Chapter 32
HEKLA
As soon as the confession had left my mouth, Belenus’s rampaging passion hit me like a charging buck. His mouth crushed mine in a ravenous kiss that left me breathless and reeling. His palms slid over my skin, one moving to cup the back of my head while the other traveled to my bottom and gripped it possessively.
I finally unfroze and released a whimper around his plundering tongue. He groaned deeply in response, so low that I felt it vibrate in his chest. His firm grip on my skull kept me in place while he fiercely massaged our lips around the tongue that kept plunging in to taste me. His jaw moved with mine in a sensual dance, igniting my lust with his seduction.
A shudder like lightning raked through me from head to toe, and I fumbled around with my fingers until I found the bottom of his tunic. I pulled it up his hard body until I couldn’t get it past his armpits. I jerked the fabric up a couple times to give him the hint to raise his arms, but he growled into my lips and kissed me harder .
He finally released me, tore his clothes off in the blink of an eye, and laid me down on the soft ground. “No… more… interruptions!” he demanded heatedly, settling between my legs and lowering his head to kiss me again. He licked and nipped my lips gently in his ardor, which swept through the bond like a raging summer storm. I felt his excitement, his satisfaction, and his arousal encase me in a thrilling whirlwind.
He must have needed to hear it so badly. The way he was acting now, it was like he was breathing again, living again, and his hot blood was now pumping with the ferocity of someone who survived a near-death experience. My only regret was that I wished I had said it sooner. I wished I could have given him more time to enjoy it before we’d have to dive into a life-threatening battle.
I knew he’d felt my swirling regret because he pulled his mouth away and said gruffly, “No matter what happens, Hekla, you will be my queen, and we’ll have the rest of our long lives to enjoy this love. I won’t allow it to be taken from us. Do you trust me now? Do you fully trust that I’m going to win this for us? That we’re going to win this together? Do you believe in us?”
I wrapped my arms around his rippling back and looked up at the stars, willing away fresh tears. The Sky Gods themselves had given me a task. They were the ones who’d chosen me. They must have believed in me and found me capable. Had that show of faith given me strength to draw from in my time of need?
It had.
“I have to believe,” I cried, caving. “If I do, I’ll fight harder. Yes, Belenus! I do! I believe!” I sniffed and tried to let the weight of fear roll off my heart and mind.
Belenus stared down at me with his warm amber eyes. They were so warm and bright tonight; I could have sworn they were glowing. I could almost see his feelings radiate from them like they did across our soul-deep connection. He lowered his gaze, stared at my face through lashes darker than his sunflower-yellow hair, and kissed the tear trails that had formed on my cheeks.
I felt something warm seep through my skin, something I’d felt before with him, and it melted me into a puddle. When he’d returned to kissing my cheeks, I could feel his summer essence through his lips. It hitchhiked onto every caress, mingling with the pleasurable mate touch to add even more intimacy to our embrace. The essence was all the best parts of Belenus, concentrated into something so personal and private that anyone else but me would burn to ashes.
He’d been right when he called it the most intensely erotic act, and even small kisses made me bite my cheek to keep from howling. Each lick of his essence seemed stronger this time too. I didn’t know if it was because we were in his court now or if he’d been right about Triskelion’s gift.
I gritted my teeth when he followed a tear trail down to my neck and gave slow, languid laps until his lips settled on my mating mark. His velvety soft tongue drew warm, wet lines around his teeth marks, and I bucked up involuntarily at the mind-numbing pleasure. My core wept for him and throbbed mercilessly. I felt a deep urge to claw at something but left my fingernails unshifted, not wanting to hurt Belenus on accident ever again.
“Do you like that?” he whispered into my neck as he licked it.
I whimpered and whined while nodding, too tongue-tied from the sensation to talk. It was like every stroke of his tongue threatened to send me into the eye of his summer storm, where his sunlight shone the brightest.
