Total pages in book: 182
Estimated words: 171176 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 856(@200wpm)___ 685(@250wpm)___ 571(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 171176 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 856(@200wpm)___ 685(@250wpm)___ 571(@300wpm)
I’d fix this. Somehow, I would figure this out. I had helped get this damn place out of the curse, and I’d keep it away from boiled destruction as well.
Weston pulled away from his mate, turning to face the king. Aurelia rolled over slowly, staying on her belly for now, head on her paws. She had been chastised, forced to submit, and she was showing her subservience to the king. Perfectly handled. Thank all the fucks.
The king’s large dragon form morphed back into a man with blood dripping down his stomach and his ankles and wrists all fucked up. He didn’t show the pain as he looked down on Weston and Aurelia.
“Go,” he commanded, waving the dragons away.
They took to the air, Vemar roaring as he took one last look at Aurelia before soaring away.
“Shift,” the king told the two wolves.
They did.
Aurelia didn’t stand after she’d regained her human form, sitting on her butt with her knees up, her arms draped around them. She studied the ground, head bowed.
The beta stood beside her, his shoulders straight and head held high, facing the king without remorse. That spoke volumes. He didn’t give a damn what the king might say. It would not diminish Weston’s pride in her. My wolf had been right.
“What was that?” Nyfain asked Weston before looking down on Aurelia.
“I’ll do better,” Aurelia said in a monotone voice.
My heart ached. There was no way I could be sure, but I’d bet my left nut she’d said those words, in that tone, when Granny scolded her and told her she’d be punished for what she’d done. Her response seemed practiced. Pitiful.
“Aurelia, look at me,” Nyfain said.
She looked up dutifully, her eyes devoid of emotion, ready to face what came.
Nyfain took a knee in front of her, wincing as he did so. “I wasn’t scolding you, Aurelia. I challenged you, and you answered that challenge in a way none of us expected. You did well here. You need training, that’s all. My mate was a handful in the beginning, too. What I meant was, what was that magic? What did your wolf do?”
“Panic, mostly.”
“You don’t know how you turned the dragons against me?”
She shook her head slowly. “My wolf wasn’t really . . . thinking things through. She mostly just reacts, and you’re mostly just terrifying, more so in dragon form. She used everything at our disposal.”
“And that magic, that mind . . . spin you used on my dragons, that was at your wolf’s disposal?”
She shrugged. “I had the thought we needed help. Then . . . we got help. I’m honestly not sure how. I’ve never been in that situation before.”
Nyfain looked up at Weston for a long moment before he reached out and placed his hand on Aurelia’s shoulder. “Do not beat yourself up over this. You didn’t do anything wrong. In fact, when Weston called you down, you submitted. That was the right response, and very well done. We can build on this.”
She nodded, looking up at him with large, glassy eyes. “Thank you.”
My heart felt like it had been kicked around the floor. My wolf’s ears drooped, and if we’d been in human form, I’d have been sobbing.
A crease formed between the king’s brow as he studied her, truly seeing for the first time what Granny’s treatment had done. It was one thing to hear it while the woman was confidently and defiantly answering questions, but it was another to see this puddle of human. This strong woman was so used to getting beaten down, she simply sat there quietly as she waited for the blows to come.
He didn’t comment further, just patted her shoulder before standing again.
“Hadriel,” Nyfain said, “take her back to her room and get her a hot bath.” To her he said, “No more working today. Bathe, and eat, and relax. I won’t keep your”—he paused—“Weston long. I’ll send him to you in a bit, so you can talk through it.”
“Okay.” She pushed to her feet, and Nyfain stepped back to give her room.
Weston stepped in front of her, placing his hands on her shoulders. He bent, his lips near her ear, whispering something I couldn’t overhear. She nodded once, and then twice. After that she was on her way, her eyes down as she crossed the clearing.
I shifted and hurried to grab our clothes, stomped and kicked around and crushed into the dirt though they were.
“Well, now I’m glad you didn’t change and ruin another of my jackets,” I said, picking up her things. “How do you feel about just walking back naked? These are terrible.”
“It’s okay, I’ll wear them.” She put them on silently without looking up, and I knew she was ready to break.
I was breaking just watching her.
No one was challenged like this their first time; no one was usually challenged at all. This had only happened because she was the alpha’s true mate and posed a risk to the pack. Pushing her like this—bringing out that strange magic she didn’t know how to control—wasn’t fair, not for someone who didn’t know the culture. Not for someone who had only ever known a life of being abused when she wasn’t absolutely perfect. They needed to handle her differently going forward, something I thought the king had made a mental note of. If he hadn’t, Weston surely had. They were two great leaders, and I had faith they’d guard her better going forward.