A Wolf's Pride

by Jennifer T. Alli

  “Why did you escape and go after Chloe, my mate?” he growled, leaning forward and invading her private space.

  “I have my own reasons.”

  “Those reasons are going to get you killed. The crimes you have committed not only against Chloe but against the Queen as well are unforgivable. Did you really think your father could help you get out of this mess a second time? That his pleas would turn me against the idea of executing you?” She trembled in her seat with each accusation he threw at her, her face finally gaining colour. A frustrated, angry red. “You’re not getting out of this one now. You tried to kill my mate for no apparent reason. You are a lady, nobility, you’re educated from birth to know our laws, know the consequences of your actions and yet you chose to take this course of action anyway.” He pushed himself away from her in disgust and confusion. “I don’t understand why you chose this path. You would have been free to live your life however you chose once your mate came to collect you and now you’ve doomed him to a mateless life. I’m not going to spare you because of him.”

  “You don’t have to spare him,” she spat, her voice rising in volume in correlation to the increased redness of her face. “My mate is dead! Dead and all because of that whore’s family. Why should she have a mate, a lord, when I would have been left to rot in the dungeons for eternity?”

  “What are you talking about?” he demanded angrily. He had warned her not to lie, she had agreed to be honest and here she was defying him already. The world would be a better place once she was removed from it. “You’re not mated, how would you know if the man destined to be your mate were dead?” He breathed deeply, expecting the unpleasant smell of a lie to reach his nose but to his surprise only the refreshing scent of honesty wafted from her. He strode back to her, leaning in so close they were almost touching. “Explain yourself.”

  “I had a mate. His name was Luke.”

  “Lucinda, is that true?” Jeremiah asked, rising from his seat.

  “Father, you can smell that I’m telling the truth,” she sighed, her gaze never leaving Ryan’s feral one. “Luke was a,” she paused, her eyelids falling shut as shame flushed her cheeks even further. “Luke was a gardener. He was common,” she spat, the word leaving her lips sounding like poison. “He was a gardener here, in the royal estate. I met him when I was very young, barely out of maturity, visiting the royal estate for the first time. I had always been told that I was meant for royalty, destined to be Queen of our people and then Luke came along. This commoner came to me, claiming to be my mate. Do you know how horrified I was? It was impossible for us to be mates. I was to be mated to Prince Tobias, I knew it and so did everyone else.” Ryan grunted, a sound of disbelief, astounded by how far her delusions had taken her.

  “He was a nobody, not a Lord, not nobility, not even a warrior. How on earth could we be mates? I didn’t want him.”

  “So you rejected him,” Ryan interpreted.

  “Of course I did.”

  “He wouldn’t have killed himself,” Sebastian inserted. “He would have kept pursuing you. His wolf and he would have allowed nothing less until you had accepted him.” His eyes wandered to Erica, a smile forming on his face. “I know.”

  “Yes, I’m well aware of how tenacious you males can be. He wouldn’t leave me alone. How was I to get prince Tobias’ attention if he was constantly following me about?”

  Ryan’s eyes narrowed in disgust. He had a feeling that whatever Lucinda was about to say would turn his stomach. She had rejected her mate and he was now dead. He didn’t doubt that she somehow had a hand in his demise. “What did you do?”

  “I told him I wanted him to prove himself, that I couldn’t accept a mate I wasn’t confident could protect me. He heard about a group of hunters that lived together and decided to take them on to prove his strength. He hid me in the woods, far enough away that they wouldn’t see me, but close enough that I could see them, see him win. There were far more of them than he had anticipated. The hunters saw him coming, they knew what he was and they shot him with silver bullets, those violet eyed demons. I’ll never forget those eyes.” She turned towards Chloe, her blue eyes aglow with hatred. “The men that killed Luke may have been dark haired but how many humans do you know of that have those eyes? They’re related, I know it. They shot his body until it was riddled with bullet holes and dragged him away to kill him properly. I ran as fast as I could from that place and never heard from Luke again. They killed him.”

