by Zoey Ellis
“And what about as queen?”
At that, Zanya's brows raised. “Queen of the Western Lands?” She nodded thoughtfully. “That would indeed be something if you were able to make decisions. But I would have to believe it when I see it.” She grinned. “If anybody can do it you can.”
Amara smiled. “Thank you.” Something suddenly occurred to her. “How come you can contact me here? You haven't been able to contact me before, have you?”
Zanya shook her head. “It's very difficult to get any kind of contact while outside of the castle.”
Amara stilled. “You're in the castle?”
Zanya nodded, smiling. “We’ve finally come to get the children. We are just sending the last of them through the portal now.”
Amara jerked. “Wait,” she said urgently. “You can't take them. There is much more to know about them before you can take them.”
“Anything we need to know you can tell us when we have them,” Zanya said. “We had to take the opportunity while it was available to us.”
“No, you don't understand. They need to be in that chamber!”
Zanya frowned at her. “You know what’s happening to them, to the children?”
“Yes,” Amara said urgently. “And I need you to leave them where they are. Didn’t the Mothers get my message?”
Zanya shook her head. “No, we didn’t. But it's too late for that. I just sent the last of them through.”
“Where are you taking them?”
“To the Omega Compound,” Zanya said hesitantly. “Mother Orlee is here if you are able to come and speak to her.”
Amara disconnected from the link as quickly as she could and then ran out of the room. The guards started in surprise as she burst out of the door, but she didn't even see them. She raced to the underground area of the castle, her mind turning over the scenario. If the children were going to the Omega Compound that might be all right for them, but what would happen to Malloron if they were no longer in the room that held the spell to keep them secure and connected to the tenebris? He had said that he wouldn’t survive without them. It was too risky to even take a chance on removing them now. No wonder one of the vibrations within her had suddenly changed—it was the tenebris.
She weaved through the corridors, rushing to get to the dungeons as quickly as possible. By the time she reached the area, she was sweating and panting, her guards running with her.
Pulling the lever, she hurried through the wall, but her guards didn’t follow.
The chamber was now empty with only a large portal at one end that shone brightly, lighting up the entire space. About three cloaked bodies lay on the floor, and Amara did not doubt that the woman she had spoken to was one of them.
She rushed to the portal, toward her team. The ones she worked with directly were all there; Lisara, Helenka, Zanya, and Kekia, and her heart sang that they all looked safe and well. They all grinned at her as she neared, and she grinned back, but something was different now. Even though they looked the same, she didn’t feel like one of them anymore and they had to learn that.
“You need to put the children back,” she called. “There's more going on here than you know. It is too dangerous for the children to leave this room; it is shrouded by spells that keep them safe.”
Lisara sobered. “It has already been done, Amara. I understand that you are now with the king. He may have swayed your opinions, but it does not change the fact that these children were suffering.”
“No, they weren’t!” Amara snapped. “They were never suffering. That is not what I told the Mothers.”
“You didn't tell the Mothers enough for us to not do this,” Kekia said, frowning. “Last time we spoke to them you gave your approval.”
“I have since learned more,” Amara insisted. “You need to put the children back.”
“It is out of our hands. We don't have the authority.”
“Who does?”
Zanya looked at her strangely. “The Mothers, of course.” She gestured to the portal. “You may speak to them if you wish.”
Amara marched toward the portal and stepped through. She stilled as the familiar smell of the Omega Compound surrounded her. The sunlight almost blinded her, and as her eyes adjusted, she realized it was afternoon in the Eastern Lands, where the Omega Compound was based. However, when she looked around, she didn't recognize this part of the compound. This area seemed to be closed off—there were no other Omegas and it was extremely quiet. Before her rows and rows of beds with the children hovered at hip height. Her team had simply directed their beds through the portal. She couldn't guess how many there were, but it was more than she'd ever seen.
“Amara.”
She turned to see Mother Orlee smiling at her. “Mother Orlee,” she breathed.
Orlee hugged her and she was instantly reminded of moments of her childhood. This had once been her home.
“I'm so glad you are here,” Mother Orlee said, pulling back to look at her. “You have indeed grown into a beautiful woman. I am amazed to see that crown on your head.”
Amara jolted in surprise as she realized she was still wearing the clothes from the celebration. She looked at Mother Orlee carefully. “You told me I could choose him and you wouldn't hold it against me.”
Mother Orlee smiled, but it was a sad one. “Indeed. I'm sure you realized by now that he is your true mate?”
Amara inhaled a breath. “How did you know?”
“He was able to detect you while you were blocked,” Mother Orlee explained. “It happened between you differently from what we usually hear about, but it still happened nonetheless.” She hesitated. “I am happy for you, I truly am. If anybody told me that you and King Malloron were true mates a year ago, I would have sworn that they were insane.” She laughed. “But we cannot choose our true mates.”
