Chapter 24 #2
He paused, his gaze gliding across the crowd before him, then he gestured towards Fern with an open palm.
“An omega.”
A ripple of rough whispers rolled through the hall.
Karn nudged Fern forward, and she slowly made her way around the table to join him, heat staining her cheeks as she felt the attention of the hall now shift towards her.
Eyes that glowed when the light hit them.
Noses that sniffed.
“Claimed by Alpha Darion as his Naravekh, the omega—”
A screech erupted from behind her, and she turned around to see Kyntha leap over the table towards her.
Fern barely had time to throw her arms up before they crashed into the floor together.
The breath exploded from her lungs as Kyntha landed on top of her, nails raking across her chest hard enough to shred fabric and skin alike.
Pain burned hot and immediate, and Fern struggled to escape.
“You filthy little beast!” Kyntha shrieked.
Fern twisted sharply as nails like claws slashed toward her face, catching Kyntha’s wrist before they could reach her eyes. The woman was stronger than she looked, wild with rage as she clawed and tore at Fern’s gown.
Fabric ripped, and sharp nails scored across Fern’s collarbone and breasts, leaving lines of fire in their wake.
The room around them erupted into shouting, but Fern barely heard any of it over Kyntha’s yelling and her own screaming for help.
“You think you can take him from me?” Kyntha cried, trying to grab at her hair. “You stinking little mutt—”
Fern jerked her head aside and brought both forearms up to shield her face as another swipe narrowly missed her cheek.
Her wolf surged forward, snarling.
Fight back!
Fern was trying, but her body was depleted of both food and sleep, and her movements felt sluggish.
Kyntha’s hand tangled in the front of her gown, yanking hard enough to expose one shoulder as claws dug into the soft skin beneath.
Pain flashed white, and instinct finally took over as Fern drove her knee upward as hard as she could.
Kyntha gasped, and Fern twisted and managed one solid kick to her stomach that sent the other woman sprawling sideways across the stone floor.
Before Fern could even scramble upright, Darion was there. He caught Kyntha around the waist from behind just as she lunged again, her nails snapping through empty air inches from Fern’s face.
“Kyntha!” he barked.
She fought him viciously, sobbing and screaming all at once. “Let me go! She provoked me! I’ll tear her throat out—”
A growl rolled through the room so deep it seemed to vibrate the dishes on the table, and Reinn stepped between Fern and the struggling woman, his body angled protectively in front of her as his eyes fixed on his cousin.
“Have you lost your fucking mind?” he bellowed.
Karn dropped to his knees beside Fern at nearly the same moment Norden reached her other side.
“Easy,” he said quickly, hands hovering before carefully settling on her shoulders. “Fern, look at me.”
Her chest heaved painfully, and she let out a painful, keening sound, blood dripping down her chest and dress.
Norden swore under his breath at the sight of the scratches across her skin while Reinn continued to bare his teeth at Kyntha.
“She’s done nothing to you,” he said.
“She’s trying to steal him!” Kyntha cried back, still fighting against Darion’s hold.
Fern flinched as Karn gently pulled torn fabric aside to inspect one of the deeper scratches.
“That’s enough!” Alastair thundered.
The hall finally fell silent, and Kyntha sagged in Darion’s arms, still shaking with furious sobs, while Fern sat trembling on the floor surrounded by alphas that suddenly looked ready to kill for her.
If only they had, her wolf growled.
* * *
The shouting from inside the Council Chamber was muffled through its thick door.
Fern and Kyntha sat outside. Fern was bleeding, Kyntha was crying, and two guards were standing between them, just in case.
She heard someone yell—Darion, she thought.
Next was Reinn.
And then Norden.
There was a bit more back and forth, and finally Karn opened the door, beckoning them both in. “One at a time, then.”
Kyntha stood immediately and rushed inside, straight into Darion’s arms. He embraced her, running a hand down her head and shushing her softly.
Fern stood alone, her arms wrapped around herself as she tried to keep the ripped dress from slipping down.
Reinn’s eyes darted between them, and then he scoffed, standing and taking off his own tunic. His second offering. “This is ridiculous,” he muttered, heading towards Fern to help her put it on when Darion growled low.
“She’s not your omega.”
“Well, she needs to be someone’s, because once again, you’re currently too busy to do the job!” he countered. Then he lowered his voice to a whisper and addressed Fern. “Are you alright?”
Fern gave a small shrug, still too stunned to do much more than that. “Is there a healer who could help clean the scratches?”
“Of course, I’ll send him to your room as soon as this is over.”
“Kyntha,” Alastair started. “Explain to this Council right now what came over you.”
Kyntha stopped her sobbing, hiccuping, and sniffling, her face red and splotchy. “S-she’s done this all on purpose, I know it! She’s been trying to replace me since the moment he brought her here. Look! She’s even wearing my dress!”
Fern’s jaw dropped, and she looked down at the skirt below the hem of the tunic. She’d spent most of her time since arriving at Sabletail Castle trying her hardest not to look at Kyntha, so she couldn’t exactly recall if she’d ever seen this on her.
Then she looked back up. “I didn’t know, it was given to me before dinner. I have no other clothes.”
Registering her words as truth, the alphas then looked to Darion for further explanation.
For the first time, there was something akin to shame written on his cheeks.
“Son,” Alastair started. “She’s been in your care for over a day. How does she not yet have any of her own clothes?”
“I… had other matters to attend to today, as you well know. I did not have the time…”
“Oh, please.” Reinn rolled his eyes. “At this point, a chair would make a better mate for Fern, because at least you can count on it to do its job without needing to be reminded that it’s for sitting.”
Darion snarled, his hands curling into fists and looking like he might lunge towards the Ironcoat alpha. “We are still trying to adjust to this new dynamic. I am not perfect, but I assure you that once things are settled, Kyntha and Fern will both be comfortable, happy, and safe.”
“Your omega stands before you bleeding, and you soothe the one who attacked her. I hardly think Fern can consider anything about this situation is comfortable, happy, or safe…”
“Darion,” Alastair said, standing and holding out his hands to stop any further discussion. “If you cannot even lead your own pack, how can you be expected to lead a clan of thousands?”
Darion said nothing, but Fern could see the chagrin in his eyes, and she only hoped he would not direct it towards her.
Then Alastair ran his hand down his face and sighed. “Tonight was an embarrassment. I am giving you one more chance to show me you can adequately care for both, or Fern will be removed from your care. Am I clear?”
Darion’s jaw was set tight, and he looked between Kyntha and Fern, then nodded. “Clear. Come, you two. We need to discuss how things are going to work from now on.”