The Governor gasped and jumped to his feet, his chair clattering to the floor behind him. “How…? How did you get that?”
“The queen was using it to control my mate and his family. She said it was a gift from the Prince in exchange for helping him capture Kain and myself. I killed her and was told it now rightfully belongs to me.” She closed her hand around it and pushed it back into her pocket.
The Governor licked his lips as if they’d suddenly gone dry. “You killed the queen?”
Kain’s large hand came up to rest on her shoulder, his protective aura wrapping more firmly around her at the other male’s shift in tone.
“Before she shows you, I must insist that you acknowledge the lack of deceit in her scent when she told you of Naharan’s betrayal.”
The other demon’s eyes didn’t stray from her face as he nodded. “I acknowledge your words as truth, Breeder.”
“Good. Selma?” Kain gave her shoulder another comforting squeeze and took a step away from her, undoubtedly ensuring she didn’t accidentally singe him with her less-than-reliable powers.
Selma bit her lip and concentrated, drawing her focus inward to that place the white light seemed to come from. As cautiously as she could, she pulled it out of her core and pressed it into her right hand. When she felt her arm hum with the vibrations of the unstable energy, she opened her palm, letting the power gather in a fizzing ball of light.
“By the stars!”
At the Governor’s outburst Selma closed her hand again, letting the energy evaporate harmlessly into the air. Exhaustion swept over her, and she sagged gratefully against Kain when he reached out and wrapped an arm around her. These powers would be a whole lot more convenient if they didn’t completely drain her.
“I told you, Maell. I told you there was something dangerous inside of them.” Kirigan’s voice resonated through the room from behind them, the same note of zealotry in it as when he had first seen her light. “The ancient texts more than hint at this.”
The Governor looked like he would have been pale as a sheet, had she been able to see his human disguise. Without a word, he slumped back down in his chair, his eyes still lingering on Selma, though he seemed to be looking straight through her.
“And the prisoner?” he finally asked after several minutes of silence.
“Our witness. She helped the prince along with several other females. She will testify to our claim when we speak to the Lords. Will you speak on our behalf as well, Governor?” Kain asked.
Maell nodded slowly, his eyes finally leaving Selma to settle on Kain. “I will attest to the truth of the Breeder’s story, and I will support your claim to the throne based on the treason and defeat of the Prince, Your Majesty.”
Kain straightened by her side, the subtle hint of power in his aura growing stronger. “Good. Then call the meeting—we have a war to prepare for.”
As Selma followed the demons through the wide hallways and listened to their deep voices discussing the politics of the coup, the magnitude of the entire affair finally set in.
It wasn’t that she hadn’t understood how much trouble the prince’s kidnapping and the awakening of her powers had caused—and every event since then, too. But the understanding that the demon who’d saved her from his own kind time and time again was about to overthrow the entire structure of demonic society in an effort to keep her safe hadn’t fully dawned on her until now, and a fresh wave of terror made her gut clench.
Kain stopped next to her, his grip on her hand making her follow suit.
“We will be with you in a minute,” he called to the others who had paused when he did.
Obediently they continued, disappearing around a corner soon after.
Kain turned to her, letting his free hand cup her cheek. “My love, there is nothing to fear. I promise.”
The softness in his eyes contrasted with the firm conviction in his voice, and she leaned in toward him like a flower reaching for the sun. She needed him with every part of her body and soul.
“I just want to live in peace—you, me, and our baby. And I want a white picket fence and a porch swing, and Sundays spent in the garden. But instead we’re preparing for war. How can you say that there’s nothing to fear? If I lose you…” Just the thought made her throat close up.
Kain’s mouth pulled into a wry smile. “So that’s what you wanted instead of my casino apartment? A white picket fence and little demon kids running around, setting fire to the begonias?”
Selma blushed and smacked his chest with her free hand. “Now is not the time to mock my dreams!”
Kain grinned at her reaction, but instead of continuing his teasing, he bent his head and pecked her lips. When he straightened again she was breathing shallowly, and something lower down murmured about forgetting war plans and worries and focusing on more interesting things instead—such as the thick cock she knew rested between his powerful thighs.
Her mate chuckled when her gaze drifted downward, propping her chin up with a finger. “I can promise you that there is nothing to fear because as turbulent as the next few months will be, I will not allow anything to happen to you or our little one.
“Furthermore, no power in this world will stop me from being by your side—not now, not ever. And once we take over control of North America, there won’t be a male demon on this continent that wouldn’t lay their life down for you.
“That is my pledge to you, Selma. I will love you for an eternity, and you and every child you bear will be safe and happy.”
