Fated Ties: A Werewolf Paranormal Romance Novel (The Twisted Destiny Saga Book 3) (10 page)

CHAPTER 12

As the wolf compound came into view, Ryan stopped short. The gates were open and the wolves—in human form—were all over the surrounding fields, enjoying the summer evening without a care in the world.

“Ryan?” Nathanial questioned from beside him, stopping as well.

Ryan didn’t respond. Instead he spun around to Josh, who was walking with Cora, laughing and joking around with her as she held a sleeping Orion close to her chest.

“What the fuck?” he snapped at him.

Josh tensed at his tone and confusion blanketed his face. “What?” he asked, at a loss.

“
What?
” Ryan snapped again. He gestured to the wolves in the distance. “This. What the fuck is this? Why are they outside the compound?”

“Luca and Michael are imprisoned in the Dark Realm. There’s no longer a threat.”

“Determined by who?”

“A little thing called logic, Ry.”

Ryan’s eyes narrowed. He felt his blood boiling, both at the situation and at Josh’s smartass response to his question. “
You
gave the order? Allowed them to fuck around outside?”

“Yeah. They’ve been cooped up inside for weeks, Ry. And now the threat’s gone, I figured why the hell shouldn’t they have a bit of freedom? Morale, you know?”

Ryan thrust out his hand and grabbed the collar of Josh’s leather jacket. He jerked him towards him and growled, “Only I have the authority to give an order like that!”

“You weren’t around. You haven’t been for a while.”

“Whether I’m here, or not,
I
am the commander-in-chief. Their Alpha. Their fucking
King
!
The buck always stops at me.
Every
decision is mine! Not yours! You should’ve run this by me!
Never
supersede my authority again, or there will be consequences! Do I make myself clear?”

“Ryan,” Cora cautioned.

Without taking his eyes off Josh, Ryan told her, “This is business.
Wolf
business.”

“I’m your wife,” she argued.

“This is different,” he snapped. “Don’t interfere. Go on ahead to the compound.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Is that an order?”

Ryan heaved a sigh. “A
suggestion
, but I can make it an order if you want.”

She muttered something under her breath and then brushed past him, making a point of pushing into him as she did, and made her way to the wolf compound with Orion.

“Are. We. Clear?” Ryan asked again, his eyes boring into Josh’s.

“Yes,” Josh responded. “I’m sorry. We’re clear, Ry.”

Ryan released him roughly. “Good. Now get them all back inside and have them convene in the courtyard. I need to speak with everyone about Nathanial crashing at the compound.”

Without another word, he hurried off to carry out Ryan’s orders.

Ryan saw Nathanial eyeing him curiously. “How hard is it to follow fucking orders?” he exclaimed, running his fingers through his hair with frustration. “I can’t be everywhere. I need to be able to trust them when I’m not here.”

“You feel the burden now,” Nathanial responded. It wasn’t a question. It was a statement.

“Burden?”

“Of Wolf King.”

“Of everything.” He turned around and threw his hands in the air with exasperation. “They’re all looking to me to lead and protect them. And not just them. The Dark Realm wolves, too. My son is the fucking bridge, burdened with a destiny bigger than all of us. To me, he’s just my
son
. But I don’t even get to enjoy that. Instead, I have to groom him to fulfill what he’s fated to do. My own mother tried to kill me and threatened my son. We have no idea what her real agenda is, so I’m just twiddling my damned thumbs, waiting. And my wife…she’s no longer the innocent, naïve girl I fell in love with. Her power is growing stronger. Too strong. And then, I find out today that it’s bringing out a dark part of her that she’s struggling to control. It’s…everything is…this is not what I
wanted
! I never wanted to be king!”

