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“Yes, Ma’am,” he says. “I left five years ago.”

“Why?” I ask. I already know, but I’m curious about how he will explain it.

“He wanted the pack to come over when he was assigned a maiden. He wanted everyone to… hurt her. He said he wanted to break her in, and I wanted no part of it.”

“And you don’t know who the maiden was?” I ask, and he shakes his head. “You know that Lilith was a maiden, yes?”

“Yeah. I remember hearing that she met the kings after going to the Capitol,” he says.

“Do you know where she was assigned before that?”

“No,” he says slowly.

“Alasdair… Lilith was Zypher’s maiden. She was with him from the day she turned eighteen until she was removed from his house and sent to the Capitol.”

“Oh Gods… I didn’t know… If I had…” he says, starting to panic slightly.

“Understand that Zypher’s actions will not affect how we view you or the wolves. The same goes for the lions,” I say, interrupting him. “I will be addressing the public and giving a heavily censored version of what happened. Lilith and the Kings can give a more in-depth explanation if and when they choose to.

“Are we prepared for the possibility that they don’t return?” Draik asks.

“To be honest? No,” I say. “But I refuse to go out there while this country is in complete chaos and tell them their leaders may never come back. Right now, we keep the country from collapsing further. We have the witches helping scry for her, so we are still trying to make some headway there. Unless we know for certain that they are dead, I am treating it as though they will be returning.”

“What are the witches doing to look for her?” Alasdair asks. Kragen looks at him wide-eyed as if to warn him to shut up. They are trying so hard to not come across as suspicious that they end up looking guilty of something.

“They’re looking for spikes of her energy. If she uses magic, they’ll be able to start locating her. With her being half-demon, she gives off specific indicators when being located like this,” I explain. “I also want to add that you all have nothing to fear. Ask your questions, because if you are in this room and not a jail cell with Fermin, we trust you.”

“Thank you,” Alasdair says.

“So, the witches can locate her?” Kragen says. “They’ll be able to find her soon?”

“It depends when or if she uses magic. Zypher and Morwen were using collars that block shifting and the use of magic. No one knows if it will be able to block hers. She is uniquely powerful being the High Witch,” I say. “Any other questions?” Everyone shakes their head, so I stand up.

“I am going to go with her to the news conference,” Vash says.

I wait off to the side where the cameras cannot see me just yet. I am on the verge of panic. I need to calm down. “Take a deep breath,” Vash says. I nod before closing my eyes and taking a deep breath. “Good girl. You’ve got this.”

“I’ve got this,” I repeat, opening my eyes. Vash kisses me softly before cupping my cheek.

“Whether you like it or not, you are going to talk through things tonight,” he says, and I nod. “Everyone is staying with us at our house, but our room is far enough away that we will have privacy.”

“Our?” I ask with a smile.

“Yes,” he says. “Our room.” Everyone else got a few hours of rest, but I’ve been away for coming up on two days now. Anytime I close my eyes, I see Zypher on top of me. It’s like I can almost hear him grunting as he thrusts into me. I need a distraction, and I want so badly for Vash to be that distraction, but I feel bad getting comfort when she is getting raped. I should be looking for her when I’m not doing other things and definitely not getting fucked by my mate. Although, I feel like I know what Lilith would say. I feel like she would tell me to take my pleasure where I can get it and not to use her kidnapping as an excuse to drown in negativity.

“Let’s do this,” I say.

I step out and walk over so that the cameras can see me. A rush of adrenaline runs through me, enough to keep me from panicking.

“Hello, everyone. My name is Leli Deverell,” I say. “I am the queen’s maiden and her sister. I am acting as head of the council until Queen Lilith and the Three Kings return.

“I know you all have questions, so I will answer as many as I can for you. Before that, I want to start off by saying that Lilith and the Kings were abducted after a raid of a warehouse by former mayor Brion Morwen and former councilman Zypher Fallins.” I pause momentarily when chatter starts up.

“Now… Considering the situation, I will not be going into detail as to how this happened. Too many lives are at risk right now, so we will be releasing more information at a later date. Members of their inner circle as well as representatives for each species are a part of the council. This includes the hellhounds, demons, witches, lions, wolves, panthers, bears, dragons, and a temporary representative for the foxes. All species are welcome and encouraged to be a part of how this country runs. Until the Queen and the Kings return, the council will make decisions as a party. When they return and are ready to step back into the public eye, they will take the time to explain things as much as they deem appropriate. Thank you for your patience with us. We will continue to give updates on the queen and the three kings. In the meantime, we will be working towards a plan for stabilizing the country.”

Vash and I step away before anyone can shout any questions at me. I know a lot of people do have questions, but the media is only going to ask the stupid ones. There’s no point in me sitting up there and defending anything I have said or listening to a bunch of rumors.

I go back into City Hall, and Vash shakes his head and pulls me toward the car. “We need to go back,” I say.