by Sara Fields
She was perfect. I couldn’t ask for anything more.
I didn’t want to turn away, but now that I was back in the city, I had to find Ariana. I wanted to find out what she had learned about those in the castle while I was away. Not only that, but I wanted to touch base with the men and women in my branch of the Brotherhood. I dressed quickly and made my way down the stairs to pass a message onto a nearby attendant to fetch her for me. In less than ten minutes, she was knocking lightly on the door and I let her in. I poured a glass of tea and passed it to her, sitting down in a small nook near the entryway.
“I trust you’ve been well,” I said softly, and she smiled, taking a sip from her mug.
“I have,” she answered. “But I’ve been busy.”
“I bet you have,” I replied with a smirk.
“I know who smuggled Thranar out of the castle, although I don’t think that’s what’s going to interest you the most out of what I have to tell you,” she began.
“Go on,” I replied, while simply lifting an eyebrow.
“The alliance that was made with Thranar was a sham. He plans to return the same way he slipped out the last time, only this time he plans on slitting Queen Freya’s throat and taking Valgertha as his in the process,” she explained.
I narrowed my eyes and swallowed heavily. With a sigh, I pressed my fingers to the bridge of my nose with frustration. It wasn’t entirely surprising that Thranar didn’t intend to honor the peace treaty. To be honest, he’d agreed to more than I thought he would in tribute and that had been more than suspicious on its own.
“How much do you know about his plan?” I pushed. I needed to know more in order to decide what to do next.
“I learned a great deal. I know when he will arrive. I know where he plans to sneak into the castle and who is going to help him. His allies aren’t careful with their words when I’m cleaning their chambers. They talked as if they forgot I was there entirely,” she smirked.
“Tell me everything you know,” I said softly. “Perhaps it’s time we take care of Thranar once and for all.”
For several hours, the two of us sat and discussed our next move. I was thoroughly impressed by her commitment to gaining all the pertinent intel she had gathered. She had hidden beneath beds, inside closets, and even pretended to deliver specially prepared food with truth serum baked inside it in order to ascertain more about Thranar’s plans. She’d provided a handful of names that I didn’t recognize, but I would soon. I had little doubt each one was a member of the Cult of the Blood Moon, placed here to further their mission at the expense of ours.
The more she told me, the more I wanted to turn the tables on Thranar.
The stairs creaked above me and I looked up to see Freya standing at the top of the stairs. She cocked her head curiously and I smiled up at her.
“I trust you slept well, Queen Freya?” I asked her.
“I did, King Aric,” she replied quietly, her cheeks flushing beautifully as she gazed down at me. Likely, she was reminiscing about how I’d taken her virgin bottom for the first time last night and how much she had thoroughly enjoyed it. I grinned knowingly and she blushed even harder.
“Good,” I said softly. She walked the rest of the way down the stairs and I took her hand in mine and sat her down on my knee.
“What have you two been talking about while I slept?” she asked.
“I’ll fill you in on all the gory details later, but how would you like another chance to kill Thranar, my sweet?” I pressed lightly and she stilled in my arms.
“That treaty was all a ploy, wasn’t it?” she muttered with a sigh. I smirked. I should have known she would have figured that out too. She hadn’t earned her place as queen without being highly intelligent and exceedingly observant herself.
“It was,” I answered as she leaned back against my chest.
“I want to be the one to end him,” she demanded. There wasn’t an ounce of question in her tone. This was what she wanted. This was her command as a queen.
For a moment, I thought about taking the privilege of slitting his throat myself as retribution for what he had done to her, but I pushed that thought away. I could feel the tension in Freya’s body and the connection between us was vibrating hard with her anger. She wanted her own revenge just as much as I did. I decided to let her have it.
“I’ll enjoy watching as you destroy him,” I whispered in her ear and she shivered with delight.
* * *
Freya and I talked further with Ariana for quite a while until we completely understood what Thranar’s plans were. When we were finished, Ariana excused herself in order to get back to her work with the promise to keep her eyes and ears open for any further information, leaving Freya and me alone once more.
For a moment, I just held her, enjoying the feeling of her body against mine. It was as if she was made for me. Maybe she had been. Maybe it was the gods’ will.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
“As your alpha, I know you can handle yourself. If he hurts you again though, I’m going to tear him apart, limb by limb, and all of Valgertha will hear him scream as I kill him. Is that clear?” I answered her and I could feel her lips turning up in a smile against my shoulder.
“Crystal clear,” she sassed.
“Glad you understand,” I replied, slapping her ass lightly with my hand. She giggled and the sound of her laughter was like music to my ears. I kissed the side of her head.
“I need to meet with some of the members of the Brotherhood today. Would you like to come?” I asked and she shook her head.
“No. I wanted to check on Luna today and see how she is settling in,” she answered.
“Thranar’s omega?” I questioned.
“Yes. During the battle, I found her bruised, bloody, and chained to a wall. He’d left her there. I had one of my warriors bring her here,” she spat. Her words were laced with vitriol and I understood even more so now why she wanted the chance to end him herself.
