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“He’s touched what’s mine. Dared to claim her body like it was his right.”
She let out a cold chuckle.
“The human child?”
“She’s no longer a child,” I said in a snarl that had her laughter filling the room. “He knows not to cross me, yet he touched what is mine. It is my right to kill him.”
“You won’t.” It wasn’t a challenge but an order.
“My Queen,” I argued. “She was gifted to me.”
“By me. And I make the laws here. Don’t you forget that, Ivar,” she warned me. Her demeanor changed from impartial to angry. I thought she was beautiful before, now she was equally as intimidating. But I wasn’t the type to cower.
“I’ve followed your treaty with him, and you’ve allowed my army a way to feed, but she is not part of that deal,” I reminded her firmly. “You know she’s far too important.”
She sat again at my warning, muttering something until Vane was standing next to me. The sight of him had me rushing forward, but I was quickly bound by bones protruding from the ground, imprisoning my feet before I could maul the man like he really deserved.
It was a test of my loyalty, of my ability to heed her warnings, and I’d failed. The bones were sharp and dug into me, but I barely registered the pain, my anger was all-consuming, and I let it fester within me, overwhelming everything else.
“Don’t test me, Ivar,” she warned me.
“My Lady,” he said with an exaggerated bow, though his eyes cut nervously to me several times.
Hel said nothing in response, letting him worry over what he was summoned for in the middle of the night. “What can I do for you?”
“We have a problem,” she said simply, sweeping her hand my way. In his haste to please her, he forgot about me.
I didn’t have to move to flex my power, wrapping the suffocating shadows over him and lifting him in the air. His face turned purple as he clawed at his throat, unable to break the hold.
“Ivar.” Hel’s words were sharp, and I was forced to drop him. We both knew I was testing my boundaries and position with Hel, but she seemed to sense the importance of this and was giving me mercy.
Something I was grateful for.
Hel’s fury was swift and cold, and I wanted no part of it.
The human alpha was shaking in fear as he pushed himself off of the floor, my gesture getting through his severely inflated ego.
Good.
“What have I done to displease you, my Lady?” he rasped out, coughing and sputtering for air now that he could breathe again.
“We warned you that Harlow was different,” Hel said. A foreboding filled the air, oppressive and acrid as she stood again, letting the full brunt of her displeasure hit us. Satisfaction burrowed into my chest. “Yet you took liberties with her that were not yours to take. She is mine. And a gift for the commander of my army.”
If possible, Vane paled further as he took several steps back. For a man who ran the institute with a twisted, yet confident dominance, he looked nothing but an insect now. Insignificant. Terrified. Small.
Good.
“Let me kill him?” I begged Hel. She considered it for several minutes, going on long enough that Vane’s breathing turned erratic, his fear filling the air until I could easily breathe it in.
The creatures in my army needed those high emotions to feed. I didn’t require it to continue living, but I could enjoy it, nonetheless.
“P-p-please, my Queen,” he stuttered out. Spit flew from his lips and he fell to his knees, cowering before her. He hardly looked like an alpha now, his scent tainted with his fear, turning it sour.
“No, Ivar. Not yet,” she said finally. “But you need to remember you are easily replaced, Vane. Touch her again and you’ll be signing your warrant. I assure you that my commander is not the only one after your life.”
“Y-yes, my Queen,” he promised before she waved a hand and he disappeared, likely pissing himself in his own room now.
As he should. Let him fear her. Fear me.
