“Alexander,” he whispered and the bed dipped as he took a seat. I was leaning against the headboard with my knees to my chest. “Are ye okay, darling?”
“What do you think?” I smirked.
“Silly question I guess,” he muttered.
“Ding ding! Folks we got a winner,” I joked dryly.
He sighed. “Can we be civil toward each other? Ye’ve made yer point, Mackenzie, we’ll talk once this is resolved but first I’m going to do everything I can to get yer eyesight back.”
I bit my lip to stop it from trembling. No matter how I acted, one thing was for sure, I was terrified.
“You think the Oracles have something to do with this?”
His breath hitched. “How do ye know about the Oracles?”
“I know a lot, no thanks to you,” I grunted. “Since you didn’t want to tell me about Adaline, I went sniffing around on my own.”
He didn’t say a word.
“No fair, I can’t see you so I don’t know if you’re pissed or not!” I exclaimed.
“Serves ye right,” he growled. Well that answered that.
“What? Because I wanted to know about where I came from? Yeah, I’m a real piece of shit,” I snorted.
“Donae talk like that,” he snapped. “That is nae what I meant.”
“Were you ever going to tell me you banged your Oracle and let her run off to get killed? Or were you too embarrassed?”
“Yer mum is nae some Oracle I banged, Mackenzie. I loved her more than anything in this world—she was my everything, my soulmate—there will never be anyone I could ever love like I did Adaline,” he gritted.
I swallowed. “Then why abandon her?” I whispered. “You let the Sisters kill her.”
His warm hands covered mine atop my knees. “I donae know who killed Adaline. That alludes me to this day, Hen, but I didn’t let anyone do anything. Yer mum was much like yerself, Mackenzie. No one could tell her what or how to do something. She was a free spirit that had been born ahead of her time. It’s why I fell in love with her—I’d never met someone who was so full of life—a woman so strong both physically and emotionally. I was doomed the moment I met Adaline, I never stood a chance.”
I clutched his hand in mine. “Why didn’t you marry her? Why didn’t you show the same respect you showed Adaline to other Lunas?”
He exhaled. “It’s nae easy, darling. They’re laws that we must follow. Yer mum was not Lycan, we could nae—”
“To hell you couldn’t! You’re too much of a coward to fight for what is right. At least I didn’t inherit that trait,” I threw his hands off of me. “Get out.”
Alexander stood, the mattress readjusting. “One day ye’ll understand our world,” he muttered.
“I said get out!” I screamed.
There was a pause before I heard his footsteps getting father and farther away. The door to my room opened and closed behind him. I could no longer smell his scent—lemon and sandalwood. My senses were a lot stronger than usual, I could hear the breathing of everyone in the common room, their beating hearts, down to the sound of someone tucking their hair behind their ear. It was all clear as day.
I sat alone in my room for about an hour before someone knocked. I’d hoped Amy would have come to stay with me but I was almost positive Alexander gave strict orders to not allow anyone inside—much less the human.
I tilted my head and sniffed the air but I didn’t recognize the scent. The smell of burning incense was overwhelming and it made me sneeze. I cocked my head to the side as I sniffled. “Seriously, you guys need to start announcing yourselves when you walk in,” I pointed to my eyes.
“Ye donae recognize me?” a woman asked. “Or was yer heart filled with so much hatred ye didnae pay attention?”
I cleared my throat. “A Sister of the Sight, I presume.”
“Ding ding! Folks we got a winner,” she mimicked.
I froze. “How the hell—”
She chuckled. “I see things.”
“You—wait—I’m blind like you,” I muttered as I started connecting the dots. Unfortunately, there weren’t enough for me to see the whole picture—no pun intended.
“Aye,” she said.
“Is it because of Adaline? Something I inherited?” I leaned forward in anticipation. Answers were what I needed and I had no patience to talk around the subject.
“Nae necessarily,” she said and walked closer. Another set of footsteps came into the room and shut the door. Lemon and sandalwood—Alexander.
“Can you fix me?”
