I am. Why would you think I wasn’t?"
"It's just you've never spoken about what you were doing with your life before Emperor Drocco found you," Malloron said carefully, watching her closely. "You haven't spoken that much about yourself at all."
Cailyn avoided his eyes, taking another sip of wine. "Is that important to you?"
"I would hope that you would feel comfortable telling me anything you want to tell me," Malloron said. "If you are to be my wife, I want you to be able to trust me, and feel comfortable around me. If you’re simply biding your time, then I would prefer you to tell me now."
"Why do you think I would be doing that?"
"I have no idea what your life was like when you were captured by Drocco," Malloron said. "I don't really know you, Cailyn. I'm hoping that because you’re an Omega and I’m an Alpha that we can find a way to have a satisfying and happy life. But we truly don't know each other. I don't yet know how it would benefit you to marry me, and you haven’t been forthcoming about that. I hope you realize that this proposal is a risk for me also."
“Then why are you making it?” Cailyn asked. Malloron’s eyes narrowed but she pretended not to notice and pressed on. “You have indeed treated me much better than Emperor Drocco did, and I’m grateful that you helped me to escape. But why would you want to tie yourself to me by marriage if it is risky? Surely we should take more time to get to know each other to minimize the risk.”
Malloron’s expression soured and a burst of anger surfaced, but he quickly composed himself. “You should know that Drocco is here."
A jolt of shock shot through her. "W-what?"
"Drocco has declared war on Eiros," Malloron said grimly. "He wants you back."
Cailyn gripped the edge of the table. "He has declared war?" All feeling drained from her face.
"You don't need to be worried, Cailyn," Malloron said, trying to be reassuring.
"Are you joking?" Cailyn snapped. "This man defeated every single territory in the Eastern Lands. He has a formidable army and hasn’t lost a battle in twenty years. Why aren't you worried?"
Malloron's eyes flicked over her and he pressed his lips together, suppressing a smile. "I'm not worried because he won't get you. He can’t force you if you’re not willing."
"I wasn’t willing last time,” Cailyn said darkly. “He’s not a man that is used to the word no."
"Well that is what marriage to me can provide you with," Malloron said. "A way to say no to him. Once it is announced that we are to be married, he cannot declare any ownership of you."
Cailyn lowered her eyes in thought. The Mothers said that Drocco would never stop until he got her, but what about if she had chosen to be with someone else? He may have made threats when they were alone, but if she were publicly betrothed to King Malloron, it would be a completely different matter. A matter of state, a political declaration. A deep part of her wondered if she really could reject Drocco in that way, she still craved some of the experiences she had with him… and she also had to consider if she really could announce a marriage to someone she knew was trying to deceive her. Malloron had manipulated her from the beginning, at least Drocco had been upfront from the start. She lifted her eyes to meet his. He watched her closely, that familiar smugness present. He thought he had her stuck in a situation where she was forced to marry him, but there was still Amara.
"I need to think about it," she said, quietly. "Will you allow that? Will you allow me a little more time?"
Malloron's mouth tightened. "The longer you take, the longer he will attack this castle and the people of Eiros. Just remember that people are dying while you consider."
Cailyn kept her head low and nodded, but inside she seethed. How dare he put those deaths on her.
As they finished dinner, the idea that Drocco was in Eiros, dominated her thoughts. He was so close, and had traveled so far. An irrational desire had risen to see him, but that part of her had betrayed her before. She pushed those thoughts away and sipped her wine, hoping that Amara would find her a way out soon.
CHAPTER SEVEN
DROCCO
The Lox continued to fight Malloron's army for two more weeks. However, something strange was happening.
Malloron’s army was not being overwhelmed and pushed back as they should be. His smaller army fought quicker, nimbler, and
remained strong against the Lox. It could be because the pressure of magic pushed against them so strongly now. Drocco could feel it in his bones, making his whole body heavy, as though he wore ten times the armor. But his confidence remained strong that it wasn't going to stop him or his warriors. The fury in him still burned strong; Malloron needed to do better than that.
