by Kate Bonham
“Who is your mother?” I asked.
“I don’t know, I was never told.”
“And Reina?”
“He’s smart, I like him,” she said with a smile. “I am not Veona’s daughter either. Hadrian and Melonia are her only children.”
“Who is your mother?” I asked.
“I don’t know either, but she was an Oracle.”
“Hallec certainly did have quite the rebellion.”
Reina chuckled. “It’s only been after my birth he really understood his path. I don’t know what happened but he is not someone to mess with.”
“What’s our plan here?” I asked Bastien. “What do we do?”
“Sehrenna believes the decision will divide the Blackmaw community. We need to be prepared for an outcome that will see Mae crowned, even if it is for the interim. There must always be a ruler.”
“She can bequeath it to someone,” Kolten said.
“You?” I asked, unsure of where this was going.
“No, Hadrian.”
“He is Hallec’s eldest son, and the son of Veona,” I said, surprised he would mention him.
“He’s not like her, Melonia is, but Hadrian just tries to keep up with Hallec. He’s a good man, he will rule justly,” Kolten said. “I would be happy under his rule.”
I looked to Bastien who was just as suspicious as I was, but we had to agree. Kolten lived in his mansion, he knew the political minds behind it all and he grew up with Hadrian. He would be best placed to know who would be the right person to rule.
“What of Mae?” Bastien asked. “She is furious over her mother’s suicide, and she blames Hallec.”
“Rightly so,” Kolten said. “I would too, but I have a feeling he won’t be a problem anymore, not after the ruling.”
“And of Orphax? He won’t take this lying down,” I added. “I’ve known him for decades, he’s only gotten more ambitious over time.”
“He will have to accept the ruling, being an Elder. Perhaps that is why they are taking so long to decide,” Bastien said.
“Mae must not be in the same room as Hallec,” Reina said suddenly. We all looked to the girl, her eyes intense and black. “She must be kept away.”
“What have you seen?” Kolten asked, kneeling down. “What comes to pass?”
“Her undoing.”
Reina passed out once those ominous words were spoken. Kolten caught her and picked her up in his arms.
“I need to get her down, her gifts can overwhelm her young mind.”
He left, leaving me with Bastien. I didn’t like this, having so many unknown variables and in a different jurisdiction was beyond me. Mae was on her own with this decision, and it could potentially drag her away from me at any given moment.
“Get back to Mae,” Bastien said. “I’ll keep an ear out and see if I can get any closure on what to expect. Hallec won’t take this lying down, and we all know Lycans can be dramatic.”
“Unfortunately, I do.”
I ran back to the Ritz, expecting Mae to be out still but when she was sitting up in bed, her phone in her hand and tears running down her face, I was caught off guard.
“Mae?” I asked, closing the door behind me. “How long have you been awake?”
“A couple of minutes,” she said with a sob. “I guess being a hybrid burns through whatever potion you fed me.”
Guilt dripped through me as I moved to her side. “I’m sorry, I jus—”
“It’s okay, I understand why you did it.”
“Why are you so upset?” I asked, smoothing the hair sticking to her wet cheeks behind her ear.
“I wondered why it didn’t work and figured it would be because of what I am, so I looked it up.”
“You know not to bother with human’s nonsense,” I told her. “They don’t really know about us.”
“They know some things,” she replied. “And so I figured they would know some things about hybrids.”
“What did you find?”
“Nothing,” she replied. “Nothing that sounded like what I’m going through.”
“So, why is that upsetting you?”
“There has to be a reason for that, Bram.”
There was.
I just didn’t want her to know about it, not yet. We still had to focus on Hallec and his reign of terror. She still had to decide what she wanted, and I sure as hell wanted her to be clear headed enough to choose me.
Or at least, I hoped she would.
If she didn’t, well, I couldn’t even bear the thought of that.
“What do you want to know?” I asked her, coming to sit on the bed next to her.
“You know about hybrids?” she asked.
“A little.”
“How long do they live?” she blurted out and I knew instantly I was going to have to tell her the truth.
“Not long.”
“Why?”
“It’s too much power,” I told her honestly. “If you are born as a hybrid, chances are better, because you aren’t fully Nosferatu or Lycan. But if you are a Lycan and then turned Nosferatu, somehow, you are considered a full Lycan or a full Nosferatu, and the power is immense. That’s why hybrids are dangerous.”
“But why?”
“They can lose sight of themselves easily. The last hybrid I know of ended up changing Lycan and being unable to change back. He mauled his family to death and went on a spree. He had to be neutralized.”
“But I’ve never shifted into anything.”
That was true, maybe it could be different for her then. She had never been a full Lycan. What did that mean for her?
“Cassia will be able to help more, but first, we need to fix this problem with the Blackmaws.”
“Okay,” she said. “Let’s go back then.”
“I don’t think that’s the best choice.”
“Why not?”
“I think your rage is too new,” I replied, honestly. “Seeing Hallec may trigger you to act in a way you can’t come back from.”
