Page 18 of Betrayed Mate (Rejected Fate Trilogy #1)
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
T he Grimstone boys moved together, blocking me from the blonde vampire. I gritted my teeth, not liking that they believed they had to protect me. My wolf inched forward, fueling my body with some of her strength since we didn’t have time to shift.
My legs moved quicker than ever before, and I sprang forward, shoving my way between Ryker and Gage just as the blonde vampire reached us. She seemed to move at quick human speed instead of vampire, and she now held her dagger in her hands, utilizing her momentum to swipe the blade toward Ryker.
No!
I punched her in the jaw just as a commanding voice shouted, “Stop!”
The blonde’s head jerked as she stumbled several steps back and slashed air with her blade.
A gasp sounded behind me, and the reality of what I’d just done began to sink in. But if I hadn’t, Ryker would’ve been injured, if not killed. Still, I’d never moved that quickly before…
“What in the world is going on?” the voice demanded, causing all the vampires except the blonde to freeze and cast their gazes at the television.
My ears rang, and my pulse thudded in my neck.
It had to be the vampire queen.
Still, I couldn’t take my eyes off the blonde vampire, who straightened and bared her teeth at me just as blood trickled from the side of her mouth. She could attack again at any second, and this time, she’d make sure I was her sole target.
Ryker wrapped one muscular arm around my waist and pulled me against his chest. His hard muscles pressed into my back for a moment before he pivoted to stand in front of me.
I stepped to his side, preventing him from trying to protect me again.
“The Grimstones brought a stranger here without getting permission first, and Raven took it upon herself to allow her in without clearing it with us ,” the blonde gritted out as red seeped through her emerald irises, revealing that her vampire instinct was taking over.
“Which she didn’t have to do,” the voice from the television snapped. “I told Raven that when it comes to our wolf-shifter friends, she makes the final decision.”
The floor seemed to tilt under my feet. I hadn’t expected the queen to take Raven’s side. Everyone knew that the head guards were the ones the royals relied on to know what was safe and not.
The blonde’s attention snapped to the screen, and her fangs descended. “Your Majesty, I thought we agreed that from here out—”
“That was your first mistake, Lucinda,” the woman interjected. “ We don’t need to agree on anything. I told you that I usually trust your judgment. That doesn’t mean I suddenly approve of you making all the decisions when it comes to our wolf-shifter friends .”
The tingle of warning in my spine ebbed to the point that I felt comfortable enough to redirect my full attention to the screen.
The most gorgeous woman I’d ever seen sat on a red velvet and gold throne. Her long chestnut hair waved past her shoulders, and her maroon lace dress had a slit from her breasts to her belly button that revealed the curves of her cleavage.
A knot formed in my stomach, and while I personally had never been attracted to a female, for the first time ever, I understood why others might be.
“Your Majesty, you know better than to trust them .” The blonde’s jaw clenched as she pointed her dagger in our direction like she had to be clear on whom she was referring to. “The last time—”
“That is enough .” Queen Ambrosia straightened, her gray eyes narrowing. “Do I need to remind you of your place in my court? I’d hate to have to put you, Martin, and Bella through all that again.” She bit her plump, pink bottom lip and arched a perfectly sculpted brow.
“That won’t be necessary.” The guard, who must be Bella, shook her head vehemently. “We just didn’t realize that someone outside the Grimstone pack was allowed to enter without being vetted by us.”
“Especially one who can move faster than any shifter I’ve seen before.” Martin wrinkled his nose and side-eyed me. “Let’s not pretend no one noticed.”
This was another reason that our pack had stayed off the grid as much as possible. For some reason, wolves of my lineage could move faster than usual, especially Dad when he thought we were in danger or when we were hunting something hard to catch.
Chest tightening, I cracked my neck, trying to think of a way to salvage the situation. “Adrenaline spike is all.” That was what Dad had always claimed.
“Kendric alerted me that they’d taken in someone who’d suffered a similar fate as they had… and as we did tonight,” Raven explained, moving to stand on my other side. “She was also with them at the nest houses, trying to protect our people from the attackers. There was no reason to believe she was a threat and every reason to think that she could provide more insight, especially about the details surrounding the attack on her pack.”
