Page 19 of A Reign of Malice
A glimmer of something indecipherable crosses his expression before he schools it back into a casual smile. “Our guest list isn’t as full as I hoped it would be. Asher and Theo are claiming it’s too short notice to attend.”
“Oh, my king.” I slide my hand down his arm slowly. “Estee owes me. Let me give her a call and see what I can do about that. We need them here.”
And as an idea begins to form, I might need the other kings and queens now more than ever.
His smile turns approvingly. “You never cease to impress me.”
I lift my chin, my voice dipping into something softer, more seductive. “You’ve only seen the beginning of what I’m capable of.”
Aeson’s fingers tighten slightly at my waist before he releases me with a lingering touch. “I look forward to seeing more.”
I step back, offering him a final glance before continuing down the hall to my room, ignoring Clara’s disgust at having witnessed that show until we’re out of sight.
Aeson’s starting to trust me more.
Now, I just have to make sure he never sees my next move coming.
CHAPTER NINE
THE FATED MATE
She shouldn’t be here—she shouldn’t have been able to break through those runes—but she did. And now, I’m coming undone. Her presence was a breath of air in lungs that have been starved for too long. A blade that slashed through the numbness, carving me open, forcing me to feel again. And it hurts.
Gods, it hurts so damn much.
Seeing her for those fleeting seconds was like staring into the sun after a lifetime of darkness. My body throbbed with the instinct to reach for her, to touch, to claim, to do anything but watch her vanish into the void once more.
My mate.
My wolf has been silent for years, buried beneath the pressure of magic and despair. But when she came into view, he roared to life, clawing at the edges of my mind, demanding I take what’s ours…but I couldn’t.
I can’t.
She doesn’t understand what she’s done. What she’s awakened. What finding me might cost her.
But I do, and I should’ve pushed her away harder. Ishould’ve lied, twisted my words, made her believeI’mthe monster.
Hell, I might be after all this time. I have no idea how much of my humanity is left. I’ve been caged in this pit for so long, bound in spells woven with malice, my body battered by unseen forces that would’ve killed any other man.
Yet, I’m still alive.
Maybe Aeson wanted it this way. To draw out my death in hopes I’d be too exhausted by the time my tortuous life ended to have any desire to be reborn, to return and take back what was never meant to be his.
The thought of my brother sends a deep, corrosive fury slashing through my gut. He who tricked his way into becoming king when it should’ve been my destiny, not his. I’d let it go, knowing he wanted the role more, but I should’ve looked deeper. I would’ve seen that his intentions were far from good, even when he was convincing me that he was making thesacrificeto take the crown for my benefit.
And now he hasher.
I grit my teeth, my chains rattling against the stone as my arms tense. I pull against them, knowing they won’t give but unable to ignore the need to fight.
He’ll consume her.
Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow. But Aeson doesn’t let things slip from his grasp. He takes, he manipulates, he poisons, he conquers, and he’ll continue to do so.
Unless I find a way to stop him.
CHAPTER TEN
SLOANE
