Chapter 2

Kellan stood in front of the two sisters, bowing to each in greeting, as Edward introduced them. He kissed the back of their hands, a perfunctory duty when meeting royalty. He knew there was a third girl, but assumed she was not invited because of her age.

He focused on his betrothed, Eden. Her full wavy hair was long and silky, a lovely shade of pale brunette with some blonde and red-gold colors running through it, as if she had been out in the sun.

Her eyes were green, similar to her father’s, but one was much brighter than the other. It had an ethereal quality and was remarkably hypnotic.

Eden was beautiful, as was her sister, Evelyn. Though, oddly, they looked nothing alike.

Where Eden’s skin was smooth and creamy, like porcelain, Evelyn’s was several shades darker. Bronzed, even.

Her hair was dark auburn and perfectly straight. One of her eyes was an odd shade of amber, with gold and russet colors in the iris, which was a rare coloring among the Gwydions.

The other eye was the same green nearly all Gwydions were born with.

Kellan had never noticed elementals with such differences in their eye colors. Conceivably, it was likely a trait of the royal bloodline. He guessed the youngest would have the same peculiarity.

Blue his wolf communicated.

Kellan ignored the unusual message. Words didn’t often come from the animal. Feelings, yes. But rarely words.

As Kellan brought Eden’s hand to his mouth in greeting, his mind was continuously pondering the person missing. He wondered where the third daughter might be. Surely, he should be introduced to her, as well.

It shouldn’t matter … didn’t matter, in fact. Nevertheless, his wayward mind continued its nonsensical trajectory.

Kellan knew he should not be thinking of such things. He was meeting the mother of his future children; her sisters were inconsequential at this stage. Yet he was fixated on someone else. Someone he had never met.

Kellan did not have a mind with wandering tendencies. It was unsettling how he was having to force himself to focus on the female in front of him.

“It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Eden,” he told her once he regained control of his thoughts.

Eden smiled bashfully and replied, “Likewise, my lord.”

Kellan stared hard at Eden. She tensed slightly in response. Her eyes lowered to his mouth.

It wasn’t a sensual action. She was staring at his teeth and it was making her nervous. If he hadn’t been touching her, he might not have noticed her slight reaction.

Kellan respected her ability to regulate her response. It was a skill she would need if she was to live among the wolves. The Burghards were not known for subtlety and would likely push her to test her mettle.

He halted his testing perusal, wanting to put her back at ease. Kellan appreciated her innocence and beauty, but he could not picture himself with her. Her scent was pleasant enough, although not quite right.

Footsteps traipsed lightly from somewhere outside the room, small feet echoing on wood floors. Skipping?

His wolf started pacing, suddenly on high alert. Kellan felt like the beast within was moments away from trying to claw itself out.

Kellan had never lost control of his wolf. Not once in his 250 years of life. Something was off. His wolf was behaving as if there was a threat near.

The second the thought shot through his head, the door behind him opened and a new, yet strangely familiar scent filled the room.

It was what had calmed and welcomed him when he and Foley had been in the foyer. It had simply been too faint for him to realize what it was.

The strong aroma of home hit him like a sucker punch to the gut. A knowing as old as time struck his body, taking permanent residence in his heart—inside his very soul.

He was not prepared for the intensity of it. A lesser wolf would be on his knees.

Kellan slowly drew himself up to his full height, his eyes wide. His respiration ceased, and his hands began to shake.

Eden pulled her hand out of his, looking confused at his sudden change in demeanor. She peeked around his shoulder towards the door then back to Kellan.

He didn’t know how long he remained rooted in that spot, looking at Eden but not really seeing her. His wolf spirit howled in joyous rapture. He was almost afraid to behold what stood behind him.

Kellan knew when he turned around, he would see his destiny. His one true mate had entered the room, was less than twenty feet behind him—and it wasn’t Eden, his affianced.

He met Eden’s eyes, knowing he would turn away from her. Knowing when he did, he was letting her go, letting the contract go, consequences be damned. He would not—no, could not—ignore the fate at his back.

Goddess forgive me for the vow I am breaking, he prayed. His word was gold and he was about to go back on it.

Kellan turned around slowly, terrified and hopeful at the same time. He had never once thought this to be a possibility for his life.

No matter who or what had just entered the room, he could no longer marry Eden. There would be no one else, even if his mate rejected him.

He would spend the rest of his days, if necessary, trying to bind his true mate to his life force. It was the way of the wolf.

It would accept no other once her scent was caught. Imprinting with another was an impossibility. Nature would not allow it as long as his true mate’s heart was beating.

When he finally rotated towards the door, he blanched at the sight. The slight figure did not coincide with the beautiful woman he expected to see.

In the doorway, stood a girl. A child, really, not old enough to spark any sort of carnal desire within him. Kellan wasn’t sure what he was feeling. He was drawn to her, but it was more of a protective feeling.

