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CHAPTER 20

Diana

T he fireball sailed over us, bouncing off the far wall and landing in an armchair. It had been aimed at me.

The cold tile against my back grounded me. “That was too close.”

Raven helped me up and we rushed to the now-smashed window. Brisk air battered at the heavy curtains that were ablaze, sparks skittering as they flapped in the wind. Dom made quick work of yanking them free of their rods and stomping out the flames even as Gabe and Nicholas managed the roaring blaze that had once been an armchair.

I stared out into the moonlit night to see three hundred or more werewolves on horseback, torches held high in one hand, swords in the other. Off to the side, a dozen or more of the keep’s night guards stood, most tied up, a few flat on the ground, obviously injured…Two holding the ropes that bound the others.

More traitors who had worked against me. My gut clenched with fury and disgust, but I forced myself to take a calming breath as I turned toward the hologram.

“Rabia, we’ve got a bit of situation here…”

“I can see that,” she said, eyes wide. “Now that I know we’ve got my cousin by the balls so to speak, I’m content to move forward as allies. Reach out when your business there is handled and we can talk details.”

Her image flickered away, and I muttered a silent prayer of thanks for small favors as I turned to stare out the window again.

“Fuckers,” Raven snarled. “I interviewed all the interior staff after the poisoning incident, but only made it partway through the massive list of soldiers and guards.”

“It’s not your fault, Raven,” I murmured through numb lips. “The movement has been growing faster every day. Like someone has been pouring fuel?—”

“There she is! The Queen of the Werewolves,” a booming voice from the center of the mass of people called. A familiar voice… “We only brought a small force, Your Majesty , but trust that there are others. At least as many to the east and to the west, flanking us, awaiting a signal, if you try to send out soldiers.”

By the time I searched out the speaker, I already knew who I’d find, and I couldn’t say I was surprised. But still, a last bit of my heart broke away, whatever final piece I’d still hoped for a friendship with the man who’d been my friend so long ago.

“Hello, Maverick.”

Raven’s entire body tensed beside me as Maverick dug his heels into his mount, nudging the animal forward to cut a path to the front of the crowd.

“I like how you're hiding in the middle of the pack when you're not sure if you're going to be ambushed, because you're a chicken shit,” Raven called, fangs gleaming in the moonlight as his lips parted in a chilling smile. “You might be a weak, pathetic excuse for a man, but at least you're consistent.”

“The Holmgang is complete, Maverick,” I added. “I won fair and square, and Elka will be crowned queen in the coming days. There is no reason for any of this. You’re starting a war…risking lives, tearing my people apart, when I’ve already surrendered my position.”

“Sorry, Diana,” Maverick replied, not looking sorry at all. “It’s too late for that. At first, I thought you’d grown, and I was stunned. How could such an easily manipulated woman who couldn’t wait to spread her legs for a stranger with a few kind words have become Queen? For a minute there, I almost thought you were worthy of my affections…that I could rule with you by my side. And then I saw you with that abomination and realized you were still the same old Diana. Letting her soft heart and wet pussy be her guide?—”

It was only Dom and Will’s quick hands that stopped Raven from leaping out the window, and even that was a close thing. It took both of them to hold him as he roared and strained to get free.

Me, on the other hand? I was surprised to find myself growing colder and calmer with every word the wormy bastard spoke. The shard throbbed and pulsed, like a living, breathing promise inside me.

I would have his head before this was over.

It wasn’t a question of if anymore. It was only a question of when .

“If he won’t listen, I’ll at least try to talk some sense into the rest of them,” Elka murmured as she shouldered her way between me and Raven to face the crowd of dissenters, head held high. “You’ve had a lot to say this night, human. But I wish to speak to my people now. I see many faces from the crowd at the Holmgang. Please know that I'm committing every one of them to memory, as you've taken my generous offer of a fair trial and thrown it back in my face with this treasonous coup. And at the behest of a human, no less?” She shook her head slowly, letting out a bitter laugh. “You all, who were up in arms because our queen was adopted into her clan. That's rich. What it shows me is that you’re all hypocrites.”

Despite my ice-cold fury, I couldn't deny the wash of pride that flowed through me at Elka's bold words. She was proving my choice right every time she opened her mouth.

But the good feelings didn't last long as Mav's lips twisted into a leer so different from the simpering, regretful sap who had spent the past months begging my forgiveness.

“Oh, did you guys not get the memo?” he asked, leading his horse into a tight circle as he shot a wave over his shoulder to the wolves behind him. “Diana, maybe ask your bloodsucker boyfriend, why don’t you? I nearly bested him sparring the other day. If you hadn’t interfered—” Raven barked a mirthless laugh, and Maverick broke off with a snarl. “Fuck you, Raven! I'm no longer just some pathetic human for you supernatural creatures to use and abuse at your whim like you've done for the entirety of my family's recorded existence. I’ve always been smarter than you, but now I’m faster and stronger too. And moreover, I understand these people. I am these people. They want a strong, male alpha to lead them.” He raised his fist high. “And upon the full moon, after my turning ceremony, I will be that alpha. Tonight, we take the keep. Tomorrow, we take the crown!”

