Page 320 of Hunters and Prey

It wasn’t like any armor Roman had ever seen before. It was nearly as black as a Neprijat ship, but it didn’t glitter. This black promised nothing but cold, merciless death.

A chill went down his spine.

The panels on the suit were gilded and the gold shone in the light of all the holos in headquarters, but the armor wasn’t what drew the attention. It was Adelina’s presence. It was the way she commanded the room and everyone listened without question.

Roman could clearly see the gold mark through the transmission between her brows – a symbol of her power and rank as queen.

Zoya glared at them for nearly being late, then she ushered them closer so they could stand next to Eduard and Alexei in front of the cam.

Roman eyed the female who would be his sister-in-law – who was going to lead them through the liberation of the Hai System. Without her and the forces she’d brought they’d never manage it alone.

“Are these all the patrols?” Adelina asked. Her voice echoed over the transmission but it was easy enough to see the Drakesthai Council was there as well as the Unchanged and others Roman didn’t recognize.

And then there was their eldest brother, Kaiden.

“Yes,” Kaiden responded. “We should take those after the planets are secure so as not to alert the Neprijat in the Khara System of our presence.”

Seeing his brother and knowing he was so far away was strange. Roman missed him. They were adults and had been for a while, but Kaiden had never been gone for so long before. Normally the length of a patrol – at the most.

But Kaiden wasn’t ever going to come back. He was mated to the Queen of Draga. She outranked them all and couldn’t stay in the Hai System. So Kaiden would go with her.

Without ever speaking on the matter – they all knew. Roman simply hoped they would be able to say goodbye before Kaiden left for the Draga System. He hoped that borders wouldn’t close again after they made it through this war. Roman wanted to be able to visit Draga, for Kaiden to come back home every once in a while.

Roman knew the weight of duty better than most. After all, Kaiden’s duties were now his.

“I agree, husband,” Adelina said with a slight smile. “The patrols should be taken after the planets reclaimed, and then the forces can move to the outposts in space. Half of all warriors from each planet will then move to the border, sweeping clean any enemy ships found along the way.”

Roman frowned in confusion. He’d known they’d consummated the mate bond thanks to the change in scent – but husband? Roman glanced over at Leo and Alexei. Both of them looked just as confused as he did.

What had he missed?

Then Adelina grinned at everyone present for the meeting. “I may have already sworn my vows to Kaiden in private. We do not have time for frivolities.”

Roman saw Princess Serilda roll her eyes, but the rest of the Drakesthai Council didn’t look pleased. He couldn’t say he was surprised about that, though he was shocked Serilda was so calm about it – she’d had the most to gain from their union as their unofficial leader.

But the old crone liked Adelina – and she didn’t really like anyone.

The Unchanged in the meeting laughed then, and someone exchanged a flash of gold. Roman studied them for a moment. Taking bets would imply they’d suspected something.

“A wedding can be held after Hai has been reclaimed,” Prince Rykian from House Obsidian said carefully, glaring at those who grumbled the loudest. “Congratulations on your bond.”

“Thank you, Prince,” Kaiden said with a slight bow of his head. Roman watched his brother circle the patrols around Anarr with his finger. He then flicked those to Roman’s screen. “Eduard, Roman…I trust you to take care of these as well as Anarr. Keep an eye out for the traitor or Snatcher who announced Adelina’s presence.”

Roman stared at his brother and they shared a look. One nod and Kaiden knew it would be done. He didn’t bother giving an update on their progress. It would come across as an excuse for not having completed the task already.

Once they found the spy he would make sure it was taken care of – that it was reported. They wouldn’t let the Neprijat ruin this one chance they had at freedom.

Then his mother smirked at her new daughter. No doubt she was pleased that Adelina and Kaiden had managed to make their bond their own despite the council pushing and prodding. They all ignored Eduard’s glare.

Roman only cared that his mother was happy.

The rest of the meeting went smoothly. Roman only half-listened though while he typed out the rest of the questions. He wanted that spy found before they were supposed to move on the Neprijat. And based on this meeting it would be a lot sooner than he’d anticipated.

They would find the spy before taking back Anarr and the surrounding space.

Roman made a silent promise he would.

It wasn’t just his family in danger anymore. His mate was on his planet and would be during battle. Roman refused to risk anything going wrong while he was fighting their enemy. Chiara had to be kept as safe as possible.

Roman wasn’t going to allow failure – not now that he finally had someone he wanted to spend the rest of his days with, no matter how few there might be.

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