Page 16 of Renegade Kings

As my foot crossed the threshold, a tear slipped free from my eye. Because for the first time in years, I felt like I actually belonged. Like the world around me was finally a part of me again, and the rush of magic blazed past me to reclaim what had been stolen from it. It danced on the wind and rustled through the trees; the whispering leaves singing a song of rejoice.

The queen had arrived, and spring had returned.

I heard a gasp behind me, but didn’t really care who it had come from. A singular sound that echoed the amazement of what was about to happen. I could feel it as my foot descended to the smooth tile inside. The anticipation was palpable, and I closed my eyes as a breath of relief rushed out of me.

The burning sensation of pure magic climbed up my body as soon as my foot touched the ground. It wrapped around a part of me I hadn’t wanted to face in a long time. The part of me that had cried out for this land for years. And even as it etched its mark into my skin, I smiled.

Because I was finally home.

The tears were flowing faster now and as I turned to look at the people behind me, the only thing I could see were the four men standing at the doorway, ready to leap into action if I’d needed them.

A glimmer of something passed through their eyes and I could recognise it as their other halves joining us in a moment that was greater than any of us.

But then the unexpected happened. As it always seemed to be when wild magic was in the air. Tank stepped forward, reaching out for me. One corner of his mouth tipped up in a smile when he saw the relief on my face despite my tears. As he stepped into the palace, the magic rose once more, reaching out for my mate, and surging into his body, flowing along that blossoming bond between us.

Tank gasped, the echo of a growl joining the sound as his bear felt a change within itself that it didn’t understand.

And then I watched.

I watched as a tattoo of vines crept up from Tank’s collar, curling up behind his ear and disappearing into his hairline, knowing that it was a mirror of the marks that now graced my skin.

Of course, this was how it would be.

Because he was my mate.

And now he was my king.

Tank’s wide-eyed gaze locked with mine, and I knew he was confused about what was happening. He would never have seen anything like this happen before. Nothing like this existed in the human realm.

A moment of doubt rushed through me. Did he want this? We weren’t fully mated yet, but while he knew we’d be bonded, he’d never known about the possibility of a throne coming with that as well. Was it more than he’d be willing to take on?

Just as I was about to apologise, to explain, to say anything that could make this situation feel less awkward than I was suddenly feeling, Rhidian’s shout rang through the palace.

“Long live the queen!”

Tank’s eyes widened even further, and I thought we’d have to pick him up off the floor as the next words left Rhidian’s lips.

“And long live her king!”

Maddox spluttered in surprise as Ryder barked out a laugh of glee. Only Dean looked ready to tear into the man he’d been considering a friend. My gaze moved to the three of them, worried about what this could mean for us. I already had feelings for them, even if I wasn’t quite at the point of being ready to declare them my mates like Tank and the three of them were determined I would. It wasn’t that I didn’t want them. I was confused about how it would work.

We were frozen in a moment that none of us had expected. Well, Rhidian and Fizzle seemed pretty unsurprised by the current events. This was what they’d hoped would happen all along.

“It’s still here,” one guard barked. “It didn’t work.”

My head cocked to the side at his words, confused at first about what he could mean. But it was obvious from how he glared at the forest that had overtaken the Spring Court. They thought by claiming the Spring Court, it would push back Nymeria, which seemed content in claiming this place once more.

“It’s the shifter,” another guard growled. “She can’t take a shifter for a king. Nymeria won’t accept it.”

I saw the hate in their eyes in that moment and it sparked to life a viciousness inside me that I didn’t recognise.

“Think carefully about the next words out of your mouth.” My voice didn’t sound like my own. The growl that lingered was a noise I’d never made before and it had the guards backing up a step.

This was my court and Tank was my mate—chosen and fated. I wouldn’t stand these interlopers even looking at him in a way that displeased me.

The magic inside me quivered in anticipation. It knew what was coming and part of me rejoiced in it. A need for not just violence, but justice flowed through me and as I watched one guard stupidly reach for his sword, I nearly laughed.

One of the vines that had been trying to consume the palace whipped out and wrapped around his wrist. He stared at it in shock but had no time to do anything about it.

---