Page 6 of A Warrior's Fate

Winslow dropped his hand. “Oh, Isla, what are you doing out here?”

Isla scrunched her brows. He wasn’t looking for her?

Winslow, a man of courtesy until one impeded his objectives, bumped her out of the way and slid an arm behind the stranger’s back. “Please, Alpha Kai, the meal’s about to begin. We have a seat for you above with the other leaders.”

Alpha?

The stranger, Kai—Alpha Kai—cleared his throat and nodded, expression flat. He only spared a glance at the bewildered Isla before the two men headed off. She noted the shift in his demeanor. Gone was the cool arrogance, the man who apparently enjoyed pushing her buttons. Now all he felt was…cold.

Kai.

Isla knew the name of every alpha. She felt like she had to—given that her father was the Imperial Beta, Io’s second-in-command—but for the life of her, she couldn’t recall where Kai belonged.

Going to her failsafe method, she began reciting the packs alphabetically followed by their leaders to the tune of Will You Find It, a nursery rhyme her mother would coo to her as a child.

In Callisto, you find Alpha Kane.

And in Charon, Alpha Locke.

In Deimos…in Deimos.

Isla clenched her teeth, troubled and perplexed.

The Alpha of Deimos is dead.

But then it hit her, sharp and fast, like a punch in the gut. With wild eyes, she looked up just in time to catch the two figures crossing over the threshold, letting the door groan behind them.

The Alpha of Deimos wasn’t dead…he’d just been inches away.

CHAPTER 3

Wedging shaking hands into her tawny hair, Isla paced the terrace.

Alpha…he’s an alpha.

She couldn’t decide if she was more confused or pissed off—at the alpha or herself.

It had been a few minutes since Winslow had escorted him back inside, and Isla just couldn’t get herself to follow. Not yet. She needed to wrap her mind around what had just happened, what she’d done.

Looking past the lust she’d worn like a patch on her sleeve and the abandon of her poise that she prided herself on, Isla had broken so much of the Code, it would make the Elders of past and present roll in their graves. Even if she was from the Imperial Pack and her father was in high standing, she was still rungs below an alpha in the hierarchy. So far down, it surprised her Alpha Kai had spared her as much conversation as he had. That he’d tolerated her snapping and attempts at daunting him as much as he did.

In another situation, maybe with a different, quicker-to-enrage, crueler alpha who viewed himself as a god and had no tolerance for disrespect—a dreadfully common variety—she wouldn’t still be standing.

But he never said anything, Isla told herself, shaking her head. If he’d said something, she would’ve acted accordingly.

Adrien and Sebastian would surely get a kick out of this.

Isla—the good one of the trio who was viewed as an official’s dream because of the facade she could put on in front of those in the highest of places—trying to intimidate an alpha. It was laughable.

Though she’d likely leave out the part where she desperately wanted to jump his bones.

“Whatever,” she muttered, though this was far from a moment she’d forget.

Gathering herself, she made her way back to the ballroom. With every step towards its opening, Isla felt the strength of Kai’s presence grow. She could really sense it now, his power. Alphas had an undeniable aura to them, and she realized she’d only got the faintest taste of it in that bitter moment just before he walked away. He must’ve been masking it before. But now, amidst his high-ranking peers…

Isla’s eyes went to the raised part of the room where the alphas sat with their betas and selected officials. None of them had brought their lunas, the queens instead remained in their territories, ruling their kingdoms. Kai was where she’d expected, where she’d been told, next to Adrien. They were talking about something, and she couldn’t help but wonder what it was.

As if he could feel her staring, the Alpha of Deimos peered beyond her friend. The second their eyes met, that fire returned to the pit of her belly. One of Isla’s swinging arms paused at her side to take a light hold of her dress, bunching it up in her hand as she came to a standstill. She doused the flames as quickly as she could, looking away, though her cheeks still burned in fury.

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