Nathanial gripped his arms tightly, forcing him to look at him. “You are young. Three hundred is nothing. I didn’t take the throne until I was twice your age. You were never groomed to become king, because of your banishment from the Dark Realm. It is no surprise that you are finding yourself overwhelmed. Your reaction is normal, Ryan. But, taking your place as Wolf King is a destiny you cannot escape, so you must make your peace with that. Your self-doubt, while also natural because you are so new to this, is unfounded. Try to remember that every decision you have made up until this point has been the correct one. And you had no guidance. You are a natural leader, Ryan. You have succeeded in protecting your wolves from a formidable enemy. You have their respect. The Dark Realm wolves have ceded to your command and that is not an easy accomplishment. Furthermore, I have watched you with your son and you are a good father. You
will
prepare him for what lies ahead.
And
, you forget that you are not alone in this.
I
am here. We rule together.”

Ryan took Nathanial’s words in. As soon as he’d freaked out, he’d regretted it. It wasn’t like him. He could handle anything. He always had. But, clearly, everything that’d happened lately had pushed him over the edge. For a few seconds, he’d felt a twinge of embarrassment at revealing his feelings to Nathanial. But it had dissipated as soon as Nathanial had started speaking. He clearly understood. And, in that moment, Ryan realized that no one else
could
understand what he was going through like the Vampire King could.

“I hear you.”

Nathanial released him. “Good.” And then a grin crept over his face. “Fortunately for you,
I
have a lot of experience that can benefit you.”

Ryan smiled. “Arrogant, aren’t you?”

“And you are not?”

Ryan chuckled.
God, it feels good to laugh.
“I’m not sure if our arrogance is related to the king thing, or just because we’re assholes.”

“Both,” Nathanial said with a laugh.

Ryan looked past him at the wolf compound. He saw Josh ushering everyone into the courtyard like he’d ordered. “Showtime. You ready for this?”

“I am not worried,” Nathanial responded, fearless as usual.

Ryan slapped him on the shoulder. “If I can convince the leader of the wolf resistance not to attempt to kill you, this should be a walk in the park. Just don’t bite anyone.”

Nathanial scoffed. “They should not flatter themselves.”

And with that, the two of them made their way to the compound up ahead with Ryan leading the way.

CHAPTER 13

Cora headed to the compound mess hall. She was starving. She hadn’t eaten since her and Shaye had enjoyed a quiet dinner together in the White Realm yesterday evening.
Shaye.
They still hadn’t received any word from her. Cora knew she was still in the White Realm palace. She hadn’t had the chance to warn her about her father prior to her and Josh being unceremoniously banished from the realm like criminals.

He was not the man she’d thought he was. He was sick. Demented. Bent. She still couldn’t get the memory of the state that she’d found David in out of her head. It was etched into her memory. She couldn’t believe it’d been her own father who’d done that to him. He was a sadist. Evil. And, if that hadn’t been enough to make her hate him, he’d also hurt Marella. He’d laid his hands on a pregnant woman.
As soon as my full strength returns, following the drain of healing David, I’ll get her out of there. If Vazra tries to stop me, he’ll feel my wrath. His threat to bring me to my knees will pale in comparison to the reality of my power.

As soon as she’d arrived at the wolf compound ahead of Ryan thanks to the curt order he’d barked at her, the wolves had swarmed around her. They hadn’t been able to get enough of Orion—the son of their Alpha, their king. Ryan had forced them to calm down when he’d arrived with Nathanial in tow. Bringing Nathanial into the wolf compound—the Vampire King into the home of wolves—had been a nightmare. As soon as the wolves had seen him, they’d erupted into a collective growl. To Ryan’s credit, he’d managed to allay their fears and resistance. He’d explained the situation. He’d even entertained their questions for close to an hour before managing to ease them into a state of reluctant acceptance.

Since then, she hadn’t seen him. He’d been with Nathanial, talking about God knew what—king stuff, in all likelihood. She’d been taking care of Orion and trying to settle him into his new home. He still hadn’t shifted back to human form and she couldn’t help wondering whether he ever would. Perhaps he would remain that way until he was much older and had more control over his ability to shift.

He was her son and she loved him.

