FATED BLOOD (The Twisted Destiny Saga, #5)

by Franca Storm

He took her hand in his and told her, “Cora, the way you carry yourself, your actions and your abilities are what garner you respect. That is all you need.”

  She smiled sweetly at him. “Very wise in your old age, aren’t you?”

  “In case you’ve forgotten, we’re the same age. It’s just that I have more experience than you. That’s all. I know you’re nervous, but everyone at that meeting is gonna be in your corner. They fucking love you, Cora.”

  They reached the throne room and she stopped a couple of feet back. “Thank you, baby,” she told him. “Good pep talk.”

  He winked at her. “Go get ‘em.”

  She drew in a deep breath and strode into the throne room with Ryan following close behind, Orion held tightly in his arms. Josh had offered to babysit yet again but Ryan and Cora had refused, not wanting to let Orion out of their sight. They both knew they were being insanely protective and clingy with their son, but after losing him they couldn’t help it.

  Cora glanced around the Sacra Mensa—the Sacred Table of the White Realm—as she strode confidently towards it. Everyone she’d invited was seated. Asha—the Guardian of the Dragons and longtime member of the Royal Court nodded respectfully at her. Marella sat beside her and flashed her a kind smile. Opposite her was Shaye who looked anxious. Well, it was her first time ever being invited to a meeting of the Royal Court. In between the three of them was her father’s former seat at the head of the table. The seat that she was about to take. At the other end of the table, Nathanial sat in his courtly black robes, to the right of the seat at the other head of the table. It took her a moment to realize why he hadn’t taken the head seat. It was because Ryan was attending the meeting also. If he took the head seat it would be a sign of disrespect to the Wolf King. Nathanial winked at her.

  To Cora’s surprise, all of them suddenly shot to their feet—a sign of the utmost respect for her arrival in the room. She smiled kindly at them and then took her seat. As she did, they all followed suit and returned to their seats. Ryan settled in at the far end of the table, one seat over from Nathanial. He stroked Orion to keep him calm for the proceedings. He tended to get a little riled up whenever he was around other people—their little wolf pup liked to show everyone what he was made of. Just like his father, Cora thought.

  “Thank you for coming. Nathanial, I appreciate you taking time out of what I know is a very busy time for you right now to join us here today,” Cora spoke.

  Since Ryan and Nathanial had officially united as joint Kings of the Dark Realm, a lot had needed to be done in regards to mending the rift between wolves and vampires. It had been a very busy time for both him and Ryan. Cora knew that, because with Ryan’s refusal to be apart from either her or Orion, she had accompanied him each time he’d travelled to work in the Dark Realm. It had been educational for her though, because she’d gained a solid understanding of how they ran things over there. It was important to her to understand everything she could about the Dark Realm seeing as though it would be her greatest ally once her plans reached completion.

  “Before we get into the meat of why I’ve called you all here, there are a couple of things I wish to say first,” Cora began. She glanced around the table to make sure she had everyone’s attention. Once she was satisfied that she did, her gaze rested on Asha and Marella. “Asha, Guardian of the Dragons and Marella, Head of the Coven of White Witches,” she said formally. “I thank you for your indispensible service to the realm, for taking on the burden of governing following King Vazra’s untimely death.” As she mentioned Vazra’s death—his murder at her hands—she saw a twinkle of amusement in Nathanial’s eyes as well as a smile from Asha and Marella. Clearly they hadn’t opposed her decision to forcibly overthrow him then.

  “It was our pleasure, Cora,” Asha responded.

  Cora nodded politely. And then she gestured to Shaye. “I invited Shaye to this meeting as I wish her to take on the role of my personal advisor.”

  Shaye’s eyes were wide with surprise. An audible gasp escaped her lips. “Me?” she asked in surprise.

  “You have been a great asset both to my husband and to me over the difficult months we have all endured. You have the wisdom and patience that I desire in an advisor. Will you do me the honor of accepting this appointment?” Cora said.

