Chapter 35 #2
“And I’m sorry, I truly am, I… I know I made a mistake,” she pleads, tears streaming down my face.
“And Sienna?” I ask her and she swallows, glancing away toward the wall.
“You’re not sorry at all, you’re just sorry you nearly killed me, aren’t you?” I tell her. She says nothing, and I know I am right. I turn to leave when my father speaks again. “Vin Dresdan called moments ago.”
I growl, not wanting to deal with my father-in-law right now.
I take a deep breath and brace myself for whatever news they have for me. “What is it?” I ask, trying to keep my voice steady.
“Your mother has received a message from him,” my father begins, his eyes locking onto mine. “They want to discuss the treaty. He wasn’t too happy when he learned of your departure in the middle of the night,”
My heart sinks at the mention of the treaty. The thought of being forced into a loveless marriage to strengthen ties between kingdoms makes me sick to my stomach. “What did he say?” I ask, already dreading the answer.
“They want us to send a representative to discuss terms,” my mother answers, her voice clipped and businesslike.
I nod slowly, trying to think.
“You want to break the treaty,” my father says abruptly and my mother gasps.
“That will start a war,” my mother exclaims knowing exactly the consequences of the council coming down on us.
Her father after all was the reason these laws were put in place, yet Vin backed us with the council, and if he revokes his favor, not only is my kingdom in debt to him but also at war with him and the council.
“No, we’ll find another way, you can’t just breach the treaty, you’re already married, we would risk?—”
“Losing the kingdom,” I finish for her.
“You’d really risk your throne for her, wouldn’t you?” my mother says like she is just figuring that out.
“I’d kill for her,” I warn her.
My father growls. “Enough, we already have a fight on our hands, we can’t be fighting amongst ourselves, not if we are truly going to war with the Dresdans,” my father states. Yet I can see the guilt on his face, he is the reason we are in this mess.
“The council we can handle, that won’t be an issue now that you’ve found your mate. They don’t have to worry about your sanity once Sienna marks you, but Vin— he will declare war.” He curses under his breath.
“Carina won’t agree to the divorce?” my mother asks. I shake my head, and she runs her fingers through her hair. “So that leaves Sienna to challenge her which will force an annulment, or?—”
“War,” my father breathes, and I nod, chewing my lip.
“Sienna doesn’t stand a chance against her, she will struggle to shift,”
I admit, I never should have suppressed her Lycan side.
“So where does that leave us, leave the kingdom?” my mother asks, staring at my father. He thinks for a second and I pray he has an answer because right now I have none.
“Keep up the arrangement.”
I go to protest, when he holds up a hand.
“For now, we don’t need a war. You’ve held the wedding off an extra month; that gives us a month to speak with the council, clear this debt with Vin and also to get Carina to agree to the divorce, we have time,”
“Then what? Carina won’t go along with it.”
“We ask to renegotiate the treaty, come up with something else perhaps, or seek permission from the council to break it.”
“And what do we offer the council, Father? We have nothing to offer. Legally, right now, Vin owns us!”
“We’ll think of something. Have Javier start looking into the Dresdans, I will send word to the elders about requesting their council, for now we bide our time until we find a suitable solution, one where it doesn’t end in bloodshed,” my father tells me.
“And Sienna?” I ask, glancing at my mother.
“I will speak with her,”
“I don’t want you near her!”
“Xandros, she can’t make it up to the girl if you don’t let her near her, your mother won’t harm her,”
I scoff, she already has.
“I mean it, Xandros, I will make things right, I’ll try with her,” my mother says, yet I don’t trust her, and right now I need Sienna to mark me.
Because if Vin learns of me wanting to break the treaty, he’ll come for her, and try to kill her, which in turn would force me to take his daughter as my mate or have the council take the kingdom and he knows this.
Lycan’s can’t rule without a mate, and he can’t touch her if our bond is solidified, or he kills me, which breaks any treaty we may have by forfeit.
I need Sienna to mark me, to keep her safe, to stop the fall of my kingdom.
“Fine, can I go? I want to get back to my mate.”
My father nods and I swiftly turn on my heel. As I step out of the door, Javier follows behind. “Xandros, are you really planning to break the treaty?” he asks me, his voice laced with concern.
I stop in my tracks and turn to face him. “I won’t be forced into a loveless marriage, Javier,” I say firmly. “Not when I have found my mate.”
