The Dire rose and moved into the light, emotions choking him.
Visata’s voice surrounded him, at once vast as the cosmos, yet intimate as a father speaking to his child. “I have heard you, my son. Your mate hears the cry of innocent blood, and she would answer it nobly. Soon it will be time for you to move. You will wait for my words to come to you when the hour is right. Hope is not lost.”
The vision faded, leaving Gage breathless with emotions. Clinging to this new chance, whatever that might be, Gage jolted awake. He stared down at his sleeping mate, resolve hardening within him.
Katy had given him hope again after endless years adrift in solitude. Now Gage would fight with his last breath to ensure the Dire Wolves’ legacy lived on through her.
Their story was only just beginning, and Visata willing, they had centuries yet to write it together.
Chapter Two
If Azure Dies Accidentally Falling On My Knife, No One's Losing Sleep Over It.
“Nothing is as it seems. Never take the supernatural world at face value, or you will be gobsmacked by the whiplash of something you never saw coming.” ~Zeena
Zeena had once possessed a spirit that glowed as radiantly as the rising sun. Those who know her now would scoff at this revelation, but once upon a time, joy and love spilled freely from her heart, bringing light to all those around her. But those happy days were gone, displaced by the cold centuries spent mated to Azure. He hadn’t always been cruel and disregarding of her feelings. There’d been a day he hadn’t been dismissive toward having a family. But he’d changed, and because of that, he had chilled the inner radiance she once heldto barely a flicker. She felt as though ice flowed in her veins, and she exhaled frosty air with every breath.
“My love, we have no need for children to be happy,” Azure would purr, his serpentine eyes staring through her. “Our kingdom will ssstand as legacy enough.”
Recently, before the attack on their home, she’d thought she might be pregnant. But if she were, it was early, and she’d lost the babe. Bitterness had become the armor she wore to cover the anguish. Though it threatened to choke her, Zeena would paste on a smile. In public, she played the part of the devoted queen, appearing as ruthless as her mate. Only alone at night in the dark of her bedroom did she weep for the future she had always dreamed of having: little ones to nurture and raise, a family to cherish. A mate who would gaze upon her as though she were his entire universe.
Azure cared only for power and domination. He viewed her innermost desires as mere distractions from his ambitions for their kingdom.
“Why dwell on what we lack?” he would hiss dismissively whenever she dared speak of children. “I provide you with everything your heart could wish for. Is that not enough?”
After centuries of being denied the family she so desperately longed for, Zeena’s once tender heart had been forced to harden simply to survive the pain. She retreated deep within herself, becoming as cold and removed from the world as her indifferent mate. Though outwardly she stayed loyal, a secret part of Zeena’s battered soul continued to whisper that she deserved so much more than this.
The day Azure finally revealed his depraved plan to steal and sacrifice innocent lives, the last frail flicker of light lingering within Zeena shuddered and went out. She could no longer pretend that her mate was anything short of a monster. Nor thatshe, herself, was completely blameless for standing dutifully at his side all this time.
When fire finally rained down on their kingdom, Zeena fled the ashes of her shattered dreams. Centuries of emotional neglect at Azure’s hands had smothered the joy she once held, dimming her spirit down to the barest ember. While Azure had gone into hiding, allowing the voodoo priestess to help conceal his whereabouts, Zeena had fled in a different direction. Alone, she hid herself away in a kingdom where he would never think to look for her, a place where she could change her appearance enough to fit in and not be discovered. She needed time and space to figure out what her next move would be. She had to prepare herself to face the male who had slowly destroyed everything good and gentle within her.
But perhaps, a small voice whispered,it is truly not too late for your inner light to be revived.
Nico leaned back in the plush seat of the private jet, propping his boots up on the table. Across from him, Callon tensed, his golden eyes flashing with irritation.
“Feet off the furniture, Shaman Chaos,” the lion shifter growled.
Nico’s lip curled. He didn’t take orders from overgrown cats. But after the look Shaman Roan leveled at Nico, he shrugged and complied. No need to start a brawl 30,000 feet in the air.
“So, we’re going to beg the silkies for help to find Azure?” Nico snorted, flipping one of his knives idly. “I highly doubt they’ll want to get involved in a snake wrangling mission. It’s too risky for those creepy crawlers. They might break a leg… or six.”
Callon bristled, but Roan answered calmly. “King Aurelius and Queen Athena lead justly and despise those who deal in darkness. If Azure hides in their lands, they will wish to root him out.”
Nico grunted skeptically. In his experience, those in exalted positions enjoyed keeping the status quo. They didn’t want to rock the boat, even if it meant tolerating the occasional bit of rot. “Maybe they will want the snake out of their territory, but will they be able to find him if the slippery serpent doesn’t wish to be found? He has the help of a voodoo witch. No doubt he will be hidden by powerful spells of concealment.”
“Which is why we need Athena’s help,” Roan said patiently. “There are few supernaturals stronger at unraveling the unseen. If anyone can pierce Azure’s veil of darkness, it is her.”
“She’s got a hundred eyes. Of course, she’d be able to see past the glamour.” If he were being honest, Nico would have to admit that he didn’t like arachnids of any kind. He didn’t trust them and never had. But that was a story for another day. Today, the front-page headline would read “Two Stupid Shaman, One Lion, and One Panther Get Stuck in the Spider’s Web.”No two ways about it.We’re going to be lucky to make it out of KOS without becoming dinner.
The jet hit some turbulence, and the conversation halted as they rode out the bumps. Nico gazed out the window at the landscape far below. He loved to fly, though he’d much rather be able to do it like those in the Kingdom of Wings—out in the elements, feeling the wind ripple across your skin as you twirled and flipped and then rose higher into the air. Nico lived for the adrenaline rushes in life. Why? Because what the hell else did he have to live for?
After a few minutes, the jet leveled out. Nico leaned forward, bracing his arms on the table. He was ready to get out of the steel bird and hunt. His metaphorical inner beast was foaming at themouth to get a hold of Azure. Which gave him pause. “Say we do actually find Azure, thanks to the Silkies. Then what? Azure won’t go quietly, not after the Dire Wolf gutted him and took his prize captive.” Just thinking about the snake made Nico bare his teeth. He’d enjoy being part of the hunting party that finally took Azure down for good.Focus, man.
Callon’s eyes glowed fiercely. “We’ll rip his fangs out by the root. The snake king will pay for the lives he stole.”
Nico appreciated the lion’s thirst for blood.
Roan pressed his fingers to his temples. “Let’s just start with locating him. Justice and the law will deal with Azure in due time.”
