by Lola Gabriel
Faust nodded and stood up.
“Let’s go and interrogate the prisoner. Let me make something clear right now, though. None of you are to speak throughout the interrogation. Freya and I will be the only ones asking the questions. If any of you break that rule, then I’m afraid I will have no choice but to have you removed from the room,” he warned.
Max didn’t think it would be easy to control himself when confronted with Alexander, but he knew he had to. He had to hear the man’s story, no matter how angry it made him.
Max, Ellery, and Errol followed Faust and Freya into the interrogation room. Faust and Freya took their places on two chairs set in front of a small cluster of additional chairs, and Max, Ellery, and Errol took their places behind them. Faust reached out and pressed a bell on the desk in front of him. An intercom crackled to life in the room.
“Yes, sir?” a voice said.
“Issue the truth serum and bring in the prisoner, please,” Faust said.
Within minutes, the door opened and Alexander was brought in by two royal guards. He was taken to a chair opposite Faust and Freya and then he was strapped into place, his wrists and ankles bound to the chair.
Faust nodded to the royal guards and they backed away from the prisoner a little bit, although they remained close enough to step in if the need should arise. Max didn’t think it would. Alexander already looked defeated.
“What is your name?” Faust asked.
“Alexander Jenkins,” Alexander said without hesitation.
“Why were you impersonating Errol?” Freya asked.
“I just wanted to meet Ellery,” Alexander said. He had the nerve to smile at Ellery and Max knew he should be angry, but at that moment, he felt nothing but pity for the seemingly broken man being questioned. “She’s so beautiful and I have loved her from afar for years. I knew she would never consider a lowly civilian as her one true mate, but I also knew I could make her happy, and so I pretended to be Errol so I could meet her. I would have told her the truth once she fell in love with me. I never meant to deceive her.”
“So why did you see fit to abduct her and hold her against her will?” Faust demanded.
Max could hear the undertone of anger in his voice as he asked the question.
“I made a mess of our dinner. I screwed up my chance. But I knew I couldn’t just walk away. I knew Ellery and I were meant to be together, so I had to see her one more time. She was so reluctant to spend any time with me, and I knew I had no chance of convincing her I was right for her over one quick cup of coffee. I only took her to give her the chance to get to know me. I would never have hurt her. I love her,” Alexander said.
Faust and Freya looked at each other. Faust whispered something to Freya and she shook her head. Faust nodded to her and then turned back to Alexander.
“Do you have anything further you would like to say in defense of your actions?” Faust said.
“Only that everything I did, I did for love,” Alexander said. His eyes scanned the room and he smiled when they landed on Ellery. “I love you, Ellery, and I always will.”
“Please take him back to his holding cell,” Faust said to the royal guards.
Faust and Freya stood up and beckoned to the others and they all left the room as the royal guard began to remove Alexander from the chair. They went back to the little lounge and they all took seats except Freya, who remained standing and addressed the little group.
“We have all heard Alexander’s story. And we know it’s the truth because of the serum. Faust and I will have the final say over his fate, but we would welcome your input. Ellery, as the victim, what are your thoughts?”
“I’m not sure, to be honest,” Ellery said. “I mean, he seems mentally ill rather than evil. And while on the one hand, I’m conscious of the fact that he had every chance to truly hurt me and didn’t take it, I’m also aware of the fact that he could take a liking to someone else, someone who doesn’t have anyone to come and rescue her, and then I would worry about her fate.”
“Thank you,” Freya said. “Errol?”
“I know you two will make the right decision as to Alexander’s fate, and I am thinking along the same lines as Ellery, really. He could be a danger to the public, but at the same time, I don’t get the impression he’s evil. More disturbed.”
“Thank you,” Freya said again. “Maxen?”
Max thought for a moment. He wanted the bastard to suffer for what he had done to Ellery, but he had considered what Ellery and Errol had said, and he felt like they were right. Alexander seemed more mentally disturbed than evil.
“While there’s a big part of me that wants to tear him limb from limb for taking Ellery, I do agree that he seems to be more ill than evil. Maybe it would be inhumane to execute him for a crime that only came about because he was so convinced he was in love. I feel that maybe an exile would be more appropriate, but then that worries me in another sense, because like Ellery said, this could happen again, and next time, the girl might not escape without being harmed.”
“Thank you,” Freya said for the third time. “Faust and I will discuss the matter and we will let you know when we have reached a decision.”
“Actually,” Errol said, “if it wouldn’t be too rude, would you all mind if I left now? Like I said, I trust you to make the right decision and it seems that my reason for being here no longer exists.”
“Of course, Errol, feel free to leave whenever you want to, but also know that if you wish to, you are more than welcome to stay,” Freya said. “And from the bottom of my heart, thank you for the part you played in getting Ellery back.”
Faust stood up and extended his hand to Errol. Errol stood up and they shook hands.
“I, too, offer my thanks,” Faust said.
He and Freya left the room and Errol turned to Ellery and Max.
“Well, I’ll be off, then. It was nice to meet you both,” he said.
Ellery stood up and hugged Errol.
“Thank you,” she said. “What you did, coming with Max to help me, it won’t be forgotten.”