But a part of her felt a disconnect with him while he was in wolf form. She wasn’t wolf, so she couldn’t fully understand him. She couldn’t communicate with him through her words. And his gestures were pure wolf, not human, something she couldn’t understand. Ryan could, though. He understood him completely. He could connect with him wholly. She hated herself for it, but she felt a pang of jealously towards him, because of it. But, at least Orion was happy. He was jumping around with Ryan’s pack in the courtyard. They’d all shifted and started playing with him, letting him bounce all over them and ride on their backs. It’d been the cutest little thing she’d ever seen.

Speaking of that asshole, how dare he talk to me that way in front of Nathanial and Josh? What is his fucking problem? Why am I even asking that question? I know exactly what it is. His misogynistic Alpha-wolf bullshit. Who the hell does he think he’s dealing with? I’m not just some chick he banged. I’m his wife and the mother of his child. And, not to mention, I’m stronger than him, the almighty Wolf King. My power is greater than anyone’s now. After I eat, he and I are going to have this out.

As she approached the mess hall, she heard voices. It took her only a second to recognize them: Ryan and Josh. She was about to go on in, not caring if she was interrupting something, when Josh’s words stopped her.

“You need to be gentle with her.”

“Gentle?” Ryan questioned.

“Yeah. I know that’s a new concept to you, but, like I just told you, this David thing has her all on edge. It’s affected her, Ry. I’ve seen it over the last few days.”

She heard Ryan scoff and say, “J, I think I know how to fuck my wife. And, believe me, she doesn’t like gentle. She’s more of a
rip-my-clothes-off-with-your-teeth-and-fuck-me-hard-and-dirty
kind of woman.”

“Another man took control of her against her will!” she heard Josh yell.

She felt herself warm at his words, at his selfless defense of her. Something blunt slammed down on the table. She realized that it was probably Ryan’s fist, because then she heard him yell, “I’m well aware some asshole fucked around with
my
wife! And he will pay!
She
may have shown him mercy, but I won’t! I’m gonna fucking track him down and kill him!”

“That’s not gonna solve the problem, Ry.”

“It’ll solve it for me!” Ryan roared. “
No
one touches what’s mine!”

As Cora listened to Ryan’s rage-induced outburst, she shook her head with disbelief.
What’s his? What am I, some piece of meat to him? How dare he? Fucking Alpha mentality!

“Calm down,” Josh urged. “That’s twice you’ve lost your temper in the last few hours alone. What’s with you?”

“I’m just stressed out. This David thing. The whole Wolf King thing. It’s a lot, J.”

“It’s more than that. Normally, you’d just bite my head off and, possibly, the Vampire King’s. But earlier you also took a bite out of Cora. It’s…guilt.”

“What?”

“Did you fuck someone while you were away in the Dark Realm?”

Oh my God.
Cora waited with bated breath for Ryan’s answer. The longer the pause, the tenser she became. She felt an awful, sickly feeling form in the pit of her stomach.
That can’t be the case. Josh must be wrong. Ryan wouldn’t do that. Would he?

“No,” he finally responded.

Phew.
She breathed a sigh of relief. But it was short-lived when she heard him go on.

“But…there was this girl. Jada. A wolf.”

“And?”

“
And
she…she caught my eye.”

“She made your cock hard? She was hot? So what? You’re married, but you’re not blind. Plus, you’re a wolf, Ry. A day without getting laid and we’re horny as hell. That’s all it was.”

“I
wanted
to, J.”

“What?”

“I wanted to fuck her. If—”

And that was the last thing Cora heard, before she took off back down the corridor.

CHAPTER 14

“I wanted to fuck her.”

Cora couldn’t get Ryan’s words out of her head. It was as though another man had spoken them. Not Ryan. Not her husband. Not the man she loved with all her heart. The
only
man she’d ever loved. It was one thing for him to desire another woman in a fleeting moment. But to
really
desire someone beyond the point of simply finding them attractive? To actually want to sleep with someone else? That was going too far.

He’d said she was wolf. He was a wolf himself. Not just
a
wolf, but
the
wolf—the fucking Wolf King. Maybe he needed to be with a wolf. Maybe there was a connection he could get from a woman who was wolf that he couldn’t get from her.
Maybe I’m not wild enough for him.

