“King Marcus Allus Sierra of Allus Sierra.” Just as Daniel talked to king Tannus, Olin just announced a new incoming guest. Ariana’s heart stopped as she heard his name. Her throat felt dry, and she almost fainted. She was expecting anyone but Marcus.
“What’s this guy doing here? Did you invite him?” Tannus pointed at Daniel. He himself had some unfinished business with Marcus, so seeing him here only made his blood boil.
“I didn’t invite him. I don’t know what he’s doing here.” Daniel’s tone sounded sharp. He was ready to fight if necessary. Daniel glanced at his newly crowned queen, his mate. Her hands were trembling.
Daniel quickly pressed her hand into his, supporting her physically and emotionally. They had to preten
“I told you not to come back.” Daniel greeted king Marcus with harsh words directly, with no pleasantries. They weren’t needed. King Marcus didn’t come to be nice or play nicely.“You said you would take good care of my baby. I am here to see how you care about my son.” Marcus still didn’t know about the girl. Ariana felt relief. If he doesn’t know the real gender of his child, he won’t be able to take her. He would search for a son, not for a daughter.“Oh, I surely did, and I am planning to keep my promise. You didn’t have to bother yourself by coming here. As you see, you are not exactly welcome among the people here.” Daniel had the upper hand. He was aware of it, but Marcus’ insanity ran deep. He could attack randomly and kill dozens of people before they
“And who you might be?” Marcus looked sternly at the woman. She had the guts to interrupt his conversation with Ariana. The guests in the hall watched the events unfolding in the front of the hall, but kept a respectful distance for fear of Marcus. They couldn’t hear exactly what they were talking about. Ariana completely ignored the eyes of them. Her eyes kept following Marcus, guessing his every move so she could react appropriately. She sensed a person behind her and recognized Atalante by the voice, but she couldn’t turn to her without showing her back to Marcus. “Someone even your grandfather would fear, boy,” Atalante answered him with a hint of superiority in her voice. Her attitude, her gestures, and her tone suggested superiority. But when Marcus looked at her, she didn’t seem to be strong. She was half a head shorter than him and looked like an average wolf. He couldn’t tell who she was, even from her smell. Atalante had no scent. Not even the pinch of a wolf. “You know my
“As I said before, I am not here because of you. Get lost, pup!” Atalante let out another order and Marcus had no other choice but to follow. He hated to be overpowered this way. Atalante could order him around and he didn’t understand why or how. It made no sense. He was a Lycan and not just an ordinary one. A royal bloodline from Allus Sierra. How is it that a woman can order him around? Atalante turned back to Daniel, a broad smile on her lips while she watched the girl firmly standing in the room’s corner. “You are not afraid, are you?” Atalante crossed the distance between her and Ariana, ignoring Daniel’s questions. She came because of a rumor she heard a few weeks ago. Atalante wanted to confirm those rumors by herself. “No. I am not.” Ariana answered her honestly. Although she didn’t understand what had happened and why her body couldn’t feel fear in a moment like this. Atalante took a deep breath, inhaling the air around Ariana. “You gave birth recently. I’d like to s
“I deeply apologize for the disturbance caused by our uninvited guest. Please keep celebrating. He won’t bother us again.” Daniel apologized to the guests present in the hall. Some were looking at him with concern written on their faces, while others seemed to be rather apologetic themselves. Each guest reacted differently to the situation but almost all of them had the same question in their eyes. ‘Is he not going to come back?’ Daniel saw the question in the gaze they gave him. He couldn’t properly answer the question since he didn’t know what exactly Atalante did. For the first time in his life, he saw Lycan obey an order. They do not obey even their own parents, not to mention a stranger. Atalante was a stranger to Marcus. Daniel was curious about what Atalante wanted to talk about with Ariana, but one of them had to remain present in the hall. Daniel had an excuse for Ariana. He could easily tell the people that the attack on Atalante shook her by her former king. Not everyon
“Is everything okay?” Daniel asked the next morning when Ariana got out of bed. She couldn’t sleep yesterday. The celebrations lasted well into the night and Ariana didn’t feel like going back to the hall. She had a lot to think about. Most of all, she wanted to be with her daughter, whom she had not seen for more than half a day. Daniel didn’t join her until around 2am yesterday when he found her sitting in a chair with a sleeping baby in her arms. Ariana looked out the window at the full moon and pondered everything Atalante had told her. There was really a lot. “Not really. I don’t even know. Everything seems so surreal. A few months ago, I was slowly being chased. Marcus chased me around like a game, and now I’m the most wanted person in the world.” Ariana complained quietly to herself. Daniel got off the bed and walked a few steps toward Ariana. He wrapped her against his chest and gently stroked her hair. “Well, it’s a good thing I took you for myself. I don’t know what I’d d
Marcus arrived back at his castle. Although he rarely visited the North Wing since taking the throne, he headed straight there today. He looked for his father in the library, but to his surprise; he did not find him there. Marcus’s father sat in the garden attached to their very north wing. It was a private part of the castle belonging to Marcus’ parents only. The servants serving his parents did not go to his part of the castle, and likewise, Marcus’s servants did not interfere with the goings-on in the northern part. It’s almost like two separate houses. “What are you doing here?” Marcus’ father pointed at him. Ever since Marcus forcibly took over the throne from his father, his father had not spoken to him. They did not interfere in his government, although they knew about the situation in the country. Marcus’ father had his loyal servants in the castle and in the capital. “I came for answers. My mate and my child are in the hands of Daniel Colton of Edeirland. I wanted to take h
“Can I?” Atalante leaned closer to Ariana, stretching her arms as she wanted to carry little Aaliyah. Ariana looked at her cooing baby before she lifted her eyes and gently handed her daughter to the Lycan Queen. In the morning, she sent Daniel to take care of the guests but currently she would be grateful to have him here. She felt vulnerable against Atalante for some unknown reason. “She’s beautiful and I can tell she’s going to be strong. I’m glad she inherited more from you than the Allus Sierra bloodline.” Atalante looked meaningfully at Ariana. She compared the baby girl to her mother, but mainly she tried to recall the features of her long-lost friend and her teacher and searched for those features in these two. “Why are you so set on Marcus and his family?” Ariana asked boldly. Atalante didn’t want to talk about them too much before, but Ariana wanted to know the truth. “Because of their guilt they bear and for which they were banished from my kingdom.” Atalante cradled
“Are you leaving already?” Atalante stayed in Edeirland for two more days before finally coming to say goodbye. She had been away from her country longer than necessary and it was time to return to her duties. Ariana could no longer find out exactly how old Atalante was. Atalante kept the exact number a secret and always nonchalantly avoided the question of her age. “Yes, it’s time to go home.” Atalante replied. They all sat at breakfast as Atalante announced her departure for the day. She wanted to leave immediately after breakfast to get as far as possible during the day. The borders of her country were about a week’s journey on horseback. Even if she transformed and ran in her animal form, she wouldn’t be able to keep up the pace all day. The journey would take her perhaps even longer. She could at least switch to a rested horse that was prepared in the taverns along the way. “Of course I understand that. We are very honored to have you stay with us and I think I speak to both o