Amara's heart soared at her words. It was almost as though Orlee was giving her permission to be on Malloron side. “No, we cannot,” she agreed. She took a breath. “Mother, I need to tell you about the children. It is not as we thought.”
Mother Orlee's expression sobered. “What do you mean?”
“They are in danger here. The chamber they were in keeps them tethered.”
“Tethered to what?” Mother Orlee said, alarmed.
The flurry of movement next to her caught Amara's eye. Her team was suddenly rushing through the portal. “What’s happening?”
“We've been detected,” Zanya shouted. “Quickly, quickly come through.” She beckoned the others as they hurried through the portal.
“No,” Amara said quickly. “Wait!”
As the final person stepped through, a number of men rushed into the chamber, including her guards, and she saw Malloron running into the middle of the space. He froze when he saw her, the shock on his face turning her insides to stone.
And then the portal twisted, shifted, and dissipated.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
MALLORON
Malloron stood in the center of the red dungeon, his heart pounding as the portal dissipated into nothing, breaking his eye contact with his Omega on the other side.
His whole body went numb as the obvious truth burned into his mind. Amara was still working with the Omega Mothers against him. There was no other way that they would be able to get into the dungeon, or even know where it was unless she had told them recently, and now she escaped with them to wherever the portal led.
He stood frozen as his men examined the lingering energy of the portal, numerous emotions battering his chest as he tried to pinpoint what his next step should be, but he couldn’t focus. He was completely thrown by the sight of his Omega betraying him, once again, even though he had sworn he wouldn’t let it happen; even though she had tried to convince him that they could start again.
Seeing her gorgeous form with that crown on her head had been incredible. He couldn’t recall another moment in his life when he was so enraptured by anything. The ceremony had taken on a different meaning with her
there and for the first time, he realized what it could feel like to not be alone, to have someone who would share his throne with him, who would talk about things with him—someone who belonged to him who he could care for. It was in that moment that he decided he would bring her into the negotiations with Valinor, that he would share her existence with the Lands and celebrate her the way she should be honored. Of course, he knew that it would take some time for Amara to accept some of the things that they had talked about, but since the time they had gained that closeness when she was blind, it was as though he couldn’t close his mind to the possibility of what they could have.
Yet he had, once again, been lulled into a false sense of belief that she understood his needs and wouldn’t act against him again—at least not in such a detrimental way… that she would take the children after he already explained that he wouldn’t be able to survive without the tenebris.
“The portal led to somewhere in the Eastern Lands,” one of his Talent-crafters said. “We could recreate it; it shouldn’t take too long but we have no anchor on the other side.”
Malloron stared at the point where the portal had been. They could chase after her, but then what? What would he go there to do? Collect the Omega that betrayed him twice? Take the children back?
Even if he did that, what would be his next step? He thought he could cut himself off from her emotionally, but he saw now that it was impossible. He couldn’t do it. Not only was it hard for him, but it hurt her too. He loved her too much. And he realized that he didn’t want to do it. He’d had a glimpse of what it could be like to have her as his queen and he wanted that above everything else. He wanted her to talk with him like she had after he’d shared his memories, he wanted her helping him to figure things out like she’d helped him find the reason for her blindness, he wanted her to be proud to be by his side like he thought she was during the Nyek tribe joining ceremony. But he would never have any of that because she didn’t really want to be with him. She had made that known to him multiple times but he hadn’t listened. He had forced the bond on her because he felt so right with her, and been so fiercely caught up in what he wanted that he never saw the risks—twice now there were risks that he had not seen.
If he forced her to come back, how could he live alongside an Omega who was constantly aiming to betray him? He could keep her locked up, but then she would be unhappy, and he would be unhappy. He had never expected to want her so much, never even wanted to at first, but it was clear he couldn’t have her and the throne. And his need for one paled in comparison to his need for the other.
He had been a fool. Just like his father.
“What would you like us to do. Your Majesty,” one of his men said, knocking him out of his thoughts.
Malloron looked around the room, realizing that his men were waiting for him to give them an instruction. Amazingly, some of the Southern Land warriors were among them, and his heart sank even further that now that he had everything he’d always wanted, it didn't really matter because he only wanted the one thing he never knew he needed; his Omega. If he had to choose, it would have to be her. And she was gone.
As he opened his mouth to answer them, the sheen of the magic that ran along the wall of the chamber caught his eye. He tensed, suddenly alert as he realized what his main concern should be. The children had been removed from the chamber, which meant that they were no longer tethered to the magic that would keep them comfortable while their Talent was used. If they became uncomfortable, there was no telling what would happen to the tenebris. And it was currently inside Amara!
Panic began to build. Just because she was an Omega did not mean that she would not suffer with the tenebris inside her. There was no telling what could happen once the children were removed from the safety of the chamber. His grandfather had looked at this kind of thing, but his grandfather had never experimented with an Omega who had been so in tune with the tenebris like Amara. Maybe it wouldn't affect her at all, but it could also be detrimental to her being. He couldn’t underestimate the tenebris; it was a wild and untamed energy that could burn her from the inside out, just like it had done with the Beta. He had no idea what could happen to her, and no research existed that could even help him to guess.