“Aye,” the Oracle said. “Do ye want me to?”
I snorted. “Of course I do! You wouldn’t be here if I didn’t.”
“Enough with the games, Ophelia, help her!” Alexander exclaimed and for once I agreed.
“What he said,” I pointed in the direction of the King. “I need my eyes,” I mumbled. I felt guilty for behaving like such a little princess. All the humans in the world who didn’t have magical beings to cure them of their ailments and here I was, snapping my fingers and getting my eyesight again.
“It’s normal to feel that way—especially with how sympathetic ye are with the humans,” Ophelia cooed. “Yer a princess, yes, but nae how ye portray yerself.”
I scoffed. “Get out of my damn head. Those are private thoughts!”
“It’s kind of hard nae to listen when yer practically screaming them at the top of yer lungs,” she said.
“Whatever, just give me my sight back,” I grumbled.
“As ye wish, but let me warn ye,” she said. “Adaline will nae return.”
“What did ye say?” Alexander exclaimed. “Explain Oracle!” he demanded.
My head spun. This made absolutely no sense.
“Adaline put a safety spell on the girl. Should she ever be in harm’s way, it would activate. She must have conjured it before her death—she must have known she was going to die. No one willingly gives away their magic, it would leave them empty beyond repair.”
I shook my head. “That can’t be right, I’ve been in danger before and this has never happened,” I said as I remembered Logan. I could have really used some of that Oracle mojo—when was mommy dearest then?
“Ye were nae going to die like ye were today. What ye went through before caused emotional scars but ye would have survived,” Ophelia said.
“What does this mean?” Alexander asked. “What has Adaline done?”
“She has given her essence to Mackenzie, including her Sight. Have ye seen anything, child?”
I shook my head. “I only see white.”
“Aye,” she said and I could feel her energy dissolve. Had she hoped I’d seen something? “Once I extract Adaline’s essence from the girl, she will return to normal, but she’ll never have this safety net again. It’s a one-time spell.”
“And if she keeps it?” Alexander whispered.
“Then Adaline will always be there to protect her,” she said.
I held my breath as a quiet storm passed over the room. No one said a word and I held my tongue from lashing out. They spoke as if I weren’t there and I could feel Alexander readying to make the decision for me. He said it himself, Adaline was his soulmate and if she was a part of me, he wasn’t going to let me go. I wouldn’t be surprised if he went as far as keeping me blind just to have her around—that was no way to live. It wouldn’t be fair to me.
“Might I make a suggestion?” Ophelia interjected. “Before ye start making assumptions, why don ye talk to him.”
“You nosy—” I stopped myself. I had to keep my cool and not voice every little thing I thought. “Fine. Alexander, I can’t stay like this. I won’t do it.”
I could hear him gulp, readying himself. “And if yer ever in danger again?”
I laughed. “Trust me, this isn’t the first and it sure as hell won’t be the last time I’m in this predicament. Trouble tends to follow me,” I shrugged.
“Yer okay living like that?”
“No, but it’s t
he path I’ve chosen. I believe in things that the majority do not. I’m not afraid to voice my opinions and because of it, I’m put in dangerous situations. If I back out because I’m scared, it’d make me a coward and I couldn’t live with myself if I was.”
The silence returned and I hated that I was unable to see. I wanted to know what he was thinking, his expressions always gave him away.
“I will nae force ye to do anything ye don want to,” Alexander said. “I know now that yer capable of making these decisions yerself.”
I released the breath I’d been holding—for almost two years. This was what freedom felt like.
“Thank you,” I sighed.
“Lay down,” Ophelia said as she placed her hand on my forehead and I fell back onto the bed. “Close yer eyes and think of a good memory,” she whispered in my ear.
“Why?”
“Because this will hurt,” she said and I smelt the burning of my flesh.
I screamed.