  Chloe gasped, shocked at the accusation but unsure of how to react. She scanned the faces around her, easily remembering those who had been calling for her execution. Would Lucinda's words inspire more calls for retribution? She may have believed that her family was innocent of all the accusations that had been levelled at them but those around her did not. She could see heads nodding in agreement, scowls appearing on faces. She visibly shrunk back in her chair, clutching the armrests in terror before Ryan turned to her, fixing her with a reassuring smile before returning to face Lucinda. She sat up in her chair meeting the gazes of those who were looking at her with anger in their eyes. Her stare was calm, defiant, daring them to try and attempt something. Ryan won’t let any harm come to me. The thought gave her courage and she sat up straighter.

  It was unusual for her to be so reliant on someone but as her eyes wandered over Ryan’s strong back, her mind filling in the details of his front, she realised it wasn’t so unusual after all. Their reliance was mutual. She needed his protection and he needed her, period. What he didn’t know was that she was in his corner, ready to defend him. He had saved her life by offering up his own that made him beyond precious; the feelings he drew effortlessly from her were worthy of defending even to the end. Anyone who tried to hurt him would have to deal with her and she would make sure she got in a few good hits before they took her down. Ryan deserved no less.

  “It’s not fair that she would get a mate when her family killed mine,” Lucinda continued, her voice taking on an increasingly whining tone. “It’s not fair that she, a human, would be given a Lord as a mate. She doesn’t even truly understand the concept of mates and she doesn’t want him. I was doing her a favour. She owes me a mate and I wanted to take it out of her hide.”

  “So you rejected your mate and are now having to deal with the consequences?” he repeated, bemused. “Not only that but you’re trying to drag my mate’s name down into the gutter with yours.” He turned to face those who were looking at Chloe with anger in their eyes. “You said it yourself Lucinda, Chloe is human. If you met your true mate when you were just out of maturity then it was almost a hundred years ago. Whatever you saw that day has nothing to do with my mate. She wasn’t even alive and she knows nothing about the hunters or the crimes they’ve committed against us. I’ve had enough of this, of dealing with you. You tried to kill my mate, tell these people exactly what you did so I can get started with your execution. The faster you tell them, the quicker and less painful your death will be.”

  Lucinda visibly deflated, the breath leaving her body in a long sigh as she slumped back into her chair. “I walked straight in to your rooms. It was the first time in days that the doors weren’t locked or guarded, I just decided to take advantage of the opportunity.”

  Ryan nodded, remembering leaving Chloe unattended after their fallout. Stupid, he scolded. It won’t happen again.

  “She was alone, bemoaning the state of her life since you came into it. We spoke.” Chloe scowled, remembering the unpleasant conversation and her repeated instructions that Lucinda leave, instructions she had ignored before attacking her. “I told her that as she didn’t want a mate, I would relieve her of her problem.” She sighed before speaking again. “At the time Chloe wasn’t able to speak but the look on her face said she didn’t believe I would be able to make you mine.”

  “She was right,” Ryan interrupted. “If you had succeeded in killing Chloe, I would have followed right after her. I can’t continue living without her.”

 
“We finished our conversation, I picked her up, she struggled but of course she couldn’t overpower me and escape and then I threw her over the balcony. The rest you know.”

  “Yes,” he hissed. “I do. Now that you’ve all heard her pathetic excuses and her confirmation of her own guilt, can I kill her now?”

  “Ryan,” Chloe scolded, shocked by his cavalier attitude towards ending someone’s life.

  “It’s okay,” Alex whispered to her, gently patting her hand in reassurance.

  As she looked around the room Chloe began to notice that many of those present were nodding their heads in agreement and glaring angrily at Lucinda. Was Ryan really going to kill her?

