Madelineâs POV
âThis is just getting ridiculous,â I said, shaking my head. âThis is getting out of hand. He needs to let me help him.â
Ellie sighed, crossing her arms over her chest.
âHe isnât going to do that, Maddie,â she said. âItâs dangerous.â
I looked at her and resisted the urge to roll my eyes.
âHow?â I asked. âItâs not like they can tell when I read their minds. Itâs not like they can feel it. I could be reading your mind right now and you wouldnât know.â
Ellie sighed again.
âItâs not about that, Madeline,â she said, shaking her head. âItâs about what happens after. Dimitri doesnât want to risk it and we all agree with him. Itâs not worth it. He will find him without your powers.â
I furrowed my brows in confusion.
âWhat could happen after?â I asked. âThey will want to know how we found out? As if Dimitri would want to explain that to them. They donât have to know how we found out. We can justâ¦â
âItâs not about that, Maddie,â Ellie interrupted me. âItâs about you. Dimitri doesnât want to risk you getting hurt. You saw what happened yesterday. You still donât know what you can do. You didnât even know you were using your powers to take away Dimitriâs anger. You could expose yourself accidentally while trying to read their minds. You could get hurt doing it. Itâs not worth it, Maddie.â
I took a deep breath and released it slowly.
âI can practice here,â I said. âNo one would find out.â
Ellie raised an eyebrow at me.
âWhat if you lose control over it?â she asked. âWhat if you can control the emotions of a large group of people? What if your powers got out of control and you did something that every single one of them would notice?â
I tightened my jaw and gulped.
âItâs not worth it, Maddie,â Ellie added, shaking her head at me. âDimitri will find another way to figure it all out.â
I forced myself to take a deep breath. What Ellie was saying made sense, but I was still convinced that they were too careful. I was sure that nothing bad would happen. I was sure that I would be able to figure it out and everything would end.
âWhat if the traitor isnât even here?â Ellie asked, making me furrow my brows.
âAlpha Alistair saidâ¦,â I spoke, but she interrupted me again.
âHe has no proof, Mads,â Ellie sighed, shaking her head. âThat is just his opinion.â
I bit the inside of my cheek and gulped. I had to tell Ellie what I found out at breakfast.
âI think itâs Alpha Lucius,â I said quietly.
Ellie furrowed her brows. She was silent for a moment.
âWhy do you think that?â she asked.
I glanced toward the door. I couldnât let Dimitri know that I used my powers to read Luna Jenniferâs thoughts. At least not yet.
âI read Luna Jenniferâs mind andâ¦,â I started speaking, but Ellieâs loud growl interrupted me.
âYou what?!â she exclaimed as she stood up. âI told you not to do that, Madeline!â
I sighed and shook my head at her.
âWell, nothing bad happened, did it?â I mumbled. âI controlled it and now I knowâ¦â
âYou were lucky!â Ellie exclaimed, interrupting me again. âYou could have lost control over it! You could have hurt yourself!â
Ellie started pacing around and shaking her head.
âOh, Dimitri is going to kill me,â she muttered. âHe didnât want you to go because he was afraid of you getting hurt.â
âI didnât get hurt, Ellie,â I said, making her look at me and narrow her eyes. âEverything is fine. I am fine.â
She took a deep breath and released it slowly.
âThank Goddess for that,â Ellie said quietly. âBut you risked so much, Maddie. You fucked up.â
I sighed and crossed my arms over my chest.
âWell, itâs too late now,â I said. âI did it and I know something. Do you want me to tell you what I found out or not?â
Ellie tightened her jaw and closed her eyes. She took a deep breath and released it slowly.
âYou are driving me insane,â she mumbled as she opened her eyes. âWhat did you find out?â
I glanced toward the door again and approached Ellie.
âAlpha Lucius thinks that Dimitri doesnât deserve me,â I said and I felt bile rising and burning the back of my throat. âHe thinks that Dimitri isnât good enough for me and that I deserve a better, stronger mate. He would also like toâ¦â
I stopped talking to take another deep breath. I was disgusted by what I had to say next.
âDo things to me,â I mumbled quietly. âHe believes he would be a better mate for me.â
Ellieâs eyes widened.
âOh, Dimitri is going to rip him to pieces,â she mumbled, shaking her head a little.
I nodded and took a deep breath.
âI just donât understand why he told that to Luna Jennifer,â I said, furrowing my brows. âShe is his mate. Why would he admit something like that?â
Ellie sighed and sat back down on the couch.
âAlpha Lucius is known for his adventures outside of the mate bond,â Ellie explained. âHis mate can feel it every time he cheats on her so itâs not like she doesnât know about it. I am surprised that he talks about something like that with her, though.â
âMaybe she overheard him talking to someone else,â I said, shrugging a little.
Ellie nodded. âThatâs more likely.â
She sighed and narrowed her eyes slightly.
âDid you hear anything else?â she asked and I shook my head.
âNo,â I said. âBut that is pretty huge, isnât it? If Alpha Lucius thinks that Dimitri doesnât deserve me, maybe he thinks that he doesnât deserve to be King either.â
âMaybe,â Ellie mumbled.
âWe should tell Dimitri,â I said, but Ellie shook her head.
âNot yet,â she said. âLet me look into him a bit more, okay? Dimitri will rip him apart if we tell him and Alpha Lucius could be just a horny old man who is jealous of Dimitri and thinks that you are pretty.â
I raised an eyebrow at her.
âDo you think thatâs possible?â I asked.
She nodded and sighed.
âHe is a pervert,â she mumbled, rolling her eyes. âI wouldnât be surprised if it was just about sex for him. He wouldnât be a good King anyway. He always ran from any kind of responsibility. I doubt that he is interested in that.â
âOkay,â I said, taking another deep breath. âSee if you can find something useful. Dimitri doesnât need to know about it if itâs just about me. I donât want to stress him out even more.â
Ellie nodded. He wanted to say something else, but she was interrupted when the door opened and Dimitri walked inside.
I smiled immediately. I missed him.
âHi, princess,â he said as he closed the door and approached me. âAre you tired?â
He wrapped his arms around me and I sighed contently.
âA bit,â I said, placing a kiss on his chest. âIs the party over?â
âMostly,â he said, placing a kiss on my temple. âA few brave ones are still drinking and talking. I excused myself. I missed you too much to stay longer.â
I smiled at him and he caressed my cheek.
âLetâs go to bed, princess,â he said softly and I nodded.
Dimitri looked up at Ellie and smiled.
âGood night, Ellie,â he said as he took my hand in his. âI will see you tomorrow.â
âGood night,â Ellie said quietly.
Dimitri started leading me out. I looked at Ellie and she gave me a small nod.
I will figure it out. She mind-linked me. Donât worry.
I gave her a small smile just as Dimitri closed the office door. I focused on him and tried to forget about everything that was going on. He was more important than anything or anyone else.
He smiled and leaned in to kiss me softly. I melted into his arms and my body relaxed immediately.