Page 19

Chapter Nineteen

Colbie

“A re you telling me we could have been healing the ferals all along instead of killing them?” Evie’s eyes brim with tears, and she sounds heartbroken.

“Yes, but to be honest, I understand why they chose to punish anyone flaunting their rules. The shifter population would have been overrun, humans definitely would have been outnumbered, and there would have been no stop to the war,” I point out.

“But they are going to give all humans the option to change now,” she argues. “Why not before?”

I shrug. “I don’t know what their reasoning is, but I have a feeling the humans are being punished. They will all be under the rule of the shifters from what I understand. They will not have their own government, the neutral zone will be dissolved, and all citizens of Aramis will cohabitate. I think they are hoping the majority of them will change, and the ones who don’t will eventually die out.”

“And you are going to be the queen of everyone?” Gryffin asks, and I grimace.

“Yes, until I either choose to step down or die, and any heir I have takes over, but if I am queen of them all, then that will make you kings of them all.”

“No wonder the goddess gave you eight mates. I can’t imagine this is going to go smoothly with shifters or humans,” Lucas says dryly.

“Doubtful. I’m sure there will be some pushback. First, though, I need to be crowned, or all of this will be for nothing. We have two factions gunning for us at this stage, and I would like to make sure we put a kink in their plans by finding my final mates and getting those crowns on our heads. At least that way, I’ll control the power,” I tell them, even though I’m plagued with doubts. This is what the goddess wanted, though, and who am I to go against divine authority?

“How are you going to make so many humans into shifters? You can’t bite all of them,” Brodie growls possessively.

“The book is the key, so we need to get that back. I don’t need to bite them if we have it. We will allow anyone who wishes to be a certain animal to petition a shifter of that species and be bitten if they want. I will not force anyone to bite. If not, they can take their chances with the royal magic and get what they are given.”

“I’ll make sure our armies are ready for any fallout,” Bryson assures me.

“And I will start work on an updated manual for all new shifters,” Sable suggests. “We will probably need to have mandatory shifting classes so the new shifters can learn our culture. Otherwise, we may have more problems than we care to deal with if dominance fights become an issue because a new shifter doesn’t know the rules.”

“Yes, we always make any human mates we change learn all of those things. This can be an extension of that. I’ll help you with the program,” Layla offers, and Sable quickly accepts.

“Then you need to focus on getting to your other mates. Head into the human zone tonight. We haven’t had a chance to reach out to the humans yet, but their government would want a meeting with the new queen, and we don’t have time to waste. In fact, we don’t know if you would be safe. This conspiracy could go as far as the ones who are in charge. It’s better to sneak in and ask forgiveness than ask permission and end up dead,” Lucas advises.

“And you need to seal those other mating bonds as soon as you can.” Gracelin smirks at me, and Adam snickers like a tween boy.

“Enough,” Gryffin snaps at his sister. “Leave Colbie alone. Teasing her isn’t going to make it any easier.”

“No, but challenge day is in less than two weeks, and those matings need to be sealed. If they aren’t, they will question her dedication to being queen. Even with her kickass animal, she will get challenged, because being unmated makes her weaker,” Mia says, giving me a sympathetic look.

“I’m working on that,” I mutter, feeling my cheeks heat, and when I glance around the table, I find my mates looking at me with feral intensity.

“And you six need to be on full alert. Colbie doesn’t have the fighting skills you all have. Even though this is a covert mission, we have to assume the Tidemans are not the only shifters who want change. I’m going to have the other councilors watched as well just in case,” Bryson orders my guys.

“Should we leave tonight?” Hunter asks his dad.

Before he can reply, I jump in. “I’m exhausted from shifting. I’m already going to be a liability, so would it be alright if we go tomorrow night? I wouldn’t mind checking on my bakery tomorrow morning, and if we go early, no one will be around to see us go. We could hide in my apartment until nightfall, and once curfew comes, we can go into the human zone then. We just have to avoid my mother at all costs.”

“That would also give us a chance to speak to Brock Tideman and see if he knows his parents’ plans,” Gem suggests.

