The Delta's Daughter Chapter 94

LAMIA

A couple of days had passed since I had come back to MacTire and every day had been a trying one. I held court and asked my people if they would fight for me, for themselves and for all shifters and mankind.

“There is a new threat, a common enemy who affects all of us! Shifters and humans alike! They have created monsters, monsters that have the capability of wiping out a whole village.

Just a few months ago, a Clan, not too far from here, was wiped out. Only one person survived. Several other Clans were attacked in the Kodiak kingdom and many have been wiped out in the kingdom of Cambiador. No kingdom has been spared, none of us are safe.

I ask you, my people, kings, queens and council members: Will you stand by us and fight as one? Will you fight to defeat a common enemy? Fight for each other to preserve our way of life and our realm?”

Cheers and whoops had sounded out before my warriors started to take a knee. One by one, they lowered to the floor to pledge their loyalty.

“MacTire is a kingdom for all races; we owe it to ourselves and our races to fight with them, for them and for ourselves. No longer will our realm be ruled by tyranny. Lives will be lost, but many will be saved. We fight for our future. Do you stand with me, MacTire?”

The powerful words had spilled from me, holding truth and determination. With Mathias and Kellen by my side as I spoke to my kingdom, I felt like nothing could defeat us, that we would win this war and take the throne of Riocht, wherever it may be. I had looked down on my subjects with pride and awe, my heart filling with their cheers and the number of fists that pumped the air.

They were ready to go to war, and they were ready to fight alongside other kingdoms. I couldn’t be any prouder of my people!

We had full support from all sides; Kellen’s kingdom, Mathias’; the high councillors and I had spoken to Tawny also. That was a little more complicated though.

Supplies and warriors were organized and sent out to Cambiador, to help the people and also to keep their city protected. Outside Clowders had started moving to the center of the kingdom, closer to the main city, where they could be better protected from Orion’s threats.

Tawny’s grandfather had named Crimson as his successor. However, he would have to go through a series of challenges to be able to hold the title of King, yet Tawny was a princess and could step into the roll, being the rightful heir. Another complication, she had said.

So, for now, she and Crimson were working together to hold the kingdom together. Their council had not been happy but eventually realized they needed help from outside and allowed King Alexander’s troops to enter the kingdom.

The spring equinox was only a month and a few weeks away and things were still messy. My brain hurt trying to figure everything out.

The only thing that wasn’t messy was mine and Mathias’ relationship. I watched out the window as he, Kellen and Hunji were overseeing training, adding some new techniques and pushing my warrior’s knowledge of weapons training.  

Mathias wanted a handful of my warriors to go to his kingdom and vice-versa, the same with Kellen’s warriors. He wanted all armies to be diverse in fighting different shifters, as that is what we would be facing when we fought Orion’s army and his Crawlers.

I should really be out there training with them, but I had been working numbers to see who needed what between the cities I controlled and the other packs. Luckily, I didn’t have to worry about the Pacific Pack nor Briarshire.

Odeia’s words were like a loop in my head, playing over and over ‘Before the third moon after the spring equinox, you must take your places on the thrones of Riocht. Failure to do so will be the demise of shifters and mankind alike. Save the people before they fall into darkness. He must not succeed. Your blood is the key, Dire Wolf’

This gave us a little over 3 months to prepare and find Riocht. But me being me, I wanted everything in place yesterday. I wanted every detail finalized now.

A knock came at the door, calling for Travis to come in. Instead of taking a seat, he came and stood next to me, looking out the window at the training fields, at our warriors, at our friends and at my mate. God's Mathias was something to look at; mesmerized as I watched him walk Josiah and Rhett through an exercise. His muscles flexed and my core heated, each ripple of each ab, making my mouth salivate. I couldn’t get enough of this man. I had hit the jackpot, he wasn’t just a shifter, a king, he was a demi-god and he was all mine.

The most powerful shifter in the realm and he belonged to me.

“You truly love him?” Travis asked, pulling my attention from my mate.

I looked into his soft brown eyes, not knowing what I would find in them, but not expecting his unreadable expression. I pinched my eyebrows together, still holding his gaze. Was he mad? Jealous? Disappointed? I couldn’t tell.

I didn’t expect to roll up to MacTire or the New Moon pack and everyone just be ‘OK’ with my new mate. Travis, least of all, shit, even I had a hard time at first, but after he kissed me in the cell, I knew I wanted him, knew I couldn’t fight it. So I embraced it.

I didn’t have to think about Travis’ question because the answer was always going to be yes. “I do.” I finally replied and crossed my arms over my chest. His eyes narrowed and forehead creased as he regarded my answer, like he was processing it.

“How? How can you love him after what his kind did to you?” His voice cracked and I saw his strength waiver as he recounted our time in the dungeons below, pain, remorse and anger flicked through his eyes, his wolf flashing to the front.

“I let go.” I admitted.

He brought his eyes back to mine, searching my face, questioning my words, only to find my truth. “I took him to Zane and Zander's graves on the way here.” I sighed out and broke eye contact with him, “It was the only way I could get over it. It wasn’t his ‘kind’ that defiled me, it was rogues, evil men and I finally realized that. That I couldn’t hold a grudge against a race of men when I am meant to lead MacTire, lead a realm.” I looked back up at him, such a handsome man and a strong Alpha.

Travis would always hold a place in my heart; we had been through so much together, and overcome so much together. I considered him as close to me as Kellen and Mike, along with Hunji.