As the second week came to a close, the negotiation horn sounded again. This time Drocco continued to fight. The only horn he would stop for now was the surrender pattern. He would not be negotiating with Malloron. The horn blared twice more while the Lox continued to fight, Malloron's army was shocked after they tried to pull back and ended up getting cut down.
As Drocco continued to charge forward, he heard Malloron's voice artificially magnified in the air. "I have tried to reason with your Emperor," he boomed. "So now I will talk directly to you, Lox warriors."
Drocco shuffled backward and looked around to see if Malloron was anywhere nearby, but it seemed to be just his voice soaring through the air.
"I asked your Emperor to cease his attack so that I could find out more about the other existing Omegas. That's right, Alphas, there are more Omegas. More women out there specifically for us. I’m close to finding them, but your Emperor has refused to help me."
Drocco snarled and tightened his grip on his sword. What had Cailyn been saying? What the fuck had she told Malloron that she would not tell Drocco? The idea that she may indeed be confiding in such a despicable man accelerated his fury to new heights. He began to fight with new fervor, even as Malloron's voice echoed in his ears.
"Your Emperor is only concerned about his Omega," Malloron continued. "He isn’t concerned about the rest of us. He won’t even stop to negotiate so that we can find some resolution that will suit us all. He is only concerned about getting inside his own Omega again. Tell me, Lox warriors, did he restrain himself from enjoying the pleasures that she could offer him? Did he spend hours locked in the experience of her? Why can't we all have that? Why is he denying that to us?"
Torin appeared by Drocco side. "We need to get him to shut the fuck up," Torin growled. "He is putting ideas into our warriors’ heads."
"The Lox aren’t so easily swayed," Drocco said through gritted teeth, as he cut down another two Eiros warriors. "They don’t bow to such tactics."
"Maybe not normally," Torin said, pausing to parry with an Alpha twice his size. "But he's hitting a nerve. You need to talk to him."
Drocco stabbed another warrior repeatedly in the chest, and then kicked him away. He glanced at Torin, disbelief filtering through him. "Are you joking? You don’t truly believe that he will talk my warriors against me?"
"They are becoming tired, Drocco," Torin called back. "This isn’t a normal fight. He is a master at the Talent and pressure we are feeling, could be anything. He can control what we see; he could be turning the minds of our own warriors against us. Every time he speaks I feel a surge of annoyance for you—only for a moment, but it is there, and it is artificial. We cannot take any risks. Meet with him. If you get the chance to kill him, do it. But we cannot risk the Lox for the sake of your Omega, not when we are fighting an enemy we don’t truly understand. They need to rest and you may as well meet with him while they do."
Drocco let out a violent string of curses, and fought another six warriors, before pulling back. He raised his bloodied sword and stepped back.
This time Malloron did not come out for the negotiation, instead a terrified young boy approached Drocco with a slip of parchment that invited him into the castle.
Drocco nodded at two of his warriors and they followed him and Torin through the parting that been made by Malloron's army. They remained silent as they followed the boy into the castle to a meeting room near the main entrance. Inside, Malloron sat on an elaborate, gem-encrusted chair that looked almost like a throne, in the center of the room.
"We will talk privately," Malloron said, gesturing to Drocco’s warriors and Torin.
Drocco's chest squeezed. This man needed to fucking die. "No, we will not. Unless you have decided to return my Omega to me, there is nothing for us to talk about."
Malloron leaned forward, his face contorted in anger. "There is plenty for us to talk about. You won’t even consider that maybe there could be something you could learn from our discussion?"
"Did you give me a faulty spell in order to disarm me and steal my Omega?" Drocco thundered. "That is an attack! A declaration of war. If you wanted to speak about something, you should have done so before you committed those heinous acts."
Malloron's mouth tightened. He leaned back in his chair and glanced at Torin and his guards. "The things I need to discuss with you are private. It is between you and your Omega. If you won’t speak to me privately because you hate me, at least do so out of courtesy for what you may learn about her."
Fury steamed through Drocco. What the fuck did Malloron think he knew about Cailyn that Drocco didn't? But before he could say anything, Torin grabbed his arm and leaned in.
"Take the offer,” he said. “Kill him when you’re able to get close enough."
