Page 48 of Cursed
Ryland agrees. “Yes, she does. I assumed she would reject me immediately, like all the others, but when she didn’t, I brought her up to my rooms to get cleaned up and eat some food.” Ryland lets out a low whistle, shaking his head. “When she stepped out of the shower, all clean and wrapped in nothing but a towel, I knew I was in trouble.”
The men smile and laugh again, congratulating him and commenting on Nori’s beauty.
Erik hesitantly says, “I remember Starfall’s former Alpha, Aldric Valcrest. He was a great man. Is she the one who murdered her parents?”
Ryland growls at the accusation but tries to respond without anger. “Yes, Nori is Aldric’s daughter, and yes, she was accused of murdering her parents.”
Ryland pauses, waiting for the grumbling to stop. “She was ten years old at the time and has no memory of their deaths. She told me that she loved her parents and couldn’timagine murdering them. The fact that she has no memory of the event leads me to believe she was falsely accused.”
Erik continues, “I witnessed her trial, Ryland. I only saw her once. She was a small thing. I thought it odd that they didn’t kill her outright for the crime.”
Ryland nods. “Nori would agree with you. Instead, they made her a slave. Her uncle, the new Alpha, and various other members of the Pack repeatedly abused her. She doesn’t know why they kept her alive.”
The men growl and curse at hearing how they abused a she-wolf.
Ryland continues, “I know. I can hardly stand to hear her horrible stories of how they mistreated her. One day soon, I will find a way to kill everyone who laid a hand on her.”
Another Enforcer next to Zayne asks, “I hate to ask, but if she’s a slave, how will your father ever accept her?”
Ryland smiles slightly. “The King believes the Mate Bond is sacred; her status will not bother him. Also, she’s not a slave, not really. They made her a slave, but Nori’s blood is teeming with Alpha Power. She doesn’t even know the depths of her power. The King will love her; I have no doubt.”
Kane lightens the mood. “Why the hell haven’t you two accepted the Bond yet? Why haven’t you Claimed her?”
Ryland sighs and runs his hand through his hair, leaning back in his seat. “It’s complicated. She’s terrified of her ownshadow after twelve years of suffering abuse at the hands of her Pack Leaders.” He waits again as a rumble rolls through the men, and they exclaim their disapproval.
“Twelve years?”
“Those bastards!”
Instead of giving them the details of how he nearly killed both of them last night, Ryland simply says, “I am proceeding cautiously while we get to know one another. But, damn, this Mate Bond is a fucking force of nature. Thoughts of her are constantly rolling around in my head.”
Another round of laughter escapes the men, all being Mated themselves. One says, “Welcome to being Mated, Alpha. All Mate Bonds are a force of nature. It eases up a bit after the acceptance, but only a little!”
They stay up for a while, telling stories of their own Mate Bond experiences. When the wind starts to blow through the trees and the snow begins to fall, they quickly clean up and prepare to weather the storm.
Aspromised, Adele leads Nori out of the castle after lunch the following day. They walk along a narrow path to a small stone cottage.
They are about ten feet from the front door when both women are frozen in place. Their wolves have stopped them from moving any closer to the house.
“Nuh uh; no way, Nori! Can you not smell the witch? She smells evil and wrong,” Aylin growls.
Nori looks to her left; Adele is clearly having a similar conversation with her wolf. Rolling her eyes, Nori tries to lighten Aylin’s mood. “What does evil and wrong smell like, exactly, Aylin?”
“Oh, you are making fun? We are not going into that house!” Aylin’s anxiety is palpable.
“We need her.” Nori pleads with her wolf. “I don’t want to need her help, but we do. She’s the only person here who can possibly tell us what our power is. So, please. Please put up with it for a little while.”
Aylin snarls, “Fine, but make it quick 'cause her smell is driving me crazy!”
Nori relaxes as Aylin releases her; she waits for Adele to finish negotiating with her own wolf. After another minute, Adele blows out a breath and says, “Let’s get this over with.”
Adele knocks on the door, and a small, but curvy female with long, wavy, brown hair answers the door. The woman is clearly unnerved by Adele’s presence. Nori watches her eyes practically pop out of her head, but she recovers quickly.
“Hello, Princess Drakemoor. What can I do for you?”
“Lyra Blackwood, this is Norina Valcrest. She is Mate Bonded to Prince Drakemoor, and she needs your assistance.”
“Come in. Come in,” Lyra says.
