Neutralizing the Venison
Mara POV
I brought the heavy cleaver down on the slab of cured venison, sinking the blade straight through the meat and deep into the thick wooden cutting board with a resounding thwack.
“Mara, please,” Lyra pleaded from across the kitchen, her hands dusted heavily in flour. “You are going to split the table in half if you keep going like that! We are making brunch, not breaching an enemy stronghold.”
I wrenched the cleaver free, offering her a sharp grin. I was a warrior. To me, everything was a sport I planned on winning, and right now, breakfast was the opposing team. “Just making sure the meat is fully neutralized, Lyra. You worry about your pastries.”
Lyra sighed, though her sweet and warming personality made it impossible for her to actually sound angry.
She turned back to the massive iron stove, meticulously checking the temperature for her baked goods.
She loved making treats for the group, but today, the stakes felt higher, and she was vibrating with nervous energy.
“I just want everything to be perfect,” she murmured, fussing over a tray of glazed fruit.
Torin stepped smoothly into the space beside her.
He didn’t say much, but he didn’t have to.
He simply reached around her, effortlessly lifting a massive cast-iron skillet off the heat before it could burn.
He was always our shield, and right now he was shielding Lyra from burning her own culinary masterpiece.
Lyra leaned back against him for a brief second, the tension instantly melting from her shoulders.
“If you want that oven hotter, I’ve got some black powder in my satchel,” Juno suggested jokingly, leaning back on a wooden dining chair. He practically vibrated with chaotic excited energy this morning. “It burns fast. Could get a nice, even char on those sausages.”
“Keep your explosives out of the food,” Jax snapped without even looking up from where he was sharpening his hunting knives.
His intense focus meant nothing slipped past him; he could probably spot a tick on a deer from a mile away, so he easily caught his twin’s mischief.
“And keep them away from our Luna. We don’t need you rigging the dining room with your surprises.”
“It was just a suggestion!” Juno threw his hands up, grinning entirely too widely. He loved fire and black powder, a habit he had picked up from trading with the Humans. “I’m just trying to be helpful, brother.”
Before Juno could elaborate on his volatile cooking methods, Kael materialized beside the counter. Despite his constant idiocy, the guy was a ghost who could move through dry leaves without making a sound. He reached a stealthy hand toward a freshly baked tray of honey rolls.
Smack.
Elara didn’t need to yell. She just calmly and efficiently slapped Kael’s hand away with a wooden spoon. While the rest of us generated noise and chaos, she was always the calm in the storm.
“Hands off the food, Kael,” Elara instructed smoothly, already turning back to perfectly align the silver cutlery on the main table. Because her mind was her greatest weapon, she was constantly calculating and organizing to keep us from walking into disasters.
“I’m practically starving to death,” Kael whined, rubbing his knuckles. He loved to play the fool, completely masking the fact that he was probably one of our most lethal members. “I’m just testing them for poison. It’s my duty!”
“Your duty is to sit down and wait for Kai and our Luna,” Silas announced, striding through the heavy archway. He was loud, brash, and aggressively charismatic, carrying two pitchers of fresh juice. “And if you touch Lyra’s tarts, I will personally throw you out the nearest window.”
“Tsk… Beta privilege,” Kael muttered, finally slumping into a chair next to Juno.
I tossed the sliced venison onto a platter and wiped my hands on a towel.
The heavy wooden door swung open again, and Eilan walked in, carrying a small, beautifully crafted wooden box.
My chest instantly warmed at the sight of my mate.
We were polar opposites, but we balanced each other out perfectly.
He set the box down on the counter with careful precision.
“Procured the Sunpetal tea,” Eilan announced smoothly. Because of his experience in a merchant’s guild, his intelligence allowed him to get his hands on absolutely any information or item we needed. He truly is amazing.
I leaned against the counter, crossing my arms as I looked him over.
He used to come across as a shy and nervous guy, but the confidence boost he’d gained since we hooked up looked damn good on him.
I really want to devour him, guess that will have to wait a bit.
“Did you have to threaten the supplier for it?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.
Eilan offered me a small, sharp smile. “Diplomatically, of course.”
“Naturally,” Silas laughed, setting the pitchers down.
He is the kind of guy capable of convincing a tavern owner to thank him after drinking the place dry.
But beneath the noise, his tactical genius meant he always had a perfect read on the room.
