Allen sat in one of the quieter bar areas staring morosely at the bottle of whisky in front of him wishing desperately that he hadn't laid eyes on the scene that greeted him when he poked his head around the door to make sure that Lexi was okay. He had run into Ann in the corridor on his way back with Adam, and she had filled them in on the less-than-desirable outcome of the council meeting. He was furious for her and also concerned. She might be a tough cookie, but somewhere, underneath all that hard exterior was s fragile woman, he was sure of it. As soon as Ann had mentioned just how bothered she had been, Allen made his excuses and set off to the training room that Ann had pointed him to. He hadn't intended to interrupt her, not unless she was really upset, but his wolf was restless and he just had to make sure that she was okay. But when he had poked his head around the door, and seen Greyson with her… He wasn't proud of it, but he fled. Orvar was furious that anoth
Lord Brarthroroz took in Allen's dour expression with a heavy heart. He could understand the complex emotions that Allen must be feeling, if only because he knew how he felt when his own mate had received more than just passing attention from various men before he revealed himself and claimed her as his own. His wolf was sure to be driving him insane as well. With even the small amount of information he had about Allen, he knew that he was far from the "roll over and play nice" type of guy and he expected his wolf to be the same. Yet, what puzzled him was that Allen seemed to be avoiding the issue, rather than confronting it head-on. "Tell me Allen, have you discussed this with Lexi?" He asked as gently as his deep baritone voice would allow. He was sure that the two of them sitting together with two bottles of whisky separating them must present an odd sight to the little omegas that scurried about the place, but they did a good job of pretending not to notice. Allen shook
Allen's head shot up and the room spun dangerously around him but he forced himself to focus. 'That's impossible.' He murmured as he felt Orvar scratching insistently at the inside of his head. "No, it's not. Lexi is part Daemon and part Witch. As my daughter, she holds the soul of my realm and the power that I carry with me, as well as the soul of her mother and the power that her line carried with her." He tried to explain, holding a hand up to silence Allen as he opened his mouth to interrupt. "When I die, ALL of my power will transfer to Lexi, as well as the centuries of knowledge that I hold, as well as those of our ancestors. You should know that our line goes back millennia Allen, one of the oldest in Daemon history actually. That's a lot for her to take on." Allen blinked at him with wide eyes as Lord Brarthroroz continued. "It's the same with the soul she inherited from her mother. She came from a long line of incredibly powerful witches, natural witches at that,
Lexi stood outside the door to her room, her heart beating wildly in her chest at what might await her on the other side of her door if Allen was in there. She was so torn and conflicted about what had happened, yet also deliriously happy and the conflicting emotions were tearing her apart. She groaned loudly and rested her forehead on the door as she sighed heavily. Why did everything have to be so complicated? Was it too much to ask for a quiet life? After a few deep breaths, she placed her hand on the door handle and pursed her lips. It was no good delaying the inevitable, it was probably best to get this over with quickly. Like ripping off a band-aid and dealing with the pain all in one go rather than prolonging the pain with seemingly endless anxiety. She pushed down gently and slowly opened the door, managing to not make a sound, peeking her head around the corner. The room was in darkness and with a quick glance around the interior, she couldn't see Allen anywhere in
Lexi stiffened as a wave of dread washed over her. How was it possible to be this turned on whilst also feeling this bad about being caught in the act? "Allen... wait..." She objected as she tried to push him away and talk to him, but he only held onto her tighter, his lips and fingers making her legs weak with their careful attention to her sensitive zones. "Lexi... it's okay… I mean, Of course, I would rather things were different, but your father explained enough that Orvar is a little more accepting of it, although admittedly very begrudgingly." He mumbled with her nipple still firmly ensconced in his mouth. "We need to talk about this..." Lexi protested weakly as she gasped and her hands flew to his head, clenching a fistful of hair between her fingers as he showed no mercy. "Fuck Allen.." She felt him smile against her skin as he moved his mouth across to her other breast and slid his free hand down her stomach, seeking the parts between her legs that were already slick
The morning seemed to arrive too soon for Ann's liking. She had been awake for hours already before the beautiful canvas of colors that indicated the sun was about to peek over the horizon began to appear, and had busied herself with working through the various piles of paperwork that Eva had sent her over whilst she was incapacitated with her heat, until she ran out of work that she had needed to catch up on. She could feel her stomach tie itself in knots as she paced backward and forwards nervously, going over the looming trial for Linus in her mind and everything that might go wrong, the fact that she would have to say goodbye to Adam in a few short hours… it was all too much. Really, she supposed that she should be curled up in bed, enjoying his scent and the last physical contact with him before he left for goddess knew how long, but a small part of her refused to let her do that. That little voice that whispered she was tempting fate if she savored the last moments, that