The way he’d said it, with so much raw, sexual desire had really got to her. It was the same way he breathed her name when they were making love. It was his too-far-gone voice, the voice that told her that sexual desperation had overruled him. Was that what he felt for that wolf woman? That same intensity he felt with her? Or more?

She shook her head.
We’re mates. Destined. You’re just overreacting.

But why shouldn’t she overreact? They hadn’t spoken since he’d blown her off, commanding her harshly in front of Nathanial and Josh during a fit of temper. He hadn’t bothered to come and find her. If he was as horny as he’d discussed with Josh, why hadn’t he come to her? It couldn’t have been because of what Josh had said about David, because that’d been hours ago now. No, it was something else.
Yeah, it was something else all right. That wolf woman he wanted to fuck. What was her name? Jada. Yeah, that was it. That bitch.

Her troubled thoughts and her rising anger caused her to miss her turnoff onto the highway.
Shit.
She’d wanted to zoom down the highway and race against her demons, pushing her bike to the limit.

It felt so good to ride again. It’d been too long. Her bike had been collecting dust in the wolf compound garage for weeks. But earlier she’d managed to sneak it out of there and breach the gates without anyone noticing, a most difficult task under normal circumstances with the thunderous roar of a bike. But everyone had been distracted by Orion, so it’d been possible.

As she roared down the country roads, a sudden veil of black fog swept towards her.

What the hell?
It’d come out of nowhere. The suddenness of it caught her off guard, causing her to swerve to the other side of the road. She felt the bike skid. Thankfully, years of experience enabled her to maintain her balance and pull over and come to a safe stop. She swept her leg over the bike and climbed off, eyeing the thick, black fog that now surrounded her on all sides.

“Having a bad day, princess?” a familiar voice spoke.

She watched as Luca stepped through the smoke and approached her. She gasped in surprise.
What the hell? How is he here? He was imprisoned in the Dark Realm.

“Does Ryan know you’re out so late?” he asked, stepping closer.

“Stay back!” she ordered, holding up her hand.

He did as she asked and folded his arms across his chest as he regarded her. A sly grin crept over his lips and he asked softly, “Tell me, do you truly want me to stay back?”

“What?”

“Despite how much you try to deny it, you do desire me, Cora.”

“You disgust me.”

He smirked. “You didn’t deny it. You want me now just like you wanted me in that alleyway the first time we met. I read your thoughts then. I know the dirty little things you wanted me to do to you.”

“Ryan is my mate, my husband.”

“And
still
you’re not denying it.” In a flash of vampire speed he stood before her, glowering down at her, his eyes smoldering with desire. “You’re curious about me, aren’t you?” he asked, his mouth just inches from her ear. “You’ve wondered what it would be like. To have me take you to my bed. A vampire. With a wolf it’s rough and wild. That’s how
they
like it. In fact, correct me if I’m wrong, but I bet Ryan hasn’t even bothered to ask you how
you
like it, has he?”

“Shut up,” she cried, jerking her head away from him.
Shit, I’m still too drained to summon my power. Perhaps I could muster enough to take out a regular vamp, but not the damn Vampire Prince.

“I’ll take that as a ‘no.’ Of course not, wolves are all about control. And Ryan? He’s the worst of them all—their
king
. Too controlling for a woman as powerful as you. You need to be free, but he’ll keep you under his thumb, Cora.”

He trailed his thumb over her cheek and she jumped back. “Don’t touch me! No one touches me!”

He seemed surprised by her crazed reaction and he studied her closely for a few moments. “This is about David?” he asked softly. He moved as close as possible to her without actually touching her. “Come with me, princess. I will make you forget.”

“It’s your fault it happened in the first place.”

He shook his head vehemently. “The mystical tattoo was my doing. The rest was his.”

