Page 107 of Settle Down, Princess

“And so, I invite all of you to eat the fruits of our labour, enjoy the company of our people, and to spend this moment reflecting on the joy the bonds between us bring. We are stronger together, always remember that.”

I think Wren was going to say more, but a sharp clap snapped her jaws shut and dragged all our attention to the back of the hall. My hand went to my sword hilt, the leather-wrapped metal a comforting thing, as my worst nightmare walked in.

“Well done,” Magnus said, his lips twisted into a sardonic smile as he regarded the tables and the people behind them with a jaded eye. His smile soured when he caught sight of each girl dressed in the princess’ gowns. The moment I caught the dangerous light in his eyes, I stiffened, every muscle tightening in readiness. “Pretty words indeed. We are all stronger when we band together.” His focus shifted to Wren, who stood perfectly still at the main table. “Wolf shifters and humans in perfect accord.”

“Your Majesty—” Wren started to say.

“Which is why I’m perturbed by the fact I was not invited to this little get together.”

“No one comes in or out of the packlands during the mating games,” Wren said between gritted teeth. “Your Majesty.”

If I noted the fact his title was tacked on at the end, so did Magnus.

“But I came here on your invitation, Elder.” His silky tone, the way he looked the elder up and down, all had my heart pounding faster. They were his tells, alerting me that I would not like what came next. “Word was sent that you needed special dispensation from me, to bless a new union between a wolf shifter…” His eyes slid to Creed. “And his fated mate.”

Don’t fucking look at her. Those words reverberated around in my head so loudly, I think my lips moved to make their shapes, but the king paid me no mind. Do not fucking look at her. His gaze landed on Jessalyn, and she flinched at his inspection. Magnus caught the way I stiffened, my furious grin, and then smiled.

He did the same when we were children. If my eyes lit up at the sight of a particular toy, he’d snatch it first, or if I managed to grab it, he’d tear it from my hands. Whatever I wanted, he had to have. That’s what had me forcing myself to lean back in my chair, subtly pushing my body away from the princess and the rest of my pack. His smile widened though, showing far too many teeth.

“And who is the lucky lady?”

His manners were impeccable. Magnus was the perfect courtier, approaching the dais in a low bow, as if my pack were the rulers here, not him. “Not a wolf shifter lass from the look of those eyes.” He lifted his head just enough to stare at Jessalyn. “No, you look… Stormarian.”

“A handmaid of the princess you ordered us to bring,” I told him. “The connection between Creed and the girl was instantaneous. She was meant to go home once we delivered the princess. She’s got a husband back in Stormare who won’t be pleased to find out she’s run off with a beast man, hence why the elders sought your permission.”

I was lying, and I’m sure I convinced no one, but I couldn’t seem to stop. You never told Magnus what you actually wanted. He’d use that against you the moment he had that information and by lying, I’d done just that.

“A handmaid…” Magnus looked Jessalyn up and down, his smirk twisting as he caught sight of the floral crown on her head. “Then perhaps you can tell me where your mistress is?” I sucked in a breath when he pulled away from the main table, but any relief I felt was short lived. He turned and then paced around the silent dining hall. “So, which of these lovelies is my wife?” he asked, approaching Fern. “Is it you?”

The entire hall took a collective breath in as she was hauled to her feet, her eyelids fluttering as he yanked her closer to inspect her face. But right as other males went to move, she was discarded.

“No, you’re a wolf-shifter wench. Perhaps it’s you?”

I couldn’t stay sitting, not when his fingers were biting deeply into unprotected flesh, and neither could the other males. We all moved as one to make clear his mistake. Magnus noted that he had our attention, right before he let the next girl go.

“Your Majesty, you were invited here to renegotiate the terms of the treaty, not to manhandle our women.” Wren’s voice was like the crack of a whip, lashing everyone here.

“Renegotiate…” Magnus turned and squared his stance, arms crossing his chest. He took Wren in and then smiled. “Yes, that is why I came. I’m glad you brought it to my attention. I’ve been meaning to change the very unfavourable terms my father and grandfather agreed to.”

“Unfavourable…?”

I felt the ruffle of a breeze on my neck. The executioner’s axe was about to drop on our unprotected necks. Why the hell did I allow myself to mess around with the mating games? Why did I not mobilise everyone the moment the packs were collected, prepare them for what was coming? They invited a viper into their midst and now would be shocked when they ended up bitten.

“You take the majority of our men to swell the ranks of your army,” Wren snapped. “Without them, you’d never hold back the hordes that muster at your borders. We keep only enough men to ensure the packs survive, that more children are produced, the boys then growing into males that will serve under your command!”

He went very, very still, and I felt like I had been dropped headfirst into a frozen stream. Every nerve screamed, every inch of me shivering, tight and hurting.

“Why just some of the males?” he asked and then clicked his fingers to make something that should never appear on packlands, especially during the mating games. “Why not the women and the children too? Each one of you that has a beast should be out there fighting for the greatness of the Kheanian empire. Otherwise…”

Soldiers, human soldiers appeared from the shadows, which brought a chuckle from the shifters within the dining hall. No tin covered knight was going to withstand the might of even one wolf shifter. They misunderstood. It wasn’t their swords or their bows that drew my attention, but the burning brands. My brother’s men brandished them like they were the only weapons they needed, and as I stared out into the darkness, I saw countless other points of life bobbing.

I told them not to bring my brother here. We should’ve just mated Creed to Jessalyn. Seeking forgiveness was always going to be easier than asking for permission. Because when they expressed a desire for something he saw as his, this happened. Magnus, king of all Khean, was going to set fire to the packlands in retribution.

Chapter 62

This, this was the man my father gave my hand to? This man was the one that brought down Arik’s rebellion? It was a strange thing, seeing someone who looked so much like the commander, yet not. Whoever the former queen of Khean had found to father Magnus, it had to be someone who resembled the old king. Arik was taller, broader, whereas there was something weak about Magnus. The current king’s jaw wasn’t as square, his hair dirty blond rather than gold, his nose marred by the sprawling paths of broken capillaries, caused by too much drinking I was willing to bet. Most of all, it was that vicious cruelty that lived in his eyes that differentiated him from Arik. The commander might be an arrogant ass, but he wasn’t a cruel one.

Most of the time.

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