When he bit down, I arched up into his muscular body and cried out through my clenched teeth. His essence seared through my nerve endings and nearly pulled me over the edge. He was claiming me without a single penetrative act, and I was more aroused than I’d ever been in my life… more than when he’d mounted me for the first time and more than when he came on my stomach. The wolf instincts in me were going crazy, having never felt such an aggressive claiming of territory.
As though he’d latched onto my thoughts, he released my neck and growled, “The water you hear… that’s mine. The skies ab ove us? Mine too.” He finally pulled himself farther up to settle his heavy cock on my lower abdomen, grinding our hips together to press me into the soft soil. “The ground beneath us. Mine.” He pressed his hard body into me and slid down until his engorged member was nestled along my sex. “This body. This female. This queen. Mine.” His voice became more savage by the word, making me sob with desire for him.
Mine.
It was something he hadn’t said at the very beginning, the moment we recognized each other as fated mates. I had, but he’d been too stunned. Each time he had said it since, though, it felt like he was making up for that lost moment, adding more rapacity for each day those words hadn’t spilled from his lips.
With our instincts going wild, him crushing our lips together and rolling his hips to grind his length along my sex, there was nothing else outside of us. All I could see, smell, touch, and hear was him. All I could feel was him, inside and out, though I felt like my heart would stop if I went another minute without him claiming me.
“Please, my mate,” I begged through my canines and dug my nails into his back. “I can’t wait any more!”
The golden fae male rocking over me leaned to nibble on my earlobe. “Does my queen desire me to feast upon her?” he rumbled suggestively, but I shook my head after he released it.
“No! I can’t wait! Mark your territory inside me. Claim it! Claim me! Please!” I whimpered, arching my back to press into him, hoping to tempt him into it. I rubbed my aching breasts into his chest and slid my thumbs up his pointed ears. The last act threw him over the edge, and he buried his face into my shoulder as a shudder shot violently through him.
He reared back, looking almost wild, and sat on his heels. Fingers dug into my thighs before sliding up to my hips, and I was pulled slightly off the ground to meet his erection. He grabbed his cock, harder than I’d ever seen it, and nestled its large head against my humble opening.
He leaned while pulling on my hips to press into me, watching me stretch around his tip. The sight of him so focused on where we were joining sent a massive wave of excitement through me. Arousal slicked out around him and dampened my thighs, allowing him to finally slip through my threshold. I grimaced through the painful pleasure of his wide descent and bit on my arm to muffle an elated cry.
“Do not cover your mouth. I expect to make you howl for me, she-wolf,” he said in a low, guttural voice as he pushed in at a torturously slow rate. “I already put up a glamour and sound barrier.”
I whined and nodded vigorously, panting as he continued to slide along my channel into my depths. It felt like he was never going to finish entering until he finally bottomed out, pushing hungrily against the soft door to my womb. He released a loud, extended groan of pleasure when his swollen length became fully seated inside me. His sack hung tight outside my entrance, and I could tell he was already trying not to ejaculate. His arms shook, and he drew in a deep, calming breath while we were locked in place.
“You… are perfection,” he grunted through a heavy exhale. “You embrace my cock like heat does the sun’s rays.” He adjusted his hips, closing his eyes tight when I felt him throb particularly hard. He gasped and lay back down over me. “I’ll never not be able to say it…” he gritted through his teeth as he rocked his hips experimentally. “Perfect… Hot, smooth, wet, and so very, very tight.”
I whimpered louder and slid my fingers everywhere I could reach. The muscles on his arms, shoulders, chest, and back were all as rock hard as his cock. This was a cage that this she-wolf didn’t mind being trapped in at all. I ran my fingers through the male fae’s hair, fixated on the feeling of his cock dragging back along the shape of my channel. He removed his soaked length until just the head remained nestled inside, then jerked his hips forward to bury himself inside me again .
I cried out finally, telling the night that someone had placed a claim. A fae had caught me and wanted this wolf all for himself. It was a golden fae, as powerful as he was alluring; almost too much for this wolf to handle.
He reached back to pull one of my legs up, encouraging me to wrap them around him. I followed his will, holding on tight while he flexed over me. After several more slow pulls and vigorous thrusts, he settled into a regular rhythm. His forearms framed my head, and he tucked his head down to rest his cheek close to my temple.
