by Franca Storm
She breathed in the cool night air as she walked about outside the compound. She cradled a sleeping Orion in her arms. Josh had taught her a little wolf lullaby after she’d finished her training and she already had it down pat. Orion had loved it and fallen asleep instantly. She was really getting the hang of the wolf tongue already.
She almost jumped out of her skin when Luca appeared in front of her suddenly.
He gazed at Orion in her arms and took a couple of steps back. He’s probably concerned that his presence will unnerve him.
“So, this is your son?” he asked, smiling at her. “I’ve never seen a wolf so tiny.”
“Everyone says he’s going to grow quickly because of my blood. But I want him to stay this way for a while. I love him like this, like—”
“A baby,” Luca finished for her.
“Yeah.”
“I’d like to be formally introduced but I doubt very much that he will like that. He is Ryan’s son, after all.”
“He’s mine!” Cora snapped.
Luca looked shocked by her vehement reaction. She wasn’t surprised. It had been pretty intense. She hadn’t meant to snap like that, but it’d just happened.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be so harsh. It’s just—”
“It’s okay, princess. I understand.” He changed the subject then, before she had to explain herself further. “You did well tonight. Your power is incredible, Cora. Much stronger than mine and my father’s.”
She shifted her weight nervously. “I’m worried.”
“About taking on my mother? Your power is much stronger than hers.”
“What if I lose control? It could happen. It happened the first time we tried and it felt like my entire body was on fire.”
“Yes, I know. But you won’t lose control. You just need to maintain your concentration like you learned tonight.”
“What was that burning, though?”
Luca hesitated, which made her all the more nervous.
“Luca?” she pressed.
He took a beat and then told her, “Most wielders of magic can be killed by another of their kind as long as their power is weaker than their opponent’s. For example, my father could kill me with his magic as we both wield Dark power and he is stronger than me. But, with you, there is no one strong enough to kill you. The only way you can die is if you engulf yourself with your own White power. And that would be accomplished if you lost control wholly. That is why it was so important to my father to teach you complete control before he sent you to Oriana. He could have easily sent you without the training, as you were already strong enough to best her. But if you had lost control, you would have perished.”
Cora swallowed hard. “I see. Wow.”
“Yeah, I know it’s a lot. But you can do this, princess.”
She smiled sweetly at him. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For…being here.”
He returned her smile. “It has been my pleasure. I enjoy being around you.”
“You do?”
He moved closer and his eyes locked with hers as he said, “You are a refreshing change. You are strong, capable, and incredibly sexy while you’re doing it. Your sense of humor is one of a kind. You’re as close to feeling the warmth of the sun at my back as I could possibly get.”
“Luca,” she said, blushing at his compliment and looking away shyly.
He took another step closer. “You smell like roses. Do you know that?”
“Really?” she laughed.
“Yes.” He eyed Orion and asked her, “Is he in a deep sleep right now?”
She nodded.
And before she could do anything else, he leaned into her.
His lips brushed hers softly. So softly.
He kissed her tenderly, his hand gently cupping the back of her head to hold her steady. A wave of heat coursed through her. His lips were velvety smooth and they felt like heaven against hers. Even though he was only kissing her and not even using his tongue, there was something incredibly erotic and sensual about the way he kissed her.
It held so many promises for what a little more would feel like—what it would feel like if he took her to his bed. No. Stop, Cora. Unacceptable. You are married, girl. Wake up.
But she was frozen to the spot, too shocked to do anything.
She didn’t respond.
She didn’t pull away.
She didn’t know what to do.
And then he made the decision for her. He pulled back.
“Something to consider,” he said somberly before teleporting away a split second later.
Cora brought her hand to her lips dazedly. “Oh God,” she breathed. That was some kiss.
CHAPTER 13
“Is she truly ready, Nathanial?” Marella asked as she and Nathanial stood in the courtyard of the wolf compound, preparing to say goodbye.
“Given the time constraints, I have done all that I can to prepare her.”
“That isn’t a very reassuring answer.”
He took her hand and pulled her to him gently. “The entire situation is anything but reassuring. What would you have me do, angel?”
Marella sighed with defeat. “Nothing. You’re right. You’ve done all that you can. I am just concerned. I know my sister. She has a gift for getting under people’s skin. The very fact that she was able to do so with you is proof enough of that. I fear for Cora if she succeeds in doing that with her. It only takes a split second of weakness to lose control, but a tremendous amount of strength to regain it.”
“You forget that Cora will not be alone. I will be there also. As will Luca. I may not be able to kill her, but I can certainly incapacitate her.”
“I could kill her and then we could avoid all of this. But you have made your feelings on that perfectly clear,” Marella said, unable to suppress a pout.
Nathanial smiled and traced his finger lightly over her lips. “Oh, angel. Do not pout. It sparks my desire for you and I cannot take you in public like this.”
Marella flashed him a sly smile. “Being in public has never stopped you before with your other lovers, Nathanial.”
