Page 24 of I Married A Catman

This stoicism could prove quite beneficial once she stood before the Matriarchs.

My stomach knotted with apprehension as we stepped into the building. To my dismay, many of the people outside followedus within. It was all the more infuriating that I couldn’t do a thing about it. Only the Matriarchs could kick them out, if they so chose.

As we made our way towards the dais, the crowd quietly took a seat on the side benches lining the left and right walls of the front area of the room. But I paid them no mind, too focused on the people sitting on the dais and on each side. On top of the three Matriarchs, all the huntresses had taken their seat on the left and right sides of the semi-octagonal section at the front. That included the seething Oluina, and a gleeful Moriak right at the edge of the huntresses’ section. Ylis’s curious and amused expression gave me hope.

I shifted my attention to Rozel, our Head Matriarch. As I feared, she looked unimpressed as she slowly examined Ophelia from top to bottom.

“So that’s the female you are shunning our Queens for?” Rozel snarled in lieu of a greeting.

I immediately bristled at the contempt audible in her voice as she continued to glare at my mate.

“I didn’t shun anyone!” I snapped.

She shifted her gaze to me, anger burning in her eyes. “You refused them all!”

“I just got home after twelve years on Molvi,” I retorted, exasperated that she would force me to rehash the same thing all over again. “I’m trying to find my bearings, not to compete with other males for the Queens’ attentions.”

“Are our females not worth competing for?” Rozel argued.

I barely repressed the urge to roll my eyes and took a deep breath to keep my cool. “Obviously, the females of the Nevian Pride deserve every honor. But like with every hunt, rushing at the first enticing sound only gets you killed. I wanted to take my time and assess my situation.”

“And yet you rushed to the human,” Oluina interjected with a disdainful gesture towards my mate.

I cast a glance towards Ophelia, concerned by how such aggressive behavior was affecting her. To my utter relief, she was observing the situation with phenomenal stoicism. I could only pray she would not make any outburst that could complicate matters further. I silently berated myself for not preparing her better for the fierce opposition we might face. But then, never in a million years would I have expected this level of rage.

“I didn’t rush to anyone or anything,” I replied in a controlled voice. “I wasn’t looking for a mate. Fate brought Ophelia to me when I least expected it.”

“Semantics!” Oluina spat out. “You still took her, an off-worlder, while shunning the rest of us!”

“She’s my soulmate!” I snapped. “Younever were, and never will be!”

I flinched inwardly to have allowed my anger to get the best of me. Humiliating her publicly was the last thing we needed. Oluina recoiled while multiple muffled gasps resonated in the room. She bared her fangs at me, and a low growl rose from her throat.”

A single hard stare from her mother sufficed to silence her. Rozel then shifted her attention back to me, her own anger almost palpable.

“I already explained how this union came to be,” I continued in a reasonable tone, this time addressing the Head Matriarch directly. “The Temern reached out to me unsolicited. Kayog Voln isneverwrong. Even here in the Prides, his reputation precedes him.”

“Be that as it may, you’re a Stellig,” Rozel said dismissively. “It is unfathomable for one such as you to waste your seed onher.”

The need to extrude my claws burned my fingertips. Who would have thought someone could put so much contempt in a single word? The fury I felt at their disrespect towards my female had my blood boiling. But for Ophelia’s sake, I needed to keep a cool head. For the first time, I genuinely worried. I never expected things to get this ugly. Although it occurred rarely, huntresses were known to slaughter any person they deemed a traitor to the Pride or a threat to its stability. And right now, both the Head Matriarch and Head Huntress seemed to be entertaining that thought.

“My seed would not be wasted on my mate,” I said calmly. “I did my research before entering into this union. Although humans and Nazhrals are compatible, our genes are dominant. Any offspring she and I have will exclusively possess Nazhral traits.”

“Whatever the case may be, the human is not welcome here,” Oluina hissed. “The only Queens allowed in a Pride are blood relatives.”

“My Ophelia isn’t trying to be a Queen,” I countered in a clipped tone before looking back at the Matriarch. “Frankly, I do not understand what all of this is about. When I first informed you of the good fortune that befell me, you agreed to allow my mate to stay here at least for the remainder of my grace period. Granted, you did so with much reluctance, but you nonetheless agreed to it. I wouldn’t have brought her otherwise. So what is this all about?”

“And then what? What happens at the end of your grace period if we still feel she’s unwelcomed?”

“Then if you banish my mate, I shall leave with her,” I said matter-of-factly.

This time, loud gasps—some of them shocked, others outraged—resonated through the room. Moriak looked on theverge of having an orgasm he was so enjoying the spectacle, whereas Oluina seemed ready to commit murder.

“You would abandon your Pride for a human?!” Rozel asked in a dangerously low voice.

“I would leave any place where my soulmate is not wanted. You, better than anyone, know what a rare gift it is among our people to find the other half of our souls,” I said in a reasonable tone. “It would be a crime against the Gods to turn my back on Ophelia.”

“Then leave now!” Oluina hissed.

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