Chapter Seventy-Two

KEYARA

She stood at the rocky entrance to the tunnel, Ash and Rowan close behind her, her breath swirling out in a fog in front of her face into the cold night air.

Mateo and the rest of the pack were out there somewhere in the distance, silently approaching the castle through the darkness.

Meanwhile, she kept her eyes on the tower holding the torch that would illuminate the beginning of her reclamation of her parents’ kingdom.

Her kingdom.

As the rest of the afternoon had passed and the sun slowly set on the horizon, it seemed to take her nerves with it, and she felt oddly calm as she waited for the signal to flare.

As they prepared to take their places, she had dressed herself in a simple cotton shirt and leather pants with a dagger in her belt.

Before she could exit her mother’s cottage behind the others, Ash had wrapped his arms around her waist lightly, stopping her.

She smiled as she remembered the warm kiss he had pressed to her neck as his fingers deftly clasped her mother’s ruby necklace into place.

She looked down to where it currently rested against the pale skin of her chest, just visible over the first button of her shirt, the stone seeming to glow even in the darkness of night.

She liked to think it was playing a part in her focus and confidence, a part of her mother to draw energy from to face what was waiting for her.

The signal torch suddenly flared to life in the distance, indicating the siege had begun. Mateo linked them at the same time, confirming the pack’s entry into the castle.

Ash brushed her back with the lightest touch of his fingertips, stopping her as she began to take a step into the tunnel.

~“Let me go first, please, Keyara,”~ he asked her silently, a desperate edge to his tone.

She knew how hard this was for him—she could feel his fear and anxiety—so she did not begrudge his request.

She nodded her head in agreement, and he stepped in front of her, brushing her lips lightly with a quick kiss before disappearing into the darkness of the tunnel.

She waited a few heartbeats before following, giving him some space, as she knew the tunnel was tight.

Their excavation was sound but had been rushed, and she knew several obstacles stood between them and the undamaged portion of the stone tunnel.

As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she was able to discern the best path between the large stones that remained in place from where it had collapsed.

As she climbed over and around them, deeper into the tunnel, she said a silent thanks to her transformation allowing for eyesight enhanced enough to make her way through without the need for a torch or lantern.

She needed both hands to navigate the space.

Every scuff and scrape of her boots against the stone seemed to echo in the small space, and she found herself growing slightly annoyed that she seemed to be the only one making noise.

The two werewolves she was traveling between were so much larger than her; she found it hard to believe they were able to squeeze through these tight spaces so silently.

After what felt like an eternity, but in actuality was only a few minutes, she cleared the last large stone into the intact part of the tunnel where Ash waited for her.

He had to hunch slightly, the stone ceiling too short for his oversize frame. Just then, Mateo’s voice rang in her head with an update.

~“Apprehending the last of the guards,”~ he reported. ~“We will secure them and leave them guarded before approaching the final stage.”~

~“Received. Ten minutes out on our end,”~ Ash replied.

She stared back in the direction they had come, making out Rowan’s figure moving into view around the rocks. Ash reached out and took her hand, giving it a light squeeze.

“Ready?” he asked in a whisper that was almost silent, looking down at her.

He was blocking out his worry for her benefit, she realized, for even though she had ceased to feel it from the moment they had entered the tunnel, she could still see it plainly in his bright green eyes.

She nodded, and he released her hand as the three of them moved single file through the tunnel to quickly close the remaining distance, coming to a stop at the bottom of the staircase that would lead up to the castle.

Keyara bit back a rebuttal as Ash held up a hand indicating for the two of them to wait, turning quickly away and moving up the stairs at a speed that was astonishing given its silence.

She focused on the sounds she could make out, the sounds of a heavy set of feet pacing being the most clear. That must be Pershing in the rooms above the stairs.

Straining harder, she could hear more sets of feet moving lightly over stone, a muffled word here and there as the guards and their pack moved closer to apprehend Pershing.

~“Come up. It’s clear,”~ Ash told her. ~“The door remains sealed.”~

She wanted to point out that they would have heard Pershing long before then if he had made his escape into the tunnel, but she resisted.

Rowan followed her up the steps until the three of them were pressed tightly together on the landing outside the sealed door. Ash wrapped an arm protectively around her waist as he eyed her proximity to the edge of the stairs.

~“I can hear him at the far end of the room, pacing in front of the open window,”~ Ash told them.

Keyara looked away and cocked her head in concentration, listening for herself, wondering how he could tell the window was open. Her own ears could not pick up whatever clue he had heard.

~“Key, focus,”~ he snapped at her, drawing her attention back to his face.

~“When we breach the door, Rowan and I go straight for Pershing,”~ Ash ordered. ~“Key, once we have him detained, you confront him with whatever you need to say, but stay at least arm’s length away, do you understand?”~

She bit her tongue against the argument that wanted to escape her lips and instead smiled sweetly at him, nodding her head in agreement.

He rolled his eyes, clearly seeing through her, but turned toward the door without further comment, dropping his arm from around her waist.

He braced his shoulder against the door, taking a deep breath before breaching it with one forceful push, and the two men rushed into the room.

Keyara followed right behind them, spotting Pershing across the room with wide eyes and mouth agape in the half a second before Ash and Rowan had him in their grasp.

Rowan quickly pinned his arms behind his back as Ash retrieved a length of rope from his waistband and tightly secured his arms before crouching to do the same to his ankles.

Keyara slowly closed the distance between them as the men finished their work.

Pershing threw curses at them, demanding release, as his angry gaze snapped between Ash and Rowan, yet to notice Key as she came to a stop in front of him.