  “Lord Ryan is right,” Tobias began, standing from his seat to address the gathered crowd. “We have all heard the confirmation of Lady Lucinda's guilt not only in this matter but in the attempted murder of my own mate, Queen Alexandria. Lady Lucinda was well aware of the fact that we weren’t mates when she challenged my mate and despite her full awareness of this she not only tried to keep me from my rightful mate but tried to poison her as well. All in favour of her execution say aye. I’ll start.” Hard grey eyes turned to regard Lucinda, amber appearing in the orbs the longer he stared at her. “Aye.” I wonder if Ryan will want some assistance in getting rid of her.

  I hope so, his wolf snarled. And if not…you’re King aren’t you, order him to let us help.

  ‘Aye’ reverberated around the room as one by one the voices of those present condemned Lucinda for her actions. Murder was a crime and attempting to kill someone else’s mate not once but twice was unforgiveable. The wave of agreement swept the room until the only person left was Lord Jeremiah, Lucinda's father. All eyes came to rest on him awaiting his response, the silence was deafening.

  “Lucinda,” he began. “I’ll always love you in spite of all that you have done but I can’t allow this to go unpunished. We’re nobility, we’re meant to set an example for those we lead, if I allow you to get away with this then what sort of message would I be sending?” His voice quivered, emotion choking him. “You shouldn’t have gone after someone else’s mate for a second time. Maybe after a few hundred years Queen Alexandria would have granted you clemency, she has shown you great kindness considering what you have done, and you would have been free. I saved you once, I can’t do it again. This is my final act as Lord of the Northeast clan, after this I’ll hand the reins over to one of my sons.” Tears began to well in his eyes but he blinked them back. “Aye.”

  Ryan rubbed his hands together gleefully, unmoved by Jeremiah’s speech. He had gotten what he wanted. And I didn’t even have to tear his tongue out. A heavy hand landed on his shoulder and he turned to see Tobias standing at his side, amber eyes staring back at him instead of his normal grey. A feral smile crept across his face as he looked towards Lucinda before turning back to Ryan. Although silent the question was clear, Ryan nodded. Tobias could help.

  “Because you told the truth Lucinda, I’ll make it quick.” She smiled in relief.

  Relatively quick, his wolf amended.

  Everything is relative, Ryan agreed, sighing in relief as the pull of the instinct began to lessen now that he was preparing to deal with the threat to his mate.

  Chapter Thirty Six

  Chloe paced the length of the suite restlessly. Lucinda's trial had finished hours ago and Ryan had yet to return. He hadn’t returned to the suite with her, saying that he had matters to deal with, his gaze affixed firmly on Lucinda. He was going to kill her, his eyes had confirmed all that he had said during the trial and she was unsure of exactly how to deal with that knowledge. The man she was coming to care for was probably at this very moment extinguishing a helpless woman’s life.

  She wasn’t helpless when she tried to kill you, a voice in the back of her mind inserted.

  “Ryan isn’t a murderer. He can’t be,” she said to herself.

  It was at that moment that the object of her worries strolled into the room, a wide grin fixed firmly on his face. He didn’t look as though he had just killed someone and she breathed a sigh of relief.

  I knew he couldn’t kill her.

  As soon as he saw her his smile brightened even further and he rushed to her side, pulling her against his chest. “Angel, you waited up for me.” His heat seeped into her and she sagged against him, wrapping her arms around his body. He froze for a moment unused to Chloe willingly returning his embrace. His moment of hesitation passed quickly and he pulled her even closer, dropping warm kisses against the exposed column of her neck. The skin beneath his lips was soft and he had to resist the urge to fall further into her, kissing her as she deserved to be kissed, until she was breathless and panting with desire.

  “I knew you couldn’t kill her. I just knew it. You’re not a murderer.”

  He froze again, his lips moving away from her neck. His mind was quickly filled with indecision. If he allowed her to continue believing that he hadn’t killed Lucinda no one would ever tell her anything different, she would never know what he had done, that he had enjoyed ensuring Lucinda's taint could never again touch her. If he told her the truth she would be upset, the clear relief in her voice warned him of that. Decisions, decisions.

  You aren’t considering lying to our mate are you? His wolf demanded.