The men and women around broke into cheers, whoops, and howls that made my stomach burn with bile. I wished I could say it didn't hurt, but it was like a kick straight to the belly. This faithless bastard would have the honor of a wolf taking residence inside him while mine had been stripped from me, along with my crown? His silver tongue had manipulated them into believing his bullshit, to the point that they would make him…one of them?

What was this torture?

“He’s always been slick, I’ll give him that,” Myrr muttered from behind me as she craned to see Mav working the crowd.

“I should’ve killed him when I had the chance.”

“We needed him, Raven,” I reminded him softly. “Without him we’d never have found Jade or the shard.”

Once I realized he’d never truly changed, it had been that very thought that had saved me from deep regret. As much as I hated him now, he’d been part of our journey and we were that much closer to defeating Lilis because of it.

But I’d brought him here, regardless of my reasons. And, as I watched his supporters— my people—celebrate his impassioned speech, I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of pity for them. I’d fallen victim to him once myself, long ago. All it took was a scared, lonely soul and that silver-tongued bastard telling you what you wanted to hear, and boom. He had you in the palm of his hand.

“Fuck this,” Elka muttered under her breath. “As your future queen, hear me now!” she shouted, pausing as the cheers died down. “This can go one of two ways. Either you cease this madness and turn on your de facto leader who's been nothing but trouble since he's arrived.” She scanned the faces out on the ground slowly, methodically, and even I had to admit it was intimidating. “Or you can bet against me. But if you bet against me, know this. You'll forever be my enemy. And I swear on my brother Jordan's soul, I will rain hellfire upon each and every one of you if it takes me a thousand years to finish the job. There is nowhere you can hide that I won’t find you. Mark me.”

The silence was complete, the stillness absolute, as if even the woodland creatures and birds awaited some reply. And then it happened. A movement, out of the corner of my eye. Ranata Grayson, a few yards from Maverick, lowered her sword and turned to her husband.

“I know how you feel, Dougal. But the girl…she's something special. And she's one of ours, born into a clan proper like. We are on the cusp of a civil war. There’s no turning back once brothers and sisters start killing one another. Maybe we need to reconsider…”

Mav yanked on the reins, sending his horse rearing up onto its back legs before galloping over towards the Grayson clan. Dougal put his arm in front of his wife and pushed her behind him, a fierce scowl on his bearded face as he pointed the sword tip directly at Mav's chest.

“My wife wants me and mine to walk away, so we walk away. I recommend you don't try to stop us.”

Other clans in the crowd began to shift from foot to foot, looking around anxiously, and then raising their gazes to Maverick.

“Make a move,” I muttered under my breath, “make one move, and you lose them all.”

But Mav was quick-witted if he was anything good at all, and he recognized his predicament in the nick of time. He had their loyalty…until he came for one of their own, which I, unfortunately, was not. And maybe I'd never truly been. I would nurse that heartache later. For now, I needed to be glad as the crowd started to thin and the hundreds before me slowly thinned out by a third as the Vargas and Ferral clans joined the Graysons.

“Don’t try to stop them,” Maverick called to the others, as if he’d made the decision as opposed to having the decision made for him. “A man who lets a woman lead him around by the nose is no loss to me. Just like in poker, we let the weak hands fold. We’re left with nothing but aces now.”

He turned back to face us again, his smile wavering before returning full force.

“As I said before, Diana. This is a fraction of those who oppose you. Our numbers here have dwindled, so you live for one more day. But make no mistake, after the fourth full moon tomorrow, we'll be back with the rest, and stronger than ever. And once we’re done dismantling you and yours, we'll make sure that this Territory is led by a male alpha who is committed to bringing back the days of old.” He turned toward his still-impressive crowd and raised a fist once again. “Down with the Queen!”

The wolves around him echoed his cry as he wheeled around and kicked his horse into a canter. We all watched as his army followed.

It was Gabe who finally broke the silence. “I never fucking liked that guy.”

“Same.” It was the echo of several others, including Myrr, and I couldn’t help but let out a snort.

“And again, I remind you that we needed him to find Jade. But now…” I turned to face the others—my friends, my family, my soon-to-be queen, and my…Raven—and smiled. “Now, he’s fucked.”

“What’s the plan, Frostbite?” Raven asked, already flexing and ready for action.

“We can win the war, sister,” Will chimed in. “Say the word. My army can be here in twenty-four hours and will squash them like bugs.”

Dom nodded in agreement, but I held up a staying hand. “No need for all that. Like Ranata said, a civil war is ugly. It leaves a stain on its people…a sob that echoes for centuries.”

“What then?” Elka asked, eyes blazing with fury. “We have to do something.”

And we would. It would be my last act as queen, and I found myself nearly trembling in anticipation. Maverick would become a werewolf over my dead body…or his.

“It’s simple,” I said with a shrug. “We cut the head off the snake before its venom comes in.”