“But you told Ryan—”

“I said that to anger him. He’d allied himself with my father—the ultimate betrayal. I am sorry. I should have exerted more control over the faerie.” He leaned into her and whispered against her cheek, “Come. I will erase what he’s done and make you desire to be touched again. With a vampire like me, it is not so rough. It’s sensual. I will build you up slowly and gently and show you how you should be loved.”

Cora found herself shivering at his words. It concerned her that she wasn’t sure whether it was from disgust or…something else.
Oh my God. What is happening? I hate him. But…his words…they’re…affecting me.
She forced herself to meet his gaze. “Are you…compelling me?”

“No. Not at all.” He cocked an eyebrow. “Why do you ask?”

She shook her head vehemently, trying to rid herself of her unsettling thoughts. “Go away or I’ll blast you with my power.”

A chuckle came from behind her. She spun around abruptly, shocked by the sudden presence. Standing just a few feet back was a woman she didn’t recognize with stark-white hair and an outfit that could have given
Xena:
Warrior Princess
a run for her money. Beside her was Michael, standing with the same arrogant grin that he always had plastered on his face.

“Your power is drained, princess. I can feel it from here,” the woman said. “The most you will be able to do to my son is give him the equivalent of a static shock.”

Her son? Oh my God. It’s her.
“Oriana.”

“That’s right, Cora Black.”

“What do you want?”

Oriana and Michael exchanged a look of amusement.

“She is charmingly naïve,” Michael commented.

Oriana nodded and then, addressing Cora, answered, “Your blood.”

Cora’s eyes narrowed at Luca and she told him, “You can’t feed from me. I heal too fast.”

“An ability that you are able to control,” Oriana said. “Without such an ability, you wouldn’t have been able to heal my other son. He drained you dry that night, did he not? You just have to be willing.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

“It means, dear princess…” Oriana said as she approached her, “…that you will let Luca take you.”

“You’re twisted. I’m married to your
son
.”

“An unfortunate complication. One that does not fit into my agenda. Luca will treat you gently. You have nothing to fear in that respect. After all, you must be willing to enable him to feed from you. You will not die, princess. Your blood is too powerful. After he drains you, you will recover within a couple of days. I would not kill my son’s destined mate.
I
know what it is like to suffer through that.”

As Oriana continued, Cora feigned listening while she concentrated. Her power was limited right now so it was a struggle. Instead of an instant connection, it was a trying task. It was made more difficult by the fact that she, as a bearer of white magic, was trying to communicate with a bearer of the dark. But then she felt it. She fought to keep her gaze steady to avoid Oriana realizing that a wave of power had just washed over her as she made the connection.

Nathanial?

Cora?
His voice answered in her head.

Yes, it’s me.

You are in danger?

Luca and Michael have escaped your custody. They’ve ambushed me, along with Oriana.

You cannot defeat them, especially not with her present. Your power is drained.

I know.

What do they want with you?

My blood.

There was a brief pause. Shock, no doubt, as he realized what it meant.
Luca will take you to his bed. He will make you willing, princess. And then he will drain you when you are at your most “relaxed.”

I’m not willing.

You will be.

What?

The power of the betrothal bond. There is desire between you. He will know how to awaken it and seduce you. You will not be able to deny it.

Ryan won’t make it to me in time.

I know. But I will.

How? You aren’t wolf. You can’t track me like he can.

You must shed blood. Merely a scrape will do and I will be able to find you.

Don’t tell Ryan.

Cora—

Please, Nathanial.

You have my word. Now pull back. You are draining more of your power by conversing with me.

Cora did as Nathanial suggested and retracted her magic, ending their conversation. She returned to the reality around her and spun to Luca. Shrugging her shoulders casually, she said, “Fine. Let’s go.”

“Really?” Luca asked, clearly confused by her sudden and uncharacteristic compliance.

“Yes,” she breathed, stepping into him and stretching onto her tiptoes. He bent down to meet her as she whispered, “You were right. I’ve wanted you to fuck me for a long time. But Ryan must never know.”

Luca wrapped his arms around her and then they disappeared in a flash of light as he teleported away with her.