“Her pack?” Queen Ambrosia tilted her head as her gaze landed on me. “Are you from the Sinclair pack?”
I opened my mouth to lie but paused. I was used to being around witches who didn’t have a sensitive nose. Vampires, however, could smell a lie, just like the wolf shifters. “I am.”
“ Really ?” Her eyes widened, and the corners of her mouth tipped downward. “I heard there were no survivors. How were you able to escape?” Compassion filled her eyes as she brought a dainty hand to her chest.
“I…I really don’t know.” That was true. Between the weird things and strange emotions and sensations I’d been experiencing, I wasn’t sure what was legitimate and not. But Briar had been petrified and had run too—I hadn’t been alone. “All of a sudden, my pack links began disappearing. When we ran out to help, chaos erupted. The Blackwood pack was attacking us without any warning.”
Shaking her head, the queen dropped her hand and leaned forward. “The Blackwoods did this?”
I nodded, and my stomach churned. “But that doesn’t make sense. And someone chased my sister and me, but I never made out who it was.” For some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to say the words. This damn fated-mate bond was becoming a real pain in the ass, preventing me from speaking ill of Reid despite what I’d seen with my own two eyes.
Ryker laughed bitterly. “Even after the alpha heir insulted you and rejected you in front of hundreds of shifters, you’re still trying to protect him?”
My face heated, and I wanted to hang my head in shame. He was right. I sounded and looked pathetic. Maybe there was something wrong with me after all, but that didn’t matter. I had to find Briar.
Queen Ambrosia twitched. “Wait. Are you the Sinclair alpha’s firstborn?”
The question knocked the air from my lungs. The threat of tears burned in my eyes. “Yes.” Even though, technically, that wasn’t true anymore. Dad was gone, which made me the actual Sinclair alpha. “At least I was. ”
“Did you arrive while the attack was happening?” Raven asked, turning her attention to Kendric. “Because you never said anything.”
Kendric lifted a hand. “No. We did go by their territory a few days later, but we didn’t know about the attack until we found her .”
“The shifters didn’t alert you?” Lucinda slid her dagger back into its sheath. “What good is it for us to have an ally who isn’t kept informed by their own kind ?”
Queen Ambrosia's entire body stilled to the point she didn’t even seem to move in order to breathe. Her gray irises filled with crimson, giving her a dangerous edge. “You’ve made your displeasure about my decision known. One more word of disagreement, and I’ll ensure that the only job you’re offered is scrubbing the toilets. Do you understand?”
Hands clenched at her side, Lucinda rasped, “Yes, Your Majesty.”
“I suspect I wasn’t informed because Blackwood is making a move to take over the shifter throne.” Ryker tugged on his tight black shirt, which already hugged his muscles. “He just texted a message to local shifter alphas, requesting a meeting in three days’ time. If I hadn’t found Ember near death in the river, I’d have shown up at the meeting uninformed and ill-advised. He’s setting me up to make it appear as if I don’t have the knowledge or influence to lead the shifters.”
Cold realization settled into my bones. I hadn’t even considered the ramifications of Reid’s plans. I just assumed he hadn’t informed Ryker because he didn’t have his number, but Ryker’s explanation made more sense, especially since Reid had been able to notify Ryker of the meeting that would be happening soon.
“That’s one thing I appreciate about vampires.” The queen tossed her hair over her shoulder. “They’re content with what they have, and I don’t have a bunch of people vying to kill me and take over my position.”
Raven clasped her hands. “That’s because we all love and respect you, my queen.” Her voice trembled with affection.
“And I cherish each one of you, sweet child.” The queen smiled fondly and took a deep breath. “Which is why we need to move the conversation along. Even though I hate what happened and feel for Ember, I want to hear about what you found at the vampire nest in the city.”
“When we arrived, only one vampire remained alive and was on the brink of death.” Gage took in a shaky breath. “She wasn’t able to provide us any information.”
“Did you not find a single attacker there?” Queen Ambrosia crossed her legs. “What scents and signs of struggle were there?”
Ryker launched into the story, detailing everything we’d seen and experienced. “There was a faint smell of shifter that vanished within minutes.”