  No, he sighed. For once in his life the idea of being human tempted him, human males never had such problems with lying to their mates. The desire was gone as quickly as it had come. Chloe deserved better than lies. There were no lies or secrets between mates, they only hurt and damaged relationships and their relationship was on uneven ground as it was.

  Reluctantly he pulled away, grasping her hands tightly in his own in case she tried to run from him. He wouldn’t have her run from him again, he would explain the reasons behind his actions and hope she accepted him as he was. He wasn’t sorry for what he and Tobias had done earlier. “Chloe, angel, I dealt with Lucinda. She will never again threaten you or anyone else again.”

  “Oh God,” she gasped, “You killed her.”

  “Yes.”

  “You’re a murderer. Ryan, you killed her.”

  “Yes angel I did and I would do it again. She threatened you.”

  She looked him over, finally noting that he was wearing different clothes. Her eyes narrowed questioningly as she looked at his serene expression. “You seem awfully calm for a man who’s just killed someone. Have you done this before?”

  “Killed someone?”

  “Yes.” She dragged the word out; unsure of whether she wanted to know the answer to her question.

  “Come,” he led her further into the room, sitting down on a chair and pulled her down to sit on his legs, wrapping his arms around her waist and drowning himself in her rich scent. It was in his nature to protect, that wasn’t something he could change. No matter how he had to do it, they would have to over come this hurdle now or they could never be true mates, ones who loved and understood each other without hesitation. “Yes Chloe, I’ve killed people before. A lot of people actually.” She began to struggle in his grip. “No angel. No running. Let me explain.”

  “People have been threatening my life all because of some misguided belief you have that my family are murderers and yet here you sit, calm as anything, telling me that you’ve murdered people before. And you’re not even sorry.”

  “Chloe, I’m still the same man I was yesterday. What I’ve done will never change how I act towards you, how I feel about you. Lucinda tried to kill you, she brought this upon herself.”

  “And what about all the others? Did they all bring it upon themselves too?”

  He groaned, tightening his grip on her, his head falling into the curve of her neck. “I’ve been alive a long time. A very long time and in that time I’ve had to fight a lot. Every human war impacts us, my people, our way of life. I’m one of the best warriors we have. When your wars get too close to affecting us, a group of us are called together. The group is made up of the warrior sons of the
nobility. Being noble isn’t just a title for us, its something that’s in our genes. We’re stronger, faster and better at what we do than those we lead. It’s the nature of the clans; a hierarchy built on strength. Those of us in this group, infiltrate your militaries, find out all that we can, see how long it will be before the war truly starts to affect us. If it looks like the war may seriously impact our way of life, more of us are called, all of the guards here in the estate, they’re warriors too, they would come with me.”

  “And do what exactly?”

  “What warriors are built to do, fight. We lend our strength to the country we’re residing in and protect our people, our mates and our children. We’re good at what we do. We’re faster, stronger and virtually invincible in combat. Unfortunately, loss of life can’t be prevented in a war. I always tried to subdue rather than kill but if my life was truly in danger or the situation called for it, I kill. I’m no different to any other soldier in the world. Are you really going to be angry with me for acting in self defense? If I hadn’t killed those people in all those wars I might not be alive today. I might never have met you.”

  She nodded slowly, relaxing in his grip. Wars and soldiers were exceptional circumstances. If it were kill or be killed, then those deaths were understandable. Regrettable, but war was war and she couldn’t hold defending his own life against him. “And what about Lucinda?”

  “What about her? She tried to hurt you! I acted in self-defence. I meant what I said earlier, if you were to die I would die with you. Acting to protect your life is equivalent to acting to protect my life, self-defence. I’m not human Chloe, no matter how I look.”

  “How could I possibly forget when you keep doing that weird eye thing,” she chuckled.

  “The laws that govern us are different to the laws that govern humans. They have to be if we want to continue to exist as a species. Lucinda was a rogue, a danger to our people she had to be dealt with.”