Without waiting for Drocco to respond, Torin nodded at the guards and headed back to the door. Malloron watched them go, a smug grin on his face.
For a moment there was silence. Then Malloron reached over to the table next to him to pour a violet liquid into his tankard. "Would you like something to drink?" he asked, conversationally.
"Stop fucking around," Drocco snapped, his voice low and gravelly. "Say what you have to say."
Malloron took a sip of his drink, his eyes sparkling. He seemed to think he had something over Drocco, but let's see how smug he will be when Drocco's axe was firmly lodged between his eyes. "Your Omega is indeed charming," Malloron began. "She's very intelligent and keen to learn. She is fascinated by language and—"
"I'm not here to get a report on my Omega," Drocco said, battling the intense anger and jealousy ripping him apart. Every instinct urged him to kill the threat before him. "I'm not sure why you feel that you know her better than I do, but it makes no difference. She belongs to me. She is mine, and you committed a grave offense by taking her, especially through a trick of the Talent. Say what you have to say so I can fucking kill you!"
Malloron's eyebrows lifted. "All right. Your Omega has agreed to become my queen."
Drocco's eyes narrowed, a blistering rage writhing within. He had expected that Malloron would want to keep Cailyn, but it was still a shock to hear. And even though Cailyn may have attacked him, she couldn’t deny their connection. She couldn't truly prefer Malloron to Drocco.
"I assure you I'm telling the truth," Malloron said hurriedly, holding up a palm. "I know that you will struggle to believe anything I say, but she has indeed agreed it. So, you don’t need to continue your attack. She doesn’t want to return with you."
Drocco laughed, although there was no humor in it. "You think that I will simply believe you? The man who uses trickery and deception to get what he wants. The man who has no honor and no pride to even fight among the men that he is asking to die for him?" Drocco shook his head, his eyes gleaming. "I will not believe a fucking thing you say. Cailyn belongs to me. And she will be leaving with me, or we all die here."
Malloron's expression turned hard. "She doesn't want you. She is terrified of you by the way you treated her. You say I have no honor and no pride, but you are a fucking barbarian to treat an Omega like some kind of prisoner."
"I don't doubt that you treat her exactly like a prisoner, just as I did," Drocco shot back. "The only difference is that you probably use deception to trick her into submission."
"But that is the most important difference," Malloron said, a slow smile spreading. "If she doesn't feel valued, she won't want to stay. It matters not if I encourage that feeling."
"Of course it fucking matters," Drocco growled. "How can she give you her true opinion if you are manipulating her."
"I'm not manipulating her moods or her fear of y
ou," Malloron said. He took another sip of his drink and ran his eyes over Drocco. "And to be honest I don't even know why you want her. Yes, she is pretty, but she doesn't smell appealing at all. Part of me thinks you only want her just so you can say you have an Omega."
Drocco blinked, a sudden shock dampening his anger.
"How did you find her anyway?" Malloron continued. "If you managed to find one, you can find the others. Just leave this one here in the Western Lands, I'm sure you will find more in the Eastern Lands eventually."
Drocco forced himself to listen, keeping his body in the same stance while his mind raced. "Surely, you cannot honestly be suggesting that?"
"If she doesn't want to go with you, I'm not going to force her," Malloron said casually. "Isn’t that what you said to me once about your warriors?” He chuckled low before his expression turned serious. “Now, we can fight until we all die if you want, but her returning with you is just not going to happen."
"I can just kill you now," Drocco said hotly. "Once you're dead, they'll be nothing to stop me from taking her."
"You think I would let it be that easy?" Malloron said, a cruel grin spreading across his face. "If I don't leave this room alive, she will be chopped up until she is unrecognizable."
Drocco kept his breathing smooth. There was a way out of this, he just had to think. He didn’t become the ruler of the Eastern Lands by allowing kings to dictate terms to him. Malloron had just revealed he could not smell Cailyn’s true scent. And yet, his own Alphas had gone almost crazy after smelling a hint of her in the Great Hall. He had to connect the information and use it to his advantage.
Malloron got up, and walked around the back of his chair. "You will just have to accept that you won’t be taking her back to the Eastern Lands."