The spark she ignited was far different than the stories he’d heard of instant lust. He would never feel such a thing for one so young.

But there was no denying the child was a kindred spirit. She was the other half of his soul and, once she was old enough, would share his life.

It wasn’t completely unheard of to find a true mate so young, but it was rare to recognize the scent so early. Typically, in wolves, pheromones altered during childhood and only settled once the wolf reached maturity.

He would not question the timing. It was fate. The Goddess had blessed him.

Kellan drew the surrounding air deep into his lungs, needing to be sure it was her scent and no one else’s he had captured. He took a step closer and did it again, then once more.

Edward watched. He glanced at Eden, then to Kellan, then to the doorway. He stepped forward, obviously concerned a large predator was progressing towards his youngest child.

Kellan was a noble man, but his actions would be alarming to any father.

“Kellan?” Edward asked, trying to get the wolf’s attention.

Kellan held up a hand to stop Edward’s advance as he continued his inspection. Kellan edged closer and closer to Nora, unable to stop himself.

Dread, heavy and suffocating, slowly sank onto Edward’s shoulders. His face tightened under the emotional strain as he realized what was happening. There was only one thing that would make Kellan advance closer to young Nora.

Nothing could come between a wolf and his mate. Nothing. Kellan would destroy anything, and anyone, that attempted to interfere.

Edward calmed himself. Kellan would not harm Nora. He was sure of it, despite his feeling of alarm at the wolf’s movement towards her.

He met his father’s questioning eyes and shook his head. Flynn, too, wanted Kellan’s movement to discontinue.

Edward thought of his late wife’s prediction. Elora’s vision must have been wrong. No, not wrong. It was the wrong daughter.

She had the vision while pregnant. Then she had it once more the day after Eden’s birth. They both assumed she was the daughter in the vision.

Elora had never seen any of her children grown. She likely wouldn’t have known Eden from Nora. He felt sick she’d been robbed of the chance to know their girls, especially the babe she’d never even been able to hold.

His instincts told him he needed to back off and remain logical. He knew Kellan would not want Eden if Nora was his mate. It would go against his nature. It would be futile to object.

Unfortunately, this was so much more complicated than the Wolf King knew, and Edward would not risk disclosing Nora’s predicament.

No one exhaled until Kellan finally came to a stop directly in front of Nora.

The wolf towered over her by almost two feet. Most people feared being this close to him, but this courageous child held her ground.

Kellan stared into her eyes, pleased with his correct assumption; her eyes did not match. One iris was elemental green. The other was bright blue.

None of the other factions carried this shade of caerulean. There was no mistaking it. It was blue like his … like a wolf’s.

He slowly lifted his shaky hand, then dropped it. Touching her was a terrible idea. She was a child and would not understand the situation.

Kellan needed to leave, and soon, or else he would be taking her back to his kingdom and locking her in a tower until she was of age. The need to protect the girl was overwhelming.

“Kellan,” Edward stepped forward, gesturing to his youngest child, “This—this is Lenora. My youngest daughter.”

Nora broke eye contact with the wolf and looked at her father. The tremor in his voice was out of place. Was he afraid of King Kellan?

No, it was something else, something she couldn’t quite put her finger on.

Now that the wolf appeared to have his validation, Edward moved to stand in front of Nora, blocking her from Kellan.

He knew it was something Kellan would not tolerate, but he was Nora’s father and she was still virtually a child. She did not need to hear the conversation now necessary.

Edward didn’t so much as flinch when the growl came out of Kellan’s throat. Eden reached for Evelyn’s hand while both Flynn and Foley stepped closer.

Nora was the only one still at ease. She found the sound fascinating and not at all threatening. She wanted to ask him to do it again. However, though she was naïve, she did understand asking a wolfman to growl during a formal meeting was improper.

She stretched to see around her father’s body, so she could investigate the handsome stranger who looked upon her fondly. It felt like she should have recognized him, but she could not figure out why, aside from the recognition of his voice.

Nora was certain they had never met, but he was distinctly familiar to her. The vibrations were still urging her to move towards him, but Nora would not step in front of her father.

She despised feeling out of sync with her body. For once, she wanted to trust it.

Dozens of sensations and sentiments were starting to saturate her system. She was overloading and was quick to blame the extra boost of power nature had gifted her today.

“How old is she?” Kellan broke the silence.

Nora bristled. Was his inquiry of her? And here she’d just been admiring his friendly aura. It seemed her spinning wheel of emotion had settled on anger.

She was used to indignation, so she held onto the one familiar response she understood. It quickly quelled the others and her thoughts narrowed, as did her eyes.

If he wanted to know how old she was, he should have asked her directly. She was less than five feet away. King or not, it was extremely rude to stand so close, then speak of her as if she wasn’t in the room.

