Page 53 of Wolf’s Fated Bride

“I don’t need your protection. I need you to leave as soon as the storm passes.”

“If you didn’t make Maren nest, we’d already have been on our way.”

The Alpha accepts a drink from a server circulating with a tray. The band belts out a famous tune, and people sing along. A group of five females take to the dance floor. They’re wearing jean skirts that barely cover their bottoms. The thing about Stormcrest females? They’re tall and leggy.

My pack mates are staring up those skirts, drooling over those legs. Luckily, there are enough rooms in the castle, or this dance party would quickly turn into an orgy.

“I saw what happened with you and Runa.”

Alarmed, I ask, “What happened?”

“The Peacebroker showed me a video of Runa walking into your fire. I have to tell you, my heart sank when you lost control and flooded the cavern. But you drew it away from her.” The Alpha appears genuinely grateful when he says, “I don’t know how you managed that, but thank you. My wife and I couldn’t imagine anything happening to our youngest child. We love all our children, but the youngest, no matter how grown, will always be our baby.”

He looks at me expectantly, but I have nothing to offer. I have no kids. “Did you identify her to the Peacebroker?”

“You think I’m an idiot? Of course not. I told the Peacebroker most Stormcrest females look that way in their wolf form.”

While that is true, we can tell the difference. And we can also identify people by the way they smell. “They showed you the video because they wanted you to identify her.”

“Let me worry about that. You need to explain what happened when Runa walked into your fire.”

“You should ask her. She’s the one who interrupted my purge.”

The Alpha narrows his eyes. “I’m asking you.”

“I don’t have an answer.”

“This is serious,” he hisses, then he drags me out of the room as if I’m a boy. I let him. I’m trying to respect the elder and not give in to the urge to slice his throat. That would be very bad.

“You’re the fire elemental. You control the element, so you’re responsible for the way it behaves.”

“In that case, I just didn’t want her to burn, so she didn’t.”

The Alpha levels me with a stare. “Manipulating an element in such a precise way is very difficult. Wouldn’t you say?”

“It is what it is. My fire. My business.”

“They’ll think you’ve mastered control of it.”

“Is there a point to this conversation? Because the entire point of my life, your son’s life, for that matter, is to learn to control our element so that nobody dies.”

The Alpha smiles, but sadness is evident in his eyes. “If my son controls his element, then they don’t.” He claps me on the shoulder. “Happy fire moon, Ash Fireborn. Don’t destroy what little is left of us.”

Chapter 22

Ash

“If my son controls his element, then they don’t.”

This tells me that the Stormcrest Alpha is playing a dangerous game with humans. He’s allied with them, knowing that they’re controlling his son’s element with their alchemy the same way they’re controlling mine and Blade’s. He’s aware of how much control humans have over us, and yet he’s willing to play in their favor anyway.

Woven basket full of food and drinks in hand, I walk by Maren’s quarters so that the housekeeping staff spots me in this part of the castle. They’ll spread rumors that will reach the Alpha and his wife. The Alpha couple will rest well, thinking their treaty with me is secure, despite the humans being rattled by the mystery nobody can solve: how Runa escaped death by elemental fire.

A phenomenon that could fade away in the near future, maybe even today.

At the end of the long hallway, there’s a small iron door. I barely squeeze past it, curious where it leads. It leads to a spiral stairway affixed to the side of the castle. An emergency escape, it seems. Nothing fancy or exciting.

On this end of the castle, the storm blows as if someone’s chasing it. Although my blood is on fire, the wind might freeze me in place. I don’t have many choices. I need to find a place to hunker down for the night.