“What was the warrior’s name?” I asked.
“Floki,” she answered. “He’s one of my best and most trusted warriors,” she added.
I stifled a smile. Floki was one of the alphas that belonged to my branch of the Brotherhood. She was right. He was a very strong and very trustworthy warrior indeed.
“She is unbonded?” I pressed.
“He never bonded with her,” she confirmed.
“Do you know much about her? How she came into Thranar’s possession? Where she came from? If she works for anyone?” I questioned further and she shook her head.
I didn’t say it out loud, but the Brotherhood would be very interested in Luna. Perhaps she was just a very unfortunate omega who had been in the wrong place at the wrong time, but it was also likely that she was affiliated with the cult in some way. The Ghost would want to see her questioned for whatever information she had.
As soon as the Brotherhood found out of her existence, I had no doubts that she would be taken and interrogated quite fully until she told them everything she knew. The Brotherhood would never hurt her, but it was important they know their enemy. Since she was an omega, they had ways to use her own instincts against her in order to find out what they wanted. I wondered how long it would take for them to find and take her.
“Make sure she’s healing nicely. The Brotherhood sent along quite a bit of medical supplies when you were healing, so tell your people to utilize whatever they need. More can always be provided,” I said instead.
She climbed out of my lap and pulled her shoulders back. I watched as she veiled herself with her queen persona once more. Her eyes hardened and she tightened her fists at her sides. With a deep breath, she glanced in my direction.
“I will see you later then,” she smiled, her expression softening just a little bit for me. I purred quietly and a single moan escaped her lips. I could smell the glistening slickness between her thighs without even seeing it. A single purr was all it took. Her omega was that tuned in
with my alpha. It didn’t end there though. Her moan hit me like a bolt of lightning, shooting straight down to my cock and making it harden almost instantly.
“That you will, my queen,” I grinned. I shifted in my chair and adjusted the hard length of my cock inside my slacks. I craved the feeling of her wet warmth surrounding every inch of me. I cocked my head to the side, imagining how good it would feel to knot her soaked little pussy again.
She blushed.
I smirked and she turned away, which was probably a good thing because if she stood there much longer, I would have taken her right then and there on the floor. She must have figured out the train of my thoughts because she swayed her hips from side to side a bit more than she usually did. I groaned at her teasing, the sound low in my throat and a soft whimper escaped her lips as she walked out the door, leaving me completely alone once again.
I was glad to see that I had just as much of an effect on her as she had on me.
With a gargantuan effort, I pushed away the arousal my omega had stoked within me and pressed my feet to the floor. I stood up, took a deep breath, and headed out of her chambers and then out of the castle into the city. I carefully meandered my way through the streets until I came upon a dark pub. Last night, I had passed a message along to my branch members for them to meet me here before sundown. When I entered, I saw the men and women that I led sitting in the back at a long table, sipping on mugs of mead and quietly talking to each other. Floki was sitting at the end of one of the benches, and he glanced up at me as I took my own seat at the head of the table. I nodded in greeting to all of them and Floki passed me a very full cup of mead.
“Thank you,” I murmured quietly, and he grinned in my direction.
I took a long draw of the icy cold beverage before I placed it back on the table.
One at a time, each of them informed me of their activities. Many of them fought in battle and had heard various whispers of Thranar’s intentions for Freya and for Valgertha and I was careful not to give away any of my thoughts on the matter. Floki spoke last, informing me of everything he’d learned about Luna along the way, which hadn’t been much. She’d been surprisingly close-lipped about her time in Thranar’s clutches, which was especially concerning to me.
Some of them had piecemeal information on Thranar’s plans, which gave me an even clearer picture of what his arrival would bring. He’d waited less than forty-eight hours since we’d left the destroyed walls of his city to come after us. By my calculations, that meant he was likely to attempt his attack tonight or early in the morning.
I knew the path that he was planning to take. I knew how he was going to sneak into the castle. Instead of sleeping in our beds like he expected us to be, Freya and I were going to meet him head on with our swords at the ready.
I sipped at my mug of mead thoughtfully and looked around the table before I relayed my orders for all of them.
“I want all of you watching the castle tonight. If you see Thranar and his men approaching, you will not engage. Instead, you will report to me his exact whereabouts. Keep in teams of two so that if you spot him, one of you will be able to keep your eyes on him at all times. Understood?” I commanded.
Every one of them nodded at the same time. They would follow my orders without question.
“It’s critical that we stop Thranar. If he is successful in the planned murder of the queen, it will mean that he will have taken the throne of Valgertha, but it won’t end there. He’ll have secured this city for the Cult of the Blood Moon and the Alpha Brotherhood will not stand for that.”
It was time to get back to the castle and protect my queen.
“Understood, Sage,” they said in unison.
“Good. See to it the will of the Brotherhood is done,” I replied, before I took my leave. With haste, I returned to Freya’s chambers to find her inside her bedroom. She was eating a small meal of steamed vegetables, rice, and meat.
“Thranar is going to make his move sometime tonight,” I told her, and she nodded.
