“Lift your head and straighten your back, sweetie.” Queen Agatha's arms slipped around Denise's waist as soon as they climbed out of the car. She turned her head to look at her daughter, a beaming smile on her lips. They had arrived in front of a humongous building with statues on either side of the double doors. It looked more like a creepy museum than a meeting place, and judging by the cracks spiraling across the grey walls, it was clearly old. Was it even safe?“I have a feeling that this meeting will be targeted at you.” The Queen continued. Denise knew that very well, but had to feign a bit of surprise anyway. “Me?” “Yes, but know this…I will not let them separate us. You belong in this family, so do not show fear.” She flinched. Did she seem scared? She couldn’t deny that when she was meeting with the very people who wanted her dead. Who wouldn’t be a little scared? “All of us are with you.” Denise glanced around her. Damian and Darrel had also arrived with their guards;
Somehow these Elders reminded Denise of the old her, the one which hated herself with every fiber of her being. “You fear what my wolf can do yet you threaten me like this?” She stood to her feet just as the Queen flopped back down on the bench. Her hands were clenched by her sides and her face was scrunched, but she unfurled her fists and relaxed her features. She wouldn’t let them see how much their words struck her. “I’ll have you know, Raina doesn’t like threats. If you’re trying to have her take control then by all means.” She stepped out from amongst the rows of benches and started down the empty aisle. The elders’ faces seemed to pale considerably at that. “What are you doing?!” Elder Serac lifted his shaking hand, bringing the wooden cross to his chest right over his heart. “What’s wrong?” Denise furrowed her brows and tilted her head, feigning confusion. “We’re having a conversation, are we not? Its rude to shout at me from all the way over there. I’ll come closer so you c
Kain Valcor was probably the most unpredictable man one could meet. That was the reason most of his acquaintances walked on egg shells around him, no one wanted to get on bad side. Werewolves, Alphas and commoners alike either stay away from him or crush their pride and suck up to him…because they knew that it would take nothing for him to suddenly decide to rid them off the face of the earth. So, right this moment, even as hundreds of werewolves lie in wait around building, Kain could still kill every single Elder in the room in the blink of an eye and without caring for the consequences. Kain was someone they could not control nor manipulate, and that was what made him different from the rest of the royals, that was what made him dangerous. “Well then…” Kain sat on the bench at the very back of the room, beside Marcy who beamed at him. He didn’t spare her a glance as his arm slid around Trey’s waist, holding him on his thigh. “Lets continue.”Denise stared silently over at them. H
Time seemed to pass by slowly as Jaxson sat in wait beside Denise's bed. They had already gone back to the royal residence and though her wolf had retreated long ago, she did not regain consciousness right away. But Jaxson stayed by her side, straight up until she finally stirred awake.Her toes curled and her forehead creased just as her eyes flickered open. She looked up at the ceiling, then turned her head, finding Jaxson next to her. “Jack…” She murmured, throwing the duvet down to her lower half and sitting up slowly. A wave of dizziness had her hand raising and clenching into her messy hair. Her head was throbbing. “What…happened? How long have I been asleep?” Jaxson curled his arm around her back, keeping her up. “Just a few hours. Raina didn’t hurt anyone, don’t worry.” The muscles in her jaw twitched. She had hoped that part was just a dream, but it unfortunately wasn’t. Was Kain’s purpose to help or sabotage her? Why would he do such a thing?“What was the verdict then?”
When Denise and Jaxson got to the bottom floor, Kain was sitting on the couch, his head leaned over and his eyes on the ceiling. Trey stood next to him, his phone in one hand while the other gripped Damian's pants tightly. “Lets play again! I’ll win this time!”“Hey! What did I say about touching me?” With a frown, Damian's index pressed to the boy's forehead, pushing him back slightly. “Talk from a distance, you scrawny little sh—” He paused mid-sentence, glancing at Kain before sighing. “Just get off.” “Damian.” Kain raised his head, his emerald eyes digging into Damian’s back. “Don’t teach my kid such useless games. Its impressive that he can already shift, now he should be learning control. He doesn’t need a phone either, he’d be better off learning mind-link. Wouldn’t you agree, love?” His gaze darted towards Denise, a lopsided grin on his lips. “My flesh and blood should be amazing, after all.” “Its not useless.” Damian retorted. “See how determined he is? That’s brain progre
A few days passed by after the ending of Denise's conversation with Kain. It’d been so long, yet her mind kept dwelling on it again and again. His face constantly flashed before her eyes, and she couldn’t sleep without feeling compelled to talk it over again. Was it really her place to treat him like that? Denise shook her head quickly. ‘No! My worries are totally justified!” She told herself. She shouldn’t be hung up on something like this. He deserved to hurt as much as possible. So why…why did that expression of his irk her so much?“What are you thinking so hard about?” Denise flinched, her eyes widening a bit as she finally noticed the waiting hand hovering in front of her. Sighing, she took Jaxson's hand and allowed him to help her out of the car. Her hair was tied in a ponytail at the back and she wore a high-waist dress pants with a sleeveless top and a coat. For her first outing as a royal, the Queen had also prepared jewelry and countless glistening heels to chose from
Denise went back empty-handed after managing to get out of doing her measurements by complaining about not being able to chose her own dress. Agatha didn’t pressure her thankfully, and now she was back at the mansion. She stomped up the stairs quickly, but halted when the scent belonging to Damian drifted near. “Did you like your dress?” He asked, as he scratched his cheek with the top of the water bottle in his hand. “Kain picked it out himself for your big day.” Denise turned on her feet, walking back down the stairs and crossing her arms in front of him. “Whoever asked you both to go picking dresses?” He shrugged, “In my opinion, it was a bit old fashioned. Normally, you’d have all that lace thing on the top and a nice frill at the bottom but damn. This one's fucking plain. I bet you think so too…judging by your expression. And I--” “Where is he?” Denise cut to the chase, cocking her hip. “I need to talk to him.”He tilted his head, “Who?” Denise narrowed her eyes and a laugh
“People don’t change.” Denise stated it firmly as she pulled her hands behind her. “You wouldn’t be like this unless you have something to gain from it all. Just a while back you even plotted to have my family killed because o---” “I wasn’t going to let them die. I told you. I won’t do anything you don’t like.” “So they were just pawns?” Her eyes screwed up, “You know I don’t play those cruel games. What else have you done that I’m unaware of? What else are you about to do?” “I haven’t done anything.” He sighed frowning as he looked off to the side. His expression was making it seem as if she was being unreasonable but she damn well knew he was capable. “Either way…I don’t want this anymore. You made us like this, Kain. You made ME like this.” Her hand unconsciously lifted to cover her mark. It’d been pulsing for a while now, and she could tell it was the same for him as well when he snapped his gaze back to her and rolled his shoulders. “What?” His hands twitched. His fingers w