I’d forgotten about Brock. I’m not sure how helpful he will be since my mother got them banned from the shifter zone for the time being.

“That’s a good idea,” Lucas confirms.

“And instead of staying at your apartment, we can use ours at the watch headquarters. If you are seen, we can spin a tale about you learning about your new responsibilities,” Brodie offers.

“It seems like we have a plan then. Eat up, because you are all going to need your energy,” Evie says, and we’re quick to do as she suggests. During dinner, the guys and I tell them about my shift training in the afternoon, minus my fuck fest with Liam for obvious reasons.

* * *

T he following morning, I wake up early, my internal clock still working on baker time. Through a crack in the curtains, I can see that it’s still dark outside. A warm body is wrapped around me, and the sound of soft snoring is loud in the quiet room. Each breath tickles my ear, and I clamp my lips shut so I don’t giggle at how bear-like Liam sounds. I stay still and simply bask in the feeling of having his body pressed against me, resisting the urge to push back against that delicious naked skin pressed against me.

Liam proceeded to show me how amazing being mated to a shifter with no refractory time can be. To say my body aches deliciously this morning would be an understatement. For someone who was so aggressive and surly, he really is just a snuggly, cuddly sweetheart now that we are mated and his bear is content.

I invited Hunter and Micah to join us as well last night—after all, they won fair and square—but both declined, letting Liam and me spend the night together on our own. Micah needed to return to the barracks, get his personal items, and move them into one of the king’s rooms that now flank my suite. The goddess magic rearranged this section of the palace to correlate with the fact that I now have eight mates. There are eight separate suites for each of the guys, and my bedroom is now enormous with a bed that is large enough to accommodate all of us if we were so inclined. I’m not sure how this will work, and if they’ll want to share my bed or sleep in their own rooms, but I guess we have time to figure it out.

“Little girl, if you keep wiggling like that, my bear is going to have you for breakfast.” The growly voice has me freezing. I hadn’t realized I started squirming at the thought of all eight of my mates and what our sleeping arrangements may be.

His hand drifts up my naked thigh and slides up the front of my tank. He cups my breast and scrapes his teeth over the bite mark on my neck, sending a thrill of excitement through my body. My nipples pebble, and I groan as I rub my ass against his rapidly hardening dick.

Before he can do anything else, though, the door to my room slams open, and Brodie appears in the doorway.

“Uh-uh, none of that. We need to get going if we don’t want to be seen moving through the neutral zone.”

I turn my head to glare at him. He smirks, crosses his arms, and leans against the doorframe as Liam mumbles, “Cockblock,” in my ear.

I smile as my grumbly bear snarls at his bond mate, and then I throw back the covers and slide out of his hold. I stand and stretch, pushing out my tits, and Brodie pushes off the doorframe and stalks over to me. He’s patient and waits until I finish my stretch before he slides his hands to my hips and tugs my body against his.

“That was mean,” he says, resting his forehead against mine and looking into my eyes.

“What you did was mean too,” I retort, pressing a soft kiss against his lips. He flinches, his eyes widening with surprise before he swoops in and takes my mouth in a blistering kiss. I melt into him, unsurprised by his boldness, and enjoy an intense kiss from the normally playful wolf. He tastes like sunshine and happiness, and when he pulls away abruptly, I whimper at the loss.

Liam tugged him away from me and is pushing him out of the room. “Nope. If I can’t get my morning sugar, then neither can you,” he argues, and my door bangs closed behind them, leaving me needy and sad.

Sighing, I head for the shower to wash away the remnants of our fun from last night. My body aches in delicious ways as I run the loofah over my skin, and I smile as I remember all the things Liam and I did to each other while we satisfied the mating need.

When I finally emerge and dress, Violet, Gretchin, and Gracelin are waiting for me.

“There you are. Have a good night?” Gracelin teases, and I roll my eyes at her.

“You’re all up early.” I ignore her as I brush my hair and braid it so it’s out of my way. I’m dressed in some of my old clothes today—leggings and a shirt in case I need to help out in the bakery when we stop in. I also have a backpack of clothes I packed for our trip before Liam and I got busy last night. He told me they will give me a watch uniform when we go there today. I’ll wear that during our trip, because I can shift in it without worrying about being naked if I have to shift unexpectedly.

