by Lizzy Ford
Several hours later, seated in the middle of the chamber used to hear petitions and requests for intervention from the Ancients, Wynn struggled to balance paying attention to those Immortals in front of him and the scent of Karma lingering on his skin, hands, and her taste in his mouth. Doom had sunk into his lower belly, along with the sense he’d miscalculated the potential ramifications of fucking his mate. He should not have been obsessing about her. He should not have felt as if he was in withdrawal and craving her with otherworldly need that would drive him mad if he didn’t obey the compulsion to touch her again.
Abruptly aware of the petitioner, scribe, and others near him waiting for his decision, he shifted his focus as much as possible off his mate.
“Denied,” he said.
The scribe seated at the table beside him recorded the decision on his tablet. The Immortal stormed away.
“Next,” Wynn said.
“I can’t believe you made me fucking stand in line!” an irate woman’s voice said.
Wynn glanced up from the list of petitions he’d already heard. He set the tablet on the table.
“Katie,” he said. “Did you bring my granddaughter?”
“Do you really think I’d let you anywhere near her?” Rhyn’s beautiful mate snapped. Her blue eyes blazed. She wore jeans and a sweatshirt with her dark hair in a bun.
“I’m no threat to either of you,” Wynn replied. “You should know that by now.”
“But you have no problem imprisoning my husband or sending assassins after him.”
“My son,” he said slowly, “nearly destroyed our society.”
“I don’t give a shit. He’s your family. You don’t treat family like that.”
“His duty should have come first.”
Katie glared at him. “What about his duty to his daughter? His wife?” she challenged. “How can you talk about duty and disregard his responsibility to us?”
Wynn rose, aware of the looks they were receiving. “Fifteen-minute recess,” he dictated to the scribe. Circling the table, he took Katie’s arm firmly and led her out of the chamber via the rear entrance and into a hallway, outside the range of hearing or viewing of anyone else.
“Rhyn’s priority needs to be protecting his people,” Wynn said, calm where she was livid.
“What if your people see he can’t even protect his family?”
Since meeting Katie, Wynn had always sensed she ruled Rhyn rather than the half-demon with godlike powers running his household.
“You know how much damage he caused during his tenure as the leader of our Council,” he started. “You defend him because he’s your mate, but are you capable of seeing the consequences of his actions?”
“Can you see yours?” she returned. “You put a hit out on your own child. What kind of message are you sending your people?”
“That my family is not exempt from behaving in the manner they should,” he replied. “I make an example out of my children, so others will have no doubt what I will do to protect this society and the human world from demons.”
“You’re wrong, Wynn,” she said. “You’re wrong to punish your children to this extent, and you’re wrong to assume you need fear to rule.”
“Very well. Then tell me, Katie, what should I do with your mate?” Wynn asked, amused.
Katie was silent for a long moment, her fiery gaze never leaving his. “Rhyn did what he did for a good reason, because his friend needed him, the same friend who sacrificed his life to save him, me and your granddaughter. The same friend who has since dedicated an entire squad of death dealers to help you all fight off demons. The same friend who has done more for your fucking society than any other deity in existence,” she said. “Rhyn fucked up and yes, his actions have consequences. But he’s not going to learn that lesson if you throw him in prison. He’s not going to learn anything! You have a responsibility to help him become a better leader.”
Wynn debated internally for a moment. Of all the thoughts in his mind, he was stuck on the idea the woman in front of him was in the same pain as Stephanie, the same pain he could be in, when he considered the very possible idea he’d never see his mate again. How would it be to crave something he couldn’t touch? To need with such force, it took all his mettle not to summon Karma?
He didn’t want that responsibility or to empathize with anyone – ever. But this bond was beyond his ability to resist and control, as much as he fought it. The smell of Karma on his skin would drive him mad. After their night together, it felt even stronger.
Wynn was sick to his stomach after a few hours absence from Karma. Rhyn and Katie had been separated for weeks.
“I’ll lift the hit on him and release him on the following conditions,” he said. “He agrees to return to the enforcer position he was adept at executing. He agrees to house arrest for any amount of time I decide, apart from performing duties I require of him.”
“That’s easy. Yes!” Katie exclaimed.
“I’m not finished,” Wynn chided. “You and your daughter move here as well. You have resisted assimilating into our society. Hazel will be raised as one of us.”
Katie’s eyebrows shot up. “If you mean the same way you raised your kids, fuck no.”
“I mean among the Immortals who are her people,” he clarified. “She’s not a human, Katie. You can’t raise her in the human world. She needs to be with her own kind, who can understand her power and help her manage it.”
Rhyn’s mate was quiet, pensive. “Will all of us be safe from you?” she asked at last.
“If Rhyn follows the rules, which I am not fully convinced he will.”
“He will if I tell him to,” Katie replied.
Wynn suppressed his smile. “I’ve always admired you, Katie,” he said.
“I’ve always thought you were a total dick.”
Wynn laughed at her spirited response.
“You’re serious?” she pressed.
“I am.”
Katie’s doubt turned to surprise. Some of the tension fled her frame. “Why would you do this? You seemed pretty damned determined to kill him.”
