“Little wolf.” I turn to face her, taking her hand to my lips to place a tender kiss on the back of it, not caring who sees. Nothing will be the same after today. “I don't doubt you for a moment. If that were the case, you would have tried to claim the throne as soon as the king died. Not to mention,” I force a cough, “we might not be here right now, as you'd be in there marrying Ahren.”
Her expression falls, and she draws her lower lip into her mouth again. “I didn't know the fae rules. I just assumed Ahren would take the throne, not that he had to marry as well. No one told me that part.”
I swallow hard, wondering how different things would have turned out if we’d all been open with one another from the start. “You're right. We should have told you right away what was going on. We’ve all kept things from each other, but that ends here and now. And I also want to know why I can’t reach you in your mind anymore?” As I say the words, my energy stretches out to her mind, like I always do when I talk to her, but there’s nothing there. It’s like I’m lost in a black hole.
“I don’t know.” She brushes hair out of her eyes and winces.
I catch dried blood on the side of her knuckles. “Show me your hand.”
She lowers her hand and looks at her palm. The flesh looks dirty, with dried blood crusted across it.
“What happened?”
“I accidentally smashed the ruby, and shards went into my skin. I think some were still in there when my mother healed the cuts. Ever since the stone broke, I’ve felt different inside. Could that be why I can’t hear your voice anymore in my mind?”
Maybe? I shrug, because I don’t have an answer. This is all so new to all of us. She presses herself against me. She's so small and fragile, and I just want to keep her safe. Except she's a lot stronger than she appears—a lot more than any of us knew, apparently.
“You need to know something. The way I found you on Earth was by using magic… a spell that was initially meant to help me track down my fated mate.”
“Fated mate?”
“Yes, we are meant to be together. And I’m convinced it’s the same between you and my brothers. Our destinies are intertwined.”
She smiles like the admittance is something that brings her joy not surprise. “So, does that mean all three of you, in a perfect world, would be happy to be with me at the same time?” She chews on her lower lip.
“Yes. It’s not unheard of in our realm.”
Her smile widens and I adore the gleam of excitement in her gaze.
Loud footfalls grab my attention. Deimos marches over to us, arms swinging by his sides, the panic on his face sliding away as he gets closer to us. Michae follows soon after.
“Deimos!” Guendolyn pulls away and runs to him. They collide, and he embraces her, lifting her off her feet. They kiss, and I smile to see the happiness we inspire in her, and what she's brought out in us.
They fall into a deep conversation, Deimos’ face twisting with anger. And by the look of my brother's dropped mouth and the way he freezes on the spot, he's learning about who exactly our little angel is. Must be precisely how I looked when she told me.
“Deimos,” I call out, and he twists his head in my direction as I march up to them. “Now that you’re caught up, we have to move fast. Take Guendolyn to visit Ramond in the basement and get the blood test done. I have a wedding and coronation to stall for as long as I possibly can without getting tossed into a dungeon myself. Then come to the great hall, fast.” My words are rambling, as panic now spins in my chest.
“Why don’t you go to your mage friend, and I’ll do the distraction,” Deimos offers.
“Because the moment Ahren sees you acting up, he’ll kick you out. He won’t expect it from me. Now go!”
"Thank you," Guendolyn says.
Deimos gives me a begrudging nod, and I see the questions burning in his gaze. But like me, he knows we don't have the luxury of time if we intend to help Guendolyn.
“Good luck, Luther,” he says, and I huff a laugh because if anyone needs luck, it's him and Guendolyn. They’re the ones who have to get the evidence to stop the wedding.
I take off and call Michae with me, proclaiming, “Let's go and get into a lot of trouble.”
Chapter 17
Guendolyn
“No matter who you are, you are still my Guendolyn,” Deimos states, his fingers squeezing around my hand lightly. That has to be the sweetest thing he’s ever said, loving me for who and what I am.
Deimos and I walk hastily through the palace, which is terrifyingly quiet. Only a small handful of guards are here and there.
“You know just the right things to say to make me smile,” I answer. “But all this stuff is happening so quickly that I don’t have time to really think of the implications. Right now, I’m going on pure instinct, and my priority is to not lose the three fae I want in my life forever.”
My thoughts keep swinging back to Luther and Michae having to stall the wedding. My nerves are tight, worried that they are too late.
Deimos half laughs, drawing me out of my thoughts. He always has that effect on me. I will never get sick of hearing that beautiful sound, either. It always lifts my spirit. “Stuff like you being a queen of two kingdoms? Do you know how unheard of that is? Some would say it’s impossible.”
I shrug as he hurries me down a set of grand marble stairs. Paintings adorn the walls, depicting
