Page 57 of His Stolen Queen
"So the threat's over, right? The BloodKin are destroyed now that their leader is killed?"
I paused, my brow knitting together. "It…appears so." I couldn't quite put my finger on why my guard was still up. Something about the whole ordeal felt odd.
"And…my husband?"
I stiffened, offended that she dared to mention him. "He is not your husband."
Her eyes flashed in defiance. "This says otherwise." She lifted her hand to show a bare finger. She did a double take, and my offense abated when I realized that she had not even noticed they were missing. "Hey! Where the hell are my rings?"
My gaze went to the fireplace.
She gasped and stood, knocking back her chair. "You bastard! Those weremyrings."
I leaned back in my chair, uncaring that she was upset over some cheap trinket. "Do not worry. I will get you new ones. Ones worthy of a Queen."
She gave an indignant little scream. "You had no right!"
I lifted my shoulder carelessly.
Her nostrils flared as she stared me down, her chest puffing out quickly. "I need to see David."
That killed my satisfaction. I glowered at her. "No."
"We're still married," she gritted out.
"In the human world. Here, we do not adhere to such rules. Once I mark you, you'll be mine."
She opened her mouth before quickly closing it again. I knew she wanted to question my last remark but thought twice. "Ineed to talk to him. I-I hurt him so much. I can't just disappear on him.Please," she begged.
My need to protect her warred with my desire to grant her every wish. "It is not safe."
"But Vladimir's dead. He was the one seeking me, right?”
I rolled my lips in. Yes, it did appear that the threat had been neutralized. And yet…"I'll think about it," was all I could promise her.
Chapter 22
Alice
Istood at the end of my driveway, staring at the house I'd called home for the past three and a half years. David's red sedan was out front, parked next to my white SUV. I had needed a larger car to transport materials for work.
Work.Shit. That was another mess I had to deal with. I was sure a few of my employees had witnessed my altercation with Acheron and David and likely thought I was taking personal time off to deal with the fallout. Luckily, I kept my company running like a well-oiled machine. If I had to take a day or two off, it wouldn't affect our day-to-day operations. Everyone had their own tasks to follow up on and didn't need me to micromanage them. Still…being without contact for this long was highly unusual.
Swallowing my nerves, I walked up my driveway, my heart lurching at what I would find behind that closed door. David was surely pissed off at me still; any normal spouse would be. Butwhat must he have thought when he came home, and I wasn't here? Did he think I didn't care about him? Because I did.
Just not the way he wanted or deserved.
I didn't have my phone with me while I was away with Acheron. The last time I saw it, it had been sailing through the air toward Vladimir. I had blocked those memories; too frightened by the vision of red eyes, ghostly pale skin, and sharp teeth gnashing in my face. But now that I was home again, I recalled the broken walls and doors, the fruit bowl and chair that had been scattered on the floor.
Acheron hadn't wanted me to leave him. He forbade it, but I made the past two days utterly miserable for both of us by crying and giving him the silent treatment. He didn't understand. Ineededto see David. I couldn't just walk away from the life I had with him…at least not without confronting the consequences.
My heart was burdened with conflict when I stressed to him I needed to say goodbye to this part of my life.
"I'm only letting you go because the threat has been eliminated. But make no mistake, I amnotletting you go, Alice. You understand?"
My eyes dropped from his, afraid of the heavy emotion I spied there and the fact that it mirrored my own far too closely.
"Give me space, Acheron. Just because I remember our…whatever we had, doesn't mean that I'm supposed tobewith you."
