Ella
Eastonians don’t have cell phones.
It’s not like I didn’t try…. Hell, I spent the first ten years of my tenure as Queen of Eastonia trying to convince my people that at least some of the technology in Crescent Falls is a good thing.
But Eastonia is home to skeptical, superstitious people. They like their privacy–and unobstructed views, apparently. They weren’t about to let me mar that by building cell towers on the mountains that separate my kingdom from my brother’s.
But, a cell phone would be fantastic at a time like this.
I whirl toward Ryatt, my mate, my husband, and the love of my life, and ball my hands into fists.
“Ryatt,” I say as steadily as possible, “why are the Ghosts in Crescent Falls?”
Ryatt swallows hard, his jaw tensing as he looks into the whirling depths of the magic mirror at my back. Isaac is already gone from view, and so is Alpha King Jaxon of Tarsian.
The two kings were just filling Ryatt in on the little inconvenience that turned into a massive problem, and I happened to walk into the room at the mention of Evander being tasked with seeing Kenna safely back home.
I look from Ryatt to Granger, who is leaning against the wall on the far side of the bright, airy room I use as my personal office. The sweeping views of the Moonrise Valley cast sprays of golden sunlight across the muted crimson carpets, but the dizzying view does nothing to quell the sudden fury raging to life within my chest.
“Why is your son in Crescent Falls?” I ask Granger hotly, my cheeks flaring nearly the same color as the carpet beneath my feet.
“Kenna is unaware,” Ryatt assures me, but I shake my head.
What happened between Evander and Kenna isn’t our fault. It’s not the fault of Granger and Amanda, either, but as their parents, we’re involved.
Both Evander and Kenna are secretive in their own ways. My daughter, the ray of sunshine, brushes things off like specks of dust on her shoulder. Nothing can affect her–at least, from the outside.
But I know her. She sits up in her room, playing her piano, letting those feelings play out on the keys like I do with a brush and canvas while painting.
Evander is like his father. He buries things so deep, and for so long, that they turn to ash and dust and simply drift away.
I hold Granger’s gaze, unflinching. “Does she know he’s there, Granger?”
“No,” he says, and I allow myself a single breath.
Evander shredded Kenna’s heart five years ago. I know vague details because Kenna tells me almost everything. I know that Evander returned from training in Tarsian and came to see her before anyone knew he was back in Moonrise. I know they fought, and Kenna made it sound like she said something to him about missing her birthday, and he… absolutely lit into her.
Then, he ended their friendship and stormed back to Tarsian, leaving destruction in his wake.
Kenna felt awful about it for a long time. I tried to reason with her, telling her that this happens between friends sometimes. I told her about the time I abandoned her Aunt Maddy in the plains outside of Crescent Falls–pregnant and unable to defend herself. Maddy should have hated me forever after that, but somehow she’s still my friend.
But Kenna made it sound like they could never, ever, be friends again.
Evander steered clear of all of us, including his family, since then. He’s a Ghost now, a highly specialized warrior working in the shadows of both kingdoms to ensure peace.
I know it guts his parents–especially Amanda.
Evander is in danger all the time.
Which means if Evander is around Kenna, she’s likely in danger, too.
“Why is he guarding our daughter?” I say with more force since both men are reluctant to tell me anything.
I’m well aware of the rebel threat. It’s all Ryatt and Isaac meet about lately. It's been brewing for years now, dissent festering from a small, obscure group of King Kane sympathizers who have been holed up on the far edge of Eastonia for two decades.
But their numbers were minimal then and have remained as such.
At least, that’s what I thought.
My memories flood with images of my time spent underground with Petra and her cronies. That was the start of all of this. Her coven, the Draven coven, survived, even though I killed her.
I didn’t kill her brother, though.
“Atticus is making moves,” Ryatt says with remarkable calm. “Isaac confirmed what we thought might happen. He has his followers in Crescent Falls now.”
“What happened?”
It’s Granger who speaks up next. “Commander Artyom has his Ghosts in Crescent Falls looking for the rebels. They busted an illegal auction, and that led them to believe an attack was being planned during the festival at one of the balls.”
My blood turns to ice as I slowly swivel to my husband, whose eyes are pure steel and locked on the mirror.
“Where is Kenna?” I ask as steadily as I can.
“She’s safe. She’s with the family,” Ryatt says, his tone strained. Fury shines behind his eyes as his gaze locks on mine. It’s been so long since I’ve seen that furious, unholy fire come to life there.
Ryatt is, by all accounts, the most powerful man in the known world.
But the most powerful thing about him is his love for our child.
“Who is behind this?” I ask him.
I already know the answer, but I need to hear him say it. I need to confirm that Ryatt is about to bring hellfire down on the rebels without restraint or remorse.
“The Draven coven,” he rasps.
“Atticus’s son Gabriel was briefly detained by Evander and the Ghosts at the temple before he spirited elsewhere. They’re trying to track him.” Granger shifts his weight against the wall.
“Gabriel can jump?” My hands curl into fists. “Ryatt, we need to get Kenna out of there. Now!”
