I was horrified.
When I’d told Ghere to order the Reapers to find women from the poorer side of the human city, I had imagined the wicked types. The women who embraced their fate and it made them bold. Instead I’d been sent a box of poorly bred puppies suitable only for drowning?
What the actual fuck?
“God help us,” one of them murmured.
I snorted.
“I assure you, God abandoned this place long ago,” I drawled.
The woman looked at me, shocked. It was the one at the center who’d stayed on her feet. She’d been staring around the chamber in horror, murmuring to herself, clearly forgetting that we wolves enjoyed heightened senses.
She remembered now.
The guards laughed, but the women’s eyes snapped down to her feet. She dropped her chin. Her hair, a rich mahogany brown, the kind that would spark red in sunlight, fell around her face in long waves, though it was messy and matted now.
She was a thin little thing, though there was evidence of muscle under those terribly fitting clothes.
Then—noting the tear at the neckline of her shirt—I started paying attention. Which made me scan the others and grind my teeth. The Reapers clearly hadn’t been gentle.
I cursed again. None of the women were even clean. I saw torn shirts, ripped jeans, even bruises. And one of them had hit the floor and remained there, as if she were already dead.
“Who is responsible for this shitshow?” I growled to Ghere below the hearing of the humans.
The male stepped up to my side, responding in kind so they wouldn’t hear us. “Khush led this foray,” he muttered.
“Order ten lashes. I asked for women who’d met darkness, not poorly freighted dolls.”
“Consider the restrictions, Casimir: those who are virgins at this age are likely more timid in their approach to life.”
“Timid? These women are helpless.” Some of them, including the one who’d stared at me, looked malnourished. I was tempted to simply send them back and tell the Reapers to try again—with more stringent instructions on who and how to select targets. “Are they even fertile?”
“Impossible to know for certain with virgins, of course. But we know they all cycle regularly,” Ghere provided.
I shook my head. “Look at the bruises on that one.”
“I believe some of them fought—”
“I don’t give a shit, Ghere. You want me to believe the guards couldn’t control these frail birds without tearing their clothes?”
The male hesitated, obviously wanting to correct me, but unwilling to risk my ire.
I rolled my eyes and gestured at him to speak—I wouldn’t punish him for raising truth, if he had it. But how the fuck was I supposed to name a mate from among these pitiful creatures without walking straight into yet another failure?
But Ghere must have read my wave to proceed as the signal to begin the rite, because he stepped forward and cleared his throat.
“Ladies, I know the day has been difficult, but I assure you, you are safe here. The King Himself, Casimir Augustus Klane, is here to greet and assess you. Despite our, er, unconventional beginning, I hope you understand that it is a great honor to stand here today. The King of Wolves seeks a mate. A human mate. You alone have been selected from among your kind for his consideration.”
I was considering very little. If this was the best the human race had to offer, we were all in much deeper trouble than I had imagined.
“A mate?” the same woman asked quietly. “I thought… the stories said he was already mated?”
Ghere opened his mouth to reply, but I spoke first. No point avoiding the truth. “She died,” I said baldly.
“May… may I ask how?” Her eyes were wary, but accusing. She was brave, this one. The others were all staring at the floor, though two of them seemed to still be at least partially in the thrall of the compulsion, because their eyes were glazed, and one was loosening a button at her throat.
I raised a brow, partly-amused, partly-impressed. “She suffered a mental breakdown and killed herself,” I said with a warning smile. The woman blinked. “Being the Wolf King’s mate comes with many privileges. But few humans are strong enough to live in my world. Hence, the Sifting.”
Ghere leaped in then, as if he was afraid I’d give away too much. “Of course, we will provide everything you need to advance in this process. The King only wishes to identify which of you is most likely to thrive.”
Thrive? These women didn’t know the word existed. I stopped listening as Ghere continued to explain the process of the rite, the tests and challenges, and their role in them.