"I mean, I would have preferred that you told me before I was Queen. Would you not have explained if I was just your Luna?" Ann frowned. "I didn't mean it like that," Adam said shaking his head, "I just meant that the chances of us having to engage with the Dubois again were slim to none and I doubt that it would have cropped up in conversation." "You don't think Allen would have mentioned he had a dead sister? Ever?" Ann snorted, "Seriously Adam…" "He may have talked about her, but in a calmer fashion is what I meant. Without the tension of being in close proximity to one of the Dubois family." Adam explained. "At least if we were just the plain old Alpha and Luna of the Dark Moon Pack… there wouldn't be as much at stake if something went wrong." He sighed bitterly. Ann saw the look of regret that crossed his face and felt a pang of pain in her heart at seeing him so uncomfortable, but she chose not to respond, instead, she waited for him to continue. "We weren't that ol
Ann and Adam met Allen and Lexi in the corridor as they left their room, and made their way down to the entrance hall together. Greyson was already there when they arrived and he eyed Allen furiously as Lexi avoided looking anywhere but at him. Ann frowned slightly at Lexi's reaction. Had she missed something? Ann smiled warmly at him as he tore his eyes from where Lexi and Allen stood and greeted Ann properly. "Good morning, my Queen. Preparations are almost complete and we are scheduled to leave shortly." He announced stiffly. "Thank you, Greyson. I'd appreciate it if you could report back as soon as you're close to arriving, and give us an update as soon as you know what's going on. If you think you need more men, then let us know and we'll send reinforcements from the packs that needed a little longer to gather their response teams." "Understood," Greyson answered with a curt nod, his eyes almost staring straight through Ann as he spoke. Ann frowned. She could feel t
As their convoy of cars and moving vans rolled up the driveway, Ann's stomach twisted uncomfortably as her anxiety set in. Regardless of what her babies were doing to her insides, the effects that her heightened emotions were having on her far eclipsed any discomfort that her pups were causing. She took a deep breath as she tried to calm the anxiety that knotted her insides and made her heart ache painfully. As far as she knew, her father was still living within the palace and she still wasn't sure that she could forgive him for everything that she had been put through because of his choices. In the worst-case scenario, she could always extend the palace to encompass two main living areas so that she wouldn't have to deal with tolerating his presence. She didn't even want to think about how she would explain to her children that they couldn't ever meet the incredible woman that her mother was because her father had an affair, broke the mating bond, and allowed his mistress and
"Right, I think that's the last of them," Adam grinned as he jogged through the huge doors of the Enclave's entrance hall to where Ann was pacing restlessly and Bartholomew was watching with mild amusement. "Finally," Ann sighed as she rubbed her belly with a grimace, "At this point, all I want to do is get my home back to what it used to be." Adam leaned forward and planted a kiss on Ann's forehead. "Are they making things difficult for you?" He asked gently, rubbing her back. Ann reached for his hand with a scowl and placed it palm down on top of her belly and grimaced as another flurry of movement rippled under her skin and Adam blinked in surprise. "Are they fighting in there?!" He asked in shock. "With two stubborn Alpha's for parents, I wouldn't put it past them." Bartholomew chuckled as he made his way over to them, smiling kindly. Ann lifted her gaze and her face softened as she looked at the kindly face of the old man that had been there for them through so muc
When Coral had returned with the Omega that worked as a nanny to the nobles, the baby boy was handed over to her and she waddled off happily, cooing at the baby in her arms as it gurgled happily back up at her. Coral began to work through updating the schedule for Ann as she dictated, adding additional notes that she shared with Allen's device. He would see to their schedule tomorrow as he had several days worth of reports to hear from Adam as to what had happened within the businesses and the Dark Moon Pack while he was away. Lexi made her way back to her room with both Allen and Greyson following behind her. She paused outside her door and turned to them both with a smile. "Sorry to disappoint boys, but I don't feel like getting frisky right now. Quite honestly, I just want to soak all of this crap off me." They nodded at her as she looked at them thoughtfully. "We really should sit down and have a discussion about how this is going to work between us all, you know." she