“It must have been the Blackwoods, using the witch affiliated with their pack to mask their scents.” Bella moved to the wooden chair at the end of the table and sat. “We can’t stand idly and not respond.”
Vampires blatantly attacking a pack would cause a war between the species, which might be exactly what the Blackwoods were going for, but still not ideal overall.
“That’s probably what the Blackwoods want.” Xander rolled his eyes. “You’ll make them look like the victims.”
Martin wrinkled his nose the way I would if I smelled something foul. “The redhead saw the Blackwoods attack her pack. She can tell everyone we were defending ourselves.”
I laughed before I could stop myself. The queen and everyone in the room stared at me.
“Of course a shifter doesn’t want to protect vampires,” Lucinda sneered. “How surprising .”
“That’s not it.” I’d never imagined I could hate someone I’d just met in so little time, but I would gladly rip out this bitch’s throat given the opportunity. “The day before the Blackwoods attacked, Reid rejected me publicly. And if I were asked whether I saw one of them kill a member of my pack, I couldn’t say yes because I never actually saw it happen since I was trying to protect my sister. I did see him lunge toward one of them. Plus, when we reached the vampire nest, I didn’t recognize any particular scent that would have confirmed it was one of them. My word would do nothing for your case.” A week ago, the details probably wouldn’t have mattered, but today, they did. Reid had changed my world in the blink of an eye and in more ways than I’d ever thought possible.
“So neither of our allies are respected in their community. Lovely .” Martin scratched his sparse, gray-speckled beard.
The queen hit one hand against the velvet throne and dug her black nails into the material. “Our allies are some of the strongest in their community, and they can gain the respect needed when the time arrives. Are you questioning my judgment?”
“Of course not, my queen.” Martin lowered his head. “I apologize if it came across that way.”
Raven crossed her arms, glaring at the three guards. “You know how shifters are—the strongest always rise to the top. Respect is earned by the raw force of alpha magic.”
“Besides, if the shifters go too long without a royal leader, their magic will begin to suffer, which means we need to take advantage of the upcoming meeting.” Queen Ambrosia tapped her fingers along the new tears in the armrests.
A jolt shot through me. Even though Dad and my pack had known, the information was heavily guarded, withheld from most shifters for fear that someone would reveal it to the other species. We’d all wanted to keep the connection between our ruler—the strongest of all alphas—and our wolf magic a secret so the other species couldn’t use it against us.
Clearly, the secrecy had been in vain because the vampire queen knew all about it and had thrown it out there carelessly.
Queen Ambrosia laughed. “The face each of the wolf shifters is making is hilarious. I’ve been alive for centuries . Do you really think I wouldn’t have accumulated such knowledge in that time?”
That was a fair point, but still. I had a hard time fathoming why any knowledgeable wolf shifter would have informed the vampire queen of such information. “Of course not, but I’m a little confused as to why you’d want to help us instead of preventing someone from rising to rule.”
Ryker’s head snapped my way, and he frowned while Kendric, Xander, and Gage fidgeted in their spots.
She tilted her head and blinked, scanning me. “I appreciate your bluntness. Not many would dare to ask such a direct question.”
Gage mashed his lips together, trying to hide either a scowl or a smile.
“Sometimes being direct is the best way to assess the situation.” That was what Dad had always claimed. He’d believed that keeping political agendas hidden was counterproductive, whereas being direct and open-minded could help accomplish anything in this world.
“Fair enough.” Queen Ambrosia leaned forward. “We don’t want the wolf shifters to weaken. We agree with the witches’ belief that all things must be in balance. If one type of magic weakens, then Fate will weaken us all.”
I hadn’t expected that answer. “Makes sense.”
She smiled widely, her sharp canines on display. “I’m glad you approve. So what’s the plan for this meeting?”
My breath caught as fear coursed through me even as I stared at her, dazed by her beauty. To shake myself out of it, I homed in on Ryker.
When I realized he wasn’t staring at the screen displaying the queen but instead watching me, I started breathing once more.
His face twisted into a smile far more breathtaking than the queen’s as he replied, “Cause a scene and leave a lasting impression.”