I was fast determining that this entire idea had been a poor one. These women didn’t even have the physical strength to live here, let alone to keep up with me. Chances that they’d be capable of enduring the inevitable trials to come were miniscule.
The women’s eyes grew wider as Ghere explained the wealth and opportunity that would be afforded to them, as well as the expectation of delivering an heir, and a second child to ensure the succession of the throne.
The two who hadn’t shaken the compulsion began to shiver and stare at me with hopeful eyes.
I’d barely touched them with the power, but their minds were so weak, they were already more than half mine. It was pathetic.
“…our main concern is for your wellbeing,” Ghere went on kindly. “The King’s power relies on his utter domination of the packs. But especially those highest in the ranks of the hierarchy… which includes his mate. I am aware that your human society does not function similarly—but please, understand… the power you felt from Casimir when you entered was only a taste. He is the most potent ruler the wolves have enjoyed for centuries. You will not need to worry for your safety or provision. Our King is… formidable.”
One of the women who’d given over to the compulsion shuddered and clutched a hand to her chest.
Holy fuck. Weak didn’t cover it.
“Actually, Ghere, I think this has been a mistake,” I said abruptly, interrupting him. “I don’t believe my mate is here.”
I began to turn away, muttering to him under their hearing. “These minds are far too weak. It’s a waste of my time. We need a new pool.”
“But, look, Casimir!” Ghere grabbed my sleeve, pulling me back to face them. “They’re receptive, see? You’ve always said that a willing partner is worth more than someone who must be… urged.”
It was true. I had. But only when their commitment rose from strength in themselves. Not wounded puppies who rolled over and showed their bellies to the Alpha with tails wagging.
I could see that the two women who’d never fully released from my power were beyond willing. They were already halfway in love. Which was our entire problem with these humans. This would not do.
“The position of Queen requires three things,” I snapped impatiently. Let them hear the terms and reject them, then we could move on and find a new group of women. “Firstly, the ability to bear heirs. Secondly, submission to me as King and Mate. And third, acceptance that I will not offer love. Love is a sacrifice of self. My power relies on dominance. It weakens when I yield to another. I cannot offer it and remain King.”
I was growing impassioned, so I stopped for a moment and took a breath, dropping my voice for the women who were all listening avidly. I met their eyes one by one until I landed on the warm-haired beauty who’d spoken up.
“My Queen will receive anything material she wishes. But she will submit to me, and I will not bow. She will share my bed, my power, and my wealth. She will not share my heart.”
I’d been glaring down at them, impatient and determined. I lifted my chin and waited, but none of them spoke.
Good.
Too weak—or perhaps, strong enough only to see that they had frail hearts in desperate needs of the affirmation of a male’s—
“What happens to the others?” the mahogany-haired one asked quickly. “You have eight women here. What happens to the other seven when you… when you choose?”
I smiled. “I assure you, mate or not, by the time the sifting is complete, all of you will desire to stay here with me. And if I find you appealing, I will not turn you away.” Though, looking at this lot, most of them would be thrown back to their own world. I wasn’t interested.
Ghere nudged me, but the two who’d already given themselves both looked ecstatic.
The one whose hair was so rich and warm frowned at the floor, her eyes flitting back and forth as if she searched her mind, her lips moving though she made no sound.
She was a strange little thing—courageous to speak to me without permission. She might be fun to break if she turned out to be strong-willed.
Ghere was dry-washing his hands, looking at each of the women in turn, clearly nervous about the direction this had taken. I wasn’t sure why.
He cleared his throat. “As you’ve heard the King explain—”
“Are you violent?”
I turned back to the woman with a flat smile. “Show me a wolf who isn’t. And I am the King of the others. What do you think?”
Her throat bobbed. The tear in the neckline of her cotton shirt offered a fleeting glimpse of plump cleavage. My cock twitched.
“I meant… I meant with women… um, Sire,” she said uncertainly. “With your Queen. You said you have to dominate, that she has to submit. What is she submitting to?”
An image flashed in my head of that day just weeks ago when my second mate had killed herself. I’d had my toys, one of them by the neck.
