Page 35 of Bound to Four Alphas

Whatever effect Kaelen had thought his words would have, they had the opposite, and Selena’s wails nearly shook the walls.

Turning away from the pair as Kaelen tried desperately to calm her, Ronan considered the man at Elian’s feet with an eyebrow raised in silent question.

“So it turns out,” Elian wiggled his fingers, “the temple only restricts physical magic. I could get inside his head just fine. He experienced five hundred years of torture in just a few seconds before his heart gave out.”

“Fucking hell,” said Ronan. “Did you learn anything while you were in there?”

“Not a thing,” said Elian, his face turning grim. “Whoever hired them covered their tracks very well. They were paid to kidnap the girl with the silver eyes and take her beyond theboundaries of the temple. They were not to harm her. They didn’t expect her to fight back.”

Elian jutted his chin towards the iron poker lying near Selena’s feet.“. Given that they couldn’t hurt her, it must have taken them a while to disarm her.”

“But they did,” Ronan growled, rage bubbling up again as he strode over to Selena, taking her from Kaelen’s arms and examining her bruised lip. Fuckers. He should have made their deaths much more painful.

“Yes,” Elian’s voice was pure ice. “They did.”

Selena’s lip wobbled and she fell forwards into Ronan’s chest. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to end up by myself.”

Ronan stroked her hair, breathing in her scent, trying to wrestle his alpha back under control. “What happened?”

“I was in the garden with Malek,” she said. “He noticed something in the trees and took off after it. It was like he wasn’t human anymore, he wouldn’t listen to me.”

Ronan exchanged a glance with Elian, whose eyes lit up in understanding. “A distraction,” he said. “They knew Malek would likely be shadowing you, so they needed to distract him. Dump a few fresh carcasses near the tree line, it would be bound to attract nightmares, and the urge to protect Selena mixed with the blood … well, I’m not surprised he lost control. I’ll bet he’s prowling around now killing them off, he’ll be back in time.”

Just then the priestesses arrived, having sensed the magic, and the next hour was a blur of removing the bodies, coaxing Selena into fresh clothes and cleaning her face—both of which Rania tried to do, but Ronan growled and snapped at her until she handed him the clothes and medicine and let him care for her.

He carried her to his room, Kaelen and Elian close behind after talking in hushed murmurs with the priestesses. After changing, Selena crawled under the blankets of his bed, holding her hands out wordlessly for him to join her. He pulled off his clothes, uncaring about his nudity despite the blush on her cheeks, and settled under the furs next to her.

Almost immediately she was asleep. It was understandable. After an attack, the shock was pretty much the only thing that kept him going until he crashed. And he was a seasoned warrior.

Kaelen settled into an armchair, his expression thunderous, and Elian seemed happy to curl up on the floor in front of the fireplace like a cat. The three of them drifted in and out of sleep, wordlessly coordinating so that someone was always awake to listen out for any further danger. The sun peeked through the sky after only a few hours, and Kaelen shut the heavy drapes with a growl.

Some hours later, the door creaked open, all three alphas bolting upright with snarls and growls that woke Selena, who blearily sat up.

It was Malek, his robes in tatters, covered in mud and blood.

In his hand was the head of one of Prince Damien’s human soldiers.

“I found them,” he said, his voice rough. “Three soldiers left behind. I killed them, then tracked the others south. I lost the trail beyond the border of the realm and had to turn back. Damien escaped.”

Selena crawled out of bed, her movements stiff and slow but determined as she threw herself into Malek’s arms, ignoring the filth that covered him.

“I left you,” he said, his voice choked. “I failed you.”

“It wasn’t your fault,” said Elian, drawing surprised looks. “I know enough about your kind to know about the blood-haze. You couldn’t resist. Your instincts told you to protect her, and you did in the way you know how. We failed her by not being there when you were drawn away.”

Malek’s eyes clouded with emotion, his whole body thrumming. But then he nodded once, jerkily, and pressed a kiss to Selena’s head.

“So it was Damien who hired those mercenaries,” said Ronan, brimming with rage. “What do we do now?”

“We leave,” said Kaelen, “as soon as possible. Our powers are limited here, it’s not safe.”

“Where do you suggest we go, back to your kingdom?” Ronan said, an edge of apprehension in his voice.

“We’ll go to the Marble Halls,” said Elian, his voice firm.

Ronan opened his mouth to protest, but Elian held up a hand to silence him.

“If we are to defend her, then I need to work out the magic within her. I need to see this picture in full, rather than in bits and pieces. I need my research.”

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