Nora did not comprehend why she was experiencing this sudden surge in anger from deep within. Sadly, she could no more stop it than she could stop the world from spinning.

She was about to ruin Eden’s meeting. She should keep her mouth shut. Nora repeated the words in her head.

She’d never cared to participate in social graces. She was often a blight on the image her sisters wanted to portray, so she refrained from being present as much as possible. Though they never said it, Nora was an oddity to them. Their public lives were easier when she made herself scarce.

Her face reddened. Now she was upset she had grown embarrassed. She’d told Eden she did not want to attend, but their father had insisted.

A fresh surge of annoyance tunneled from her chest down into her abdomen.

Kellan scented anger in the air. At first, he thought it was from Edward, but then rapidly concluded Edward wasn’t fuming. He was surprised and perhaps wary, but not angry.

It was coming from the girl behind Edward. He wanted to smile at her exasperation, but somehow knew it would be taken as an offense.

“She is perfectly capable of speaking and answering questions,” Nora snapped.

“Nora!” Eden scolded while Evelyn gasped.

Edward opened his mouth to speak but clamped it shut when Kellan began to laugh. Edward found no humor in the situation. He would be sure to explain some things to Nora after the wolves were gone.

“My apologies, Lenora,” Kellan tipped his head to her.

“Nora. I go by Nora,” she firmly corrected.

Kellan raised an eyebrow at her tone, then attempted to blank his face. He needed to remember she was young and he was a guest in her father’s home.

He also needed his wolf to stay calm. The only way that would happen would be to renegotiate the betrothal. This time, to Nora.

“Nora, then. How old are you, little one?”

“I will be fifteen on the summer solstice.”

Kellan had been right. She was a child, only fourteen years of age, which was so very young compared to his many years. She looked even younger, no older than twelve.

Kellan did not want to intimidate Nora or give her any indication he wanted to marry a child, because he certainly did not. He was willing to wait for his mate to come into womanhood.

He would wait an eternity for Nora, if required.

Foley put a hand on Kellan’s arm and looked at Edward as he said, “Perhaps we should have the young ladies leave so we may discuss this change of circumstance?”

Edward nodded, and the girls stared at him, but made no move to exit the room. For the ten-thousandth time since Nora’s birth, he wished Elora was here with him. He feared he was about to make a huge mistake.

Flynn put his hand on his son’s shoulder and squeezed. Edward could do this. He had to do this. There was no alternative where the wolf was concerned. Wars had been fought for less.

“Girls, leave us,” Edward commanded.

The sisters hurried out into the hall, spurred by the severe tone of their father’s voice. He never spoke to them that way. They stared at one another as the door closed behind them.

Nora had no idea what was happening. Eden looked upset. Evelyn had her hand over mouth, as she usually did when trying to abstain from speaking.

Nora thought she had done something wrong. Was her damned temper going to forever land her in trouble?

She wanted to blame her tardiness. Maybe if she’d been in the room at the start, the King wouldn’t have approached her as if she’d intruded.

Her delay could not have been helped. Nora hated her situation more than ever. Just as quickly as it came, her internal storm calmed as she exhaled in shame.

She lowered her eyes to the floor when Eden grabbed both of her hands.

“Let me see. Are you better?” Eden asked.

Nora held up her palms while her older sisters inspected the skin. Then they did a thorough once-over of her face and neck.

It was usually the worst around the skin nearest her heart, but today her skin was clear. It even had a healthy pinkness to it.

“See? It is better,” Nora told them. “Please do not concern yourself with my health. I can see you are upset with me, Eden.”

Evelyn laughed, and Eden shushed her, giving her a glare that most mothers couldn’t manage. She would be a wonderful mother someday, Nora knew. She had seen it in one of her visions.

“No, Nora. I am not upset with you. I am worried about you.”

“But it worked. It always does. I feel good right now, better than I have in ages.” She decided not to reveal how giving the forest had been. It would only become a puzzle Eden would want to solve.

Evelyn squeezed Nora’s hand. “That’s not what she’s saying. She’s saying … well … the Wolf King … you see …” her eyes darted to Eden’s for help coming up with the right words. Evelyn didn’t want to scare poor Nora to death.

Eden’s lips parted, hesitating. Though Nora was a teenager, her small frame and boyish build gave her the appearance of still being far younger. The family had yet to treat her according to her years. Eden knew it wasn’t right, but it had yet to change.

Eden’s thoughts were interrupted by the wolf’s baritone voice. All three heads turned towards the door.

Nora, in a trancelike state, drifted to the heavy wood and rested her forehead on it. She didn’t think anything could move her from that spot. It was the same way in the forest earlier.

How had she gone from fascination, to rage, to relief in mere minutes? She should tell Eden and Evelyn about the voice in her dreams matching the Wolf King’s, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it.

