Page 47 of The Queen

Shadow took a step as if to pursue the child who’d disappeared, but I grabbed his hand, and he stopped short, casting me a dark look. I felt suddenly vulnerable and didn’t want to be left alone, unarmed, in the middle of a crowd.

The muscles in his jaw bulged as he held himself back. “Put your shoes on. It’s time to go,” Shadow said, and handed me my slippers that he’d tucked into one of his pockets for safekeeping.

While I stuffed my dirt-covered feet into my shoes as fast as I could, Shadow barked orders into his comms.

“Yes, poison. Larkspur can be deadly if ingested. This could’ve been a warning,” Grey said, his eyes scanning the cavern.

All those reverent faces that had seemed so kind earlier took on a sinister cast. There was no way to know if someone here wished us ill. Was someone watching us from that sea of people plotting to hurt us somehow?

As soon as my slippers were on, Shadow grabbed my hand again and started towing me down a side street. Grey followed, his head swiveling, alert to danger.

“Wait!” I struggled to pull free of his grip. Shadow’s hand only tightened, and Grey herded me along from behind. “Couldn’t it have just been a child giving me a flower?” I begged, hoping that was the truth.

“Or, more likely, a threat from whoever’s been after you,” Shadow said, not missing a stride.

“It was just a flower,” I insisted, doing my best to convince myself while still trying to get free of Shadow’s iron grip. As ominous as it was, I didn’t want to think that my people would be capable of this.

Grey ushered me along. “Maybe it was just a flower from a child, but with everything else that’s been happening, there’s no reason to take risks with your safety.”

“I agree,” Shadow replied, hauling me around a freestanding building and through the entrance of a large metal corridor.

A unit of fully armored soldiers met us as we stepped inside. I shivered at the helmeted, black clad soldiers.

The tallest one strode toward us, pulling his helmet off to reveal my golden-haired alpha. His mossy gaze was thunderous as he closed on our position.

The scent of dark fruits blanketed me, giving away the identity of Fenix and his team. Mixed in with that was a hint of coconut, sea breeze, and fog. More than just Fenix’s team, then.

Ghost flipped up his visor and winked. Not to be outdone, his brother, Arkyn, did the same. The rest of the armored team formed up around us without the fanfare.

“What in the fuck were you thinking?” Lex growled, advancing on us like a raging storm.

I cringed under his harsh words, but realized his intense anger was directed entirely at Shadow. I had to stop this. It wasn’t Shadow’s fault. The threat had passed. The only danger now was Lex.

Alphas.

I shook my head and stepped between the charging man and Shadow. “Stop, stop. We’re fine. Everything is fine. Look at me. Nothing is wrong.”

Lex’s jaw ticked, but he stopped in front of me. Talking over my head, he glared at Shadow. “I could excuse this recklessness from them,” he nodded at Grey and me, “but you. You know the risks. How could you be so stupid?”

Shadow’s low growl rose in his throat. I reached back and found his hand with mine. How quickly after gaining freedom did I give it up again?

I puffed up my chest, taking a stand against an alpha that was nearly a foot taller than I was. “We can’t put our lives on hold just because of a threat. If we do that, we might as well give up now because they’ve already won.” I probably looked ridiculous, but there was no way I was backing down.

Lex’s green gold-eyes narrowed as he looked down at me. His gaze shifted to Shadow, then back to me again. “Yes, Your Majesty.” He bowed and when he rose, he turned his back on us.

“Move out.”

With that single command, the team of soldiers closed ranks and escorted us away from the cavern. I knew this was Fenix’s team, but they fell into step under Lex’s command like it was second nature.

I hated that it had come to this, but it only solidified my certainty that something had to be done for these people, even if some of them were working against me.

Chapter Thirty-One

Greylan

Just a flower? Doubtful. Whoever poisoned me knew we were on to them. I was sure of it. I could think of no other reason that they would’ve shown their hand in this way.

We stopped ordering meals from the kitchen yesterday. If someone was tampering with the food, they would surely have noticed that right away. I doubted anyone considered we might be showing our own hand by doing so. An oversight we may have come to regret.

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