Wynn didn’t have an answer to this question. “Do we have an agreement?” he asked instead.
“Do you want to talk to Rhyn first?”
“I trust you can convince him.”
Katie rolled her eyes. “If I go down to your prison, will you be locking me up as well?”
“I’ll have him meet you in the chamber you shared before I reclaimed my place,” he replied.
“Okay,” she said, brows furrowing. “I’ll talk to him about it.”
He lifted his chin in the direction of the interior of the castle. “I’ll have him brought up.”
“What about Kris?” she asked. “Hannah would love to see him.”
“Hannah can visit him in prison. Kris cannot be released under any circumstances,” Wynn said firmly.
Katie didn’t have to ask why; she had experienced Kris’ reign. She already knew.
Still not trusting, for good cause, Katie observed him for a moment longer before shaking her head and leaving.
Wynn remained in the corridor, measuring the risk involved in freeing a son more powerful than he was. Katie’s and Hazel’s presence in the castle would curtail Rhyn’s rebellious streak, and the half-demon was generally predictable.
Wynn glanced towards the petition hall with distaste. He was a one-man Council, now that all his children were imprisoned. Stephanie had proven to be too liberal with petitioners, and he was too busy to spend six hours a day in the duty.
Wynn started away. He had put out a hit on Rhyn out of anger once he saw the damage done to their society. If the humans were more vulnerable than before, it was Rhyn’s fault, no matter how loyal he was to Death. Wynn’s other sons were little less culpable for the chaos the Immortal world had undergone the past several millennia.
Prison, he knew, wasn’t going to rehabilitate them. He’d sent them there mainly because he didn’t believe a
ny of them was capable or deserving of rehabilitation, which meant they were useless. Even so, he couldn’t murder his own children. The bonds of family meant nothing to him, except that they were an additional duty.
For a moment, however, Wynn had understood Katie and why she viewed family in a radically different light than he did. Even if he didn’t agree, he understood what it could have been like if familial bonds mattered, if he considered the prospect family was more than duty.
He wasn’t entirely certain what made him go to the dungeon instead of returning to the petition hall. He’d written off his sons, only to discover there was no one else to replace them.
One fucking night with his mate, and he was starting to question himself. Karma had somehow made him feel after lifetimes of blocking his emotions. The crack in the shield around his heart was the most dangerous effect of the mating bond of all. It made him want to experience more of Karma, the bond, the future with her and everything else he couldn’t afford to waste his time or thoughts on.
Wynn reached the dungeon and stopped in front of Kiki’s cell, the one son he knew he could control and who would require the least amount of supervision. The jailer stationed outside opened the door.
Chained to the wall at the far side, Kiki lifted his head when Wynn entered. He showed the signs of torture and lack of sleep.
“What the fuck do you want?” his son demanded.
“If you feel you’ve learned your lesson about defying leadership, you are permitted to return to your duties,” Wynn replied.
Kiki stared at him, speechless.
“You’re welcome to remain here as well.”
“No,” Kiki said quickly and climbed to his feet.
Wynn clasped his hands behind his back. “You’ll resume your position as the Council’s chief of staff, with no voting rights.”
“I’ll do it,” Kiki said.
The most malleable of Wynn’s son’s, Kiki was also a masterful administrator, one whose assistance would benefit Wynn.
“Clean yourself up and report to the petitioner hall. This evening we have a dinner with the heads of the ten families. Dress accordingly,” Wynn directed. He turned and left, motioning for the Immortal guard to release Kiki. He was taking less of a calculated risk with Kiki than Rhyn, but Wynn was counting on Katie providing structure and stability for the half-demon.
Restless, Wynn headed next to issue orders to the jailer standing in front of Rhyn’s cell and discuss the consequences of disobeying him with his wild son.
Fourteen
Apart from soirees, there was nothing Stephanie dreaded as much as dinner with her family. Wynn had invited the heads of the most influential Immortal families, four of which wanted her dead. The only good part of her day: learning two of her brothers had been released from the dungeon. She’d happily turned over the administrative and financial duties to Kiki but had then promptly been sent to the petitioner hall for a double shift.
She sat with the others in the formal dining room, which was as intimidating and glamorous as the numerous plates and glasses she hadn’t Googled how to use. In an uncomfortable gown, surrounded by silverware and strangers, Stephanie wanted nothing more than to disappear into her soup and swim away.
But this, too, would become one of her duties. She forced herself to pay attention, only to realize no one was talking about anything of substance.
The discussions at this end of the formal table were quiet and polite, a group of lions sizing up one another. She sat to her father’s left, and Kiki to his right. His family always sat in the seats of honor, no matter how powerful the Immortal clan leaders were. Most of the families were represented by couples, except for an older man who sat alone to her left. Her ever-present guardians received their fair share of discreet looks. Neither Trayern nor Mithra had bothered to dress up, though Trayern at least wasn’t throwing knives. He wore the scowl he did every time he was forced to be in the presence of stinky, barbaric human food.