Errol smiled and then he shook hands with Max.
“Thank you for having my back,” Max said.
Errol left and Max and Ellery were finally alone. Max turned to Ellery.
“Why on earth did you go off alone like that, Ellery? Were you mad at me for sneaking away from you? I only did it because…”
“I wasn’t mad at you,” Ellery interrupted him with a smile. “Really. I understood why you snuck away. I was telling the truth to my parents earlier. I wanted to get you a present. I was going to surprise you with that comic book you were looking at.”
“Oh, Ellery, that’s so sweet, but really, I don’t need gifts. I just need you,” Max said.
He pulled Ellery into his arms and kissed her, and instantly everything felt right with the world again. Ellery pulled back slightly, long before Max was ready for the kiss to be over.
“I love you, Max,” she said.
“I love you too,” Max said with a smile.
They moved back together, kissing once more, and this time, neither of them pulled away—until a coughing sound interrupted them and then they jumped apart quickly. Ellery blushed and wiped her hand over her lips.
“I’m so sorry, sir, ma’am,” Max said as Faust and Freya came back into the room.
Faust waved away his apology and they both sat down.
“We’ve considered everything you all said, and we’ve also considered our own point of view and our duty to the tribe, and we’ve reached a decision about Alexander’s fate,” Freya said.
She nodded to Faust, who took over.
“For all we agree that Alexander isn’t evil, he’s not someone we want in our tribe. He’s not someone we want representing us in the world. We are going to exile him. But we also considered the very real possibility that this could happen again, and before he is exiled, he will be going to our clinic in New York, where he will be treated by our top psychiatric tea
m. Only when they are confident his mental health is stable will he be exiled,” Faust said.
Max thought it was a good decision, the best of both worlds. They would be rid of Alexander for good, but they wouldn’t be sending him out into the world while he could still pose a danger to other people.
“He will be transferred to the clinic in New York within the next twenty-four hours, once I have chosen the right royal guards to escort him,” Faust said.
“I am happy to volunteer to be a part of that team, if you’ll have me,” Max said.
Faust shook his head.
“That won’t be appropriate, Maxen, as you are no longer an active member of the royal guard,” Faust said.
Max felt his heart sink. After everything, he was being cast aside, fired and removed from Ellery’s life.
“Dad, no,” Ellery said. “I love Max. He’s my one true mate.”
“I’m aware of that, Ellery,” Faust said, breaking into a smile. “And that’s why he’s no longer staff. He’s a member of our family now.”
Epilogue
Two Months Later
Ellery was bursting with excitement as Max came into the house.
“Sit down, I have something for you,” she said as Max came in.
Max kissed her and smiled, sitting down where she pointed. Ellery bounced out of the room and came back with a parcel in her hands. She held it out to Max, who smiled quizzically and took it from her.
“What’s this?” he said.
“Open it and see,” Ellery grinned.
Max ripped into the box and his jaw dropped when he saw the comic book he had coveted.
“Oh my God, Ellery,” he said. “Thank you. But you really didn’t have to get me this.”
“I know,” she said. “But I wanted to. Because I wanted you to be in a good mood for this.”
“For what?” Max asked.
“For when I tell you you’re going to be a father,” Ellery beamed.
“You mean…?” Max said, trailing off.
“Yup,” Ellery grinned, running a hand over stomach. “I’m pregnant, Max.”
Max jumped up and pulled her into his arms, laughing with delight.
“I didn’t think it was possible to get a better gift than the one you just gave me, but my God, you managed it,” he laughed.
He kissed Ellery and she kissed him back, excited for the next chapter in their lives—life as a family of three.
Warlock Prince
1
Jagger Michaels scanned the room as he walked into the bar. The bar was busy already despite it being fairly early. It was a local bar that was mostly frequented by shifters of one kind or another and it always seemed to get busy earlier than the other local bars.
“What are you having?” Kevin, Jagger’s best friend, asked as they headed toward the bar.
“I’ll be having a Bud, Kev, but this round is on me,” Jagger replied.
“No way,” Kevin said, clapping Jagger on the shoulder and shaking his head. “We’re out to celebrate you receiving the enchantment. That means the drinks are on me. At least until you spot a likely candidate and then I’ll be making myself scarce.”
Jagger laughed but he hoped that Kevin was right about him finding a likely candidate to be his one true mate tonight. Earlier that day, his father, Simeon, the high warlock, part of the ruling warlock and witch couple of the United States, had administered the potion to him—the potion that was given to the children of all of the ruling families on their twenty-ninth birthday. The potion ensured that they found their true mates, so when the time came for them to take over the pack or tribe, they were ready to do it as part of a ruling couple.
Jagger was ready to find his one true mate. Or at least someone he could have some fun with until she came along. He had come to the bar tonight to celebrate reaching twenty-nine, the coming-of-age year for shifters, the age when they stopped physically aging, and he was also hopeful he would meet a hot little witch to take back to his place to help him celebrate. Maybe even to share his whole eternal life as his mate.