Chapter Twenty Six
I passed out four times, maybe five. I stopped counting after a while. My insides were boiled and burned, it felt like my organs were being doused with acid and ripped out of me. I was awake for it all. It felt like hours before Ophelia stopped to take a break and then started all over again. Alexander held my hand for most of it but he had to step out of the room a few times when he couldn’t handle the smell of charred flesh anymore. The pain was too much that I wasn’t paying attention to anyone in the common room and I wondered what the others were doing. I didn’t know when Ophelia finished but I woke up after some time, my skin burning hot and soaked in my own sweat and blood from the fight with the Wendigo. My body shook with a chill and it felt like I had a fever.
I opened my eyes slowly—it felt like they’d been glued shut—the room was dark with only a lit candle by the window. The curtains were blowing in as the night air filtered into the room. I could see the outline of the Scottish highlands and the brightness of the stars in the sky above. I could see again.
“How are ye feeling?” Alexander whispered. My head lolled to the left to see him sitting on a lounge chair beside my bed.
“Thirsty,” I croaked.
He quickly moved to the nightstand and grabbed a glass of water and brought it to my lips. The only thing I could really move was my neck as I lifted my head a bit to take a sip.
“Ye’ve been out for a few hours but Ophelia says it’s normal. Yer body is trying to recuperate.”
I nodded. “Where is she?”
“She returned to The Temple.”
“I guess I should send her a thank you card,” I chuckled and winced. Even laughing was painful.
“I’ll get Ranulf right on it,” Alexander gave me a small smile.
I quirked a brow. “I’m sure he’d love that assignment just as much as he loves babysitting me.”
The King laughed. “Aye.”
We fell into a comfortable silence with him occasionally giving me some water. I didn’t hear anyone in the common room or Sebastian in his bedroom. We were alone in the guest wing.
“Get some rest, darling,” Alexander murmured as I snuggled deeper into the comforter. “I’m nae going anywhere.”
“Okay,” I sighed as my eyes drooped and I succumbed to sleep.
****
I awoke with renewed energy—a bit of pain and bruises from the Wendigo—but rested. A knock at the door had me sitting upright in bed and leaning against the headboard. Alexander peaked into the room with a tray of food.
“I thought ye might be hungry,” he smiled. “Helena made ye a massive breakfast and a whole pot of coffee. She said ye like that,” he said with a quirk of his mouth.
“That sounds amazing,” I grinned. At this point, I needed coffee in an IV if possible. “How come Helena didn’t bring it in?” I questioned as he placed the tray on my lap and I went straight for the coffee mug.
“I gave her the day off.”
I gulped slowly. “Uh…why?” Not that I was against it but it was strange.
“She deserved a day of rest…and I wanted to be here for ye,” he said without looking at me. He seemed almost embarrassed and I wanted to laugh. Alexander must have never taken care of someone before.
“Well that was very kind of you, your highness,” I did a slight bow and he rolled his eyes.
“Shut yer geggie and eat yer food.”
I chuckled as I stuffed my face. I hadn’t realized how famished I was—licking a plate of jelly and crumbs. After demolishing everything and inhaling three cups of coffee, I felt ready to face the world—well at least the shower.
Once I was clean and presentable enough to leave my room, I stepped out to the common room to find my friends hanging around watching TV.
“Aw, are you losers worried about me?” I joked as I limped toward them.
“You’re the loser who’s wearing her shirt inside out,” Amy pointed to my chest.
I reached for the collar of my shirt and sure enough, the tag was hanging out.
“Well damn,” I muttered with my chin to my chest. Scarlet muttered something and snapped her fingers. My shirt rearranged itself on its own. Well that was definitely handy. “Thanks,” I grinned.
“How are you feeling, Pet?” Lucian asked as he stood and offered me his seat. I waved him off, I was tired of sitting.
“Could be better, but then again it could have been worse. I’m managing. Why are you all here?”
“The King is making an announcement in a few minutes,” Jonah said. “It’s going to be streamed worldwide to all of the Packs.”
“Wow, must be serious,” I said.
“Jackson is connecting the laptop to the TV to watch it here instead of heading into town. Hope you don’t mind,” Jonah said and I shook my head. I was glad we weren’t leaving. I didn’t think my body could handle that.
