*Isaac*
“How did you get in here?”
The young man, no older than myself, rolls his neck as his gaze drops from my face to scan the room. “It’s a strange feeling being on the brink of war, isn’t it? Knowing it’s coming and knowing there’s only so much you can do to prepare.” His eyes meet mine again, cold and stone-gray.
I know who he is, but he isn’t what I expected. Young, a somewhat sarcastic tone to his voice, something that makes him sound almost boyish. For a man in control of a mystical army, one that has already flattened several rogue villages and is slowly encroaching on my territory, he seems entirely too… casual.
But I can feel the power on him. Not just his wolf, no. Something much darker, colder, something that sucks the light right out of the room. Juxtaposed with my own powers, most of which I still don’t understand, I feel like I’m the only one standing between him and the castle being sucked into a dark abyss.
“Alpha King Kane,” I say with deadly malice, my patience lost, “I’m not in the mood to play games right now. Why are you here? How did you get here?”
He chuckles, one cheek dimpling when the corners of his mouth twitch with a ghost of a smile. “Ah, Alpha King has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?”
I narrow my eyes at him. “You won’t be leaving this castle alive, so whatever you came to say, do it now.”
“Hackles down, little king.” He clicks his tongue, amused, as his eyes follow my progress. I walk to the other side of the room, giving myself the space I need to shift when the moment comes. “I’m here to pass a message along.” He stands without as much as jostling the loose papers on my desk. A shadow hugs him, and the room fills with the sound of hushed whispers that overwhelm the crackling fire.
“Say it then,” I command. I feel a familiar ache in my hands, like all of the blood is rushing to my fingertips. My wolf is trying to get out, but I can’t tell if it’s only the desire to shift spurring the transformation into action, or if that part of me is trying to flee whatever magic this man is using.
“I’ve been commanded to take this territory, this kingdom, by force if necessary. I’m giving you the chance to save your people and your title. Stand down to our forces, and your kingdom will be untouched.” Kane turns, giving me his shoulder as he looks down at my desk littered with maps and loose parchment. He traces a finger down one of the maps. “Give up your crown, and your people will live.”
“No.”
He turns to look at me with an unreadable expression. “This won’t be a war like your people have seen before.”
“My people are stronger than ever. The Diamond of Faith was returned to its rightful temple, which has restored peace in my lands for over twenty years. If you think you can walk into my territory and forcibly take that peace from me and the packs I lead, you’re making a grave mistake.”
Kane eyes me as I pace back across the room.
“What do you want, Kane? You have your own kingdom, do you not? No summons we’ve ever sent have been answered. No warriors we sent to the mountains, to the boundary, have ever seen or heard from the kingdom that is rumored to exist on the other side. What is it that you want?”
“You have something that belongs to us.” His voice echoes around the room.
“Name it, and you can have it back as long as your people stay out of my lands.”
Kane’s mouth twitches into a smirk. “Ah, it’s not that easy, and it’s not something you will just give away.”
“Name. It.”
I can feel the transformation taking place, and I’m unable to stop it. I grip the back of the couch until my knuckles turn white and send a message down the mindlink to my warriors, and to Cassian, but the connection is met with silence. Kane smiles at me, noticing the hint of apprehension in my expression. But then his eyes settle on the door, and he goes rigid. I straighten up as the sound of footsteps and soft voices cut through the magic pulsating through the room.
I follow his gaze to the door as the knob begins to turn. “Name your price, Kane. What is it that my kingdom has that belongs to you?”
The air shifts, sending a draft of pure heat from the fireplace. The door swings open, Ella and Madeline stepping into the room before I can warn them. “Stop–”
“Who were you talking to? Good Goddess, it’s hot in here.” Ella walks in, dropping a coat on the couch. I whirl to look back at my desk, then around the room.
Kane is gone.
“Get out. Both of you go back to your rooms immediately,” I say hurriedly, grabbing Ella by the arm and rushing her into the hallway. My hand lands on Madeline’s lower back, and I give her a little shove as well. She squeaks in protest and surprise, but I don’t stop until I’ve herded the two women to the second floor landing. “Where are the guards I assigned to go with you into the city center?”
