“What do you mean ‘make this work’?” Hunter asked, confused.
“You’re young and inexperienced. A treaty alone between two powerful races won’t be enough to withstand the passage of time. We need to solidify it.” Alaric’s gaze turned back to Freja. “We need to seal this agreement with something more permanent. Like a child.”
Hunter growled as his eyes narrowed on Alaric. “I’d be very careful with your next words, or we are going to have a problem.”
Willa and Alaric then laughed heartily. Willa raised her hand over her mouth as she continued to giggle. “He isn’t always an eloquent speaker. He says things in a confusing way. He isn’ttalking about impregnating your mate. Like hell I’d allow him to do that.”
“Sorry about that. No, I’m talking about something else.” Alaric made sure this time he held Hunter’s gaze. “I’m talking about uniting our families through blood. A permanent truce. One that will withstand through the ages. You see …”
“We have a young son. We were blessed with our one and only child. We can’t ever have another … he is all we have. And it took us a lifetime to even have him. With the help of some fairy magic, we now have a three year old son,” Willa said, looking at Hunter.
“Wait. Which fairy? This is the first I’ve heard about this.” Hunter never heard his mother mention helping out the vampires, and surely something of this magnitude would take the fairy queen.
“Your grandmother was the one to help us. All the more reason to harbor no ill will against you. You’re probably wondering why I’m explaining all of this.” Willa watched the two nod their heads and she smiled. “It’s because I want you to understand how precious he is to us. Because of what our demand is for the treaty.”
“It’s simple. The treaty will be on the terms that your firstborn daughter is to be betrothed to our son. She will be his future mate,” Alaric finally said.
Hunter and Freja both widened their eyes.
“What if we don’t have a daughter?” Hunter wanted to know if there would be another stipulation attached.
“The treaty will be on the contingency that you have a daughter, and that she is mated to our son. If you don’t have a daughter, we will have to revisit and find another means for a treaty then.” Alaric interlocked his hands together and rested them on the table as he stared back at Hunter and Freja.
“But what about her fated mate?” Freja bit her bottom lip. She would be denying her daughter of whoever fate had chosen for her. It would be like denying herself of Hunter.
“We would also be denying our son his fated mate. So, you see … we’re both sacrificing for the good of all our kind,” Willa said softly.
This is why their story about their son was so important. Because he was their treasure, and they were willing to do this to him.
“What if they refuse? What if your son or my daughter refuses?” Hunter’s stormy eyes met the King of the Vampires’ gaze.
“But would they? Would they refuse their father, their King? They might not like it, but they have a duty. Being royalty means they have obligations because of the role they’ve been given.” Alaric could see Freja’s sad eyes. Willa also felt the same way at first. “It’s the only way to solidify our treaty,” he said, more gently.
“What if they meet their fated mate? Are they to refuse them?” Freja looked at Willa. She could see the woman’s eyes watering at that thought.
“It’s a choice they will have to make. They will have to choose between a fated mate or their obligations to their kind. In the event they choose their fated mate or refuse this arrangement, then the treaty will be off. We can make an agreement, but in my experience, it will not last. That is why this is important.” Alaric could see the silver eyes deep in thought. “What’s on your mind?”
Hunter’s gaze fixed on Alaric. “I understand how this strengthens the treaty and solidifies it. However … I thought you had a pureblood issue. Are you sure you want your son to be with a quadbrid? And how do I know … if I have a daughter, how do I know she’ll be treated well here?”
Alaric smiled and nodded in understanding. “The thing is, Freja’s blood is special. It is desired among our kind. She has the original bloodline in her veins. It didn’t weaken. We want that bloodline in the royal family. It will strengthen the next generation. A child between a daughter of yours and our son … it is a blood match made in heaven. Your daughter would be loved and treated well. She would be precious to us.”
“And since I can’t have any more children, she would be like my own daughter.” Willa sighed. “I know it hurts to think about us deciding their future. But it isn’t just their future, Freja. It’s the werewolves' future. It’s the vampires’ future. Our territories are close together. How long before something happens and a war rises between our kinds? Linking ourselves this way makes us family, and family understands and protects one another. Family will also be there during the demon war.”
And there it was. The vampires would join in on their side in the demon war only if this treaty was made. They would have to sign away their firstborn daughter to be mated to a vampire, the future Vampire King. Hunter turned to Freja, who was looking down at her hands. This was big. Everything that weighed on this decision was significant.
We might not even have a daughter,Hunter mindlinked to Freja.
Then we’re back to no treaty again.
So you want to keep trying until we have a girl?Hunter smirked inwardly as he tried to lighten the mood.
Freja smiled and glanced up to meet his silver eyes.
What do you think, Freja?
I feel like I’m gambling my daughter’s happiness away in exchange for the unity of our kinds. And while I feel guilty for that, I feel that it would be selfish not to. This is for everyone. All the werewolves. All the vampires. This affects the demon waras well.Freja sighed.I don’t think there’s any other choice but to accept. They’re doing the same thing to their own son.
Hunter smiled and nodded.If we have a daughter, this will be her destiny, just like the demon war is mine. It will be up to her to accept it. And if she rejects it, we’ll have to come up with something else.