His grunting and heavy breathing directly into my ear sent hot and cold electricity down my body to the apex of my sex, where I clenched hard around his pumping member. We released simultaneous sounds of pleasure, and he quickened his pace, his libido overflowing with mine. I was burning up from the stimulation given to me by this fae. He was pleasure itself made male.
Yes, yes, yes, I chanted in my head. Claim me, mark your territory, fuck me!
Maybe I had spoken aloud because the fae sped up his pace until he was rutting me with wild abandon. His primal sounds made every dart of pleasure erupt into bolts of ecstasy, and I released a long wail, holding on tight while he ravished my body.
“Yes,” he growled in a deep, rough voice. “Show me how much of you is beast, she-wolf.” He sped up faster, slapping our wet skin together in a brutal taking. The angle of his hips started pulling something from me other than the delicious pleasure I got from each impact. The heat rose in my belly, spreading outward like the slow lighting of the dawn sky above.
I tightened around his plunging cock, and my stomach coiled in anticipation of the sunrise. His essence had me wrapped just as tight, and I suddenly remembered whose arms were framing my head. Belenus and I locked eyes at the same time, feeling something deeper than bone pull at our attention.
“I love you,” I gritted out as his summer storm ravaged me, pulling my senses up to the sky where the sun’s warm rays lived.
“Gods, I love you too!” he cried and crashed his lips into mine again, grinding his sweaty pelvis against my clit. It brought us both into the eye of the storm.
I tore my lips from his to release a screaming howl, seizing and clawing at him while a euphoric orgasm splintered through me like lightning. Belenus pumped aggressively a moment longer before following me into spiraling pleasure. We rocked and pulsed into each other. My core clenched his spurting member to rub his seed out in waves, milking him for everything his storm had to offer. He cried his thunder into my shoulder, shaking violently from his own release. A spasming buck would occasionally follow one of his moans as he filled me. His rain poured.
Our writhing dance gradually calmed, and our panting slowed to heavy breathing as we came down from our climaxes. My legs, tired, fell from Belenus’s waist, but I pressed my thighs to his, wanting him to stay where he was, if only for a moment longer. His sweat trickled onto my body, mingling with mine as we recovered from our joining.
I nuzzled his cheek with my nose, and when he turned his head to face me, I placed an affectionate kiss on his lips. “Thank you for loving me,” I whispered.
“I should be thanking you,” he replied in a low murmur, staring into my eyes with an intensity akin to wonder. “I didn’t think you could make me feel any happier, but you saying those words…” He shook his head slightly. “I can’t even put it into words,” he finally said, reaching to brush my lower lip with a thumb, “my beloved female…”
“I do love you, Belenus. I love you so much,” I repeated, wanting to give him more of what he seemed to need so desperately. “And I’ll tell you every day from here on out, my mate.”
“Do you promise?” he asked, moving to trace my upper lip now.
“I promise…” I whispered, closing my eyes to enjoy his reverent touch .
“But what if you forget? What kind of compensation can I expect for breaking such an important promise?”
I couldn’t keep the grin from spreading my lips, the ones he continued to trace. Now he was just teasing me. I opened my eyes to find humor, light, and love dancing in his amber gaze. “I’m sure we’ll sort something out.” I tried to put away my grin, but his own broad smile made it impossible.
“I’ll hold you to that then.”
·
The only reason I’d been able to sleep at all during the day was because Belenus’s mounting had blissfully exhausted me. It wasn’t necessarily an easy sleep, though. I’d woken a number of times worrying that I’d missed the attack on the castle. I also wasn’t surprised to find that others were having a rough time of it as well. Even Emer and Nofre were lying next to each other, speaking in low murmurs.
All I could do was curl back into Belenus’s arms and try to go back to sleep. Thank the gods for the soothing mate touch as well. I’d be faring much worse if Belenus couldn’t sleep by my side.
And no one will threaten to keep us from his bed ever again, Eventide muttered sleepily before we passed out once more.