“It’s already being arranged. She’s on her way to the castle in Crescent Falls as we speak.”
“And Alpha Jaxon is gathering his own forces to try to track down the coven near Tarsian. He believes they’re underground,” Granger adds
Of course, they are. Petra dragged all of those witches into the depths and committed unspeakable acts, while her brother, their new leader, stood by and watched.
I met the man once–when he led me out to be tortured by his sister. He’s been in hiding ever since and only recently allowed his followers to start causing problems in the surrounding territories. Jaxon has been on it, to his credit. No one gets away with anything in Tarsian without Jaxon putting a firm end to it, but the Draven coven has proved to be slippery.
If they’re in Crescent Falls, there’s no telling what they’re capable of.
“Kenna is safe,” Ryatt says. He steps forward, gently wrapping his fingers around my forearm. His touch is immediately calming. Grounding, even. But my mind still reels, and my chest feels like it’s caving in as a truth hits me right in the gut.
“He’s going after the princesses. Misty–” Oh, Goddess. My sixteen-year-old niece. This is the coven’s attempt to get at me somehow, to force me into a conflict I’ve been avoiding for years. Kidnap the princesses. Kidnap my daughter, and my brother’s daughter, to get the Allied Kingdoms to act, to bring on the war they so desperately want.
“She’s being moved as well.”
“To where?” I look at Ryatt then Granger.
My husband replies, running his hand down the back of his neck, “Maatua. Isla and Maddox are being filled in as we speak. They’re safest there. I will jump to Maatua tomorrow to fetch Kenna and bring her home.”
“Evander is going to be escorting her to Maatua personally,” Granger adds from across the room.
I know I’m supposed to feel better because of this. Evander is like family to us. I was in the room when he was born. I was one of the first people to hold him.
That baby–that scrappy, wild little boy–is gone now.
I look at Ryatt, seeing the same thoughts flashing behind his eyes.
“Granger,” he says softly. “I need to speak privately with our queen.”
His Beta’s footsteps recede. I don’t look back at him. I know he’s going to go talk to Amanda about the same thing we’re going to talk about now.
“Kenna won’t want him to do this, Ryatt.”
“I know,” he says, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I know–”
“She hasn’t spoken his name since her sixteenth birthday.”
He intertwines his fingers with mine, drawing absent circles on the palm of my hand with his thumb. “What do you think happened between them?”
“He tore her to pieces. I don’t know.” It had to be something major for Kenna to completely shut down like she did.
Kenna’s soft heart is what I love the most about her, but it’s sometimes her greatest weakness. She sees the best in everyone and loves them despite their flaws. She will be an amazing queen one day–the kind that leads with kindness and bravery… with her heart, unlike me. I lead with my head and with my powers. My people respect me, honor me, and follow me, yes, but I am not wholly loved.
Kenna will be.
But she doesn’t have the grit we do. That’s been clear from a young age. She’s nervous, afraid to be disliked, to make enemies if necessary.
But she made an enemy out of Evander somehow, and it shredded her.
“Ella, are they mates?”
“Wh-what?” I almost laugh. “Where did you get that idea?”
“It would make sense. Most young men start coming into their powers as teenagers these days, especially now that the veil is gone. Evander came home and saw her, maybe felt the bond for the first time–”
“Ryatt,” I sigh, letting go of his hand. “If they were mates, I doubt something like this would have happened. They haven’t spoken in years. They haven’t seen each other–”
“Do you remember how much you hated me in the beginning?” he smirks.
I roll my eyes. “I did hate you.”
“The mate bond isn’t always wanted. It can be scary for young men especially. I went through it. I felt the bond with you before you could feel it, and it made me question a lot of things.”
“You were scared,” I correct, giving him a teasing look, “of being shackled to me your entire life.”
“I was scared of not being the man you deserved, Princess.”
My heart squeezes as I feel a tug down our bond, a gentle caress against the little threads binding us together as he uses the nickname he gave me so long ago.
I don’t believe him, though.
“She can’t feel a mate bond, Ryatt. That’s the truth of this. She’s more witch than wolf.”
“Time will tell. She’s still young. She’s only been able to shift for a few weeks.”
I relax a touch. “What else did Isaac say? Also, why wasn’t I notified about your meeting?”
“It was an emergency. You were with the mystics when he called. I didn’t have time to alert you.” He glances around my office, his gaze absently grazing the ceiling-height shelves full of books and knickknacks. “Evander will bring Kenna home. She’ll be safe in Moonrise. But I need to put up wards around Eastonia.”
Wards. Ryatt’s magical shields to keep things hidden and protected. It’s been so long since we’ve needed them.
He continues, “Once she’s safe and home with us, I will close the borders and ward them so no one can cross, and no one can get out of Eastonia until the Draven coven is dealt with.”
“I want Atticus and his son alive, Ryatt.” I whisper, and he catches my gaze, seeing the silver fire behind my eyes. “I have unfinished business with Atticus, two decades in the making.”