“You are not just another lover. You are my mate and the mother of our child,” he said, rubbing her pregnant belly gently. “I will treat you as such. With respect, angel.”
“You are such a gentleman. Who knew?” she teased.
He pulled her close. “I was always a gentleman with you.”
“Is that so?” she asked, her words muffled against his chest.
“Definitely. If I hadn’t been, I would have taken you so many times over, centuries ago. As it was, I remained patient, waiting for you to come to me.”
“It was not your usual approach. Subtle is not a word I would have used to describe you.”
He pulled back to look at her. “The right woman can, on a rare occasion, affect a man in such a way that he alters his ways.”
“And even all those centuries ago, I was that woman? You married my sister.”
“There is nothing I regret more than settling for the woman who merely reminded me of you.”
“What?” she asked, stunned by his response. “You didn’t want to marry her?”
“I was under pressure to produce an heir. It had always been you, Marella. From the first time I saw you, I knew. But I was afraid.”
“Afraid? You?”
“Yes. Of tainting a woman of such purity, such light. An angel. You were young then. Impressionable. I did not want to affect what you would become with my darkness.”
She gazed at him as she let his words sink in. He’d been secretly watching over her for most of her very long life, protecting her from others as well as himself. She remembered him telling her that he’d even killed one of her abusive former lovers. He’d loved her so much that he’d watched from the sidelines for centuries, just to allow her to become who she needed to be. She understood why he hadn’t approached her and he had been right. She wouldn’t have been able t
o handle his power, the pull between them, when she had been that much younger. He would have unintentionally suffocated her.
“I love you. Thank you, my darling.”
“For what?” he asked in surprise.
“For waiting.”
He smiled into her hair and kissed her chastely. “You are most welcome, angel. Now I will give you everything, like I had always intended. You and our daughter.”
“I already have it.”
“Hmm…you are too easy to please.”
She pulled back with a grin. “I can make it more of a challenge for you if you like.”
He laughed. “Then I retract my earlier statement.”
“Father. It is time.”
They both turned to see Luca standing a couple of feet back. He nodded politely to Marella and then addressed his father. “The princess is waiting for us at the compound gates.”
“How did you gain access inside the compound?”
“Cora made it happen. I was told to make it quick.”
Nathanial nodded to his son and then bent down to kiss her softly. He lingered for a while, before finally pulling back from her and telling her, “I won’t be long, angel.”
“Just be careful. Oriana is unpredictable.”
“She is more predictable than she realizes. There is little she can do that will catch me off guard.”
“Arrogant as ever,” Luca muttered.
Nathanial narrowed his eyes at him. “A trait that is clearly hereditary.”
“Perhaps you and I can get to know one another when we return?” Luca asked Marella.
“As long as you stay on your current path, I would like that. Otherwise it is my wrath you will have to deal with instead of your father’s.”
Nathanial winked at her and then warned Luca, “She can be incredibly fierce when provoked.”
Luca grinned. “I have heard tales.”
Nathanial looked back at her once more, saying, “Soon, angel,” before grabbing Luca’s arm and teleporting off.
CHAPTER 14
“Hold the line! Shields up!” Ryan bellowed to his wolf troops.
They complied immediately and raised their shields. A moment later, more of Oriana’s black magic rained down on them only to be deflected immediately. Ryan watched as she pressed her palms together as though she were praying and reabsorbed her deflected magic. Damn, she’s too fast. It needs to hit her.
“We can’t breach the walls, Ryan! She’s put up a protective barrier. It just burned two of our guys!” Damon yelled to him over the noise of battle.
“Our objective is to cause a distraction, not to take the castle!” Ryan returned. “We need to hold our position.” I told them not to breach the barrier. Fuck.
“Yes, your majesty.”
Ryan and the five hundred wolves at his back had been forced into the same defensive position for the past two hours, struggling to hold their ground from the two-pronged threat of the attacking vampire guards and Oriana’s consistent shower of black magic raining down on them. He’d left several hundred troops back at the camp. He couldn’t risk the entire wolf population in the battle.
They stood in formation on the bridge of the castle. If Ryan had wanted to actually take the castle, he would’ve approached discreetly through the gardens at the right side of the castle. He would’ve taken more of a guerilla approach. But with their current objective, they needed to be as visible to the enemy as possible.
Ryan smashed his fist into the face of a vampire approaching from his left. The vamp flew back twenty feet, lost his balance, and fell over the edge of the bridge. Another came at him and he gripped him by the chainmail at his chest and hoisted him off his feet. Damon swept his claws at his neck, decapitating him in one vicious swipe. Ryan nodded his gratitude.
Damon had had his back the entire time. And he was damn good at it. Oriana had directed all of “her” attacking vampire guards towards him, thinking that if she took him down, then his wolf army would fall. She was wrong. Damon would never let that happen. He was a natural leader. He’d never lay down if his King were defeated. If anything, it would just fire him up.