“Breaking the treaty will have consequences. It could mean war,” he warns me.
“I understand that, but what choice do we have? I refuse to let Sienna get hurt because of our mistakes,” I reply, determination in my voice.
“Then we need to find a way to negotiate with Vin without breaking the treaty, let me collect Carina; I will ask around to see what I can find out,” Javier suggests.
“Fine, call her driver and tell her you will collect her; hopefully she chooses not to return,” I mumble, not looking forward to having to deal with her. “For now, I need to focus on Sienna. I need her to mark me before it’s too late.”
Javier nods in understanding, and we make our way through the palace toward Sienna’s room. As we walk, I can feel the weight of the kingdom on my shoulders. The future of our people rests on my decisions, and every move I make from this moment on will impact their lives.
All I can think about is Sienna: her safety, her happiness, and our bond. Yet as I unlock her door, I hear movement in the room just as I enter. She is opening the door to the hidden bar. In her hand is the phone. She stares at me like a deer in headlights.
“Fuck!” I hear Javier breathe out behind me, I kick the door shut, storming over to her.
I snatch the phone from her hand, hitting redial while she backs away from me. The phone rings when suddenly Toby’s voice sounds on the other end. “Sienna?” Pulling the phone away from my ear, I hang it up, tossing it on the sofa.
“Why were you on the phone with Toby?” I ask her, stalking her around the sofa, her hair is still wet and clinging to her skin, the towel tucked tightly between her breasts.
She shakes her head at me and nearly trips over the lamp table, barely catching herself with her outstretched hand clutching the armchair.
With all the drama going on I had completely forgotten about her calls to Toby.
“Answer me, Sienna,” I demand, my voice low and dangerous. She looks at me with fear in her eyes, and I can see the tears that are threatening to spill over.
“I just wanted to hear his voice,” she admits softly.
“Hear his voice?” I repeat, my tone incredulous.
“I-I was just calling to check on him. Make sure he’s okay,” she stammers out, avoiding my eyes.
“You have no right to be calling him! He’s not your concern anymore,” I growl at her, my anger boiling over. In that moment, I want nothing more than to shake some sense into her. She is mine! I won’t share her!
“He’s my friend, Xandros,” she argues weakly, yet I can see she doubts that, feel the flicker through the bond, she cares for him, and that thought makes me wild.
“He’s nothing to you! You don’t know him anymore, and you never will again,” I snap at her, my temper flaring.
Sienna flinches at my words, and I can see the hurt in her eyes. I won’t stop. I can’t stop. The fear of losing her is too great, and I’ll do anything to protect her.
“Xan—”
“Don’t speak,” I cut her off harshly. “Just mark me already so we can put an end to all this nonsense.” Sienna backs away from me, her eyes widening in shock. “Xandros, you can’t be serious,” she breathes.
“I’ve never been more serious, Sienna. If you don’t mark me, I will kill your precious Toby!” I tell her, my voice laced with fury. Yet she glares at me, the defiance obvious in her hardened gaze. “Is that a threat?” she challenges me, her hands balling into fists at her sides.
“Take it however you want, Sienna. I need you to mark me now,” I demand, taking a step closer to her. She backs away again, shaking her head.
“Then do it, Xandros,” she challenges, her voice firm and unyielding. “Know this, if you lay a single finger on him, I will never forgive you.”
I feel the anger and frustration building inside me as I take a step toward her. “You have no choice in the matter, Sienna. You will mark me, or I will make sure Toby suffers,” I say in a low voice.
Sienna backs away, her eyes filled with fear and anger. I take another step toward her, closing the distance between us.
“Xandros, please,” she pleads with me, her voice barely above a whisper. “I don’t want this.”
“You don’t have a choice,” I tell her, my voice cold. “If you don’t mark me—Then you leave me no choice,” I reply sternly. “I will make you mark me.”
I take another step toward her, my hand outstretched.
She backs away again, and I can feel the tension building between us.
Then, something changes in her expression.
Her eyes narrow slightly, and she seems to harden.
“You force me to mark you, and you force my hand!” she snarls at me when she suddenly smashes the bowl on the dresser.
She grabs a chunk of glass, holding it to her neck.
“I mean it, Xandros. You touch him, or try to force me to mark you…” tears stream down her face, her hand trembling as she presses the point against the vein that pulses rapidly beneath the soft flesh of her throat.
I stop in my tracks and her voice trembles.