“We just wanted to wish you luck. I hope you find Nox quickly, and then we can focus on that last mate of yours. He will be a fairy, so I’ve sent a message to my parents, asking if any of the males in our village have received a new mark,” Violet tells me.

“After you speak to the equines about tracking the shifter children, then you can head to her village and see for yourself.” Gretchin watches me with worried eyes. “I wanted to come with you, but Bryson and Dad vetoed the idea. I hate that you’ll be going without me. I’m supposed to be your bodyguard.”

“Yes, but she also has six mates keeping an eye on her ass. They won’t let anything happen to her,” her sister reminds her, and Gretchin rolls her eyes.

“Please, they will all be distracted by the mating need. She needs me because I’m not going to be focused on getting into her pants,” Gretchin argues, and I feel my cheeks heat a little.

“You only wish you were getting a piece of this.” I wave a hand at myself, teasing her, and she grins.

“You wish. I have mad skills that would rock your world,” she tells me, and I feel a sense of relief as I see her lighten up a bit. These girls have quickly become family to me, and I don’t like it when they worry.

“Come on. The guys are already waiting for you near the stables. You’re going through the forest and then straight to the bakery. At this time of day, no one should be about in the neutral zone.” Violet hands me my phone, which I tuck into my pocket, and then I throw my backpack over my shoulder.

I pick up the ring box that Archie gave me and pass it to Gracelin. “Can you see that this gets returned to the vault?”

She winces but nods. “I won’t let Archie see me do it. He’s going to make my life miserable when he learns his sidepiece is no longer in the palace.”

I have an idea, so I hurry back into my closet and dig around in my jewelry box, which the guys brought from my apartment. I find a ring I’ve had since my childhood. It’s one of those mood rings that changes color depending on the temperature of your body. It’s too small for me now, but for some reason, I couldn’t ever part with it. A flash of a memory comes to me, and I smile. Gryffin gave it to me during one of our games where he was the prince who saved me from the villain witch sisters, promising to make me his princess.

“Here, give this to him and tell him that I would love to be his sidepiece.” I shove my hand out to Gracelin, and her eyes widen in surprise.

“I remember this. Gryffin won it at one of the shifter festivals and gave it to you. I can’t believe you kept it.”

I shrug. “I guess past me must have had some inkling that he would be important to me in the future.”

“Doesn’t this seem like maybe someone has been manipulating you for a long time?” Violet asks hesitantly, voicing some of my own inner thoughts. “The fact that you have a prior relationship with the royals and you found Archie outside of your bakery…”

“It really wouldn’t surprise me,” I tell her.

The other two don’t comment, but their expressions indicate that they have the same suspicions. “Alright. Don’t come with me. We don’t want any of the palace staff questioning why the four of us are up so early and moving around. I’ll message you when we have any news,” I promise them, and they wish me luck and return to their rooms.

I move quietly through the palace, not coming across any of the staff. When I make it to the stables, the guys are standing around, talking softly. They are wearing their watch uniforms, and Micah is in his armed forces fatigues. I’m guessing they are all wearing them for the same reason they are going to give me a uniform. I can’t say I’m not a little sad that I won’t be able to see all that delicious male shifter flesh, but on the other hand, these guys are my mates. I have a lifetime to appreciate them. I say a small little prayer of thanks to Aramis, and a slight breeze wafts around me like she’s saying, You’re welcome .

“Good, you’re here. Let’s get moving. I’d like to make it in and out of the bakery and to watch headquarters before the sun comes up, and we only have about three hours,” Gryffin says as I approach them. He seems to be all business now, and I appreciate it. Although we have personal stuff we need to work out, focusing on the task at hand will keep me from becoming overwhelmed.

“Colbie, you and Micah will fly with me and Gem again, and the others will shift and meet us at the bakery. I’m too heavy to land at the bakery, but I’ll land at the watch building, because it’s closer to your shop than the edge of the forest, and we will go on foot from there,” Hunter tells me as the others shift and take off through the forest.