Page 36 of Ruthless Monsters

Alaric scrutinizes every part of the room like he’s searching for hidden traps, and Prince Callan plucks an apple from the fruit bowl and sinks his teeth into it. Dante smooths back his hair and doesn’t move from my side.

I remove my robe and start dressing into the smaller shirt and pants that has been left for me, not caring that I’m naked. I’m still wound up tight after our encounter in the prison, and I feel like adding some layers might help. The moment the robe is off, four pairs of eyes find me, and their heated gazes make my temperature rise a few more degrees. Even Prince Callan and Alaric don’t hide their attention.

Shade ruffles her feathers.“Well, is it just me or did it get hotter in here? I’d offer to wait outside, but that just seems a little unfair. For me, that is.”

“You are such a perv,”I tell her.

“I’m kidding,”she defends.“…Maybe. I mean, look at these guys.”

She doesn’t need to tell me to look at them. I’m all too aware of how ridiculously attractive my mates are.

Nate grins mischievously. “So, now that we’re back together and not stuck in prison, I vote we make the most of our situation.” He pats his muscular thigh in invitation for me to sit down, and I struggle to focus as I pull on my clothes. Thankfully, the shirt I’ve been given has slits for my wings, and it’s surprisingly comfortable. The others all watch like they’rewaiting to see how I’ll respond to Nate, and I can’t tell if they’re hoping I’ll climb onto the shifter’s lap or not.

“I think we need to discuss a few things,” I say slowly, trying not to think about Nate’s predatory gaze.

No one speaks for a long moment, and then Prince Callan swallows his mouthful. “I agree, we need a plan to remove these cuffs and find a way back to the surface.” But even as he says it, his eyes linger on me, like he’s afraid that if he looks away I’ll disappear.

“Oh, I thought she was referrin’ to the bed situation. I’m thinkin’ Blake and I can have that one, and the rest of you can take the other bed.” Nate winks at me, and I have to force myself not to grin because his damn attitude is infectious.

Prince Callan glares at him, and Dante moves closer, sliding his arms around me. “If anyone’s sharing a bed, it’ll be me and Blake.”

I step away from my demon, because if I don’t get some space, I’m going to go right back to trying to bone all of them, and as good as that sounds, we have bigger problems right now. “Where we sleep doesn’t matter,” I say. “Being kidnapped by the Perstalians wasn’t exactly part of our plans. We need to discuss?—”

“Fine,” Nate muses thoughtfully, cutting me off. “Dante, Blake, and I can share that bed, while Alaric and Callan can have the other one.”

Alaric and Prince Callan scowl, looking annoyed, though I’m not sure why they care.

“Why not just push them together!”Shade chirps sounding strangely eager.“Then there’s only one bed! Gosh, I love the one bed trope!”

“The what?”I ask, because I have no idea what she’s talking about.

“You know, where the boy and girl are reluctant but there’s only one bed, and they have to share, and the tension…”

“Can we please focus,” I say aloud, mostly to Shade because she’s starting to sound way too enthusiastic, and I don’t have the energy to work out her rambling. There are moments when I wonder just what happened to her in the human realm, and right now is one of those times.

“We should start by discussing what we’ve each learned about King Celzar,” I say to the others.

“Agreed,” says Prince Callan, and I gape at him because I’m not sure when the two of us started seeing eye to eye.

Prince Callan smirks and goes on to explain everything Mason told them while they were in the prison. I do the same with the information I’ve learned, and when I get to the part about the witches, they all curse, and Alaric starts pacing the room.

“So, it was King Celzar’s fault the witches attacked Perstalia?” Dante repeats for the second time like he can’t wrap his head around this bit of news.

“Apparently,” I say, still hardly believing it myself.

“Then we force the king to give the power back to the witches,” Nate suggests. “If they’re startin’ to resurface, it might stop any future conflict.”

“Too much blood has been spilled,” Alaric growls, his eyes darkening. “They’re just as likely to use that power against all of the united realms.”

“King Celzar can’t simply return the power anyway,” I say. “From what I gather, over time the king’s power has depleted. It’s not self-sustaining for him. It’s like a weapon he’s stolen, and without the witches’ connection to the ancients, that power is being used up. It’s why he’s started taking power from his brides.”

“Yeah, what’s with that?” Nate says, lifting a finger. “He could just take what he needs from all of his citizens. He has everyone under his control, no one is going to say anythin’.”

My lips thin as I go on to explain how the king murdered his lover.

Nate frowns. “So, he’s playin’ out the memory, as a form of what? Punishment?”

I shrug. “Maybe it’s his therapy? I don’t know. But part of the reason he let me try to bond with you guys is because I promised him he’d finally get a different ending with me.” I wince. “That I could be strong enough to be his…queen.” I don’t know why I care what my mates think. It’s not like they’re all on board with being my mates anyway, but I still feel a little guilty when all four of my guys don’t look happy with this bit of news.

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