As Kevin ordered drinks, Jagger kept looking around the bar to see if there was anyone he recognized. He didn’t spot anyone he knew, but a girl caught his eye. She had long black hair and pale skin that looked as smooth as porcelain, high cheek bones and plump red lips. As though the girl had felt Jagger’s eyes on her, she looked in his direction and smiled. His eyes held hers for a moment, relishing the deep blue color, and for a moment, he felt desire flooding through him.
The girl looked away and Jagger told himself he should do the same, but he was having a hard time pulling his gaze away from her. He felt his heart beat faster in his chest when the girl stood up and began to head in his direction. She had a lovely figure—curvy hips and big breasts—and Jagger longed to touch her, to hold her in his arms and kiss her deeply.
She ran her tongue over her lips suggestively as she came toward him. She smiled as she reached him.
“You and your friend there should join us for a drink,” she said in a low, husky voice.
She kept walking, going to the bar, and Jagger couldn’t stop himself from watching the way her hips swayed as she walked. He swallowed hard, swallowing back the moan that wanted to spring out of him as he imagined the girl in his arms, imagined himself kissing her, touching her, making love to her.
Kevin came over with their drinks and got in the way of Jagger’s view of the girl. Kevin looked over his shoulder as Jagger shifted slightly to keep the girl in his line of sight. He saw who Jagger was looking at and he whistled quietly.
“She’s cute,” he said.
“Cute? Talk about an understatement. She’s absolutely fucking gorgeous,” Jagger said. “And she asked me if we wanted to join her and her friends for a drink.”
“Well, what are we waiting for?” Kevin grinned. He raised his eyebrows and wiggled them. “Looks like the enchantment is working.”
Jagger laughed and shook his head, but he couldn’t help but wonder if Kevin could be right and the girl was meant to be his. Was it really that easy? The enchantment was meant to work by drawing the recipient to their one true mate, but could it really be that good that pretty much the first girl Jagger spoke to after receiving the enchantment was the one? He thought it was unlikely, but as he looked back over Kevin’s shoulder again at the girl at the bar, he sure hoped it was true.
The girl was heading back toward them with a tray in her hand. The tray held four cocktails.
“So? Are you joining us or not?” she asked.
“Sure we are,” Jagger said. “Here, let me get that for you.”
He took the tray from her and let her lead him to her table. She dragged a chair over and Kevin dragged another one over and the three of them sat down.
“I’m Raven. And this is Aria, Lucile, and Ebony,” the girl said.
Raven, Jagger thought. She couldn’t have a more perfect name with her long black hair. He wondered vaguely if she had been born with enough of that hair to influence her parents when they named her.
“I’m Kevin,” Kevin said. “And my friend is Jagger.”
They all greeted each other and began chatting. Jagger was finding it hard to follow the conversation as all he wanted to do was to be alone with Raven, to kiss her red lips, to run his hands down her gorgeous body, to fill her pussy with his cock. His whole body seemed to throb, strumming with desire whenever Raven spoke or laughed or glanced in his direction.
After a few minutes, Kevin excused himself and left the table. He returned quickly, carrying a tray with shots of tequila for each of them.
“To Jagger on his twenty-ninth birthday,” Kevin said.
They all raised their glasses and wished Jagger a happy birthday. He smiled his thanks and downed his shot, his attention mostly focused on Raven as she swallowed down her shot and her throat moved.
“So, the big one, huh?” Raven smiled at him. “Coming of age and all that.”
“Yeah. I guess I’ll have to grow
up now,” Jagger laughed.
“And you’ll be on the lookout for your one true mate too, I take it,” Raven said.
“You know who I am?” Jagger said, suddenly conscious of the fact that Raven could be playing him, trying to get close to him because of his status within his tribe.
“Sure. I might not be a witch, but I’m not blind and deaf,” Raven smiled. “I still know warlock royalty when I see them.”
Okay, Jagger thought to himself. So she’s not trying to get me to think she’s my one true mate or anything like that if she’s not even a witch. The thought was a nice one, but it was also a bit disappointing to learn there was no hope for him and Raven. But that didn’t mean they couldn’t still have fun together tonight. Even when Jagger had seen Raven for the first time and wondered if she was meant to be his, he had questioned whether or not the enchantment could work that quickly. Now he supposed he had his answer.
“Wolf?” Jagger said to Raven.
“Huh?” she frowned.
“Well, you said you’re not a witch, but you must be some sort of shifter to be hanging out here,” Jagger said.
“Not exactly,” Raven smiled. “I’m a vampire.”
“A vampire, huh?” Jagger smiled.
“Yup. We’re all vampires,” Raven said, nodding around at her friends.
Jagger smiled again. Raven couldn’t be his mate. He knew that now without any doubt. But he reminded himself once more that knowing Raven wasn’t his soul mate didn’t mean they couldn’t still have some fun together tonight. And judging by the way Raven was looking at him and flirting with him constantly, Jagger thought it seemed likely that she wanted the exact same thing.
The next few hours passed by in a blur of drinks and laughter and flirting. Jagger was really starting to enjoy his birthday celebrations much more than he had expected to, and he thought that was mostly because of Raven.
“Well, I guess I’m going to call it a night,” Kevin said. “I’ve got work early in the morning.”