Page 52 of Queen Takes Queen
Mayte’s gaze locked on me, and though she smiled and inclined her head, her luminous eyes tugged on me. Frantic, almost. Scared. Worried. Not because ofme, though, and it finally dawned on me. She was just as terrified of making a mistake as Iwas.
Relief washed over me and tension melted away. I smiled and mirrored her movements as closely as possible to convey equal respect. “It’s an honor to meetyou.”
Holding my gaze, she offered her hand, and though I couldn’t see it, I knew her hand must have slid through the invisiblebarrier.
I started to let go of Rik’s arm to take her hand, but he clutched me hard. “Not until your Blood arethrough.”
Mayte didn’t withdraw her hand, and again, I felt an overwhelming sense of urgency from her. Like she was afraid if she didn’t get me inside, it might be too late. I listened with all my senses, trying to find anything amiss. Hopefully my magic would warn me if there was a trap of some kind awaitingus.
“Of course, please allow me to introduce you to my Blood,” Mayte said. “My alpha, Eztli, along with Diego, Luis, andMaxtla.”
The four men stepped forward, and though Rik didn’t move a muscle, his bond vibrated with intensity as he scanned each man and found them worthy adversaries. Eztli was the biggest man, though nearly a foot shorter than Rik and nowhere near as massive. All four men moved with lithe grace, lean muscles flowing under their skin with an ease that made me think of jaguars prowling silently through thejungle.
:They are cats of some kind.:Daire’s warcat rumbled a warning.:Most likely jaguars as you guessed, but I won’t know for sure until theyshift.:
:She only has four Blood?:I asked Rik.:Do you sense anyothers?:
:Not through the blood circle. It’s a barrier that our senses have a difficult time penetrating. Once we’re through, I’ll know better if she has other Blood that haven’t been introduced. That would be something to be suspiciousof.:
He moved so he stood behind me, my rock, always at my back. Then he gave a nod to the other Blood. One of Mayte’s Blood offered his hand and Mehen took it. For a moment, they stood there, squeezing each other’s hands and staring into each other’s eyes. Mehen didn’t move a muscle or say a word, but the other man’s eyes tightened and he grew pale around the mouth. When Mehen stepped through the circle and then released him, the man opened and closed his fingers severaltimes.
Guillaume went next. He stood at the edge a moment, waiting for one of her Blood to offer his hand. They whispered among themselves a moment, recognizing the Templar knight famous for taking alphas’ heads. So I was impressed when Eztli offered his hand rather than making one of his underlings bring my knight through. Guillaume didn’t play any games like Mehen, though he did meet and hold the alpha’s gaze without straining in the slightest and stepped through. One by one, the rest of my Blood followed them, until it was only me, Rik, andGina.
Bianca offered her hand and Gina stepped through thecircle.
The whole time, Mayte offered her hand to mesilently.
:Go now,:Rik told me.:I have your back until you’rethrough.:
Taking a deep breath, I slipped my hand into Mayte’s. Her fingers closed around me, trembling slightly, though that could have been nerves. Something sparked between our palms, quickly growing warm. She clutched me harder, her eyes shining, and started to pull me through. I could see the blood circle now, a shimmering wall of energy that licked up my fingers, wrist, and forearm. My palm burned hotter. My instinct was to let go, to avoid the pain of a serious burn. A mind trick? Or a warning from mygoddess?
The fire burned hotter on my skin. My entire hand felt like I’d fallen into a fire or stuck my hand on a stove. Fire was my gift, but it’d never hurt mebefore.
“Please don’t let go,” Mayte whispered urgently, her shining eyes locked on me. Her eyes glowed like moonlight on a crystal clear lake. “I mean no harm to you and yours. I swearit.”
“Stop,” Rik barked, lunging toward me. He touched my back and I screamed as a thousand-watt bolt of lightning tore through me. I knocked him reeling backward, my entire system powering up in a heartbeat. Pressure built inside me, my magic surging to red-line levels. I didn’t know what was happening, but if I didn’t release it, my own magic would tear me topieces.
I tore my lip open with my fangs and power exploded out of me. Ice burned up my spine, meeting the fire in myhand.
Something did not want me in that nest. Wind and lightning tore at me, whipping my hair, tearing at my dress. A frantic howling wind swirled around me, black thick air trying to suffocate me. But I could still see Mayte’s eyes, shining like lanterns against the darkness. She’d begged me to not let go of her hand. She’d sworn she meant no harm to any of us. So then who didn’t want me crossing Mayte’s own bloodcircle?
Frankly, it pissed me the hell off. I’d been so scared of making a political mistake that it’d never dawned on me that I’d encounter trouble trying to cross into the nest despite Mayte’s own blessing. I pulled harder on my magic, pushing back against the storm. But force wasn’t helping. As when Ra attacked us, the harder I tried to push the wind away, the more it roared, using my own power againstme.
I drew my power back, conserving my energy while I looked for the source of the storm. I let the storm batter me, sinking deeper into the darkness. High-pitched shrieks of vicious glee swirled around me like a hurricane, but I ignored it, even when it felt like something nibbled at me, taking bites of my flesh. The gale sucked the air out of my lungs and I couldn’t breathe. I had to be in the tail of the storm, almost at the source. I couldn’t see anything in the blackness. My body was quickly slipping into panicked flight mode, but I held on, gritting myteeth.
There. I could feel something pulsing beneath me, spewing up the storm around it. It crouched on top of Mayte’s blood circle like a huge venomous spider, claiming her boundary as itsown.
My chest ached like my lungs had caved in, but I honed my magic into a fireball, spinning with energy, red and dark with my fury. I willed my fire to explode on that nasty spider. I heard its legs cracking. Hairs catching fire, exploding with pops. A vicious screech. It tried to flee, legs cracking and breaking off, charred in the heat of my rage. Hotter. I felt the sear on my face, sheets of fire rippling up my body like it was going to tear skin from my bones, until finally the spiderexploded.
The winds ceased so suddenly I stumbled. Hands closed on me that my body knew even if I couldn’t see them. Mehen. Daire. My Blood. Yet I still fell into darkness. Rik roared, the ground shaking and bucking with his fury. Then he was gone. They were all gone. The last thing I saw was Mayte’s eyes, still shining as she pulled methrough.
20
Rik
What the fuckhad we been thinking? Letting our queen enter another queen’s nest? My queen wasgone.
Fuckinggone.