Ella stands next to Madeline, both women wearing identical looks of confusion and concern. I look between them before checking my watch. It’s nearly 3:00 in the morning.
“Why were you out so late? What could you–”
“Do you think it’s easy having a wedding dress made in a single day?” Ella snaps before whirling around and stomping off.
I turn my attention to Madeline, whose cheeks are red, and she won’t meet my eyes. “I’m sorry,” I say, clearing my throat. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“I told Ella we shouldn’t just… barge in on you. One of the maids said you were still awake.” She reaches into the pocket of her jacket and pulls out a package wrapped in brown paper. She hands it to me, her eyes downcast and cheeks still burning crimson.
“What is it?”
“A wedding gift,” she murmurs, her wide mouth tilting into a quick smile. It disappears before I have a chance to memorize it.
I keep my eyes on her while I pull back the paper and unwrap a small wooden box which is polished to a fine gleam. I open the lid and find a set of four very well made fountain pens. I arch my brow at her.
“You’re always in your office so I thought maybe you went through a lot of pens.”
“I love them. Thank you.” My heart rate starts to drop back to normal. “I didn’t get you anything.”
This time she does smile, and it remains long enough for me to notice the way her nose crinkles, the way the left corner of her mouth is slightly higher than the right. “I don’t expect you to. But, now you can write to me when you’re away at war, and I can’t practice reading and writing in your language based on your letters.”
Something snaps deep in my chest–warm and unfamiliar. I take a breath, giving a somewhat forced smile in return. “Thank you, Madeline.”
“Maddy is fine. I should go to bed. I’m sorry we woke you up–”
I reach out and take her by one shoulder as she turns. “Woke me up? I wasn’t asleep?”
Her brow furrows as she says, “You were. You were talking in your sleep and lifted your head as we walked in.”
I let her go and barely hear her words in farewell. Her footsteps echo down the hallway before she disappears around a corner and out of sight.
I turn and walk briskly back to my office, shutting the door behind me. I was asleep? I’d dreamt the entire thing?
My office is quiet, no whispered voices or thrumming magic like I’d experienced only moments before the women walked in. There’s no sign that anyone was in my office at all, other than myself. Still, a choking feeling tightens my throat. Something doesn’t feel right about this. My senses are still on high alert. If it had been a dream, it felt entirely too real to ignore.
I’d never had visions before. That was never a part of the divine powers inherited by my mother.
“Cassian,” I say down the mindlink. I set the box of pens on my desk, running my fingers over the surface while I wait for his reply.
“I’m here.” Even through the mindlink I can sense the fatigue in his voice. I’ve woken him up most likely.
“Did I call for backup to the castle tonight?”
“Uh, no. Do you need more guards? What happened?”
I find it momentarily hard to swallow. “Nothing. Don’t worry about it. I’m not getting enough sleep. I’ll see you in the morning for the preparations at the temple. Don’t be late.” The connection between us snaps to a close. Sighing heavily, I derag my hand down my face and lean on my desk for a moment. I do need to sleep. I can’t remember the last time I actually laid down for more than an hour and allowed myself to rest.
Come tomorrow, I will have checked at least one thing off the ever expanding to-do list running on a constant loop in my head. Resigned to at least try to catch a few hours of rest, I walk toward the door and turn off the light before giving my office, my prison, one last glance.
The dying firelight illuminates something on the mantle, something thin and propped along its edge that wasn’t there before.
I approach the fireplace and find a black envelope sealed with crimson wax. A serpent coiled in a figure eight stands as the crest, eating its own tail.
My blood runs cold as I unseal the envelope and pull out a piece of parchment. A fine, looping scrawl covers the page, letters I don’t understand or have ever seen before. At the very bottom is a series of symbols, whorls and swirls of varying sizes and angles in a crescent shape, dotted with ink.
Even if I had been asleep, Kane had been here, in my office. I knew that as fact.
I tuck the paper back in the envelope and jam it into my pocket.
What does he want? What could my kingdom possibly have that belongs to him?
And why is he coming for it now?