Page 64 of Reign

Rawson had messaged me to say he was on his way back with new information. I hoped it was good news but doubted it. Walker had opened a portal in the compound yard an hour ago, which meant that my beta was back, with Shane and his beta. I watched Selina. She was tight-lipped, and though she was aloof, her gaze kept drifting to Owen, who stood to my right. My beta met her gaze and held it. I held in a sigh. I’d had hopes for them as a couple, Owen had obviously felt something for her, but now she was Shane’s beta, it would be a logistical impossibility for them to begin any kind of relationship without her giving up her position—and it didn’t look like that was an option, not when she was also Shane’s lover. A fact the Canadian alpha had been very clear about to us all. How Owen was holding it together, I didn’t know. We had bigger issues; that was probably how. I shelved my concern for my brother and studied the room.

Stone stood on my left. Reed and Myles were at my back, watching the crowd, and Lionel and Kawan flanked Ember, where she lounged against the wall to my right. They’d protect her if everything went to shit. I’d wanted her by my side. It had been Ember herself who had persuaded me otherwise. She wanted a chance to study the people in the room without them watching her too closely. All these strangers in our compound weren't something I liked, but it was necessary. Trust was earned on both sides. These shifters had managed to avoid the attention of the SBI and were determined to keep it that way. But SBI aside, word had spread that I was the Shifter King, and each one had pledged his fealty. That didn’t mean I trusted them.

My eyes narrowed. The amount of power in the air was making some of the weaker shifters restless and agitated. I glanced at Drake. He glowered at the nearby shifters when they shuffled too close to Sophie and him. They had the presence of mind to move away again. I’d commanded him to stay by Sophie’s side. He’d let his displeasure show enough to get him a punch in the solar plexus. He’d needed a reminder who was his alpha. Iwasprotective of Sophie. She was my blood, just like Zander. I hadn’t protected him, but I had every intention of keeping my sister safe. And I needed to rely on my brothers to help me do that. Besides, Drake needed help recognising his soul-mate. Maybe then he’d stop being such an arse to her.

I glanced at Lance and Ava, who were hanging near the bank of computers. They nodded. They kept an eye on our tech, and B’nar guarded the entrance to our weapons stash, Blue by his side.

Around the table stood the Count and Davlov, his second, the man who often greeted me at the Gambit, Shane and Selina, and five more alphas from the bigger packs of London and the South of England, all with their betas. Walker stood opposite me. No one watched his back, but I had no doubt if anyone tried to attack him, they’d be dead before they did any real damage. I pulsed out a vibe of dominance, and the room fell silent immediately. Some even bowed under the force of it.

Ember smirked and rolled her eyes. “Show off,” she mouthed.

I didn’t let my amusement show, but it flared through our bond. I wastheShifter King; weakness was not something these supernaturals would respect. “We’re all assembled here because we face the biggest threat yet to our existence on this planet. The SBI can’t help, and neither can the human police. There is a Rift between the fabric of this world and Hell. And it’s in London. With every day that passes, it is getting bigger.”

“Why? What’s happening to make it bigger?” asked a dark-haired wolf shifter. He didn’t make eye contact, but he wasn’t weak or frightened of me, either.

“The demons who have survived the Rift and found a body to inhabit here send more souls back to their master. A Rift is always connected to the general of Hell who summoned it. As they grow in power from the souls that are reaped, so will the Rift.”

“You’ve seen one before.” It was a statement, not a question. He had a hard look and seemed in his late forties, but all shifters aged slowly compared to humans, so he was likely far older.

“I have, and with help from our Fae allies, my pack and I destroyed it and the general who controlled it.”

Many gazes drifted to Walker, who stoically ignored them.

“If you’re so powerful,my King,” sneered one of the other alphas at the table, “then why do you need us? Sounds like you and your pack can manage fine without us. Why should I risk the lives of my pack fighting a bunch of demons who exist far from where I live? Or is it that you have so few numbers you are too weak to defend your territory from invasion?”

I glanced at Owen.

He grinned.

We were prepared for this. It was expected that one or two of the alphas would try and assert their strength. And as we had in the prison, we would crush that rebellion now. Owen stalked towards the male, who had stupidly sat in the chair provided. Sitting had made him vulnerable. By the time he had realised Owen’s intention, it was too late. My beta’s powerful punch knocked him from his chair, and he hit the floor. Owen calmly wrapped a thickly muscled arm around the male’s throat and dragged him into a chokehold. The male’s beta growled. “Do not move out of that chair,” Owen warned quietly. Looking conflicted, the beta sat back. “Do you want to live?” Owen’s voice was resonant enough it carried to everyone in the room, and there was no doubt he meant the question.

In Owen’s grasp, the shifter breathed heavily, his eyes narrowed, and his nostrils flared. He tried to drop his weight and flip Owen over his shoulder, but Owen was far too experienced a fighter for that to work.

“Answer him!” I roared, shifting and letting Prime push through, my vision changing as flames flared to life in my eyes and my body grew.

The male’s eyes widened. He nodded rapidly. Owen let go and shoved him forward. The male landed on his hands and knees. “Then crawl to your King, and mean it when you pledge your fealty.”

I held in my disgust as the male did it. I didn't enjoy subjugating my people, but there was no room for petty power struggles and betrayal in the next twenty-four hours. These powerful shifters needed to fear me as much as they feared Satan, or we could lose everything. I didn't glance at Ember even though I wanted to. I’d get a thousand people to crawl to me on their knees if it meant she’d stay out of the clutches of Hell.

“Get up,” I growled down at the male. He stood. I leaned forward, my jaws just in front of his face. He blinked but didn’t flinch away. I grunted, respecting the male’s bravery. I could rip his head from his shoulders without breaking a sweat, and the scent of his fear told me he knew it, yet he didn’t cower. “Do not question my strength or the strength of my pack again.”

“Understood, Prime.”

“I am powerful, and I am your King, but I am not arrogant enough to believe I am invincible. If we fail and the Rift remains open, the demon war will be long and brutal. Those demons are here looking for the key to the Hell gates, and they will not give up. If they find it, they will open the gates, and this world will be lost. That’s why you are here. If we fail, you will be fighting not for me but for the survival of this planet and everyone on it.”

Well, that got their attention.Ember’s grim comment filtered into our bond.

I shifted, covering myself in combats, boots, and a fitted tee. Owen returned to my side. There was no acknowledgement between us. It wasn’t necessary.

“Where’s the key?” asked Balthazar, his pale eyes sharp, his gaze unrelenting. My blood went cold. I knew without a doubt if he discovered Ember’s involvement, he’d end her, as would Walker if we failed to close the Rift.

“Safe.”

His eyes narrowed but didn’t drift towards Ember. Good. None of my pack would talk. Not even Som would give up Ember. That old goat actually cared for her. It was in his face every time he looked at her. But if Balthazar even so much as sniffed a reason to believe that Ember was involved, he was powerful enough to read any one of their minds by biting them. Pushing aside my worry, I continued with the meeting. We hashed out plans and resources until we had everything planned down to the last detail.

That night, I held Ember close, my hand resting lightly across the small swell of our baby. Anxiety coiled in my gut, and it took everything I had to keep it from our bond. No matter if we won and closed the Rift, we would always be hunted. I swallowed hard. If we had a daughter, she would always be hunted too. She would inherit Ember’s phoenix when Ember was ready to go to the beyond. My eyes burned at the thought of ever losing her, either by my death or her own. Sleep didn’t come that night, so instead, I contented myself with holding my family close and planning our future.

Chapter 24

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