The sound of the blade of her dagger scraping from its scabbard caused him to round on her, his eyes widening in recognition. “You!” he spat. “You’re that maid!”

“No,” she said, her voice ringing strong and confident in her own ears.

“I am the daughter of the king and queen you betrayed and murdered eighteen years ago.” She watched his eyes flick down to her mother’s necklace, his expression hardening as he recognized it.

“I am the rightful heir to the throne you falsely hold.”

She raised her dagger, ignoring Ash’s warning growl as she moved slowly forward until its sharp point pricked the skin of Pershing’s chest through his nightshirt that was soaked with sweat from his fear.

“I am here to take back what is mine,” she finished. With perfect timing, the main doors to his quarters swung open with a bang, a group of guards rushing in.

Pershing’s eyes flashed momentarily in relief at the sight of the castle guards. “Kill them!” he ordered in a panicked voice.

A look of horror overtook his face as the men ignored his order and knelt in her direction, Mateo and the rest of the pack becoming visible behind them.

“At your service, Queen Keyara,” Robb said from where he knelt.

“It’s over, Pershing,” she told him with finality, watching as the guards stood and hauled him away.

Epilogue

Another deep and pain-filled cry sounded through the room, making him grind his teeth in an attempt to keep his expression neutral, barely noticing as Anne and Jenna rushed by him to Keyara’s side.

Their arms were full of towels and other supplies that they quickly spread out and handed to each other in a practiced way.

They spoke to each other in low and urgent tones, but he could not make out their words, his focus was so intent on his mate.

She was finally in labor and had been since dawn. It was nearing midnight, and as he pushed her damp hair away from her eyes, he could see the exhaustion etched on her face.

The babe was making its entrance into the world a week overdue, and as a turned wolf, she was naturally smaller in stature than the other women of their kind.

He was terrified her body would not be able to handle the difficult labor she was currently enduring.

She let out another agonizing sound, and he growled as his neutral expression cracked.

He stood and placed his hands lightly on either side of her face, leaning over her to rest his head in the crook of her neck.

He pressed his lips into the mark that rested on her skin, attempting to absorb as much of her pain as possible.

He winced as he felt it enter him, but it suddenly subsided just as quickly as she shoved him away from her, breaking the connection.

“Ash, I’m fine, and you’re getting in the way,” she insisted through gritted teeth, squeezing her eyes shut as she fought through another contraction.

“But you’re in pain.” His eyes grew dark as he watched her helplessly.

“It’s supposed to hurt,” she snapped at him, opening her eyes and letting out a deep breath as the contraction ended.

“I don’t like it,” he muttered petulantly, stroking her hair and regarding her through his dark, wild eyes.

She let out a soft, breathy laugh, grabbing his hand and kissing it, successfully bringing his eyes back to their normal color as his wild side faded with her laugh.

“I can’t say I’m enjoying it much either, love,” she told him, bringing a crooked smile to his lips.

The door creaked open behind him, and he snapped toward the sound, letting out a threatening growl.

Jenna squeaked in fear at the sound but quickly composed herself, still not totally at ease with witnessing their more wolflike traits.

They had still only let a few of the most trusted humans in on their secret, Anne and Jenna being among the first of them.

It was one of the many problems still left to solve, but overall, the kingdom was quickly thriving under their rule.

“Whoa, easy,” Luca said, holding up his hands in surrender and baring his neck at Ash’s show of dominance. “We came as soon as we received word.”

“Luca!” she began in greeting, before the next contraction overtook her words.

“Out!” growled Ash angrily.

The Kodia pack and Levia had established a strong alliance over the past several months, and Ash and Luca’s friendship was closer than ever.

Despite that, now was not the time for another male to poke his nose into the room, with his wolf side on edge at his mate’s distress, and Luca should know better.

Ash barely caught Luca’s wink in Key’s direction before he made his retreat. He turned back to his mate, a slight hint of a smile on her lips indicating she had seen the gesture before it faded under a wince of pain.

Anne stepped around from the end of the bed where she had been diligently keeping track of the progression of labor to Keyara’s other side, giving him a brief look before focusing on her adopted daughter’s face.

“It’s time to push, Key,” Anne told her firmly. Jenna took over her place at the foot of the bed. “On the next contraction. They’re coming fast now.”

Key nodded, with barely enough time to acknowledge the instructions before it was time.

Gripping his hand tightly, she pushed and screamed, the sound making him want to jump out of his skin and into fur, feeling helpless because there was no enemy causing her pain, and he was useless against it.

Anne was speaking loudly over her screams, giving orders and who knows what else. Ash didn’t hear any of it. He focused only on her face, blocking out everything else, holding her eyes and gripping her hand tightly in support.

Suddenly a wailing cry pierced the air, as well as his concentration, and he turned toward the noise in shock to see Jenna passing a screaming baby to Anne, who held out a towel.

She carefully cleaned and wrapped the baby, laying it on Keyara’s chest. Ash never took his eyes off her movements, raising a hand over the baby, pausing as it hovered over the tiny form.

He let out a shocked half cry, his eyes meeting Key’s. A happy tear trailed down her face as she looked back at him.

“It’s a boy!” he heard Anne’s voice announce close to them.

Keyara laughed joyfully, putting her hand over his where it still hovered over his son to bring them down gently together to rest on his tiny back.

His son! Ash couldn’t believe it was real as a wide grin spread on his face, looking between his mate and child, love filling his whole body at the sight of the two of them.

^THE END^