“I expected this from him, but not quite so soon,” she sighed. She started to undress down to her cotton underclothes, before she shrugged her gray battle armor on once more. She looked exhausted and I moved closer to her, capturing her wrists in my hands.
“When he comes for us, you’ll be ready for him. Why don’t you get some rest in the meantime?” I suggested and she nodded. I stripped one piece of clothing off her body and then the next until she was fully bare before me. I leisurely ran my fingers along the curve of her breasts before I lifted her up off the floor and deposited her back in her bed. Without wasting any time, I pulled up the covers around her naked form. I brushed my fingers along her cheek and this time, she sighed with longing.
“Sleep now, my omega. I’ll wake you once I hear word that he’s arrived,” I ordered. She nodded, tired enough that she didn’t argue with me. She and I both knew how important it was that she was well rested in a fight. There was no way that she could take on Thranar if she was this tired. Her small fingers curled around the sheets, pulling them close to her as she closed her eyes. In no time at all, she was fast asleep, her steady breathing giving her away. I sat down in one of the chairs in the bedroom and waited.
Thranar wouldn’t arrive for several more hours, but when he did, he was going to have a well-rested and very angry little omega to contend with. I grinned. He didn’t know what was coming for him and I was going to enjoy every last second when he did.
Chapter Eleven
Freya
I’m not sure how long I slept for, but I woke with a start the moment I felt Aric’s fingers grasp my right shoulder. It was time. Quickly, he helped me dress in my leather battle armor. He also opened my armoire and handed me several of my favorite weapons. I noticed that he was wearing his own too. There was an elegant dagger on his waist that had several dark blue gemstones embedded in the handle. When he noticed me looking at it, he cleared his throat and pulled it free from its sheath.
“It was a gift. The leader of the Brotherhood gave it to me when I was granted sage status,” he said softly. The blade looked sharp and was about the length of my forearm. It was really quite ornate. The handle appeared to be made of folded silver that was furnished into an intricate rope design inlaid with several different types of glittering stones.
He handed the knife to me so that I could take a closer look. When I was turning it slowly in my fingers, he untied the sheath from his waist and fastened it to my belt instead.
“You’d let me fight with this?” I asked softly, watching as he knelt before me, tying the knot nice and tight. His eyes found mine and he smiled as he stood back up.
“I expect you to kill him with it,” he replied, cocking his head to the side. I could feel his pride and his love all in that single look and my own heart pounded hard in my chest.
I had fallen for this man.
Our pair bond pulsed and all at once, I wanted to finalize it and mark him for my own. I wanted to claim him for myself just as he had claimed me.
There wasn’t time for that now though. Instead, we had to fight Thranar. I had to kill him.
“Where is he?” I asked carefully, reluctantly pushing my thoughts of the completion of our bond aside.
“He’s not far. We have to go,” he said, and I was sure that he could guess what I was thinking. I took a deep breath in order to steady myself and the two of us made our way out of my chambers all the way down to the throne room. Based off of our intel, Thranar had planned to meet with his followers that he had stationed in the castle here, but just hours before his arrival I’d had every one of them captured as quietly as possible. They were all sitting in individual prison cells deep in the lower reaches of my fortress. I had yet to decide if I was going to let them survive the day or rot for the rest of their lives down there for treason. Time would tell their fate. Right now, though, I had more important things to worry about.
Thranar was coming for me and I was ready to end him.
It didn’t take long.
A lone figure entered the room in a long blood-red cape, likely the insignia for the cult. I sat up a bit taller and leaned to one side, placing my elbow on the armrest. I lifted my chin with carefully calculated arrogance and remained completely still. It was clear that the tall form was a man and when his gaze met mine, he stilled with alarm.
I smiled.
“Good evening, Thranar. Have you come for a visit already? Did you miss your omega? Better yet, did you miss me?” I asked brazenly. My voice was loud, and it echoed in the massive chamber. Anyone who was even remotely close by would have heard it. Aric chuckled beside me, while Thranar stopped in his tracks.
He pushed back the hood of his cape. The look of annoyed surprise on his face was just as satisfying as I had imagined it would be.
“Not expecting us, were you then?” I pressed further, folding my hands together as I leaned forward on my throne.
“I don’t give a fuck about Luna,” he growled.
“But you do give a damn about me, I think. That’s why you were coming to visit me tonight in my bed, weren’t you,” I grinned, sitting back once more only to spread my legs suggestively before him. His upper lip rolled with anger, but it only fueled my boldness even further. My dark leather pants creaked in the ensuing silence. The tension was so thick between us that the very air in the room felt like it was vibrating with it.
I reveled in it. I was born for this.
My inner alpha reared her head and the omega within twisted with her into a formidable force that wouldn’t be subdued until my blade with stained with Thranar’s blood. He’d already tried to kill me once, trying to take what wasn’t his to claim. Now he’d come to murder both Aric and me while we slept. I was sure that he wouldn’t have stopped there either. He’d probably have killed Luna too and moved onto the next available omega he could find only to hurt her too. I wasn’t going to allow that to happen. It was my duty to stop him, once and for all.