“Maintain position! Do not break formation!” Ryan thundered behind him at his wolves as he caught sight of a couple of them moving towards the barrier in an attempt to breach it. At his thunderous command they immediately ceased their approach and rejoined the army, slipping back into formation.
“Defend. Do not attack! Follow my lead!” Ryan bellowed. “Obey your King!” He had to utter such commands, because a wolf’s natural instinct was always to attack, never to defend. But Ryan knew that he wielded enough power to guarantee their obedience over their natural urges.
A collective growl of acceptance rumbled beneath his feet, vibrating the bridge.
Damon eyed Ryan in awe. Ryan smirked. “Told you.”
“Yeah. I’ve never been able to control them like that.”
“They can feel my power. They respect and fear it equally.”
They continued to battle. Thankfully wolves didn’t tire easily. They could keep up the pace for hours. No creature had more stamina—not even vampire.
But then the worst happened.
Oriana descended the steps with a protective silver, shimmering bubble enveloping her. She raised both her palms and fired magic that looked like pure silver at the feet of Ryan and the front line. Howls ripped from all their throats and they all took several steps back.
It was pure silver. She was firing fucking silver at them.
“Use your shields!” Ryan bellowed. “Brace yourselves!”
She fired again but it was impossible to block all of it with the shields. The sickening screams from his wolves churned Ryan’s stomach. He couldn’t let it continue.
He stepped forward, right into the line of fire.
A rush of silver rained down over him.
He turned into it, letting his leather jacket absorb some of it.
But silver was a bitch and it still burned through to his skin. He hissed.
“Back up!” he called over his shoulder to his wolves.
“Ryan! No!” Damon roared.
“That’s an order!” Ryan fired back. Back up didn’t mean what he knew it sounded like to his mother, what he had intended it to sound like. It was code for his wolves to execute their back-up plan. To feign a retreat amid a distraction—currently being created by Ryan—and approach the rear of the castle and infiltrate the dungeons to recover the second orb.
Ryan watched his bitch of a mother lower her palms and regard him with a mixture of amusement and admiration. She ordered her vampire guards to pull back and return to her. And then she sauntered down the castle steps towards the bridge.
They met in the middle and she shook her head at him disapprovingly.
“Sacrificing yourself for your wolves? Foolish, my son.”
“I’m not your son.”
She smiled maliciously. “That will make this easier then.”
She snapped her fingers and chains encircled him, binding his arms behind his back. He roared as they burned through his clothes and flesh alike. Fucking silver. And not plated, either. Pure silver. Unlike last time he’d been bound in silver, it didn’t weaken him as much. It didn’t force him to his knees. It just burned the shit out of him.
“Ryan!” Damon bellowed.
“Damon!” Ryan called over his shoulder. “Now!” He narrowed his eyes at his mother and growled, “Let them leave freely and I will come with you without a fight.”
She scoffed. “A fight? You’re bound in silver.”
Ryan locked eyes with her as he thrust his hands out to both sides. The chains shattered instantly. The shocked expression all over her face was priceless. He heard gasps behind him from his wolves. He wasn’t surprised. It was a hell of a sight for them to witness. No wolf could break silver binds. But Ryan was no ordinary wolf. He was the goddamn King of the Wolves. And now he’d acknowledged it, he had all the gifts that came along with the tit
le. “As I was saying, Oriana.”
“Fine,” she snapped and gestured for the vampire guards to return into the castle. Ryan didn’t need to turn around to know that the wolves were “retreating.” He could feel them.
She snapped her fingers once more and his surroundings disappeared, replaced by what he recognized as the castle dungeons. He’d been a wild teenager, and once his father had forced him to spend a night alone in the dungeons to try to shock some sense into him. And damn if it hadn’t worked.
He was shirtless with his arms raised above his head, bound by chains screwed into the ceiling. His feet, now somehow without shoes and socks, were bound by cuffs screwed into the floor.
“Fuck,” he growled. The bitch worked fast.
She teleported into the room all of sudden. “Profanity after profanity. Just like your father.”
“My father must’ve been devastated when he found out you were his mate.”
She flinched at his words and fired a bolt of black lighting at him. He hissed as it sliced a deep wound right across the width of his torso.
“Hmm...you’re rather resilient. I see I’m going to have to do a lot worse to get what I want,” she said, sauntering towards him. “Unless you choose to cooperate willingly.”
“What the fuck do you want?” he demanded, sighing inwardly with relief as he felt the wound she’d inflicted already start to close up. Cora’s blood. Cora. Shit.
“A simple request. Your son’s name.”
A shiver ran down Ryan’s spine at her mention of his son. “Why?”
“You have yet to officially name him in any realm. Until you do, as far as the laws of magic are concerned, he does not truly exist in the world. As a result, he cannot be affected by magic.”
“Affected by magic. You mean, harmed by it? By you?”
“Yes.”
“You would kill your own grandson? My son?”