6

Ragnar

“Glad to be home,” I said with a comfortable sigh. I leaned back in my chair, resting against it as I closed my eyes.

I exhaled slowly, letting the cool air ease the tension still clinging to my body. Only then did the events of the last few hours begin replaying in my mind.

All the packs in the different werewolf territories tried to live as peacefully as possible; the atmosphere was tense enough for a war to break out if Dave and I had actually fought. I groaned internally as the door creaked and the sound of Emily’s footsteps echoed on the marble floor.

“You really wandered off and returned with a strange woman and two kids—how typical,” her annoyed tone cut through the silence.

“What can I say? I’m a collector,” I teased.

“I don’t think bringing her here was a good idea. You should’ve asked…”

“Asked who?” I interjected. “You? The council? Who exactly was I supposed to ask permission from?”

“You should’ve asked the members of your pack if they wanted a stranger in their midst.”

I opened my eyes and stared at her. “I am the alpha of this pack, Emily. I don’t have to ask anyone’s opinion or permission to do whatever I want.”

“She smells different, Ragnar!” she yelled, and I sat up. “The moment she stepped through those gates, something changed in the atmosphere; can’t you feel it? She’s clearly not an alpha, beta, or omega; what is she, Ragnar? You might think you don’t have to ask anyone because you’re the alpha king, but show a little respect to your pack members, especially the elite families that help make your reign as king seamless. How do you know you haven’t brought something dangerous back with you?”

“I found her in the woods. I don’t know where she was coming from, but a rogue wolf was standing in front of her and the kids.”

“Did you kill it?” she asked, and I nodded. “Shit. How could you, Ragnar? The rogue wolves belong to Cain Lancaster.”

“It was about to kill them, so I killed it first.”

“What happens if Cain comes asking questions?”

“It was one rogue wolf, Emily. I don’t think he cares that much, and if he did, he’d have to explain what the wolf was doing close to the sanctuary and neutral town.”

“What do you mean?” She stepped forward and sat on the chair opposite me.

“I found them a few miles away from the neutral border. She was heading to the sanctuary, clearly running away from something, and the wolf jumped in front of them. The laws designate the neutral town borders and the sanctuary as part of the realm where no combat is supposed to happen. What was it doing there?”

“What was she running from?”

“What?” I asked, confused by the question.

“You saw her in the woods, right? She was heading for the sanctuary, which means she was looking for protection. The peace treaties in the neutral borders protect anyone who enters the sanctuary or the town; what did she need protection from?”

“Dave Nightclaw,” I replied, and her eyes widened in shock.

“The alpha king of the south? What would he want with… Wait,” she trailed, and I could see her connecting the dots I didn’t want to say out loud. “Is she—does she have any history with him? The kids, are they his?”

“Those are questions that only Ayla can answer when she’s ready, but what I can tell you is, she didn’t want to go with him, and I don’t think he’s going to stop trying to get to her, especially now that she’s under my protection.”

“So not only do we have to figure out if she’s a threat or not, but we also have to deal with Dave Nightclaw prowling our borders because of her? What were you thinking when you claimed her?! What were you doing in the woods? How did you find her?”

I sighed and shrugged. “Just taking a walk,” I said and closed my eyes.

A memory of the night before I found Ayla and the twins replayed in my mind; in my dream, the moon goddess had appeared to me and instructed me to find the Lycan princess and protect her.

Lycans were an ancient bloodline of beings that had powers greater than what we knew as werewolves, but they had disappeared a long time ago, and I wasn’t sure how she expected me to find anyone from that lineage.

The goddess had said she’d be in the woods, running away from her past, and I would know who she was when I found her. When I woke up, I tried to ignore the dream, but the woods felt like it was calling out to me, so I took a walk. That’s when I caught a whiff of her scent; it hit me with an intensity that made me stagger. Emily was right; it was like nothing I had ever smelled before.

I thought about taking a few guards with me but hesitated for a moment. What would I tell them we were going after? No one liked to talk about the Lycans; they were considered the most dangerous species in the realm, and everyone was grateful they disappeared. If I told anyone I had an idea how to find one, it would be harder to keep her safe, so I went after her alone.

I didn’t expect to find her holding two children, but when I caught the silvery halo around her son, I realized the moon goddess had sent me to her for a much bigger reason.

Bringing her back to the pack bought me time—time to protect her and uncover why the Moon Goddess had sent me to her. Until I had my answers, I wasn’t going to tell anyone about the dream or reveal what I knew about her.

“That was a very long walk,” Emily said, and I smiled.

“It was a pretty productive walk if you ask me.”

“Ragnar!” Stacy’s voice rang from the hallway; my eyes flew open at the urgency in her tone, and I jumped to my feet. “Ragnar, something’s wrong!”