  Shaye smiled excitedly and nodded her head. “I would be honored.”

  Cora watched her and Ryan exchanged a look. She could see the pride in his eyes. She drew in a breath to compose herself for what she was about to say and then she rose to her feet. Everyone’s eyes were on her.

  “I didn’t know my father, King Vazra well. But in the time that I did have with him, it became apparent that he was not the King that he believed himself to be. During my time spent in Spiritomb, I came to learn of more disturbing truths regarding his rule of the White Realm. I wish to enlighten everyone to these today. Everything I am about to say will become public knowledge. Every subject within the realm must know the truth.” She paused to collect herself and her gaze fell on Nathanial as she said, “Nathanial, King of the Dark Realm has never wished war upon the White Realm. His agenda is to unite the realms, to form a lasting peace. Not only is he not the villain that Vazra made him out to be, but he is a merciful, generous and wise ruler. And he will be looked upon as such by our people as much as his own. My father sought to destroy the Dark Realm with the aid of disgraced sorceress, Oriana. He betrayed Nathanial several times over. We are fortunate that Nathanial showed the White Realm so much restraint or we would have faced a destructive war several times over as a result of Vazra’s misguided decisions. This realm needs a ruler who has its people’s best interests at heart. A ruler who does not rule with prejudice or with personal gains in mind. And this court needs a ruler who respects them and recognizes the value of their counsel.” She paused briefly to gauge their reaction. Nathanial’s was the one that stood out. He smiled at her with admiration and gratitude at her having taken the time to publicly vindicate him after all these centuries.

  “I am new to this. I have never ruled before and I was never groomed to take the throne. My father wanted to rule eternally. I respect that I have much to learn and that is why I need your support with what I am about to proclaim. I need your guidance, your experience. This court is an invaluable tool to me; the most valuable tool. And going forward, I would ask that Nathanial and Ryan attend all meetings of this court if it suits their schedules at the time. The Dark Realm is our greatest ally. What we do affects them and vice-versa. We must be as one.”

  “Cora, it would be my pleasure. I had suggested such a thing to Vazra,” Nathanial said. He glanced at Ryan for his agreement and Ryan nodded and flashed Cora a wink.

  “Thank you. My proclamation? I will take the throne of the White Realm. I will rule as your Queen. But I will only do so with your support. You all know I possess the power to protect the realm, but I wish to do more than that—to be involved with every aspect of the realm, to serve our people to the fullest extent of my ability.”

  She had barely finished speaking when everyone rose to their feet and starting applauding wildly. She just managed to stifle a laugh when she heard a wolf-whistle of support from Ryan. She couldn’t believe it. She’d expected some resistance, given how new she was to all of this. But there was nothing but support from every single member of the court.

  When the applause finally ceased and they all returned to their seats, Marella told her, “The best time for a ruler to learn is on the job.”

  “The throne is your birthright,” Asha said. “You are our rightful Queen, Cora.”

  “And she’s the only one who has the power to keep the realm safe,” Shaye added.

  “We will arrange the coronation ceremony for one week from now,” Marella said, eyeing Asha.

  Asha nodded her agreement.

  “Following your official inauguration as Queen, I want us to unite the realms,” Nathanial announced, his confident, commanding baritone filling the room.

&nbs
p; “That will be my first act as Queen,” Cora assured him. “It has already been too long coming.”

  As Cora fielded a few more questions, she caught Nathanial looking at her intently. It was as though he was scrutinizing her. He wasn’t reading her thoughts. She would have felt his intrusion in her head. But it looked as though he wanted to. What was he up to?

  It wasn’t long before the meeting was concluded. Everyone was excited about the turn of events. Asha and Shaye were engrossed in conversation. Ryan was chatting away with Marella. And Nathanial had slipped away to God knew where. She wasn’t surprised. Vampires were notorious for being in one place one moment and slipping away the next. Cora decided to take the opportunity to get some fresh air and some alone time. She walked out of the room and down the corridor until she reached the steps outside that led down to the gardens below. She leaned against the wall, looking out over the gardens. She released a deep sigh.