·
Chatting and shuffling had me waking to a restless camp at sunset. King Nechtan stood before his nervous warriors, speaking in a terse voice. I imagined that these battle-hardened people weren’t necessarily concerned about the fighting, merely the fact that their king would be outnumbered by summer soldiers the entire time, even after victory. It spoke to how much trust King Nechtan was placing in Belenus and me. If I really thought about it… it was staggering. We had his fated mate here too. We had everything here to cripple the Winter Co urt.
It makes me want to succeed even more, Eventide said thoughtfully. Joining packs… er, forces, is good for thriving long-term.
We will win this, I said vehemently, and the queen will pay for her crimes.
Yes, she fucking will.
The bat-shifters were busy making sure they were especially well fed before our march, per my orders. We’d be out among a lot of people, more than they’d ever seen, and I wanted to minimize the temptation for them to lose control and feed on soldiers or civilians. I wasn’t certain if it was doing them a disservice to think that way, but I wanted to make sure as many variables were thought about in advance as possible.
I tried to get a read on the shifters’ moods as I attempted to force food down my nervous throat. They still sweated from the lingering day’s heat, but with how they mopped their worried brows, I suspected that fear fed the perspiration. The ones who’d eaten—who were ready to go—fidgeted, finding the waiting intolerable, which I understood more than they’d ever know.
I worried about how they’d react to the unknowns before them. As much as they’d been drilled on sparring, fighting another person was nothing like taking down a monster. Pain stabbed my heart and tension gripped my stomach the more I watched. They were all like pups in a way—a people with an incomparable innocence. I wished they would decide to stay here instead. The gods had tasked me with their safety, and dragging them into Belenus’s and my war felt so wrong. I sighed and wiped my own dewy brow. All I could do now was prepare for the worst and fight for the best.
“Miss Hekla?” a voice asked, and I turned to find Dumnorix approaching with Koray and several other fae. “Good evening, miss.” The folk fae bowed while holding an armful of leathers.
“Good evening to you.” I smiled, wanting to put on a brave, confident front. “What can I help you with?”
“It’s the other way around, Hekla,” Koray corrected with a proud grin .
“Oh? What did you get up to?”
Dumnorix held up a vest made mostly of boiled leather. “We made you some light armor with a couple pieces Belenus brought back from the barracks. I have an understanding that wolf-shifters prefer to fight in their animal forms, but our archers…” Dumnorix paused and twisted his mouth like he was searching for the right words. “Our archers are some of the very best, and no doubt the queen has many of them who are still loyal to her.”
I opened my mouth to tell him that I wasn’t offended, but he held up a palm with a pained expression to let me know he still had more to say.
I mean, as fast as I can be, if I’m risking an arrow to the ass maybe don’t call me out until we get to the queen, hmm? Eventide suggested.
“That being said, Koray here thought we could put some slits and stretchy fabric in here to make it wearable for… um… Eventide.” Dumnorix pointed to the chest, where the breast pieces could fold out to make space for Eventide’s wolf-shaped chest. I saw that the sides weren’t sewn shut but held with a stretchy material that could accommodate her larger rib cage. “It’s not ideal armor for a person going into battle, but it’s better to get an arrow in the leg than one straight to the heart.”
Koray reached for what was awkwardly tucked under Dumnorix’s arm and held up a leather helmet and skirt. Dumnorix said, “These two, you’ll have to just take off before shifting. There is no way to make pants work… at least not until this young man invents one.” He snorted in good humor, jerking a thumb in Koray’s direction.
“You’re going to give me a fat ego, Norix,” Koray protested, lightly nudging the folk fae in the ribs.
“It’s Dumnorix,” a fae named Gallcobar corrected.
“It’s Norix, unless he’d rather me nickname him Dummy?” Koray replied jovially, looking over at the reptilian fae whose face pinched in conservative amusement.
“I’d rather not…” Dumnorix’s nostrils flared from his restrained mirth. “Anyway. Should you choose to use it, the skirt unties easily on one side if you need to shift quickly. Can we make sure the chest piece fits on Eventide?”
