Page 12 of Boss Level

“Stay safe,” she says, before swallowing thickly. “And thank you. For saving him. I owe you everything.”

“You owe me nothing. Go, before shit hits the fan,” I say, nodding to Daire and the others. I watch them leave before turning back to everyone else.

Grams, Mom, the King, Lust, Odas, Cato, Arlo, Kili, and Crow all turn to look at me. My men move in close.

“We need to meet Fen and the others in the throne room. I’m sure they’ve been up there a while now. The Queen probably has guards looking for us as well as her army moving toward the castle.”

“I can control my people. No one will attack us. Her time as Queen is over,” the King says, and I nod.

“I hope you’re right. But you’ve been…lost in your head…” I say, gesturing to him. “For a long time. They think you’ve gone mad. If they see you suddenly coherent, they might be suspicious.”

“True.” My mother nods. “But once they realize she’s not your mate, and that I am your true Heart Bond, many of them will turn on her.”

“We can’t count on that alone. We need to prepare for the worst. I want you two to stay behind me. Grams, I want you with them. My men will follow behind you three. I’ll ride in first, on Sweet Girl.”

“I can shift. They can ride on my back,” Cato offers, and I raise my brows.

“Will they fit?”

“No. Your mother and Grams can ride on my shoulders, and the King will walk between Kili and Crow, with Cato and Arlo behind him. The Phoenix can shift, and walk beside the Mungus, to help protect you. Cato can shift once we make it to the throne room,” Odas says, and I nod my agreement.

“The Fae Queen’s power will have diminished, now that she’s no longer controlling Sky,” Grams says. “I suspect that might be where most of her power came from. Without access to that, she’ll be nearly useless. I imagine she won’t be putting up much more of a fight.”

“Let’s go,” I say, looking into the eyes of the people before me. People I would give my life for, and who would do the same for me.

I spent years of my childhood alone. Lonely…Now I’m surrounded by love.

More love than I will ever know what to do with.

“Shine…” a voice I recognize says from the doorway, and we all pause.

“Steve!” my mother gasps.

Oh, hell…

Chapter 7

Moon

“Before any of you tries to send me to an early grave, I can explain.” Steve raises his hands in defense, his eyes scanning us until they land on my father. “My King!” Steve gasps, then drops to one knee and bows his head. It quickly snaps back up, though, as he looks the King over with wide, tear-filled eyes. “She broke the curse. You’re free…” Steve whispers, before looking at me.

“She did,” I say, lifting a brow at the man responsible for setting me on this path. I cross my arms over my chest and wait. “His words are what sent me into the games, and I suspect he’s the one that signed me up for the games, in case I had forgotten what he said to me…”

“I knew the only way to keep either of you safe, was to make the Queen–”

“Norma is not the Queen,” my father hisses, and Steve nods his head in instant agreement.

“Of course not, your grace. I apologize,” Steve goes on. “I needed Norma to believe I was working for her. That I was betraying you…” He winces as he says the words, and I can tell it bothers him. “I never did anything that I didn’t absolutely have to. Once my son was born, Moon’s mate, Fenrick, I had even less freedom. She knew exactly how to manipulate me. How to control me.”

“Still can’t believe you have a son with her…” Shine murmurs, and Steve winces again.

“It wasn’t something I wanted. Or had any control over either. Norma isn’t in the habit of asking.” Steve stands, taking a step closer to us, but my men growl in unison. He puts his hands up again. “She sent me with you to keep my eye on you and to kill Moon. I told her that you were paranoid and never left Moon alone with anyone.”

My mother’s eyes narrow. She looks ready to choke the life out of him. “I trusted you with her, all those years, and you had orders to kill her?” My mother’s voice cracks. “You were my best friend…” The betrayal in her voice can’t be hidden.

“I never would have hurt her, Shine. When I had no one, you came along and took my hand. I would have never betrayed you. She started hurting Fen, as a punishment for my failure. I told her my cover was blown, and that was why she had me arrested. The necklace I gave you was to hide your power from her, as well as a tool to help you absorb Chaos and channel it. When I told you to join the Elven games, it was because I thought if your father could see you, it would possibly help him break free of his mental prison. Of course, I had no idea at the time that the spell she had him under was actually a powerful curse.” Steve rambles a little bit.

“So you weren’t trying to get me killed?” I ask, lifting a brow.

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