King Julian leaned back in his throne, his big body sprawling like a predator settling into its den. His gaze never left mine, and I forced myself not to squirm under it.
“My mother, Jocelyn Ross Bell, was part of the Royal pack,” I said, lifting my chin. “She always spoke highly of the wolf kings. I don’t have anyone else to trust, so I’m trustingyou. Please, Your Majesties,pleasefind my sister a good home. One with parents who will love her, but can also protect her if my stepmother breaks our contract and ever tries to find her.”
“Of course we will,” the queen murmured, studying Josslyn’s tiny fingers.”
“And what ofyou, Miss Bell?” the king asked suddenly. “You’re caught in the crosshairs here, however unwittingly or unwilling. What willyoudo?”
“Survive,” I said, the word coming out with a conviction I didn’t know I had in me anymore. “Somehow, I’ll survive it.”
He studied me for a moment, then nodded.
“I believe you will, but just in case.” He leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. “Tell me, have you ever heard of the Cimmerians?”
“Oh, Goddess!” Gisela groaned as she bounced the royals’ baby, who was starting to make hungry noises. “You think King Lucian will send one of his dhampir sons?”
“It’s possible.” The king stared at me. “Have you, Miss Bell?”
“No, but, what’s a d-dhampir?” I stumbled over the new word.
“Julian, since this is looking to be a long conversation, can we move somewhere else?” Queen Lilah asked, her eyes on the squirming baby Gisela held. “Valerian is getting hungry.”
“Of course, darling.” On his feet in a flash, King Julian scooped her up, Josslyn still in her arms, and carried her down the dias. “Ms. Bell, please follow me. Gisela, link your mate to join us in the study.”
“And tell him to bring Tussy and Callum if they’re awake!” the queen called, looking at me over her mate’s shoulder as he strode along. “You can meet our eldest and his cousin.”
Ten minutes later, I found myself on the most comfortable couch ever, an adorable, chubby-cheeked redhead attached to my bad arm as I cradled Josslyn in my other. Callum, Luke and Gisela’s three-year-old, was fascinated by her and kept cooing and gurgling happy noises. Prince Augustus sat on Callum’s other side and rambled on abouthisnew baby, who the queen was currently feeding in a recliner nearby.
All in all, it was nothing like I thought an audience with the werewolf king would go.
7. Labyrinth of Shadows
Seri
When Luke came into the study and set down a bowl of water and a larger one of food, Brumous turned his blue eyes to me and waited until I nodded, then cautiously crept over, took a sniff, and began to eat.
“Thank you,” I murmured for him.
“You look like you could use a good meal, too, Miss Bell.” Luke raised an eyebrow at me, and I felt my face heat up. “I can get you something.”
“I appreciate it, but we’ll be stopping for lunch after this.”
“So. Basic Vampire Reproduction 101.” The king braced his elbows on his knees as his queen and youngest son drifted off to dreamland in the recliner next to him. “A male vampire averages one dhampir for every five children. Maybe one in twenty will be a blood-sucker. The rest are human, and most badly deformed, dying within hours of birth.”
“Oh!” I sucked in a sharp breath. That sounded like terrible odds. “I didn’t know female vampires could get pregnant.”
“They can’t,” Luke answered. “At least, not yet. Something about an undead heart stopping the production of certain hormones. Their scientists have made a lot of progress with it in the last thirty years, but to date, no female vamp has birthed her own baby.”
“They use surrogates sometimes,” King Julian explained. “In King Lucian’s case, his beloved was a human, and their firstborn son was a vampire. Beat the odds there, as did his next three children, all dhampirs with separate mothers. The other two are human and unaware of the supernatural world.”
Separate mothers?I thought.He cheated on his beloved? I didn’t think that was possible.
“King Lucian acknowledges the dhampirs as his sons, but by their laws, bastards can’t inherit. They grew up in the vampire court and are called princes, but the Cimmerians became monster hunters, not politicians.”
“Either job can’t be much different than surviving childhood with the leeches,” Luke smirked.
“Do dhampirs have magic?” I asked next.
“Not from their vamp side. Dhamps are a lot like shifters, in a way. Superhuman speed, agility, and strength as well as heightened senses and accelerated healing.”