I nodded to Dumnorix and quickly stripped to don the loose leather vest and skirt. I fiddled with the ties on the skirt, getting familiar with them before taking it off and shifting into Eventide. The boiled leather creaked a bit as her body filled it, and there were several places where the armor pinched. She squirmed uncomfortably and whined at the fae who crouched with Koray to examine the fit.
They gestured to several spots and Dumnorix made some adjustments. I couldn’t see what he was doing, but I felt the pressure in the pinched spots disappear. Eventide wagged her tail to show her approval and did a couple laps around the immediate area to see how it felt.
Not like King Zorian’s armor but not bad, she said. It is so, so, so weird to wear clothing, though. I feel like a people imposter!
Trust me, no one will mistake you for a human, I replied.
Is that so? Give me a wig, and I’ll learn to walk on my hind legs!
I’m sure our fae subjects would love to watch their wolf queen hop around like an idiot.
Can’t say it wouldn’t be an improvement from their last queen…
I shifted back into my human form, cackling from Eventide’s wry comment. No, couldn’t say it wouldn’t be an improvement indeed.
“Thank you, Koray,” I said but looked at all of them, trying to find a loophole to show my gratitude. I tied the leather skirt on again and placed the helmet under an arm. “What you’ve done, Koray… I don’t know how I’ll ever be able to repay it, but I will ne ver stop trying.”
The master instructor smiled in amusement, but I saw in his eyes that he was touched. “As long as we can call you and Belenus our new rulers by the end of the night…” Dumnorix stated, bowing once more and heaving a sigh. “The Summer Court is in dire need of change, and you both have given us purpose and hope. Let’s keep fighting.”
His eyes watered, and he quickly turned to walk away with his fae peers, his shoulders sagging from the weight of fatigue. Koray came up to give me one last hug, seeming as tired as the others. His eyes were a little bloodshot too. He was probably up all night working on this since he knew he wasn’t allowed to join the march.
“Wait until Soley hears about all you’ve done. You’ll never get her off you, Koray,” I warned, laughed into his shoulder, and released him from our hug.
“That’s already a problem,” he said, bursting into chuckles. “Not that I’d call it a problem.” He grinned before bashfully looking away. He quickly sobered then and placed a hand on my shoulder. “Stay alive, Hekla. I don’t want to give bad news to Soley, and you’re my friend too.” He patted my shoulder and walked away, rubbing his eyes and dropping his shoulders in exhaustion like Dumnorix had.
I went to go say bye to Bidelia and Arse, but the winter king was currently speaking with her. I scented Belenus and turned to face him, smiling in relief. His presence always made me feel lighter, and I very much needed that.
Are you not wearing underwear? Escort asked suddenly. Belenus’s face went completely red, and the corner of his lips twitched.
No… I replied, holding back a surprised laugh. The fae made me some shifter-friendly armor.
Well, see if you can avoid losing it. Belenus likes it, Escort shared, leaving my mate with an aghast expression. Easy access. Belenus looked more betrayed by the second. He was obviously fighting with his wolf because Escort then said, What? If you don’t say it, I will. I told you I make my wants clear. You should too, big shit .
“This,” Belenus snapped out loud, swiping a hand through the air like a sword, “is not the time for that.” His angry, flustered face softened, and he reached for my hand. “Are you ready?”
I paused at the question, then ran off to fetch something. When I came back, I wiggled the item in my hand. “I’m ready now,” I breathed out, clutching the treasure to my chest. I wasn’t sure how I’d carry it as a wolf, though, but I knew I wanted it with me.
“What’s this?” he asked, holding out his hand. When I offered the sheathed dagger, he got a better look at it and recoiled. “Ah… yes, please keep that away from me, my dear…” He laughed nervously, stepping away with his hands up in surrender.
I frowned and looked at the dagger. “What? The grand beta and Rakel had it made for me. What’s wrong with it?”
“I don’t know if they were aware when they designed it, but… pure iron, that is… very… dangerous to us fae. Probably like silver is for you,” he informed, stepping closer now that he was no longer surprised.