“Is everything ready, Lyra? Kai mind-linked me. They are on their way down.”
Lyra surveyed the massive spread of food. “Everything is set. All we need are our guests of honour.”
“I still can’t believe she’s finally coming down here,” Kael murmured, his playful demeanor dropping for a fraction of a second. “After taking a hit like that yesterday... I thought she’d be bedridden for a week.”
“She’s our Luna,” I said fiercely, my voice leaving absolutely no room for argument. Any woman who threw herself into the fray like that was a warrior who deserved respect in my book. “And she clearly isn’t fragile.”
“Mara is right,” Torin rumbled from his spot beside Lyra, his deep voice commanding immediate silence.
Lyra quickly wiped her hands on her apron, her sweet smile returning in full force as she looked toward the archway. “Well, I just hope she brought her appetite!”
----
Aurora POV
My muscles hummed with a pleasant, lingering heat that had absolutely nothing to do with yesterday’s battle.
Giving in to the primal demands of our wolves had been an intoxicating blur of instinct and absolute surrender.
Mating in our shifted forms was a wild, untamed experience, one that had cemented our bond even deeper.
The sheer power and intensity of it had left my inner wolf completely sated and blissful, she was practically humming in the back of my mind.
Now, freshly showered and entirely human again, I walked beside Kieran through the wide stone corridors of the royal palace. I smoothed my hands down the skirt of the simple, lightweight sundress I had chosen from the walk in closet. The pale blue fabric was soft and unrestrictive.
Kieran was also dressed casually in dark woven trousers and a loose, slate-grey shirt with the sleeves rolled up past his forearms.
His tanned skin and messy raven-black hair contrasted sharply with my paler coloring.
He looked entirely too relaxed for a man who had just snapped a dragon’s neck the day before.
Even strolling casually, his powerful frame was an undeniable force of nature, but the striking golden eyes he turned toward me held nothing but soft, lingering affection.
“You are smiling,” Kieran noted. He kept his pace slow to match mine, his gaze flicking down to study my face. “Care to share, my Queen?”
“I am just enjoying the fact that I am walking together with my mate,” I replied lightly, bumping my shoulder playfully against his arm. “And I am thinking about how much trouble you are going to be in if Lyra’s tarts are cold because we took our time this morning.”
Kieran let out a low, rumbling chuckle. The sound echoed off the stone walls. “Silas already warned them we were on our way. And if the food is cold, someone would simply build a fire in the middle of the room to heat it back up. They are a resourceful group.”
“They sound chaotic,” I mused, feeling a flutter of genuine excitement mixed with a healthy dose of nervousness.
For eight years, I had relied on absolutely no one but myself.
The idea of walking into a room full of people who were fiercely loyal to my mate, and by extension, to me, was a completely foreign but wonderful concept.
“They are a nightmare,” Kieran corrected fondly, reaching out to lace his fingers through mine.
The warmth of his hand sent a comforting jolt up my arm, grounding me.
“They are loud, stubborn, and entirely too involved in each other’s business. But they are the best warriors in Valdora, and they have been waiting a very long time to meet you properly.”
“Well, I am ready,” I assured him, giving his hand a confident squeeze. “Though I should warn you, if that russet troublemaker of yours tries to sneak up on me, my instincts might kick in before my manners do.”
“If Kael gets himself thrown across the room, it will be a valuable learning experience for him,” Kieran replied smoothly, completely unbothered by the prospect of his friend getting tossed into a wall. “He plays the fool, but a reminder to respect his Luna’s personal space wouldn’t hurt.”
We turned a final corner, and the quiet of the royal corridors was immediately replaced by the muffled, overlapping sounds of laughter, clattering plates, and someone yelling something highly concerning about keeping explosives out of the kitchen.
I paused, my eyes widening slightly. “Did someone just say explosives?”
“That would probably be Juno,” Kieran sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “He has a profound love for black powder. A habit he picked up from trading with the humans. Don’t worry. Elara or Jax usually stops him before he actually blows up something he shouldn’t.”
Kieran stopped in front of the heavy arched doors leading into the Vanguard’s private wing. He looked down at me, his playful, exasperated demeanor softening back into something profoundly tender and protective. He reached up, gently tucking a stray lock of snow-white hair behind my ear.
“Ready to face the wolves?” he asked softly.
I smiled, the lingering warmth of our morning together giving me all the absolute confidence I needed. “Lead the way.”