  “Being a ruler is a great responsibility,” a voice came from behind her suddenly.

  She spun around to see Nathanial standing there, regarding her curiously, his arms folded across his chest. “Nothing I can’t handle,” she responded a little tersely. She was becoming increasingly aggravated by his intrusive looks.

  “You will need help. Marella and Asha have centuries of experience that you can draw on,” he advised her.

  “I know, Nathanial. Thank you for your advice,” she said, dismissively. She moved to turn away but in a sudden rush of vampire speed, his hand gripped her wrist, holding her still as he invaded her personal space.

  “I know of your meetings.”

  “What?”

  “Kristoff. Michael. Davidas.”

  Oh shit. “You’ve been spying on me?”

  “I keep a close eye on all developing situations. It is both my prerogative and my responsibility as ruler of the Dark Realm.”

  She pulled her arm from his grip. “What was discussed in those private meetings is not of your concern,” she told him.

  He regarded her calmly for a moment before telling her, “Your father kept many secrets, Cora. As such, I was never able to trust him, something that made things very difficult between us and the realms which we governed. It was a concern to me. But never a grave concern, because I always knew that his magick could never overpower mine. With you, that is clearly not the case. Your power is beyond mine.” He leaned in close, his fiery red eyes boring into hers as he added, “So you can imagine the depth of my concern now; to know that you are keeping secrets already.”

  Her gaze softened. He was right. She understood exactly where he was coming from. “My secrets are to protect you and Ryan.”

  “Secrets protect no one, Cora.”

  “In this case they do, Nathanial,” she shot back.

  “I could understand if you were only keeping this from Ryan, given his distaste for Davidas, especially and given his infamous temper. But the fact that you are keeping it from me is what is concerning. If I didn’t know better, I’d have to assume that you were plotting against the Dark Realm.”

  “Nathanial--”

  “Why else would the soon-to-be Queen of the White Realm be keeping a secret from both of the Dark Realm Kings?” he challenged.

  “I am keeping it from everyone,” she clarified.

  “Except for the three most untrustworthy and suspicious beings in all the realms.”

  Damn, he’s got me there. “All three of which only respond to power—something I have a great deal of and something that ensures their loyalty to me and, thus, their discretion.”

  “Davidas supplied you with faerie magick. The other two…both wielders of black magic…” Nathanial mused aloud. His eyes flashed with realization. “This is about Oriana!”

  Dammit! Why does he have the ability to outsmart everyone? She didn’t respond. She watched Nathanial step back and begin to pace up and down in front of her.

  “You have not made your peace with the events that led up to your death as you have led Ryan and the others to believe,” he accused.

  As much as Cora tried to tell herself to shut the hell up, she couldn’t contain the rage bubbling up inside her at Nathanial’s mentioned of her death. “She took my life!” she blurted out.

  Nathanial’s gaze snapped to hers. “Vengeance is fury fuelled by pain and rage. Once you allow it to seep into your consciousness, it grows and grows. You believe you will destroy the source of it—Oriana—but that is not how the world works, Cora. You will only destroy yourself. You must let it go. It will twist your thoughts. The fact that you met with the three of them only supports my claim. They are all dangerous men, driven only by their own selfish agendas. And Davidas? He took you against your will yet you are so desperate to get back at Oriana that you allowed him back into your life.”

  “You want her dead as much as I do. It wasn’t long ago that you were training me to kill her.”

  “With a clear mind, Cora. Not like this. Rage and notions of vengeance will destabilize your magick, just like they did with Vazra. That is why your murdered him, your father. You lost control. You cannot deny it to me. I watched you that night. I saw the look in your eyes.”

  “I am beyond that now. I can maintain control no matter what I am feeling.”

  Nathanial cocked an eyebrow in surprise. “Is that so?”

  “Yes, it’s true. I learned a lot being dead and all. I see everything now. I know where Oriana is. And I will kill her. You know my secret now, so this discussion is over.”