The secret was hers alone and she did not want to share it.

Her sisters came up on either side of her and put their ears to the surface. Nora didn’t have to. She could faintly hear echoes of his voice in her mind.

She did not know what was happening, but she knew she didn’t want it to stop. She’d never felt so comforted in all her life, in spite of the concern in her father’s voice. Nora closed her eyes and listened.

* * *

“Kellan, she is but fourteen. She is a child,” Edward pleaded.

“Trust me, I know. I have no interest in a girl of fourteen.”

“So, then Eden—”

“No. There is no other, Edward. You know this. I will just have to wait.”

Kellan was restless, pacing on the other side of the table. His wolf begged him to go to his mate, to make sure she was safe and cared for. It would protect her for the rest of her days.

Kellan caged the animal. Nora needed time to grow up, surrounded by her family. He would not steal away what was left of her adolescence.

“Kellan,” Edward ran his hands over and through his hair, as he did whenever he was stressed.

Kellan stopped pacing at Edward’s tone.

“I’m sure you have heard the rumors,” Edward continued, “she is not magical, not like her sisters. When her mother passed as Nora was being born, something happened. Elora’s magic died—something that has never happened before. The impact was so powerful, so severe, it affected Nora’s abilities. You, yourself, said you felt it. All of Imperium felt it.”

Edward remembered it like it was yesterday.

“The baby is almost through the birth canal,” the midwife announced.

Edward was desperate for the child to emerge. His beloved wife was fading, and he did not know what to do.

“Edward, look at me,” her soft voice demanded.

He didn’t want to, but he did, fearful of what she might say. She was a Seer, the most powerful elemental to ever live, and already knew her fate. Edward looked into her watery eyes and a lifetime passed between them.

“You cannot stop this. Live for her. Live for them. Remember …”

But she could not finish what she was going to say. Elora struggled for air, then went rigid, much like the day in the Great Hall all those years ago. Light shot out of her in every direction, so bright he had to shield his eyes.

The shrill cry of a newborn hit his ears and Elora’s body went limp. The light, followed by a sonic boom in the sky, blew across the kingdom. Days later, he would learn it had reached across all of Imperium.

“W-what was that?” the midwife cried.

“That was magic being ripped out of a soul. She’s gone. The magic is dead,” a voice spoke from nearby.

Edward turned to see Theron, the temple priest, standing in the doorway. The ancient male had a knack for showing up unannounced.

Theron stepped into the room, eyes on the midwife holding the screaming infant.

“The magic is dead,” he repeated. “The baby has … I cannot feel power coming from her.”

Edward looked at his child, afraid to touch her. She was so tiny, so fragile. Theron was right, he sensed no magic coming out of her like he did with his other children.

He looked to his wife, knowing she was lost to him. Coldness settled in his bones, numbing him.

His grief would be insurmountable when it finally hit.

“Take the baby and clean her, find a wet nurse. Now,” Theron commanded.

The midwife hurried away, and Theron turned to the King. “You know what this means, Edward.”

Edward nodded and held his wife’s body close. Elora’s vision had come true. Things out of his control were in motion and the enemy had struck first.

Kellan glared at his friend. “It doesn’t matter, Edward. She is mine.”

“But your forests, you need—”

“I said it doesn’t matter. You can send someone else to assist with the forest.”

Edward furrowed his brow, the stress evident on his face. He was upset by what a dying forest could do to his darling Nora. She needed healthy soils and clean water, more than his other daughters. Her very life depended on it.

“How long do you intend to wait?” Flynn asked Kellan, leaning forward on his elbows.

“Three years.”

“No, she will only be 17 in three years’ time,” Edward shook his head, still in disbelief.

“Three years from the next summer solstice, then,” Foley offered.

“Ten,” Edward countered.

Kellan moved towards his friend and put both palms on the table. He leaned over, staring at his mate’s father. Kellan’s eyes flashed wolf, and not on accident. Friend or not, this was no longer a negotiation.

“I will not wait ten years for my true mate. Understood? The original terms were for Eden. The ceremony was to take place the day after her twentieth birthday. We will simply switch the terms to Nora.”

“Only five years?” Edward whispered.

“Five years from the day after the next summer solstice. I will arrive on that morning. You have five and a half years to prepare her. Are we in accord?” Kellan pressed.

Edward knew there was no choice, that destiny would not be denied. He sat, bewildered, trying to think of any other option. There wasn’t one.

Edward knew Kellan would never lie about Nora being his mate. It was what the wolves held most sacred. Edward nodded, and it was done. Nora would marry Kellan the day after her twentieth birthday.

“And here we thought she was going to be a priestess at the Sanctus Femina temple,” Flynn mused.

Kellan cut the male a sharp look before correcting him. “No, that was never her fate. Her future was always in the North.”