Chapter Fifteen
Eldrick
Eldrick lay with Tovi in his arms, tracing his fingers over her pale skin and praying to any god that might listen that tonight would last for an eternity.
They’d not spoken a word to one another since they’d both calmed after their blissful releases, soaking in the peace of the snowstorm outside, the crackling of the fire, and their gently beating hearts.
An important discussion sat on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn’t bring himself to fracture this moment. For there was a difference between want and need. He wanted Tovi, but there was so much more that needed him. His pack, homeland, and duty.
Eldrick envisioned two futures—Tovi staring at him like this for years to come, discussing their worries late into the night. Another, where he lay alone with his thoughts, the warm fire and the promise of a whiskey his only comfort.
The wolf and dove.
Opal’s distant words contradicted the latter future, and so did Eldrick’s soul. They’d laid together before, but this had been different. His chest ached, a phantom emptiness pulsing. Yet, he didn’t dare breach the subject, afraid Tovi might flee from his arms, and he’d lose this night with her.
Tovi peered up at him, resting her chin on his chest. “What will you do about the decree?”
“Stand by my father’s side like I always have.” Eldrick ran his fingers through her white hair, tucking it behind her ear.
“Does your father need the rest of the alphas?” she asked. “For the alliance between vampyrs and werewolves.”
“If we want a united army, yes,” he whispered.
Tovi nibbled her lip, brows furrowing. “What happens if someone else wins the title of Earl? Will your father have to listen to their orders? Will you?”
Eldrick exhaled. He wasn’t one to hold back the truth, no matter how harsh. “By technicality.”
The magic weaved into an alpha’s blood made them leaders within their packs while the magic within the title of Earl extended power over all werewolves, including alphas.
All these years, Aramis hadn’t ruled, he’d led, not using the magic within his blood, but seeking council and collaboration with the other alphas.
A common purpose had united them, and Eldrick feared new leadership might shatter what Aramis had built.
Tovi shut her eyes and cursed. “As if we didn’t have enough stacked against us.”
We . . . Us . . .
The words almost made Eldrick smile. “He’ll win the vote.”
“My presence in the village hurts his chances. Our alliance does, too.” She ran circles across his chest, jade eyes churning with thoughts.
Eldrick grasped Tovi’s hand and peered down at her. “If he backs down from his promise to you, it makes him look not only weak but disloyal.”
“To a vampyr?” Tovi snorted. “I doubt the other alphas will see it that way.”
“You’re not the only vampyr in the village. My mother’s here, and she’s my father’s mate.”
Tovi stiffened in his hold, and her gaze snapped elsewhere.
Eldrick’s heart thumped, his soul yearning with truth. Tell her. Ask.
Moons, admit your suspicions.
He swallowed, gearing up to speak his mind when a distant howl carried on the storm’s wind. Tovi’s head snapped up, and she turned her ear.
“Did you hear that?” he whispered.
“Yes,” she breathed.
Eldrick sat up, carrying Tovi with him. He didn’t recognize the howl echoing in the forest, but he knew the kind, felt it in his blood. A warning.
Horns resounded in the village, and Eldrick’s hackles rose. Werewolves howled across the wall. He and Tovi shared a silent, knowing look, but before either of them spoke, Tovi’s door burst open, and Lou rushed in.
“Tovi—” The vampyr halted, eyes widening at the sight of Eldrick.
The vampyr queen cursed, grasping a fur blanket and pulling it over her naked body. “Lou.”
“I . . . Bloody hel.” The vampyr struggled to grasp words. “The village is under attack. Your brother has arrived outside the gates.”
Eldrick sprang from the bed, and Lou squealed, covering her eyes. His wolf snarled in his blood.
FUCK.
He was here. With Tovi. Nowhere near an axe. Far from the Wall where his pack manned the village. What sort of leader was he? Distracted. Tempted. Selfish.
Tovi reached for him, but he couldn’t look at her, couldn’t stomach the sight of her jade eyes. “Eldrick, wait—”
“Stay here,” he snapped, his alpha baritone bleeding through his words.
“Excuse me?” She followed him as he rummaged the floor for his clothes and boots. “If you think for one second I’m not fighting—”
He whirled. “Goddamn it. I can’t think straight when you’re near, Tovi.”
She reared back. His chest heaved. The room prickled with the fact that whatever was between them was too much.
Tovi’s beautiful face hardened, and her fangs glinted as she said, “Then I suppose we should keep our distance from one another.”
Eldrick growled. “Fine.”
He retreated from her suite, throwing on his shirt and sprinting to his room. He gathered his armor and axe, mind reeling as he readied for whatever battle awaited him outside of Lār.