Page 5 of Lycan King’s Claim (Lycan King’s Reign Duet #2)

I stare at Sienna's limp body in my arms, her neck bleeding, her face pale, I'm consumed by conflicting emotions. The bond that once connected us now feels like a cruel joke. The hope and trust I had in her have been shattered.

She played me and ran off with another man.

The mate bond meant so little to her. The rage and betrayal surge through my veins, threatening to consume me.

Every instinct screams at me to hurt her, to rip her apart for what she has done.

I resist. I can't give in to the urge. I can't become the mad king.

Taking a deep breath, I pull myself together and start trudging back through the forest, carrying her fragile body in my arms.

As I emerge from the shadows of the tree line, Javier and Carina are locked in a heated exchange. Her face seems to contort with every word she hisses at him, while her finger jabs sharply into his chest.

Javier snatches her wrist swiftly, not caring for her sharp gleaming fangs inches from his face, he, too, appears angry. However, their altercation ends abruptly when they notice my presence. Javier straightens, casting a glance my way before his eyes fall on Sienna in my arms.

The hotel's balconies are flooded with onlookers, their quiet whispers turning into gasps as they take in the sight of us.

One low growl from me sends them scurrying back into their rooms. Javier approaches cautiously and covers Sienna's naked form with his jacket.

I can tell he's worried about her. Worried about me?

"Do you want me to take her?" he asks warily, his eyes searching mine for an answer to the thoughts I know are plaguing him right now; he can see the edges of it flickering within me; this is why Javier's my second in command, he knows the traits, knows them far too well. Javier is not just my second, he’s my friend—my only friend who has remained by my side.

He's served loyally for over a century. Furthermore, he knows the signs, and by the look on his face, I worry he is finding them.

"Xandros, do you want me to take her?" he repeats, only this time slower, letting me understand.

My mind is consumed by thoughts of Toby, the man she ran away with, which has my gaze shifting to the hotel room she was in with him.

"Where is he?" I demand, my voice filled with a dangerous edge.

Javier blinks at me, momentarily taken aback, before he glances at the hotel room and back at me.

However, he doesn't answer, and Carina beats him to it.

"He's dead, Xandros. I took care of it. You won't have to worry about this happening again," Carina states, her voice laced with something I struggle to decipher as she, too, watches me. I stare down at Sienna. She betrayed me. My mate betrayed me.

I nod once, my gaze fixed on Sienna in my arms. "We should head back," Carina suggests, her voice softer now. I clench my jaw, hating how they're walking on eggshells, waiting for the mad king to come forward. I have control now that she is back in my reach.

"Javier, you drive." I snap as I start moving toward the car, each step a struggle to hold myself together. The rage within me threatens to consume everything.

As I reach the car, I notice Javier hasn't moved.

I glance over at him and find him glaring at Carina, who nudges him in the ribs a little too hard.

He doesn't make a sound even though if he were human, she certainly would have broken ribs with such a blow.

Javier growls under his breath and stomps off toward the car.

"What's wrong with him?" I ask Carina, my voice laced with concern and frustration.

"He's angry. I killed Toby; he thinks it will upset Sienna," Carina explains with a shrug.

I glance down at Sienna in my arms, and for a fleeting moment, a pang of guilt tugs at my heart.

It's quickly replaced by anger and the need to punish her.

I couldn't care less about Toby's fate; I would have done it myself if she hadn't killed him.

Climbing into the car, we drive back to the castle.

The city lights illuminate the night, casting a surreal glow.

I sit frozen in the back seat, my gaze fixed outside the window, avoiding the sight of Sienna beside me.

The woman who so easily betrayed our bond, our connection.

My mind races with thoughts of punishment, of retribution.

When we pull up to the castle, the doors are wide open, and my mother stands there, her face etched with worry.

Javier fills my father in on what happened, their hushed conversation interrupting my anger-fueled haze enough to come back to my senses and realize the car has stopped.

Before I have a chance to grab Sienna, Carina opens my door.

"Are you alright?" she asks, making me wonder how long I have been staring off vacantly. Climbing out of the car, I feel the weight of everyone's gaze averted from my naked mate and me.

My mother speaks, her back to me, while what she says catches me off guard.

“Let me clean her up. I know you're angry, son, however, I don't think you should be alone with her," she suggests, her voice filled with motherly concern.

Her words, however, startle me. Going back a week, and they wanted Sienna's head; now they worry about her, or maybe they worry about the mad king returning if I hurt her.

Suspicion creeps into my mind, and I turn my gaze toward Javier, who meets my eyes head-on. "You told them?" I growl, my voice laced with accusation.

"You haven't lost control like that in decades, Xandros," Javier retorts, not heeding my warning.

"You answer to me, don't forget where your loyalty..."