"Well, I certainly wasn't expecting that." Ann said a little breathlessly as she looked between Lexi, Allen and Greyson. Adam shared the same concerned expression as she did at the revelations that Eromaug would clearly stop at nothing to get his hands on Lexi. "You're absolutely sure that your father is willing to ally himself with us?" Ann asked as the baby in her arms began to stir and protest at the noise and unfamiliar surroundings it had found itself in. Lexi snorted loudly. "Of course he is. How could he not when his daughter is your right hand woman?" She winked. "We should put it to the council first." Adam said somberly as Lexi groaned loudly. "I'm sure they'll be thrilled at the opportunity," She muttered sarcastically as Ann laughed. "I think we should get hold of Bartholomew so that he can help us find a way to ‘tell' the council of our alliance, rather than ask for their permission." Ann mused thoughtfully, "He's pretty knowledgeable about who supports us,
Ann and Adam stood on the front steps of the Enclave, eagerly waiting for the return of both of their Beta's. Adam chuckled as Ann fidgeted with her hands and struggled to stand still, her gaze fixed on the curve of the driveway. "They'll be here soon, don't worry." He soothed, wrapping his arm around her as she nibbled on her bottom lip. "What if something happened though?" She worried as she rubbed her little bump in an act of self soothing. Adam's eyes glazed over slightly as he linked with Allen and then grinned down at his anxious wife. "Allen said stop worrying, it's not good for the baby. They'll be here in seconds." "But…" As promised, the front end of the transport pulled around the corner of the driveway and Ann let out a sigh of relief. "See, my Queen? Nothing to worry about." Adam chuckled as he watched them pull to a stop in front of them. As soon as the door opened and Lexi's head emerged, Ann broke away from Adam and bolted down the steps towards her.
Lexi knew that she was still conscious, but the pressure that engulfed her head, and the rigidity of her body teamed with the almost distant voices of protest from Allen and Greyson let her know that she had no control over what was happening right now. The initial black curtain that had descended was suddenly filled with hundreds upon hundreds of memories from her childhood, all played out in glorious technicolor and accompanied by sounds and smells that made her heart ache with familiarity and her breath catch in her chest. There was no way that she could catch each and every memory at once, but she could see it clearly. The bond that both she and Eromaug had shared at an early stage was filled with love and an intensity that she had known only with Allen and Greyson. By the time the images had begun to fade in her mind's eye and her vision returned, she was overwhelmed with emotions. As she sat there trembling, clasping her hands together tightly so that she wouldn't cry wit
Lord Brarthroroz guided Lexi over to one of the chairs around the table and gestured towards the flap of the tent. "Make sure no one enters for the time being, Steve." He said with an air of resignation to his voice as he took a seat next to his daughter. Steve nodded expressionlessly as he moved to the open flap, released the material to close it and ducked through to stand outside. "You two should sit as well," Lord Brathroroz advised as he gestured to the seats across from Lexi, "This isn't easy for me to talk about." He continued with a grunt. Greyson and Allen moved to comply and took their seats next to each other, both of them focused on Lexi. Lord Brarthroroz sighed as he turned back to his daughter and cupped her face fondly. "Before I start, I want you to understand that before your mother and I had you, neither of us realized just how deeply we could love and the desire to protect you from harm eclipsed everything else in our lives completely." He said gently a
It hadn't taken their force long to clear the halls and clean up the bodies that were left behind. The losses had been minimal on their part and considering the forces that they had thought they would be up against, their plans had meant that they had been far better equipped than the coven itself. The Coven had left very few prisoners alive, and the ones that were still breathing were in pretty bad shape. Lexi and the other healers and medics had done what they could but there was no growing back limbs…no matter how proficient of a shifter you were. Lord Brarthroroz had stationed huge numbers of his daemons within the winding passageways and caverns that the coven had previously inhabited and returned to the surface with his portalmancer Steve at his side. He strode angrily across the makeshift camp to the command tent and paused at the entrance, glancing across at the medical tent where Lexi had been working. Currently, she was cleaning her hands off as her mates watched
She stood and with one last look at the lifeless body below her, turned her attention to the chaos at the other side of the room. Narcissa had no problems keeping the attacks of the wolves at bay and Lexi could feel the emotions of the past few minutes bubbling wildly inside of her as she stormed towards her, her eyes blazing furiously. Her father was still making little headway against Eromaug, but she wasn't concerned about his survival, he was more than capable of taking care of himself against his bastard of a brother. Narcissa on the other hand…she had a lot to fucking answer for. Lexi strode through the fighters battling the twisted Daemons that had emerged from the shadows, throwing her magick lazily towards the monstrosities as she passed, a sneer curling at her lips as the shifters watched her in terrified awe. It wasn't long until Narcissa noticed her approach and her face split into a sneer that matched Lexi's as she swept her arm in front of her, knocking the ma