The bond in his chest jittered and jumped, and his own panic rocketed as he realized that she could be suffering right now. He turned on the spot, aiming to head to the Visant temple to find an answer, but stopped in his tracks when he realized the temple was still in disarray. It would not help him. The bond crashed in his chest, wave after wave of distress coming from his Omega. What the fuck was happening?!
“Your Majesty?” the man asked him again.
Malloron turned to him slowly. An eerie calmness coming over him as he realized what he had to do. “Leave.”
The man frowned and hesitated. He glanced at the other men the room, who looked just as confused. “Pardon me, Your Majesty?”
“I will deal with this,” Malloron said. “Go.”
The man stood shocked for a moment and then nodded briskly. He tilted his head toward the door to indicate that the other men leave with him, and they all streamed out.
As they left, Emric came rushing in. “Your Majesty,” he said hurriedly. He stopped, looking around in horror. “What happened in here? Where are they all?”
“What is it, Emric?” Malloron said, calmly.
“I don't mean to disturb you,” Emric said, “but you should know that your siblings are here.”
Malloron nodded. He wasn’t that surprised but he’d hoped they might be smart and try to leave the Western Lands. Clearly, their intelligence had not improved over time. “Where are they?”
“They’re using magic to track you through Visant blood,” Emric said, almost apologetically. “They think you have Elion, and they want to take him back.”
“Where is Elion?”
“He asked to be escorted to Valinor's prison to collect the remainder of your grandfather’s research,” Emric said nervously. “He said that he thinks most of it was destroyed with Brecc's manor, but that some of it might still be at the prison. I allowed him to go, because he was escorted. He should be back within the hour.”
“Did he select the books that had spells in them?”
“Yes.”
“Good,” Malloron nodded. “Destroy them.”
“Destroy them?” Emric asked, his brows, pulling together. “Are you sure, Your Majesty? This is your grandfather's research.”
“Yes,” Malloron said firmly. “There is something I need to do here, and I think it will be best if the research was destroyed.”
Emric nodded and turned to go, and then hesitated. “Your Majesty,” he said slowly, watching Malloron closely. “Is everything all right? Do you need me to stay? If your siblings are tracking you, they will be able to find you.”
Malloron shook his head. “No, you don't need to stay. I will deal with my siblings. In fact, I need you out of their way.”
Emric nodded and then bowed deeply before moving on.
As he left, the wave-like bond became an intense torrent of dark emotion, and Malloron's panic heightened even further. He had no idea what was happening to Amara, but he could not stand by while she suffered. Especially when she was carrying his children. He had to take action.
Stepping forward and closing his eyes, he began to cast a spell in the Ancient Tongue. It was a spell he thought he would never use, but one that every king was forced to learn, and recite every day of their youth before becoming the king.
As the spell tingled within him, Malloron's mood dropped to the lowest point it had ever been. This was going to be the end of him.
As he finished casting, an enormous pain crashed through his body starting from his scalp to the very tips of his toes as the code that connected his blood to the tenebris was ripped from every inch of him. He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, forcing himself to get through it, then almost immediately a wave of numbness worked through him slowly, s
tarting in his toes. As each part of him became numb, he lost all feeling and all control over his body. As the numbness ran up his legs, he began to fall.
Within moments, he crumpled to the floor, unable to move. And as the numbness arrived at his head, he lost all feeling in the bond.
Once again he found himself in the position that he thought he would never ever be in, a position that he had sworn he would never allow himself to enter, but there was no other way to release the tenebris from Amara when she was so far away. It was the only way to ensure she was not going to suffer. Once the tenebris left her body, she could help the children however they ended up. She could help his children, and she could help herself. And he would make it his only goal to find her again, even if he could never move unaided for the rest of his life.
A low chuckle caught his attention, but he was completely unable to move to look around the chamber.
Footsteps surrounded him, and instantly he knew whose they were.
“Hello, brother.” Avala’s voice hoarse and aged was almost unrecognizable, however, her usual sarcasm and cruel tone was stronger than ever.
Malloron couldn't feel anything anymore; no emotion and no physical feeling. And it didn’t matter either. All he could hope was that Amara and his children stayed with the Omegas and didn’t return to this Land.
Avala’s voice was suddenly closer. “It seems we have been in this position before.”
Malloron ignored her. Closing his eyes, he thought of his Omega.
CHAPTER TWELVE
AMARA
Amara screamed in horror as the last strands of magic from the portal disappeared into nothing.
All she could see was the sandy horizon of the Omega Compound, spreading way into the distance. She was in the fucking Eastern Lands! The farthest away she could ever be from her Alpha.
“Open it!” she yelled at Zanya, almost hysterically. “Open it back up!”
Zanya stared at her, shocked. “I cannot do that, Amara. I was ordered to—”
