Page 9 of Queen Takes Blood
But she hadn’t responded to“my queen”at all. Did she not know what we were? But how was that even possible?
Perhaps she didn’t want us.
No, I refused to believe that. I could still feel her call pulsing through me, though the sharpness of immediate danger had eased. I was supposed to be here. I needed to be here. Now. No question in my mind. Even ifshewasn’t aware of the call she’d sent out for our help.
The drumming of her heartbeat steadied, still rapid but not as frantic. Trying to read the emotion flickering across her face, I couldn’t help but think she reacted more like the human server at the restaurant than a powerful Aima queen. As if she was completely stunned to see warriors in action. As if none of this was real despite the evidence of dead thralls on the ground.
Thank the goddess she wasn’t bleeding, or I didn’t think I’d have been able to keep from throwing myself at her feet and pressing my mouth to her wounds.
:A human queen?:Daire asked, his mental voice as shaken as I felt.
:Impossible,:I replied.:Though she doesn’t seem to know what we are.:
Her eyes were wide, as wary of me as the stinking thralls, but she didn’t retreat. Her chin tipped up, her shoulders braced, her fingers tight on her meager weapons. She’d fight me if need be.
Me. An alpha more than twice her size. Who’d give a kidney just for the opportunity to kiss her hand.
Her gaze dropped to my side. And lingered. It took me a second to understand why.
My blood. Of course.
She might not know what I was, but her instincts were working overtime like mine. I stepped closer, keeping my movements slow and easy. “Do you have a safe place nearby?”
I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach that I wouldn’t like her answer. She’d laid a salt circle to keep the thralls at bay. Armed only with a ridiculously tiny knife and a clumsy club. Were these meager weapons all she had at her disposal? The only things that had kept her alive these past months until we’d finally found her?
She focused on my face, her eyes narrowed with suspicion. “Who are you?”
“Alrik and Daire. We’re yours, my queen. If you’ll have us.”
“Why do you keep calling me a queen?”
I glanced over at Daire.:Unfucking believable. Who the fuck do I get to kill to find out who allowed this travesty to happen?:
:Has a queen ever been raised with humans?:
:Not to my knowledge.:Aloud, I replied, “We will explain everything, once you’re safe. A master thrall still watches to the east. I’d rather get you into shelter before we answer any questions you will have.”
She spared a quick glance in the direction of the master, so she’d been able to sense him. She wasn’t completely unaware of her power, though her eyes remained cautious and veiled with distrust when she looked back at us.
A killer blow straight to my heart. Goddess, her eyes gleamed like dark, shining pools of magic. I wanted her trust more than I needed to breathe.
:Perhaps she’s concerned about the weapons,:Daire suggested.
With a mental shrug, I pulled off the ketars and hooked them on either hip. If a thrall tried to come for her again, I’d take great pleasure in ripping it apart with my bare hands.
“Can you not cross the circle?” Her voice quivered slightly, catching on a soft inhale as I looked back into her face.
My heart surged with a multitude of emotions. Joy. Relief. Desire. She might not know what we were, but she wasn’t unaffected by our presence. My blood was on the air, stirring her hunger. Once she tasted me…
She’d know. She’d have full access to my thoughts. My mind would be open to her. My heart laid bare.
:If she doesn’t know what we are, she might not have ever fed.:
I swallowed hard. Goddess, what a fucking mess. I needed to know what had happened to her, so I could make sure that it never happened again.
I just needed her to take a swallow. One taste. A tiny sip. She’d want more. The same way I’d been unable to stop biting Daire last night. Inwardly, I shuddered with ecstasy at the thought of giving her my blood. All my blood. Whatever she wanted, she’d have.
Holding her gaze, I took another step so that I crossed her salt barrier, but I resisted the urge to touch her. Too soon. She didn’t trust me yet. Her scent filled my nostrils, sweet night blooming jasmine and something dark and lush. Forbidden fruits, fur, silk and sex, all wrapped up together.
