Prologue 2

Maverick Peterson POV

The prickling sense of unease that persisted in the back of my mind kept me from focusing on the document in front of me. Setting it aside, I stood up and threw on my coat.

As I stepped outside, the servants nearby bowed their heads before returning to what they were doing.

'Hurry Maverick.'

'What do you sense, Shadow?'

The demon blood in my veins enhanced my werewolf half's senses to the point where I could know what was happening at the edges of my territory. It had reached the point where I blocked it all out to stop the sensory overload and left it to my inner wolf to let me know what was happening.

'There are werewolves near the border by Prerana.'

I grimaced.

That place was disgusting to say the least. One trip had been enough to solidify my opinion that my ancestors were right to break away from the kingdom and create their own country.

The memory of dark brown hair and dark brown eyes flashed before me before receding into the background.

Well, the trip hadn't been a complete disappointment. It wasn't enough to urge me to go back again, but it had given me something pleasant to reminisce about.

I wondered how that woman was doing.

I hadn't intended to sleep with her, but she had been remarkably persistent, even inducing a false heat with drugs. If she was going to throw herself at me, who was I to ignore such an offering? I made sure to compensate her and her family for the incident before I left since I had no intention of taking a random woman as my wife.

Summoning several of my knights to come with me, I teleported us close to the border.

The smell of blood greeted us, and we all tensed as we slowly approached the source. What we found was a single corpse, but no signs of a struggle or fight.

What happened?

When Shadow had informed me of people near our border, I had been expecting some kind of scuffle. Something wasn't right for there to only be a body.

'Maverick, look.'

Bending down to inspect the body myself, I sucked in a breath at the sight of her face.

No wonder the scent had been familiar. It was that woman from over a year ago. What could have led her to head for the border? Who killed her?

'Her scent. Breathe in her scent.'

Loosening my control over my senses, I inhaled the air. Was that demon blood I smelled? What would a demon be doing here? Demons avoided places like this where they would be hunted down and killed unless they had adequate protection.

Then it clicked, and my eyes widened.

It should be impossible. I had been certain that our night together wouldn't bear any fruit. That was why I had been fine with leaving her behind. If I had known she was bearing my child, I would have taken her with me.

The implications of what happened sent my blood aflame, and I ordered, "Search the area. Find the ones responsible for hurting my mate."

They didn't hesitate to follow my commands and transformed into their wolf forms before scattering in different directions.

This might reignite the war between our two countries, but I didn't care. They had harmed people under my protection. Even if I had not known, she and her child were my responsibility.

Gently cradling her body close to me, I noted the tear tracks on her face. Guilt ate away at my consciousness. She died alone, and most likely in pain.

When I found those responsible, I swore that I would repay them tenfold for their crimes.

It didn't take long before a group of werewolves were dragged before me, bruised and bleeding. One had his face so disfigured that even magic wouldn't save him.

At my unspoken question, one of my knights held out a baby and said, "He was tormenting the baby."

Baring my teeth at the offender for a moment, I turned my attention to my child, my daughter. She had obviously inherited all of my features and none of her mother's. It was a miracle that she had kept the child and kept her safe all this time.

"Don't you know who I am? Once our parents hear of this, you'll regret it," the sole woman in the group said.

The man next to her tried to dissuade her, but with his face having undergone a new arrangement, his words came out garbled and unclear.

"So, you're the ones responsible for killing my mate," I said unimpressed.

"That whore has a mate?" she shrieked.

The closest knight backhanded the bitch for me, and I was tempted to order them to tear out her tongue so she wouldn't spew any more foul garbage.

"You dare lay a hand on Grand Duke Peterson's mate and child. Death would be far too swift a punishment for you," another of my knights said.

Finally realizing who she was talking to, she wilted beneath his gaze. How she could miss my black hair and black eyes was beyond me. Only a moron could miss such obvious features up close.

"Th-there has to be a misunderstanding. She can't be your mate. She's just a lowly maid who slept with all kinds of men," she said to defend herself.

"Are you saying that I would somehow mistake my mate for any woman whoring herself on the streets?" I demanded.

The thought of her sleeping with others infuriated me, but I had only myself to blame. Our relationship had been nothing more than a fling. I didn't have any feelings of love for her. I barely knew her outside of our one night together.

Unable to stand being in their presence any longer, I ordered, "Take them away. We have plenty of time to find answers for them."

"As you wish, Grand Duke," the nearest knight said. "What would you like for us to do for your mate and child?"

"My mate will be buried with honors as my first wife. Our daughter will be named the heir," I said after much deliberation.

This was all I could do for her now, and I prayed that her next life would be better and vowed to raise our daughter well.