"His Loyalty is for his kingdom, Xandros. Now we have to cover this mess up. You may have a mate now, but your temper is out of control; you can't reverse the effects of madness once it takes us. You need to control it; either you do or…" My father stops his little rant as my gaze settles on him.

I tilt my head to the side, daring my father to finish his sentence. He'll what, challenge me? It's almost laughable. He clears his throat. "Your mother is right; you shouldn't be alone with her, not right now."

"You're seriously defending her after what she's done?" I snarl angrily. Going back a week; they all hated her!

"We're looking out for our son; if she dies, she won't be the only one," my father tells me.

Ignoring them, I shove past them, and Javier steps into my path.

"Xandros, please listen to your father."

"I have control, now stand down, or I will put you down. No one is going near my mate; none of you can be trusted." I snarl, glaring at everyone before turning my eyes back to Javier, who still has not moved.

"You let her escape," I seethe through gritted teeth.

"She drugged me." he snarls back.

"Enough!" My father's voice cuts between us. I move to shove through the door, only this time, my mother steps directly in my path.

"Move!" I snarl. Her gaze doesn't waiver from mine.

"It's not Javier's fault, Xandros; he's doing his job. It's everyone's fault, the entire situation. You think she betrayed you? What do you think Carina is to a mate bond?" my mother asks gently.

"That's different, and you know it!" I snap, my anger burning fiercely.

"Maybe," my mother says, stepping closer. "To her, it wouldn't be. She can't find happiness in her bond. Therefore, you can't expect her not to look elsewhere for it," she counters, her eyes filled with something leaning toward understanding Sienna's actions.

"I'm her mate!" I growl, my voice dripping with anger and anguish.

"As you are hers!" My mother's words confuse me.

I am repulsed by the thought of another's touch. How could I seek solace or happiness in anyone else but Sienna? I shake my head, trying to clear the conflicting emotions raging within me.

Ignoring their protests, I shove past them, my eyes locked on the bathhouse. Javier follows closely behind, trying to reason. "Xandros, please listen to your father," he pleads, his voice filled with genuine concern.

Leaving them behind, I storm toward the bathhouse. "Where are you going?" I hear my mother call out. Javier continues to follow closely behind me, and I growl at his persistence.

"To get his scent off my fucking mate!" I snarl. When I reach the bathhouse, my aura rushes out with a force; it makes the footsteps behind me halt. Stepping inside the steamy room, I kick the door shut behind me, moving toward the water.

The steam-filled room engulfs me as I kick the door shut behind me. The heat and haze seem to mirror the turmoil within my heart.

I move toward the water, desperately needing to rid her of his scent.

The anger, betrayal, and anguish bubble inside me, threatening to consume everything I am.

With each step, I try to cling to who I am and who she is to me.

I step into the water, hoping it will wash away the darkness that now clouds my soul.

* * *

As I wake up to the sound of water, my senses immediately go on high alert.

The feeling of water pouring over my head sends me gasping for air, my hands flailing in the air in a desperate attempt to regain hold of something.

The deep thrumming growl behind me freezes me in place.

I know that growl; I know it with certainty.

It's Xandros. Fear settles deep into my bones, paralyzing me.

"I am trying very hard not to hurt you. I suggest you don't try running from me right now," Xandros warns, his voice cold as ice.

I'm frozen with fear, knowing the consequences of any wrong move far too well. I quiver, my lip trembling, wanting to ask him what happened to Toby.

He must sense my unspoken question because he speaks again, his grip on my hair tightening.

"Mention his name, and you'll never speak another again," he snarls, his black eyes piercing into mine.

His features are dark, and the monstrous side of him lurks just beneath the surface as his scent envelops me.

Xandros smells like something wild and comforting.

He smells like home and safety. However, I know his scent can be deceiving.

And it is because of its underlying edge right now, his scent morphing into something else, just as the flame calls to a moth, enticing it closer only to burn it before it's aware of the danger it's in.

If there's one thing I've learned to recognize, it is his scent.

This time, there's a sinister edge, a trace of death.

Something primal and instinctive in me knows I am not dealing with the Xandros I've become accustomed to.

What he has become, he is not someone who can be reasoned with, he's no longer the man I once knew, and my bond calls out to my mate.

He doesn't meet my gaze, as if he can't bear to look at me.

I can feel his fury through our bond, and I remain silent, allowing him to scrub at my skin with hands that are too rough, erasing the last remnants of the only scent I find comforting now.

Xandros scrubs at my skin, pumice stone tearing away bits of flesh, erasing his scent and punishing me.

Punishing me for loving another while he had an entire life outside of me.

One I was forced to watch from the side.

I try to tune out the pain, the stone scraping against my skin, and the ache tearing my heart apart.

He can feel my pain, and the more he inflicts, the more he calms. When his hand moves between my legs, I grip his wrist, my voice trembling. "Xandros," I whimper.

He growls, tossing the stone aside and using his hands instead. The pain remains the same, his touch causing me agony.