I smirked. “I don’t make a habit of leaving bruises,” I said, letting a dark promise seep into my tone. “But they’ve been known to happen.”
The woman flinched and I sighed, rolling my eyes. “I take no sexual pleasure from violence. I am a wolf, not a beast. A loyal, submitted female has no reason to fear me.”
It was, perhaps, a stretching of the truth. But the woman looked relieved.
I was intrigued. Of them all, she’d shown the strongest spine when I compelled them. Not that that was any guarantee. The last two had been the strongest in their bunches as well, and look where that had gotten me.
Dark frustration washed through me again as I looked over this group of thin, dirty women and I shook my head. “Ghere, this is pointless—”
“I’ll volunteer,” the mahogany-haired one said quietly.
“You see,” Ghere nudged my side nervously. “One offers to be sifted already. I’m sure the others will as well. There is no need to—”
“No,” she said, then licked her lips and stepped forward. “I volunteer to be your mate.”
~ JESSE ~As I’d listened to the King’s pompous tirade, it had become clearer and clearer to me that it was not just bad luck that I was here.The question was, would I step out of the flames of one man’s making, and straight into another? Or was this truly an opportunity for escape?“I will be your mate… if you’ll have me.”The King’s eyes narrowed.His servant’s brows rose and he raised his hands. “Oh, I don’t think you understood—”“Why?” the King asked, his voice deep and skeptical. But I didn’t miss the glimmer in his eyes. I’d surprised him.I swallowed hard and prayed I’d understood all of this correctly. “I think… I know, I can give you what you want. And in exchange, you can give me what I need.”The King’s brows rose then. “How very presumptuous of you. But I will take the bait: What is it that you want?”“I propose… an exchange.”“Of what?”“You take me as your mate and you keep me safe like you promised. Away from my world and… and anyone I knew. When I bear you an heir, yo
“Therefore what God has joined together, let no man separate.” (Mark 10:9) ***** ~ JESSE ~ I stood there, stunned, while the guards cleared the room. The King spoke briefly with the man who’d been at his side this entire time, then he gestured to me. “We have a short time before the Cleric arrives. You should bathe.” The words seemed so alien in the middle of this surreal and terrifying day, for a moment I just stared at him. But he either didn’t notice my stunned silence, or didn’t care. Because he and the man turned and started toward the end of the room from which he’d first arrived. A moment later, realizing I had no choice, I stumbled after them. The two men never spoke to me, though the King looked over his shoulder a few times to make sure I was following, and his servant tried to give me an encouraging smile that was just more terrifying than when they weren’t looking at me. At the end of the room we’d been in there was a door that led into a wide corridor—much more obv
Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me. - Psalms 51:5 ***** ~ CASIMIR (Pronounced “CAZZ-uh-MEER”) ~ I desperately needed to piss. As I stalked into my room, Ghere scuttling in my wake, I took a few seconds to pry my boots off, then made straight for the adjoining bathing room, undressing as I walked because when I returned to the festivities it would be in wedding garb. Fuck. I sighed as I passed my huge bed, a stone platform long and wide enough that even the tallest wolf would have plenty of room to sprawl…with friends. The thick mattress was covered in furs and plush pillows. And my toys. My stomach began to thrum and I smiled, diverting my path to trail a finger along the lush body of the first—the brunette who was still fast asleep. She lay on her back, bare to the waist, her full breasts rising and falling slowly with her breath. A few strands of her dark hair lay over her face and fluttered as she snored quietly. I let my finger
