Later that morning, I got dressed for the second time, leaving a snoozing Kade in our bed. I’d lost some time with our morning love making, but even in the darkest of times one couldn’t skip out on the beauty of life and love. None of us knew how many tomorrows we would get.
I made my way toward the main dining room, Victor, Jen, and Monica joining me. All of my guards took shifts through the night, making sure they were rested.
It would be a big day today. Blaine would have to go to the Otherworld; he’d already agreed he was the best candidate for the position. I still felt uneasy about it, but there was little I could do except have faith in him and his abilities. Kade also had to choose his representative today. We all knew it was a real priority now. Training with the fae, learning what to expect in the coming battle, and hopefully bridging the gap between our peoples.
When I walked into the dining area I was surprised to see Bianca, the Boston alpha sitting with Blaine and Violet, eating breakfast. The moment I saw her, an idea popped into my head.
“Your Majesty…” Bianca stood and gave a slight bow. Blaine and Violet just waved at me; protocol was long forgotten between us. Jen, Monica, and Victor joined the others at the table. They might protect me, but they were my family first. We all ate together.
“Bianca, lovely to see you again. To what do I owe the pleasure?” I sat on Violet’s right and started to pile food onto my plate.
Bianca took her seat again. “I wanted to ask your permission to move my pack and dominants into the city. We would like to be stationed here to help until the threat is over.”
She was a true alpha, one who pushed forward with the duty of her people in mind. If she had the proper lineage, she would have made a wonderful queen.
“Permission granted. Now I have a request I wanted to ask you,” I told her.
“Anything,” she answered readily.
“I’m sending Blaine to the Otherworld to train with our allies in the Summer Court. I think a second representative would be a great idea, someone else I can trust to be a liaison between our two peoples. I would like if it were you.”
Her sharp gaze remained on me for a few long beats. I could tell she was analyzing what I had said, working out how she felt about it.
I decided to add, “I want you to know that this isn’t an order. I know you’re an alpha with your own pack. You’re busy, and instrumental in this war, which are all the very reasons you would be my first choice to go with Blaine.”
Her head bobbed a couple of times, and her expression softened. “I would be honored. My people will be fine without me, especially when they are here under your direct command.”
I smiled. “I hear you have a very capable second-in-command.”
She nodded. “Jason. Very dominant. I definitely trust him to keep the shifters in line.”
Popping a piece of bacon into my mouth, I looked at Blaine. “Can you catch Bianca up on what to expect in the Otherworld? I need you both to leave tonight.”
“Of course, Ari.” Blaine’s voice was rough with unconcealed emotions. Something was bothering him about all of this. I wished there was time for me to find out, but he was already rising and turning to Bianca.
“Shall we?”
She nodded, standing again and giving me one final bow, before they both left the room together. It was a good choice. I trusted no one more than I trusted Blaine. He was strong, skilled, and dominant. He would make sure we learned all we could from the fae. But a second voice was also important, especially a true alpha’s.
Violet, who had just shoved a handful of grapes into her mouth, jumped to her feet as well. I tilted my head back to see her and she swallowed roughly, rasping out, “I’m going to round up Rowan. Meet us on the roof when you’re done with breakfast.”
With a shake of my head, I let out a chuckle. “One day you’re going to choke.”
Violet snorted as she left the room, taking her overwhelming energy with her.
Peering at Jen and Victor as they piled their plates high, I dived right into my breakfast, needing to fuel up my energy for the training I would undertake today. As I ate, my mind inevitably wandered to the Dark Fae Lord, that evil fae with the black-tipped horns. My road to being queen was already so rocky, it was hard to believe I was only a few months crowned. And while I might have taken care of Selene and her threat to our people, now it seemed I had three more adversaries to finish off before we all got our happily ever after. The winter queen, her son, and this dark fae … they all needed to die. If they didn’t, none of us would have a moment of peace.
The next few hours I spent getting beat down by Violet and Rowan. Their magic lessons were getting more grueling. I even lost the contents of my stomach after breaking a particularly complex spell — which didn’t halt their torture in any way. They trapped me in boxes and held me under water. They called it an extra incentive to break the spells quickly. Which thankfully I did, because I was not a fan of drowning — not one of my preferred ways to go.
Exhausted and starving again, I hauled butt away from those two sadists and went to meet up with Kade for lunch. He wasn’t in the main dining room, and after a few minutes searching I found him sitting in the magic library, on one of the old high wing-backed chairs. He looked stressed, leaning over the dark magic book, staring at the crystal on it, brows furrowed. Lying beside it was the cloth that Baladar had spelled to keep it contained.
“Hey, you all alone in here?” I asked, quickly glancing around the room.
He wasn’t startled; no doubt he’d heard my footsteps from a long way away. When he turned, a slow smile crossed his face. It was the sort of smile he always reserved for me.
“Hey, how are you feeling?”
“Fine,” I said, moving closer to him. “If you discount Rowan and Violet trying to kill me.”
He chuckled, reaching out to pull me into his lap.
“How’s it going with the book?” I was surprised he was in here with it alone, but maybe his unique way to read the mecca was involved. I knew he’d wanted to keep an eye on Baladar and Nikoli to make sure they didn’t succumb to the book’s powers.
He let out a ragged exhalation. “I’ve been trying to get a read on this dark energy. Usually energetic stuff comes easy to me, but this … something about it feels different, and yet familiar.” His hair was all messed up, like he had run his fingers through it repeatedly.
I felt the pull of the book’s dark magic; it was strong. “Should you be so close to it?” I was half turned so I could run my fingers along his shoulders, hoping my touch would loosen the tight muscles there.