She thought about it, and I was prepared for a fight, but eventually she nodded. “I think you’re right. Amabelle wasn’t a great mom but she was my mom, she was a part of me, and he didn’t even care that she loved him. He didn’t even care she would have done anything for him.”
“Men like Hallec don’t care about much,” I told her. “Once upon a time, he would have done anything for his fellow Lycan or even friend, but now, he’s willing to tread on everyone to get what he wants. He became his father.”
“I don’t want to be part of a family like that.”
“The beauty of it, Mae, is you don’t have to either. You can be part of my family, you can choose who is going to be your family.”
She smiled a little at that. “I guess I am part Nosferatu too.”
“Exactly.”
“Is that your way of asking me to move in with you?” she asked, climbing over onto my lap. “Do you want me to be your girlfriend?”
“See, this right here, makes me want to retract that statement.”
“I will need you to ask me properly if I’m to consider it.”
I rolled my eyes and laid back on the bed. “We both know you’re going to come back with me.”
“Only if I hear a request,” she replied, leaning down on me with her hands on my chest. “I mean, I’d hate to be a burden.”
“Will you come back to Romania with me?” I asked her, my hands on her hips, nails digging into her skin. She sighed with relief at the action.
“As what? Your maid, your lover, your chef?”
“You know what I’m asking.”
“How could I?” She feigned innocence. “If you don’t ask me properly.”
“Girlfriend is such a human word,” I told her. “I refuse to call you that.”
“Then what else can you call me that would fit my description?”
“I could call you wife,” I told her. Her smile dropped and she looked at me seriously. Those amber eyes coming back,
turning me on more than I could have imagined.
“Do you mean that?” she asked.
“I mean everything I say,” I said before I flipped her over onto her back. “But first, I’d need to hear you say those magic words.”
I moved down, hovering between her legs, my breath over her naked thighs. She sucked in a deep breath, her back arching a little as I waited for her to respond.
“What words?”
“I think you know.”
I blew softly across her wet panties, her reaction was instantaneous. She arched up off the bed and clutched at the sheets in her fists.
“What do you want?”
I sat back and looked up into her fiery eyes. “You know what I want. What do you want?”
She didn’t want to admit it to me, and I understood, because I hated admitting it too but we were made for each other, and she knew it.
“I want you,” she screamed as I slid a finger under her panties and tangled with her swollen lips. “I want you… I want you!”
Those words had me ripping off her panties the rest of the way and dipping my tongue into her wetness, lapping up whatever I could. She clutched at my shoulders, digging those impressive nails into my skin and urging me forward.
Would I ever have enough of my girl?
FIFTEEN
Mae
Hallec stood next to his wife, and two of his children. The elder two who looked like spitting images of their parents. Kolten was standing with Reina to the side, but I couldn’t read their expressions. I wished I had that kind of emotionless expression, but all my rage or happiness bubbled out of me with no way of stopping. I’d not been able to stay away. This was my family, my history and my future. I had to be here and stand up to my father.
Bastien was standing with Sehrenna, the Elders all stood together conversing amongst themselves. No one else was in here. No witnesses.
It had me on edge. They had planned something and it wasn’t going to be good. I wished Bram would leave, I didn’t want him to see what I could do if I was prompted. Not only that but the hatred dripping off Hallec was palpable. It was met with my own hatred, all I knew was I wanted to rip him from limb to limb.
Letitia moved forward, and the Elders stood emotionless. “It has been decided Hallec shall remain King.”
They were surprised, Hallec looked to Veona, unsure of what to do. Kolten looked to me, worried, before he headed over to Hallec. Bram grabbed my arm.
“You need to come with me, now.”
“No, this is wrong,” I said. “He can’t be.”
“Mae… please.”
Hallec’s eyes turned to me and he whispered something to Veona who nodded. “Thank you, Elders, I appreciate you making the correct decision.”
Letitia nodded and moved out of the room with the rest of the Elders. I could feel my anger mounting and I was almost scared for what I could do to this room.
“Mae…”
Bram’s hands were on my arms, but I felt something primal erupt. My arms were burning, the blood in my veins hot.
“Mae,” Hallec called out to me. “As you are my daughter, I would have you stay here, learn our ways.”
Veona looked smug, as did Melonia, but Hadrian looked a little confused. Kolten was shaking his head and mouthing no behind Hallec, but I couldn’t hold back this anger. Because of him my mother killed herself. Because of him I’d hated myself for most of my childhood because I had no idea why my father didn’t want anything to do with me.
I looked at Bastien, who was stunned, but more importantly, he was trying to control my emotions. One more thing he could do, and something I’d only found out when I started to feel the shift within me, but it wasn’t working. I turned to Bram, looking for him to save me.
“I don’t know what to do,” I said to him, my voice cracking with every word. “Help me.”
“Okay,” he nodded. “Come with me. Come back to the hotel with me, and we’ll figure it out.”
I nodded, knowing he was the safest person in this room for me. He would protect me through anything, and I knew that. We were in this mess because he had protected me, and right now, I needed him to hold me.
I took his hand and let him lead me away, but Hallec called out to us. He stopped moving, and so did I.
“She is to remain here.”
