With Everything I Am (The Three #2)(118)
Author: Kristen Ashley

But the minute Callum would start to get near to share the day with his enthusiastic, fun-loving queen was the minute she’d move away. He kept getting caught in the revelry making it easy for her to escape.

And she was escaping. There was no doubt about it.

So much, when night had fallen, she’d eventually disappeared from town and when he searched for her, he couldn’t find her. No one had seen her, of the numerous people he asked, until one of his Guard told him another had taken her, for some unknown reason, to the castle.

But when he arrived at the castle, concerned at her disappearance but more, the meaning behind it, he found she was not there.

And thorough was his search. So he found the rings he’d given her had been tossed into the fire.

Now, his mother was there and he could hear more trucks arriving. He could sense a large number of wolves, probably smashed and looking for fun because the main celebrations were over as the fireworks had gone off as planned. But they’d gone off without their king being there to witness them or their queen for no one knew where the f**k she was.

Twisted with this were the thoughts of what Lucien told him about how Leah’s dreams would be events in which she participated, nearly real, but Lucien dreamed more, more events, more detail of their plight. He participated too, in his dreams. He participated in things Leah never f**king dreamed.

Like Callum dreamed last night of his betraying his queen with a wolf, the first of his kind to ever f**k around on his mate.

“No,” he answered his mother. “Right now I need to find my f**king wife.”

As he stalked to the entryway, he heard more trucks were arriving and there were voices on the steps. He could hear Caleb, Ryon, both sounding irate and Lucien’s voice, cooler, controlled but cautiously so. And another, a voice he knew, it was familiar, but Callum didn’t take a moment to process it.

Because none of the voices were Sonia.

However he smelled her there and he was going to have a word, or likely several of them, with his queen.

He threw open the door, his mother on his heels and he stopped and stared at the scene.

Ryon, Caleb and Lucien were standing shoulder-to-shoulder at the top of the steps and there were eight of Callum’s guard, four flanking each of the sides.

At a quick glance from Callum, there were in the drive seventy wolves, not his wolves, not his Guard, lined at the bottom facing off, clearly on the offensive, in attack formation against them.

Automatically, Callum assessed the six to one ratio and the fact that this, for his wolves, was not a problem.

Titium, Desdemona’s father, was standing three steps up wearing a face like thunder.

The distant sounds of town still locked in drunken carousing could be heard through the utter silence.

Fucking hell.

Callum noticed Sonia and Leah, both standing close together to the side of the top landing, eyes riveted to the men and Regan moved toward them.

“Nice you could join us,” Ryon remarked dryly.

Callum ignored his cousin and speared Sonia with a glance. Her already pale face grew paler when she caught it and he slid his hand into the pocket of his cords, depositing his mate’s wedding rings there.

Rings he never expected her to take off because first, she f**king shouldn’t and knew she shouldn’t and second, because of how she behaved when he did.

Rings he never expected her to throw in the fire and he couldn’t bloody well imagine why she did.

It was like she’d taken off her claiming chain and thrown it in the fire.

An act which was unforgivable.

He walked between Ryon and Lucien and down three steps toward Titium.

At his bold advance, the entire assemblage tensed and several wolves started to crouch.

He heard Sonia’s intake of breath.

It was only that which made him stop.

“What’s the meaning of this?” he asked Titium.

“I’m challenging you,” Titium replied idiotically and Callum fought back a frustrated sigh.

“Fuck me,” Caleb muttered in annoyance and Titium’s infuriated eyes flashed to Callum’s brother.

“Look at me!” Callum’s voice whipped out like a lash and the tense group tensed further and at once he sensed fear from some of Titium’s wolves.

The smart ones.

However belatedly so as Callum would punish them all for their insurrection.

Titium’s eyes sliced back to him.

“You sequestered my daughter,” Titium accused.

“I did,” Callum agreed.

“It’s unthinkable,” Titium snarled.

Was he mad? He had to know what the crazy bitch had done.

Further, what she hadn’t.

“What’s unthinkable is what her inattention caused, Titium. That’s unthinkable,” Callum stated. “Desdemona should have had worse and you know it, now she’s getting the attention she needs.”

“My daughter is not mad,” Titium declared, visibly working himself up. Still spoiling his daughter and she wasn’t even f**king there.

“She refused to seek her mate,” Callum returned.

“She was a little busy doing her duty for her king!” Titium shot back.

“Not very well,” Callum replied, Titium started to crouch and Callum warned, “You don’t want to do that. She’ll need you when she’s out.”

Titium’s eyes narrowed angrily and he snorted derisively, “You think you can best anyone.”

“That’s because I can,” Callum stated calmly.

Titium’s legs bent deeper. “You –”

“She’s unwell,” Sonia stated from behind them and Callum sensed, rather than saw, Sonia move their way.

That was when he sighed and only just stopped himself from rolling his eyes to the heavens.

After he found out what was in her head this time he was going to smack that sweet ass of hers until it was red for her latest inappropriate behavior.

For now she knew. Mara and Callista had been instructing her on royal protocol, not to mention he had told her on several occasions how she should behave. This might not be official but she knew to keep her mouth shut.

“Sonia, be quiet and stay where you are,” Callum ordered.

She defied him. He heard her boots coming closer as he smelled her scent getting sharper.

Surprisingly, Titium’s eyes moved to Sonia and his face gentled before he said, “My argument is not with you, little queen.”

“I know,” Sonia said softly, stopping wisely just out of arm’s reach of her mate. “But, I saw her, sir. She is not well.”