“Oh…” I replied, looking down at it with mixed feelings. I didn’t want to accidentally kill someone I’d just be trying to restrain. I’d have to be extra careful with it. An achy, heavy weight settled in my chest from the burdensome thought.
Belenus reached for my free hand, and we strolled over to give our goodbyes to Bidelia, who was surrounded by her own little army of winter warriors and bat-shifters. Without releasing her tight clutching of Arse, she gave us both a whimpering, tearful hug.
“We’ll be back, Bidelia. We’ll come and get you, then discuss your career goals as the royal pet assistant, yes?” I teased her, poking her in the belly. She laughed and smacked my hand away from her.
“Promise?” she asked and lifted a hand to rub her tearful eyes. Arse slipped in her distracted grip, and his lower legs splayed to find purchase.
Canny, Bidelia! he complained as he coiled his tail around her arm .
I narrowed my eyes. “Shush, you. The jig is up, ‘Archibald.’” The mac-talla sighed and hung limp while Bidelia fought to get a better grip on him.
Make them pay, Hekla, he said quietly. Dinna… don’t die, you two.
With an anxious stomach and a worried heart, I turned from them and joined the massive gathering at the edge of the glamour with Belenus at my side. He squeezed my hand, went over the plan one more time with the volunteers, and we stepped out into the next glamour that Belenus erected to hide our march. Our army of winter fae and bat-shifters picked up their heads and walked with purpose now. The bat-shifters in particular carried themselves with forced grit. I’d be proud of them if I wasn’t so fucking worried.
It’s natural to be worried and scared, but I have your back, my love, my mate, my queen, Belenus said to me over our bond’s link. I swallowed heavily and smiled tentatively up at him.
I have your back too, my love, my mate, my king, I responded affectionately.
His own whirling emotions blossomed into warm hope, and we walked hand in hand all the way to the castle gates with a force to be reckoned with at our backs. Dread built in my belly as we approached the entryway only to find that the guards were missing. In the large expanse past the gates was a sight of unsettling silence.
“Where is everyone?” I whispered while our teams moved alongside the gate wall to their respective positions. “I don’t see anyone. Not even servants.”
“Perhaps they cleared the area and are waiting for the signal. I don’t like this, though. If that’s what has been done, it’s too obvious,” Belenus said in a low voice and glanced over at King Nechtan.
“This isn’t right. They are expecting us, hoping to catch us in a trap,” he stated with absolute certainty.
“A pretty obvious trap,” Belenus growled, shifting his weight and trying to get a better look at the training yard and barracks. His hand went to his sword hilt as he scrutinized the area.
“So it’s not a trap then, is it?” I pointed out. “We both know the other’s intent to an extent. We should just proceed with caution.”
“Agreed,” the prince and the king said simultaneously, and we slowly approached the castle in our armor and with our personal teams of warriors and shifters.
Unsurprisingly, white gold metal flashed under torchlight as summer soldiers poured out of the castle entrance in defense of their queen. A little less than a hundred of them lined up, pointing their spears and unsheathing their swords in preparation. We knew they’d be here. We were prepared for that and ready to start disarming and restraining these fae.
What we weren’t prepared for was Drust’s appearance. He exited the castle with scores of his own soldiers and stood in opposition to us, pulling out his own weapon.
Cold terror shot through my body, and I froze. This was Drust, right? He didn’t have a twin I didn’t know about, did he? There’s no way anyone could fool Belenus this well… was there? How was this possible? How—
“Drust!” Belenus roared, red-faced with fury. “What’s this about?”
The fae soldier didn’t reply. His gaze had just locked on Belenus. Neither guilt nor a smirk of victory passed over his features. There wasn’t anything on his face.
Suspicious of his emptiness, I took a cautious step forward, sliding my foot in the dirt and keeping my face low. I parted my lips and took the deepest breath I could, hoping the wind would shift in my favor. I side-stepped and hoped that the standstill would remain tense and quiet for a moment longer. I finally caught Drust’s scent and there it was.
The faintest hint of rot.