~ JESSE ~When Casimir had used the word “Cleric” I’d imagined some stuffy old man in a suit with a black collar—like a priest.Instead, the man—wolf—who showed up was young, handsome, and vital. I couldn’t have picked him out of the guards if they’d lined up.Maybe all the wolves were like that? Big, strong, hot?I’d heard the legends about women having wolf-lovers before, but again, it was always a whispered story at a sleepover, or someone’s fantasy fiction. A naughty, forbidden kind of story. Never something I’d taken seriously.But after I’d hurriedly bathed, surprised by the pleasant smell of the soap that felt different in my hands to what I was used to, and twisted up my hair as best I could with only a small mirror and dim light, and put on the strange-but-beautiful dress that Ghere handed me through the door. When Ghere led me back to the first chamber where Casimir had appeared, it occurred to me that, perhaps, all these stories I’d heard weren’t fiction at all.I couldn’t
~ JESSE ~Behind Casimir, Ghere relaxed, like he’d been holding his breath.The Cleric’s jaw flexed.Several wolves who’d been watching, chuckled or grunted.But then it hit me: It was done. I’d done it. I’d vowed myself to him until the day of my death.Nerves trilled in my chest. Should I be glad, or would I soon want to hurry eternity along?Only time would tell.I was in a fog, barely hearing as the Cleric led Casimir in a vow of protection of my person and my throne, promising to use his power to uphold me as Alpha Female, and to give me the heir.And then…“…And will you give yourself to her as a vessel, your body for hers, serving her pleasure?”Casimir’s eyes narrowed and blazed. “I will.”The Cleric raised his voice slightly. “And do the Witnesses agree and let the vows bind? Do you accept her as his mate? Do you bow to her as your Queen?”“We do,” they growled in unison.And something in my chest flared.I sucked in a breath, swaying forward as something came alive inside me
SOUNDTRACK: Eternal Flame by Atom Music Audio, with Randall Jermaine and Alexa Ray.*****~ CASIMIR ~This was my third vow-forged bond, and it never got easier, feeling my soul entwined with another like that. Each one had made my skin feel too tight, as if I wanted to claw out of it.But this one… Jesse… dear god.The moment the pack leaders acknowledged her as my mate and the bond was forged, I was ripped out of myself. Left flailing.I fought as I’d fight a hurricane, leaning in and forcing my body to weather the pummeling blows that seemed to come from every direction at once.Mate.Wife.Mother.Soul.Twisting, turning me, flipping my heart on its head like a babe in the ocean tide as I fought, wrestling for control of my own fate.Because that was the source of my power—dominance always won. The more I owned, the more strength I gained.That must be the difference this time—she’d come to the vow willingly, choosing it without compulsion from me. And so it struck as true and dee
~ JESSE ~I’d flinched when that wave of power left him, felt the impact in my bones like a sonic boom. And yet, when I took a breath and blinked, I was still myself, while every man around me cowered or knelt, all their eyes on the floor, every head bowed. Except Rake.As if the wolf had seen it coming, he’d stepped back and away, and was obviously untouched. Stunningly, so was I.Cazz hadn’t touched me with it.I looked up at him, trembling. What was he doing?He didn’t even look at me, just swept me up like I weighed nothing and carried me from the room without a backward glance.His breath was harsh in my ear as he stormed through the maze of tunnels and hallways outside. Voices raised in protest behind us. But he ignored them completely, one hand under my knees, the other curled at my ribs, his chin low and brows pinched, eyes glaring—and glowing again.I would have felt afraid because he looked enraged. But from the moment he’d let go of that power, I could feel him again. Could
~ JESSE ~Cazz stood in front of the door for a half a second, hands still on the beam, head cocked as if he was listening to something. There was a strange tension in him that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. But then he turned and found me with his eyes.In that space in my chest where I'd been connected to him, I felt the spear of desire that rocked through his body. It made my breath catch.When he began to walk towards me, it was with the slow grace of a predator, the fire in his eyes burning inside me as he locked on, only the rapid rise and fall of his chest outwardly giving away the tension in him that I could feel. A few strands of his hair fell over his eyes, but he peered out at me through them, like a wolf in the grass and when he spoke, his voice was guttural, so deep it seemed to come up from the stone beneath my feet, and barely loud enough for me to catch the words.“You’re stronger than I gave you credit for,” he murmured, prowling towards me.I swallowe