Zara

Luckily, what he wanted to do wasn’t suitable for his parents’ house, so for now, I was safe. A silent game between us, one I rarely won, but I wasn’t about to give in.

Later that night, like so many others before, sleep was an elusive beast that even I couldn’t tame. I woke up bleary-eyed and drooling, after perhaps the best sleep I’d had all week.

Perhaps it was the only thing I’d missed in my old life, an endless supply of naps. I awoke to Govinda yanking the cord that connected me, the Queen, to every living demon in this world.

It wasn’t like a mental connection. I couldn’t penetrate his thoughts or bend him to my will. I only felt his presence, like a persistent tap on my shoulder.

I left the bedroom and headed down the hall to the bathroom, determined to wake Alpha as soon as I could speak coherently.

"I’m starting to wonder who the real monarch is here. Does the Queen never get enough sleep?" I muttered under my breath, tripping and nearly colliding with Brandon’s tall figure. Taking a few steps back, I wiped my eyes with the back of my hands. "Oh."

"What were you saying about monarchs and lack of sleep?" He grinned, looking down at me, a spitting image of Alpha, only with more tousled hair and crystal blue eyes.

The light in the hallway was bright, making my eyes hurt, but I could still smell the alcohol on Brandon. A rich amber aroma with hints of thick honey, definitely some kind of whiskey. He wasn’t completely drunk, not nearly that much, but he’d had more than enough to affect the average male wolf.

"Just mumbling about a dream I had," I said, a little sharper than I intended, but he was blocking the bathroom door.

Both Claire and Killian agreed it was best not to tell Brandon the truth. At least until the big announcement. Apparently, the man was completely incapable of keeping secrets. It was almost unbelievable.

"Maybe you’ll tell me about the dream sometime, if my brother dares let you out of his sight," Brandon replied, his smirk a little fuzzier, given his state.

I couldn’t help but glare at him when Brandon dared to glance at my tank top and shorts. They weren’t revealing at all, but my obvious anger only seemed to amuse him further. I stepped back and to the side as he tried to take a step toward me.

"Why don’t you hold your breath, and I’ll take care of it," I replied without hesitation, my voice predictably sharp. I brushed past him and gave him one last look. "Go get some sleep before I knock you out myself."

"Mm, now I see why you’re my brother’s mate," he chuckled to himself, turning around abruptly. With a final drunken grin, he called over his shoulder, "Goodnight, Zara."

Ten minutes later, I woke Alpha up, letting him know his brother was a complete idiot. After three minutes of pleading with Alpha not to go and kick his ass, we left the house and got into the sedan.

Marcus, Holly, Govinda, Sophia, and Mason were staying in a house two blocks away. The houses were newly built, so many of them were temporarily vacant. It was the perfect place to hide them and a witch, who, as it turned out, was my half-sister.

We pulled up to a two-story house, wide, with large windows overlooking the veranda and front yard. A driveway extended to the side, wrapping around the back of the house, where a two-car garage stood.

As Alpha and I walked up the porch steps and through the front door, I was enveloped by the distinct scent of Dad’s lavender cookies, mixed with the intoxicating aroma of human blood.

As we walked through the hallway into the kitchen, I was greeted by the smell of cookies.

Marcus leaned against the wall, his golden hair. His hair was now cut short, just a few centimeters below his ears. It made him look a little younger, less serious, though a frown was etched on his face now.

As usual, Holly was nowhere to be seen. I’d been trying to get to know her better for the past month. Without ever pushing her to communicate with the outside world or her pack, I’d done everything I could to connect with her.

Strangely, Marcus seemed to understand her more often than not. Only he could get her to open up, but it didn’t seem to help. She continued to withdraw into herself, refusing to talk about the magic that must be bubbling beneath her skin. Just as I swear, it was bubbling within me.

Govinda sat at the kitchen table, watching Sophia with dark eyes that occasionally flickered with amusement. Govinda had always been reserved. Only Marcus and Sophia could evoke even the slightest hint of emotion in this man. She evoked the most pleasant feelings in him, while Marcus had the exact opposite effect.

"Do you like the taste?" Sophia frowned, thrusting a cookie in my face. The delicate scent of lavender, mingled with vanilla and brown sugar, created something deliciously unique.

I grabbed the cookie and took a bite, wrinkling my nose as something salty touched my tongue.

"Too much salt." She glared at the remaining cookies in the oven. "You know, when your dad gave me this recipe, I thought it would have precise measurements."

"Dad never measures anything," I chuckled, my gaze sliding to Govinda, who was sitting with a dark glass of liquid in his hands.

Snorting, he stood up and headed for the refrigerator, pointedly ignoring Marcus, who was standing just a step away. He took a bag of liquid from the refrigerator, poured it into a glass, and, taking long strides, walked over to place it in my hands.

"Thank you," I muttered, still unaccustomed to my new title.

Demons and their monarchs were different from werewolves. While there was no demon command forcing them to obey their will, they sensed the power of their ruler and possessed a kind of sixth sense about certain things.

It didn’t reach the point of a mental connection, but both Govinda and Marcus could often tell when I wanted something other than food.

Govinda was a man of few words, but the fact that he often brought me liquid when I needed it was proof enough of our relationship. He supported me, both because of my friendship with Sophia and because of the new future I wanted to create.

I tried not to drink the entire glass in a matter of seconds, feeling Alpha’s curious gaze on my face.

"Are you sure you didn’t call us at four in the morning to chat?" I asked warily, already certain something had gone wrong.

"Just another annoying gang of demons trying to sow discord," Marcus sighed, pushing strands of hair out of his face. When Govinda chuckled, Marcus gave him an icy glare.

"Impatience?" Govinda repeated, his slight accent and deep voice creating an almost musical quality. "They killed six werewolves." "Six?" I paled, already thinking about the coming backlash and the grief the families must be feeling.

I glanced at Alpha, whose honey eyes darkened with rage. "Where are they attacking from? We’ll send troops after the announcement and give them time to retreat."

"They could do far more damage in the next eight hours," Sophia remarked.

"I know, but I don’t think sending warriors there to kill them is the best idea," I sighed, plopping down on one of the wooden chairs at the dining table. "I need the other demons to understand that I’m on their side, that I’m not going to kill them all just because I’m married to an Alpha."

"Why don’t you send your troops to where they attacked and just tell them to stay away?"

"Don’t engage in combat unless lives are in danger," Marcus suggested, meeting Alpha’s gaze.

I sensed his immediate response, but Alpha had far more patience than Govinda. While Marcus and Govinda often resorted to blows, Alpha never laid a finger on Marcus.

"That’s not such a bad plan," I replied, understanding as well as he that it was our best option.

Over the next half hour, the warrior team received their assignments, and Alpha and I trusted them, knowing they would follow orders. With bleary eyes, we headed for the front door. Marcus followed us outside, eyeing the rising sun warily.

"We need to talk," his voice was unusually rough, and I nodded for Alpha to get into the sedan without me.

"Something wrong, Marcus?"

"Your sister’s having nightmares again," was all he said, and I felt my heart sink. "Bad nightmares."

"Have Sophia’s parents been lucky yet?" I asked, despair churning in my stomach.

"They’ve found several candidates." He nodded sharply, looking down at me. "You’ll have the files in a few hours. The sooner you review them, the sooner we can help her."

"I’ll handle it," I assured him. "But Alpha will be involved too."

"I expected nothing less," he replied with a fragile smile, his gaze flickering over my face before he turned abruptly and returned to the house.