“Surely we can allow her to leave,” Kolten said. “She’s not one of us.”
It hurt to hear him say that although I knew why he had said it. Bram held onto me tight, and led me back to face Hallec.
“She’s coming with me to Romania,” he said, firmly. “She made her choice.”
“Mae, you are my heir, you must stay here.”
I felt as if I was about to lose the best thing in my life – Bram. I couldn’t. The thought made me want to burn this entire mansion down.
“No.”
“What did you say?” he asked, making a move to come to where we stood. I felt the hairs on my arm stand at attention, and my bones suddenly ached. I let out a scream as I felt my hand break in Bram’s. He turned to me, shock and worry on his face.
“Mae, calm down.”
I couldn’t though. I felt my entire body convulse as my bones all snapped in half, but I didn’t fall down. Instead, I felt fur erupt over my skin and suddenly, I fell to the ground. Bastien moved Bram away from me, and held him back. Kolten was at my side, trying to calm me down, as I realized what was happening. Hallec backed up, horror on his face, as I shifted into my wolf form. The pain was excruciating, as if every part of my body was being ripped from the inside out, the fur was being pulled through the skin as if I were a needlework being completed. My arms and legs had constant pins and needles sensations as I felt my back contort and stretch.
My eyes remained on Hallec who was backing his wife and daughter up. Hadrian was concerned, and he came down to see how he could help me. In that moment, I could see the kindness in his eyes, the compassion for his sister he never knew he had. Kolten held one hand—no, he held one paw, and Hadrian held the other as they talked me through this transformation. I screamed out multiple times as the change took over, but the one thing burning through my mind was the story of hybrids not being able to turn back to their human bodies.
Was that going to happen to me? Was I going to be torn from Bram before we even had an epic love story?
Suddenly, the pain was gone. And the boys didn’t hold me down. I was free to roam around the court… on all fours. It was a weird feeling but I still had my wits about me, I still had my own thoughts. Hallec was sitting on his throne, watching me, but also sitting on the edge of his seat.
“If you kill in this form, you’ll never turn back,” I heard in my head. I turned around to see Bastien focusing on me. “I’ll explain later, please keep your energy focused on us.”
I wanted to rip his stupid head off. The head that I knew I had similar features of, I wanted to kill my own father, and very little was going to stop me.
“Easy,” I heard Kolten say from close by. “Easy, Mae. There is no happy ending if you do what I think you want to do.”
He was right. My future with Bram would be torn apart, and yet, I felt as if there was an unspoken pact I had with my dead mother that I should avenge her.
“Mae…”
His voice was soft, but firm. He supported me, and I knew that, but the thought of never being with him again, hurt me to the very core.
I turned to him, looking up at his angelic and youthful face, and that’s when I saw it.
Total love, and acceptance, of me, of what I was.
Bram
Mae transformed back into her human form suddenly, and a lot faster than when she turned into a wolf before me. I’d never been so scared in my life. I’d known hybrids who couldn’t control their transformations, their anger, and yet when she wheeled around and looked up at me with those goddamn beautiful amber eyes, I lost sight of my fear.
She’d never hurt me.
And I could never allow
anyone else to hurt me. Mae was lying on the ground, naked, in the fetal position. Kolten took off his jacket and laid it over her, as she recovered. He nodded to me, to tell me she was safe and he guarded her body.
“Enough of this,” Hallec called out. “Bram you are trespassing, in fact, any one of non-Lycan blood must leave this place.”
“I’m not leaving without her,” I all but growled out. “And if you have issue with that, come and face me like a man.”
Hallec stood, outraged, but it wasn’t he who came for me. It was his wife. Veona flew at me, a high shriek of a snarl, as she morphed into a wolf mid-air. I withdrew a blade from my ankle and slashed at her neck, cutting her leap down. She fell, her neck bleeding profusely. When her body began to stop twitching, her fur was replaced with skin. Her neck slashed open, and her body lifeless.
“You dare kill my queen?!” Hallec yelled.
“Come and avenge her!” I yelled at him, my anger shooting through my veins. The smell of fresh blood just inches from me, urging my fangs from their spot in my gums.
Hallec was frightened, and he should be. Sehrenna moved forward, blocking my view of Hallec.
“This is pointless,” she said. “Too much bloodshed. Hallec you have retained your throne, let this be the end.”
“I will not allow my family to be slaughtered,” Hallec said. “Mae belongs to me, I have not given my permission for my heir to be with such a being as Bram.”
“Permission?” I spat. “And here I thought I was living in the golden ages.”
I made a move to Mae to take her away from this mess when Hallec advanced onto me. He morphed into a giant grey wolf, slashing at me with his teeth. I grabbed at his throat, firmly grasping it with my hand and tightening my grip. He yelped and tried to back away from me, but I knew this was the only thing standing in the way of me being with Mae.
He’d caused her so much torment, everyone so much torment, and yet he wanted to continue here as if Fenneck hadn’t died.
One quick squeeze, and Hallec stopped flailing about. His eyes glazed over and soon his transformation disappeared. He was just an old man, lifeless in my hand.
Pathetic.