Still bearing bruises and marks from his time in the dungeon, Kiki wore a tuxedo and sat stiffly across from her, eating when he was supposed to, and not speaking at all. Andre sat to his side, the only person in the entire dining hall to smile. She was grateful to see two of her brothers, though upset by Kiki’s condition. He never smiled, but he did nod his head in greeting when he sat down before he ignored everything but his food.
Andre’s warm presence always helped Stephanie relax. Bad things didn’t happen when Peace was around.
Wynn was distracted again, speaking only when addressed, not eating, and often appearing lost in his thoughts. His one arm remained bandaged. He wore a tuxedo and was meticulously dressed as usual.
With bitter triumph, she suspected she knew why his mind was elsewhere. Wynn was probably fighting the bond with Karma. Stephanie had tried and found it impossible. His mate wasn’t stuck in Hell; if Wynn wasn’t taking advantage of his time with Karma, he was an idiot.
Stephanie shifted a hand towards one of the knives, testing him, and he lifted his gaze to her.
Even distracted, Wynn was dangerous.
She dropped her hand to her lap. “You seem a little off again tonight,” she said for his ears only.
“Circumstances are becoming more complicated.”
His meaning could go any of many ways, and she was likely to pick the wrong one, for no one ever knew what Wynn was thinking. She hoped, however, he was referring to Karma. She wouldn’t wish her pain on anyone – except for Wynn. He was the reason she was in pain in the first place. If anyone deserved to feel what damage he was causing, it was Wynn.
This day, her pain was worse than it had been. She couldn’t pinpoint why, except she’d had a more vivid dream than usual the night before and had too much down time this day. Kiki had performed a double shift in the petitioner hall. She hadn’t realized how much she needed the distraction until left alone with her thoughts for too long.
“Okay,” Stephanie said, at a loss as to what else she could say. She met Kiki’s gaze. “It’s nice to see part of the family back together again. Where’s Rhyn?”
“It’s never wise to invite a demon to a formal dinner,” Wynn replied.
“Any hope you’ll release Tamer and Kris?”
“Not soon.”
He was not normally this short with her. Social when he needed to be, Wynn was unusually withdrawn from the guests he’d invited.
Stephanie folded her hands in her lap, not interested in her soup, no matter how good it was. The castle employed amazing chefs, but her appetite had begun to fade the longer she was apart from Fate. She dreamt of him nightly and awoke smelling him on her sheets, only to discover her mate hadn’t magically appeared like she prayed he would. She barely knew him, had only spent one night with him, and she felt as if her heart was ripped out of her chest each morning when she awoke to the reality that he was gone. She thought she’d fallen in love a couple times in her life but this was something entirely different. Consuming, compelling, and powerful, the Immortal mating bond wasn’t reckless teen love but life itself, and she didn’t think she’d survive much longer, if she couldn’t see him again.
The idea Wynn could visit his mate at will, and she could not, infuriated her, left her more raw than usual.
She leaned back, struggling to pull her emotions together. It was neither the time nor place to explode at Wynn. She did what he asked daily to stay occupied, but with her mate forefront on her mind always, she couldn’t escape the pain of being separated from him.
“You look how I feel,” the elderly man beside her said in a quiet voice.
She glanced at him.
His smile was genuine, the only truly kind smile she’d seen in the chamber, aside from Andre’s. It didn’t surprise her to recall from Kiki’s extensive files that Lord Osmond was a distant relative of Andre. They shared the same warm gaze.
“Lord Osmond,” she said to the man she’d spoken to at the soiree. “I’m sorry. I’m new to all this.”
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�I’ve been to hundreds of these dinners,” he said solemnly. “They’re always terrible.”
She laughed too loudly, drawing the attention of everyone at the table. Face warm, Stephanie cleared her throat. “Sorry,” she murmured to the sole person at the table willing to speak to her.
“I’ve come to understand you have made a very difficult adjustment to our world.” He spoke with a faint, pleasant accent she couldn’t place.
“I have,” she confirmed. It dawned on her that Trayern and Mithra weren’t the only people creating a dossier on her. She interacted with few Immortals outside the petitioners and never with the leaders. Wynn handled the official business.
She would take his place soon. It would be nice to have an ally in the face of four clan leaders who wished her dead.
“The customs and traditions here are very different from mine,” she added. “My mother would’ve knocked Wynn and the boys senseless for acting the way they do.”
It was Lord Osmond’s turn to laugh quietly. “Your family is known for its volatility and resiliency. Your father and brothers have retained control of the Immortals since shortly after time began.”
“Times change,” she said. “People should change with them.”
“I agree.” Lord Osmond studied her. “Though I doubt your father does.”
Stephanie was quiet, not wanting to badmouth Wynn to anyone outside the family, even if Lord Osmond was correct to assume what he did.
“Pardon me,” Lord Osmond said. “I’ve been inappropriate.”
“It’s okay,” she said softly. “I’m still figuring out a few things.”
“You look beautiful, Stephanie,” Andre said from across the table, his warm voice comforting.
She smiled at him. “Thank you.”
“Beauty and brains,” Lord Osmond seconded. “We are fortunate to have you.”
Wynn glanced at her then at her quiet brother. “Kiki,” he said.
Kiki stood and tapped his fork against his wine glass. The talk fell silent as the guests turned their attentions toward him.