Bloody fucking hell. There’s no question in my mind—he definitely knows about Wren.
A long pause stretches between us, and the air grows heavier. Hedran and I stare at each other, as do Mist and Slate. Assessing the threat. Deciding what to do next.
And then several things happen at once.
Blue light flares, coating the trees. There’s a muffledFuck, and then the light vanishes.
It’s too late. A grin that screams of death adorns Hedran’s face.
Mist growls and leans forward, her ears flattening. Her tail drops, and our bond thrums. Urgency floods my veins.
I draw my sword and settle into a fighting stance that comes to me as easily as breathing. “Get out of here,” I snarl, barely recognizing the sound of my own voice. “I will not tell you again.”
Suns damn Hedran and his dark twisted heart because he does not do as I ask. He doesn’t take his wolf and go, sparing me the horror of having to choose between Wren and my brethren.
Instead, the man fuckinglaughs. The sound is cold and dark and will haunt me for the rest of my days.
“You’ve always been a bit delusional, Gabriel,” he says, as if we’re friends, which couldn’t be further from the truth. “With a whore for a mother, it’s to be expected, I suppose.”
I’ve heard the insult a thousand times before, but tonight, it hits differently. Whether it’s because Wren is in earshot or because Hedran is about to force me to do something I really don’t want to do, I’m not sure.
“Leave her out of this,” I snarl. “She wasn’t a whore.”
That’s the story the king has painted since my birth. My mother, the beautiful maid turned harlot who seduced him, dragged him to her bed, and practically forced him to stick his dick in her. I was an unfortunate side effect, nothing more.
As if my father wasn’t the king. As if he played no part in my conception. As if the power imbalance wasn’t stacked in his favor.
Gods, I hate the man so fucking much.
I spent years searching for any information about my mother, but she vanished after she left me at the base of the king’s throne. No one knows what happened to her—no one ever told me her name. For all I know, she died that same day.
A familiar pang of grief rushes through me, but I force it away and focus on the present. Just in time, because there’s another flash of blue light.
“You know, it’s funny,” Hedran says. “I heard the king is searching for a gods-blessed.”
I take a step backwards. “Oh?”
“Mm-hmm.” Hedran looks over my shoulder, and I’m sure he’s staring right at Wren’s hiding place. “One with a glowing blue Mark.”
I take another step, my gut swirling with unease.
He continues, “Wait until I bring her back and get the reward.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I lie.
He ignores me. “Maybe the king will be so pleased with me, he’ll give me your promotion. Wouldn’t that be something?”
Anger burns inside me. “That will never happen.”
“So you admit it: She’s here.”
He knows.
Fuck.
There is no point keeping up this charade any longer. I grit my teeth. “I will not allow you to take her. She’s mine.”
At one time, she was my prey.