Unraveling my arms, I brought a hand up and cupped his face, his beard tickling my palm; it was soft, unlike Mathias’ course scruff. “Be happy for me Travis… Please. I can’t do this without you. Oliver is still out there and we have a score to settle with him.”

His arms came up and circled around me, pulling me into a tight hug and resting his chin on my head. We were quiet for a moment, the comforting hug being enough.

“I am happy for you, Lamia. I… Just, I don’t want to see you get hurt. I see how he looks at you, like you hang the stars, as if he would burn the realm for you. He loves you. I see that, I just…” He trailed off.

“I know Travis.” I pulled back and smiled up at him “You will find someone, I know you will.” I said, hoping my words resonated with him. I truly wanted him to be happy and right now, I knew he felt a little on the sidelines. Rhett, Hunji, Kellen and Mike had all been given a gift, the marks of the knights. I had found my second chance mate, the king of bears, a demi-god.

And Travis? He was feeling a little left behind, when he had been the one to hold my hand the past two and half plus years.

He was definitely special. He just didn’t realize how much we all needed him. He didn’t hate were-bears, he just hated the idea that I was mated to one because of what happened, because of what he witnessed. He once told me some of his nightmares were about me, what they had made him watch them do to me.

“Travis, any girl would be lucky to have you. You are the whole package. You know that, right?” I said with as much endearment as I possibly could, I needed him to know he wasn’t a 'nobody'; not just anybody. He was important, important to me, important to MacTire and our pack.

I heard a ding from my computer and broke from Travis’ embrace, thinking it might be Tawny sending over her itinerary of what they still needed. I sat down in my chair and opened the inbox and scowled at the unknown address the email had come from and opened it.

“Dear goddess… “I stumbled to find words and Travis was by my side in an instant to see what or who was screaming on my screen. “This is… this is…”

“Fucking sick. That’s what this is” he growled low with disgust as he watched the video of a young man being injected with some substance.

His screams were piercing and full of anguish as his face twisted and contorted with pain. Steam or smoke was rising from his skin, like he was burning from the inside out. His eyes were burning red and his teeth clamping down as he fought the obvious pain the injection had caused. This lasted for a few minutes, as the poor man jerked and yanked in the chair he was tied to.

We watched as his skin melted from him, leaving a white tone underneath, a second skin. His fingers cracked and then his bones. It was like watching a shifter for the first time, but there was never any discomfort at the level this guy was experiencing. Finally, the man stopped screaming and staring back at us on the laptop screen was a crawler.

“Who did this come from?” Travis asked sternly. I could see the heat rising in his face.

“I don’t know. It’s unknown,” I pointed to the screen, still dumbfounded at what we had just witnessed.

Just then the door burst open and a very angry looking Mathias came barreling in, Kellen hot on his trail. Paying no mind to Travis, he bee-lined straight for me, picking me up from my chair and cradling me like a baby.

“Baby,” he breathed out, grasping me tight against his naked and sweaty chest. “Are you OK? I felt your fear and sadness through the bond.”

My face flushed, I felt like an idiot, a child as he held me and coddled me. Not like a Queen.

“The email,” Travis said, clearing his throat. “She just got an email. We know how the Crawlers came to be or were… made.”

Travis was still studying the email and Mathis refused to let go of me. I looked over at Kellen, who started laughing at the scene.

“I guess you found your match Lam’s.” The shit was making fun of me. I squirmed in Mathias’ arms to no avail. He was not letting me go anytime soon.

I shot daggers at Kellen, giving him an F-U look. “Wait until you find your mate! Oh I can’t wait to meet her and tell her all about you! And give you grief” I was joking and had a smirk on my face.

“You wouldn’t dare?” His ocean blue eyes wide, Kellen pointed his finger at me.

“Oh I dare and I bet Mike would back me up too” I laughed. “You forget I know all your secrets, Kel.” I warned him playfully.

“Careful little wolf, I’m sure the prince could spill a few secrets about you too.” Mathias chuckled, his chest rumbling against me and sending vibrations through my body. I gave a small needy moan by accident. Just the feel of him had me turned on.

“When you guys are done trying to best each other, come take a look at this. There seemed to be co-ordinates attached to the email.” Clearing his throat and then sitting in my chair, Travis’ motioned for us to crowd around.

I would have thought Mathias would have put me down. Buy no. He didn’t.

Travis was right, under the video link, were a series of numbers, 5 lines to be exact, five sets of co-ordinates.

“Where could they lead to?” I asked skeptically.

“Put them in the search bar, see what comes up,” Mathias suggested.

A few minutes later, a map filled the screen, and the co-ordinates had placed five red dots on the screen, locations.

One in Lewe, one in Batsia, a third in Mir, the other territories that were not ruled by anyone. Mir was home to one of my packs, Green Field, and two of my cities, Avon Wilts and Myrtle Cove.

The fourth dot was below Lonely City, right where the Bear kingdom territory met the wolf kingdom territory. The fifth red dot was located on the realms' second continent, in a kingdom called Andora.

Kellen’s phone dinged from his pocket and he pulled it out to see who had messaged him, at the same time I heard another ding from Mathias. Without letting go, he pulled his phone out.

As Kellen’s face morphed into anger, at the same moment I felt anger from Mathias rile up and spread through him, boiling hot rage, and his body began to shake.

“What?” both Travis and I asked simultaneously and looked at each other, the air becoming thick with both of their tempers. So thick, I was finding it hard to breathe.

“What is it?” I was afraid to ask, but none the less did.