When we all piled in through the door of the safehouse, we were greeted by Queen Stella, who seemed to be the only person in the room that was aware of our presence.
King Ruben was bent over the coffee table talking lowly with a man I had never seen before. His back was to us, so I couldn't get a good look at his face, but his shoulders were hunched over whatever it was on the table and tight with tension.
I assumed with was the mysterious Beta I had only just learned about. Queen Stella cleared her throat, and King Ruben's eyes snapped up to us finally. He grinned.
"You're all back. What do you have to report?"
He began to rise from his seat, gesturing for us to come closer. The man rose as well and turned to face us.
I watched him closely, as he seemed to size us all up. His dark hair was cropped short, almost like a buzz. Thick, dark eyebrows furrowed over dark brown eyes, and his lips were pressed tight into a sort of grimace.
He was huge. He stood a couple inches taller than King Ruben, who was already over six feet, and his muscular mass rivaled Valen's. He glared at Artemis and I with open hostility.
I could feel Valen tense beside me, and Von let out a small grumble. Finally, the man spoke.
"Your majesty, are you sure it's in the pack's best interest to have these two here? Mates or not, they're apart of Moonlight pack."
His lip curled up as he stifled a growl. I glared at him, my eyes flashing. Artemis grabbed my shoulder, sensing my rising temper. King Ruben just chuckled.
"We are not apart of the Moonlight pack," I spat back at him.
I ground my teeth to keep from snarling at him, but I refused to lower my direct eye contact. Beta or not, I wasn't about to let him disrespect me or Artemis. He shifted his stance.
"You're not apart of this pack yet either, are you?"
Before I could respond, Artemis pulled me back slightly and stepped forward.
"She is Valen's mate. Once they complete the ritual, she'll be apart if this pack regardless of an initiation. I am Von's mate and we have already completed the ritual. I severed ties with Moonlight the night of the attack. I warned King Ruben beforehand. To assume that we mean harm to this pack when we've already turned our backs on our old one, is insulting to say the least. Wouldn't you say so, King Ruben?"
She turned in the king's direction, a small smirk playing at the edges of her lips.
I was impressed. Usually, Artemis slung harsh words as easily as she breathed. Instead, she was playing this smart and involving our mate status's and the King.
Von was really rubbing off on her. I turned to him and grinned, as he beamed at her with pride.
King Ruben shrugged his shoulders.
"They're correct, Anton. Indigo severed her ties when she first came to us, and Artemis was quick to follow her. They've proven themselves to be nothing but loyal to DarkBlood so far." This time, Anton did growl.
"But what about her powers?" he said while jabbing his overly muscular arm in my direction.
"What about them?" I stepped forward once more, the challenging tone in my voice was crystal clear.
"Would you like to see a demonstration in person? We could arrange that." I cocked my head to the side and folded my arms over my chest.
"She could seriously hurt someone," he said to King Ruben without even looking at me.
My temper was rising again, and my body began to feel hot. My breathing was becoming heavier, and Valen put his hand on my waist to try to calm me.
"You can speak to my face. I'm right here, you know." King Ruben smirked in my direction.
"The lady has a point, Anton." He gestured to me.
Finally, Anton faced my head on and looked in my eyes again. I raised my lip in a snarl.
"Look, I get you've had it hard. You have a reason to mistrust outsiders. I don't know your story, but you don't know mine either. This pack is my home. Valen is my mate. I am potentially your next queen," I jabbed my finger in his direction.
"I have powers, yes. That makes me an asset. I am here to fight for this pack, not against it. The next time you question my motives, we won't be talking so calmly about it."
I didn't break eye contact with him once. He was tense, his hands shaking as he tried to reign his wolf in. He didn't like being challenged, I could tell. His eyes flashed silver for a moment, and I was caught off guard. Silver colored eyes were very rare. I narrowed my eyes at him.
"Is there something you'd like to say?"
"No," he ground out. He turned back to King Ruben.
"I'll be in my quarters. I'll meet with you later to go over what they found."
With that, he turned his back on us and stormed out. I could hear a door slam in the distance.
"Nice Beta, you've got there," Artemis remarked to King Ruben. He threw his head back and laughed.
"He wasn't always like that, and he won't always be. He's not a bad guy and he does his job well. Come, sit, and tell me of your discoveries"
We all piled onto the couch and relayed last night's adventure to him, being very specific about the Fate Spinner and it's capabilities. He looked between us all with pursed lips.
"I think it's a great place."
I raised an eyebrow.
"Did you not hear a thing I just said?"
"I heard you, and I think we could use it to our advantage, if we're careful. We'll keep our area well lit, so it can't come near. We'll block off it's access to us, leaving it only access to get out from it's nest. It can do it's hunting at night, and we can make use of the cave during the day. Should we ever need to be there at night, we'll take all the necessary precautions to keep everyone safe."
I shook my head in disbelief, but said nothing. When King Ruben made his mind up, it was almost impossible to change it. He clapped his hands together.
"We'll start the preparations on it immediately. Von, I'll have you mark it out on a map for me. Valen, you'll round up some wolves to transport supplies." They nodded their heads and rose, before exiting the room.
"Indigo and Artemis, you two will stay here for now."
"Why? We can be helpful," Artemis started.
King Ruben held up a hand.
"Anton needs to investigate the area as well. For right now, it's best he does that while you two aren't there. While you're here, I permit you two to go out and practice with Indigo's powers. We all know this war is not over, it's only just begun."
Artemis looked to me and nodded her head. I grabbed her hand and squeezed. No matter what happened, at least we were in this together. We rose to leave.
"And Indigo?"
"Yes, sir?"
"You really should do the ritual soon. I don't mean to be pushy because Valen is my son, but because we never know when the next attack could happen. You both need to be at your full potential to do when it does."
I swallowed but nodded my head, before following Artemis toward her room.
I wasn't sure I was ready for that yet, but he had a point. Valen and I needed each other, and to do that we had to seal the bond.
I made up my mind and decided I'd talk to him. Tonight. If anyone could help me figure out what to do, it was my mate.
Author's Note:
Okay, now we know why King Ruben's been a little pushy. Makes sense, I guess. That'll happen soon, though, so be warned! What do you think will happen when Artemis and Indigo practice with her powers? Do you agree with King Ruben's decision to use the cave as a base? And what are your thoughts/feelings about Anton so far?
Please vote and comment to let me know what you think!
Xoxo,
CrimsynIris