Page 39 of King

My heart sinks. I have to strain to keep my knees steady. I picture my son the way I saw him last–peaceful, innocent, fully dependent on his parents. I don’t want to believe it, but the truth is right in front of me.

Our little growling pup is never coming back. When the elves took him away, they took him away for good.

I glance over at Rue, wondering how she’s surviving this. Her body is hunched and weary, but her eyes are full of pride. I turn my gaze back to our son, who’s watching Nydal flit through the air, dodging the scorching blue bolts erupting from his hands.

He’s brave and confident. He’s powerful. He wants Nydal dead. I feel quite proud of him, too.

Vaegon grows tired of the chase and presses his palms together. One thick rope of his magic shoots from his fingers, wrapping tightly around Nydal’s body. The rope scorches his skin and feathers. He screams in agony and tries to pull his arms free. Even if he managed to succeed, there’s nothing he could do to save himself.

Nydal’s body whips back and forth in the air as Vaegonjerks the rope around. Blood seeps out of Nydal’s flesh, sizzling against the rope as it digs in deeper His pristine, feathered wings vanish as the pain overwhelms him.

I stride up beside my son and meet the eyes that slide over to assess me.

“Finish him off,” I order, wondering if he’ll challenge my direction. I’m fully prepared to end Nydal myself if he has a problem with it.

Vaegon turns his head and looks me over. One eyebrow rises, then he simply shrugs. He jerks his hand downward, slicing the rope cleanly through Nydal’s torso. The pieces of his body rain down on the grass in a sickening mix of loud and soft thuds.

My son looks at me, waiting for a reaction. Instead, I rush over to Rue and scoop her up against my chest. “Are you okay?” I whisper against her cheek.

“I’m fine,” she says, wrapping her arms around my neck and holding me tight.

I keep my back to everyone as we draw strength from each other. I’m still in shock, but she must be completely destroyed. She buries her nose in the hollow of my throat and sighs. The tension in her body quickly falls away. I don’t know how she managed to remain in one piece, but it settles the emotional chaos inside me. If she’s okay, I’m okay, too.

Once I’m sure we’re both ready, I set her gently on her feet. Then, I turn us both around to face the harsh truth of what happened while our son was away.

Vaegon meets my gaze and holds it. Before we can find words to bridge the silence between us, the two Alpha wolves shift back. One is as white as bone with piercing dark eyes. The other is a bulky Alpha with brown hair and a short beard framing his strong jaw.

I’m thrown off when they stop at Vaegon’s side instead of joining me. I’d assumed the shifters were in the forest and heardmy struggle, but it seems they might be here with him.

“I think that’s all of them,” the larger Alpha says, introducing himself as Lucas.

“Thank you,” I reply, looking at the other Alpha. “Sadly, there are many more throughout the realm.”

“I’m Anders,” he says. “From what I understand, we’re here to help with that.”

Vaegon says nothing, waiting for me to speak. I’m not sure how to introduce myself to my own son, so I turn back to the Alphas instead. “Durin,” I say. “We’re grateful to have you.”

They both nod and head toward the trees to grab their discarded clothes. I glare at Allina, but I’m quickly distracted by a strange distortion rippling in the air beside her.

“What’s that?” I ask, just as a group of shifters appear in its place and stumble forward.

A tall Beta shifter holds a tiny, golden-haired Omega close to him. Beside them stands a mixed fae shifter with purple hair and a rounded belly. A young Alpha with short, black hair keeps a protective arm around her as he scans his surroundings.

“It’s a gateway to the realm where they kept Vaegon,” Rue says.

I turn my attention back to Vaegon, proud to sense the magic swirling around him. I do believe it rivals my own, just as the seer claimed it would. His annoyed expression softens as the Beta and the green-eyed Omega approach. He wraps his long arms around them and nips at each of their necks.

Mates… he has two.

My heart warms to know he found love in that foreign place. The little Omega steps away from him and fearlessly approaches me, pulling the Beta along behind her. Her boldness reminds me so much of Rue. I can’t help but smile at her.

“I’m Jade, and this is Brody. We’re Vaegon’s mates,” she says before pointing to the other two shifters. “This is Paren. Shecame over from this realm not too long ago. That is one of her mates, Frederick.”

She looks back and forth between Vaegon and me and adds, “I can’t believe how much he looks like you.”

“I can’t believe he’solderthan you,” the Beta, Brody, says, rubbing his jaw as he tries to wrap his head around it.

“Me either,” I reply, turning my eyes to my son. “It’s been only months. I don’t understand.”

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