  She moved to pass him but his hand shot out suddenly and swept across her belly.

  “You would risk this?”

  She looked up at him, startled. “What?”

  “You are with child.”

  “How did you--?”

  “Oriana used this exact spell to keep her pregnancy with Ryan secret from me. I know it well and I can see through it with the greatest of ease. I see the swell of your belly, whilst everyone else sees nothing. A girl. You are already quite far along. You need a significant amount of magick to sustain her, Cora, given that she is part wolf, just like Orion. Taking on Oriana is a risk. Is that why you have not told Ryan of your plans?”

  Cora breathed a sigh of defeat. “Yes. And I know how close you are to him, so it’s why I kept it from you too. Nothing to do with politics, Nathanial.”

  He smiled. “Well, I am relieved of that. But you cannot do this without telling him. What if you lose the child?”

  She pulled away, offended by the suggestion. “I won’t. I am no longer the naïve little woman that I was when I first met Ryan.”

  “Oh, I am well aware of that, Cora. I noticed the change in you immediately when you returned.”

  She took his words in, startled by his perceptiveness. But she recovered quickly and said, “She will die tonight. And we will all be celebrating by morning.”

  Before Nathanial could utter another word, she teleported away, leaving him staring after her worriedly.

  CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

  “You’re sure about this?” Cora asked as she straddled Ryan on their bed. He was shirtless, wearing only a pair of black boxers; his wrists cuffed to the bed frame above his head.

  “It’s what I promised you,” Ryan responded.

  “I know, but--”

  “You wanted to take control in bed, didn’t you?”

  She nodded.

  He grinned at her. “Then have at it, darlin’,” he told her, releasing a calming breath in an effort to relax. He had never given up control like this before; not to any woman. He was more than a little nervous and he knew Cora was picking up on it and that was what was making her so hesitant now. Despite his reservations he wanted to give this to her. They’d fought long and hard over this very issue and he wanted to show her that she was his equal, that she could take control just as much as he could. He understood how important it was to their marriage that he did this for her. He just had to keep reminding himself to let her continue, no matter what and not break the cuffs,
which he would be able to do with the greatest of ease. No restraints could hold him now—his strength as Wolf King was such that he could even break silver restraints if he needed to. And the cuffs Cora was using were flimsy at best—they were actually his play things.

  He watched as she lifted her white tank top above her head, freeing her gorgeous breasts. Immediately, he pulled against his restraints, wanting to touch them, to put his mouth on them. Fuck. She smiled with amusement and leaned down to kiss him. There was nothing sweet or gentle about it as she took his mouth in a hard, brutal kiss. She didn’t give him a chance to catch his breath as her tongue forced its entry, tasting him, devouring his own ruthlessly. When she finally pulled back he was panting with desperation at her teasing. He wanted her so badly, needed to touch her and take her as his. But he resisted. She was in control right now, not him. Fuck, this is difficult.

  She smiled slyly at him, causing him to wonder what the hell she was about to do. He’d never seen such a fiery, dangerous look from her before. And then she did something that he’d never expected.

  She raked her sharp nails along his skin, starting with his neck, then his collarbone, his chest, pressing down hard, almost enough to draw blood at a slow, torturous pace. He couldn’t help himself. He writhed beneath her as she set every fucking nerve ending on fire, triggering so many delicious sensations that he could barely hold still. She was playing with him like a wolf would. He knew she was demonstrating that she could give him exactly what he wanted—that she could fuck just like a wolf; that she could be everything he needed.

  She stopped at the waistband of his boxers. And then she crawled back up to his neck. Her mouth and tongue traced her earlier path, soothing the sting of the blood-red marks that her nails had etched into his skin. He moaned in pleasure at the feel of her hot, wet tongue all over his upper body. Fuck, he wanted her tongue, her mouth on his cock. Now! He had to fight every instinct he had not to break the cuffs and make it happen.

  “Patience, baby,” she teased, sensing his need.