“We’ll go for a run afterwards,” Bash said and I hadn’t noticed him standing by the balcony.
“Sounds good.” To my relief, it did. I needed my wolf.
“Alright, I think we’re in business!” Jackson exclaimed as he popped up from behind the television. “Switch the input to USB.”
Amy grabbed the remote control and changed the channel. The MacCoinnich crest came on the screen with a timer at the bottom letting us know we only had one minute and twenty three seconds before the King came on.
“When did Alexander leave?” I asked.
“About two hours ago,” Scarlet said. “That’s when he let us into the common room.”
I took the seat Lucian had offered as Jackson handed me a bowl of popcorn. Everyone was settling in for the announcement and it was all really odd—like we were about to watch a movie.
The screen flickered and the crest disappeared, revealing Alexander with Ivana and Drew beside him. He was in the town center of Sheunta Village with a massive crowd before him. Guards were station at every corner of the town’s center and I could even see Ranulf close to the King as always.
Alexander held up his hands and the crowd quieted. He leaned toward the microphone at the podium and cleared his throat.
“As many of ye are aware, yesterday we held a tribunal for Mackenzie Grey—my illegitimate daughter. She had been accused and found guilty of the murder of Chicago Alpha, Logan St. James, and a conspirator in the rebellion of the Lunas overseas,” he paused and I hadn’t realized I’d leaned forward, getting closer to the screen. This was about me. “Mackenzie was nae born a Lycan. She was hidden in the human world and left ignorant to our customs. Due to this, it would have been unjust to sentence her to death for crimes she didnae understand.”
I rolled my eyes. “I don’t understand murder?”
“Shhh!” Amy shushed me.
“Due to my relationship with the accused, I stepped aside and let the Summit rule out her sentencing. She was given the option of spending the next twenty five years in the tombs or choosing a Champion of her choice to fight for her freedom. Mackenzie Grey decided to proclaim herse
lf as her own Champion.”
The crowd gasped, followed by ooh’s and ahh’s.
“No law prohibited her from doing so as we’ve never had this occur. No one expected her to survive a Wendigo, but she did. She has proven herself among our people and the Summit unanimously agreed that she has more than earned her freedom. From this day forward, my daughter, Mackenzie Grey will be protected under the royal family and anyone who dares harm her in any way will be dealt with to the fullest extent of the law—no leniency will be spared.”
My jaw hung and if possible it would have dropped to the ground. Alexander continued to rattle off some stuff and answering questions from the public, but I was no longer paying attention.
“Did he just give me my freedom?” I mumbled, my eyes glued to the screen.
“I believe so, Pet,” Lucian said, “but you should clarify with him before you start picking China.”
“He wouldn’t make me stay, not after last night,” I shook my head.
“I don’t think he can let you go without a Pack,” Jonah said. “It would start a war with the lone-wolves and anyone else who’d find it unjust.”
“What about the Lunas? If he gives me my freedom, he has to give it to them too,” I snatched the remote from Amy and raised the volume. Alexander wrapped up his press conference and said goodbye to the crowd. “Did any of you hear about the Lunas? Did he address the massacre of the Brooklyn Pack? Did he say anything about—”
“Mackenzie,” Bash’s hand came down on my shoulders. “He didn’t talk about them.”
My deer-in-headlight gaze traveled around the room to all of my friends as my mouth was open and I tried to think of something to say. I took a few deep breaths and attempted to calm myself down.
“I need to talk to him. It must be a misunderstanding,” I smiled and got up. I refused to jump to conclusions. He’d been so…fatherly as of late and I couldn’t imagine him not realizing that changes needed to be made. Maybe I was naïve, but I had to talk to him before I blew a gasket—I owed him that much.
Bash and Jonah escorted me to the throne room where the King and his entourage would pass once they entered the castle. I limped around as I paced until double doors burst open and a dozen guards entered with the King and his family.
ALPHA (Mackenzie Grey #3) Page 21